E5. OH MY HEART. The way she wanted to hold his hand. That urge, those unspoken feelings.. The way he protected her and held her hand. The parallel.. The way she wiped away her slight tear after she turned away from him. The way he just understood that she needed him. The way he came and tried to touch her and she stopped him calling his hands 'pretty' The way he said those hands are to protect family and patted her head, indirectly calling her family. The way she flinched like a little girl who felt love for the first time. The way she looked up at him.. those micro-expressions.. The way her tone became so soft and gentle when she called him kind. The way both of them laughed.
I AM IN LOVEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE *fangirling*
DAMN IT DID THE FEMALE LEAD"S MOTHER JUST HAVE TO BREAK THAT DREAM IN THE VERY NEXT SCENE?! LIKE DUDE LET ME ENJOY THAT MOMENT THEY JUST SHARED URGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHh
While the location was beautiful and the film had a calm, soothing vibe, that was not enough to save the poorly constructed and slow narrative which made this a toiling watch. Young Ayase Haruka and Tamaki Hiroshi looked fresh and innocent but there was nothing memorable about their acting or chemistry. All in all, a forgettable classic.
It's a summer film, indeed :) I'm pleasantly surprised by how joy this film brought me. On the one hand, it didn't take itself seriously with its presentation of what youth is all about; that innocence, simplicity, and the way one could unabashedly chase after their dreams which was so reminiscent of the classic feel-good Japanese films from the 90s and early 2000s. On the other hand, there was a subtle commentary on how the process of film-making and the kind of films made have changed while emphasizing how cinema will always be everlasting regardless of time, which was bittersweet. To sum it up, this is not the most perfect film, but it was a charming one with a lot of heart. This one's for all cinema lovers.
Shot in the city of Okinawa which is home to the largest US bases in Asia-Pacific, this is an important mini-drama that should not be slept on as it deals with hard-hitting issues that are not only central to the Okinawan problem but of political and multi-cultural importance, constituting of sexual crimes, racism, identity crisis, discrimination, prejudice, tensions due to military presence and treaty agreements, to name a few. Nogi Akiko outdid herself with her scrupulous yet provocative writing,, and deserves all the praise for the risk she took with telling this story. The title of the drama couldn't be anymore apt. While Mayu never disappoints, Miyamoto Ariana was quite the revelation as this is her first ever role (kudos to them for casting a Black-Japanese actress as a lead). I adored the friendship and strength both the female leads displayed despite the traumatic experiences they had. Highly highly recommended for all, especially those who are interested in real stories about real people.
P.S Dramas like this make me thankful that Japanese cinema is free from western influence or international pressure because there is no way they would manage to release this internationally without an uproar / objection from the US Army. KUDOS.
Thank you for your comment!I don't rate dramas based on enjoyment. I rate them very objectively. There are tons…
I actually wanted to keep my list very short.. but then I thought it would not do justice to the fact that Japan makes dramas from every genre for all kinds of subject matters, so I tried to include at least 1 drama from various categories to make it as diverse as possible so that people who are very new to J-dramas can actually watch and see the range of J-dramas. RE: my list - you can start from the top if you are interested.. I arranged it in such a way that people can watch it in that order (like it is more palatable that way)
Even though I hope that more people would watch J-dramas, I am actually glad they're not streamed / produced by Netflix, Disney etc because the J-dramas created by these platforms are pretty subpar and gives people the impression that Japan doesn't make good stuff. I like that they're not influenced by western media and continue to make stuff without caring about how others view it.. a lot of other Asian countries are producing content that is too safe, too unrealistic, and too predictable. Japanese focus on story-telling and tell stories that cater to people from all walks of lives, and that is the best thing about them!
i gave this 9 but changed it to 10 your comment sums up my feelings.. this drama was such an experience.. like…
I mean.. most j-dramas are very underrated on this site, and barely even have a 1000 views, esp the good ones so I 'm not surprised. If I really like a drama, I try my best to post about it on feeds and promote it so that more people would know about it and hopefully give it a try.
3 
9 
2 
1 
1 
The way she wanted to hold his hand. That urge, those unspoken feelings..
The way he protected her and held her hand. The parallel..
The way she wiped away her slight tear after she turned away from him. The way he just understood that she needed him.
The way he came and tried to touch her and she stopped him calling his hands 'pretty'
The way he said those hands are to protect family and patted her head, indirectly calling her family.
The way she flinched like a little girl who felt love for the first time.
The way she looked up at him.. those micro-expressions..
The way her tone became so soft and gentle when she called him kind.
The way both of them laughed.
I AM IN LOVEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
*fangirling*
DAMN IT DID THE FEMALE LEAD"S MOTHER JUST HAVE TO BREAK THAT DREAM IN THE VERY NEXT SCENE?!
LIKE DUDE LET ME ENJOY THAT MOMENT THEY JUST SHARED
URGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHh
All in all, a forgettable classic.
Thank you for letting me know :)
I'm pleasantly surprised by how joy this film brought me.
On the one hand, it didn't take itself seriously with its presentation of what youth is all about; that innocence, simplicity, and the way one could unabashedly chase after their dreams which was so reminiscent of the classic feel-good Japanese films from the 90s and early 2000s. On the other hand, there was a subtle commentary on how the process of film-making and the kind of films made have changed while emphasizing how cinema will always be everlasting regardless of time, which was bittersweet.
To sum it up, this is not the most perfect film, but it was a charming one with a lot of heart.
This one's for all cinema lovers.
Nogi Akiko outdid herself with her scrupulous yet provocative writing,, and deserves all the praise for the risk she took with telling this story. The title of the drama couldn't be anymore apt. While Mayu never disappoints, Miyamoto Ariana was quite the revelation as this is her first ever role (kudos to them for casting a Black-Japanese actress as a lead). I adored the friendship and strength both the female leads displayed despite the traumatic experiences they had.
Highly highly recommended for all, especially those who are interested in real stories about real people.
P.S Dramas like this make me thankful that Japanese cinema is free from western influence or international pressure because there is no way they would manage to release this internationally without an uproar / objection from the US Army. KUDOS.
Sorry I don't understand the context of your comment.
RE: my list - you can start from the top if you are interested.. I arranged it in such a way that people can watch it in that order (like it is more palatable that way)
Even though I hope that more people would watch J-dramas, I am actually glad they're not streamed / produced by Netflix, Disney etc because the J-dramas created by these platforms are pretty subpar and gives people the impression that Japan doesn't make good stuff. I like that they're not influenced by western media and continue to make stuff without caring about how others view it.. a lot of other Asian countries are producing content that is too safe, too unrealistic, and too predictable.
Japanese focus on story-telling and tell stories that cater to people from all walks of lives, and that is the best thing about them!
Dokushin Seikatsu
Ie Naki Ko
Kita no Kuni Kara
Churasan
More roles, please!!
If I really like a drama, I try my best to post about it on feeds and promote it so that more people would know about it and hopefully give it a try.