Noriko

I’m going to preface this review by saying that this movie is probably not for everyone. If you’re starting this out thinking that it’s gonna be a typical romcom, then there may be instances where you’d be weirded out. Or worse, you may even think that it’s boring. You’d probably have to be at a specific point in your life to really feel this movie in your heart.

It just so happened that I was at a specific point in my life when I watched this movie… and it spoke to me so eerily that I felt like the writer just peeked into my life and decided to make a movie out of it.

For the most part, it’s a character driven movie than it is a romcom. At first, they presented Yoshika as an adult that is still heavily caught up on her high school crush. But as the movie progresses, it shows that it’s about Yoshika’s yearning for connection. A connection that she badly desires, but lacks the courage to pursue. Because of it, she just ends up living everyday passing by people she’s dreamed of having a conversation with, and just imagines a world where she was not the way that she is. It presents the loneliness that comes with introversion—not in a straightforward way—but in a creative manner that you might miss it if you’ve never felt that way in your entire life.

Performance-wise, Mayu did not just act to become Yoshika; she BECAME Yoshika. She perfectly encapsulated all her quirks, and seemed to have a firm understanding of her character. The movie itself had a really slow-paced feel to it, which I personally liked. Overall, I give this a solid 10.

(I’ve watched this a long time ago and this is actually my favorite movie of all time, I only became active in MDL recently which is why I only got to review it now.)