As Long as We Both Shall live is a historical / fantasy movie about a mistreated young woman going through an arranged marriage in a fictional Meiji Era where powerful families have inherited magical gifts. The set up and context of the story is really intriging and captivating, there are a lot of lore and the movie does a good job in exploring it. Could it have been better in terms of exposition and settings? Yes. But at the same time it does make you very curious to know more about it.

The casting did a good job overall portraying charismatic characters and despite a script sometimes feeling too rushed to really allow a lot of emotional development. The two main leads relationship evolution is beautiful but it felt a bit quick to me because of the movie format. The emotional scenes were very good, especially a couple of them involving at the same time powers and fights.

What I loved the most about this film is the very high production value. The decors and accessories seem super expensive and are truly beautiful to look at...I was dazzled by the magnificence of the numerous kimonos, so so pretty. I really enjoyed as well the visual effects during the fights: there were a myriad of details making the watch super compelling.

The main regret that I have relates to the scenario and the speed at which each of the narrative arc is developped. There are so many elements in the politics of the empire that I would have liked to be better explained and more expanded on...I hope there will be a sequel because the richness of the lore leave room for so much more stories.

I would recommend this to people looking for an historical / fantasy movie with amazing production value and captivating lore. If you enjoy beautiful kimonos, meticulous decors with a lot of details as well as romance involving fantasy elements, this one is for you.