heera

"If I follow this line, it will lead me to someone very important to me."

This movie made me feel so wholesome.

Itou and Nishi gave me a pleasant, wonderful story that encompasses an aging love, whimsically quoting how love can sometimes shred the happiest moments, and the bonds that were never meant to die, into a far-away memory—a love that needs to take a step back to prevent itself from completely falling off the line. It is a love that cannot endure the mere thought of losing the only soul it would give anything to see smile. Oh, what a wistful somber!

I love, love their first meeting. It was so puerile and adorably endearing. Nishi is full of warmth, like rays of sunset that shine through the darkest gales, blazing through the quirky times with his charming, full smile. He was dainty and so, so cutesy. And Itou has the appeal of fresh dew carrying the very first touch of a hot sun rising. He was comely and affable. Their chemistry together was wholly beautiful. I couldn't be more pleased, and I deeply enjoyed how joyously their romance fostered through time.

Their journey of growing up through love and through the ages was very refreshing and a complete amazement to meet with. They were initially together for a wonderful, long period, with a shared commitment and fixed goals. It was superly enchanting to see how they were heavily healthy for each other against all odds. Seeing them shine, smile, and have a wondrous routine while carrying such a light atmosphere brought so much comfort.

Yet, it was indeed saddening to see Itou wither away in love, burning in its passion and overwhelmed by a fear he couldn't shoo away. Oh, to love too much! To see the golden glisters in your beloved's magnetic orbs, to drown in his cherishing content and wide smile, to live in the beauty of a gracious, adoring time with your only ever-wanted one, to have his handsome presence. Oh, to be blessed to have YOUR heaven, yet still be washed away by a terrible horror—to feel it so intensely that you are scared of your own feelings. Alas, oh, a broken heart!

It tore me to witness Itou's growing pressure from his own feelings for Nishi and the heavy expectation to conform to societal norms. It breaks down how a person can be crushed into a corner by their own heart, exposing the devastating agony of how people generalize what is normalcy and what is not according to their own interests. Itou grew up alarmingly aware of the people surrounding him and adjusted himself to please them, attending school and doing what his parents wished to be 'normal'—always pleasing others instead of living for himself.

What is normal and what is not, anyway? What life is considered to bring a man his 'normalcy' if he is not living for himself? Itou believed what he had become was abnormal, unlike others. Thus, he chose to marry a woman, Honoka, to achieve an ordinary, socially acceptable life, believing this was what was expected of him. Which is utterly so blue.

I was honestly not expecting him to actually marry Honoka, but when it happened, I realized what stuffed, pressed feelings could do to someone. I was so upset for Nishi, seeing him faced with an ending he never stopped chasing. He tried his best to still make memories and spend time with Itou, so seeing him reach the end of the line was a horizon that mirrored his worst horror dream.

However, Itou’s subsequent marriage was deeply unhappy. It was highly soothing to explore his coming-out scene, which felt right in the gut! Seeing him stand up for his sister, asking their mother to let her marry the one she loves, while imposing that at least her marrying a man is "normal"—unlike his own love for Nishi—was terrific! I oh-so-adored that he finally spoke his true feelings.

But the fact that he spent the rest of the years searching for Nishi—who was deeply hurt by the breakup and remained single, waiting for Itou to return—just hits right home! Wdym Itou searched for Nishi for years without giving up, even if Nishi were to be with someone else, and Nishi wasn't able to let go of Itou either? Oh, my heart!

Their reconciliation in Fairbanks, Alaska—the very place they had once dreamed of visiting together to see the aurora borealis—was so mesmerizing.

I love how this story shows every single stage of the characters' love-life, wrapped in an aging, cheerful time. Their childhood-blossomed love, their spent coming-of-age, the wine of rushed adulting, and then, their evergreen senility. It was dreamlike and surreal to watch an elderly Nishi, wearing two rings, sleep into a slow, relaxed death—walking on the very line where he first met Itou, only to meet him once again.

Oh, I loved this watch so, so much! I want more of these tender stories that ride me back to a nostalgic, cozy youth—stories that hold a warm place with their brilliant essence by beautifully touching slice-of-life narratives.

"We are all just little dots that were forced into the world like this, helpless and lonely... That's why someday we search for another dot to connect with. Someone that we can form a line with and live on." — Itou Akira