Michelle
Liverpool, UK
Personally, I think the beginning was very well done. The child actors did a good job within the film, especially given it was such a big part. When it got to when she was older it got a bit confusing I thought, but after a little thinking you can understand. The story line was good, but I think it had a bit too many concepts thrown in. I wish it was a simple "girl returns to grandmother and has to adapt to life" sort of thing, but I understand that for a lot of people, that wouldn't sell. I also don't like how there are hints at romance within it, but then that is abandonned - you should either leave it or put it in. However if that sort of thing doesn't bother you then this film is pretty good.
As I said, the cast is quite good. The young children within the film do a good job, as do the grandmother and Hye-ji. The acting can't be flawed too much, but I don't think it was a perfect performance by anybody.
Overall, I would rewatch it possibly. I think it is a nice film and it does give you something to think about, which I enjoy. It was a good film.
Sadly, I can't tell you where to get English subtitles online. I'm sure they will come out soon. I watched it on a Cathay Pacific flight, so that's the only way I can tell you to get it (nice holiday in HK)
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So Young 2: So You're Still Here
18 mensen vonden deze beoordeling nuttig
The story could have been really well done if on a larger time scale (therefore why I suggest it should be a drama). It is very sweet but I think should have been more in depth. The story line is something that cannot and should not be rushed, but was. For that reason the characters weren't very strong, which then meant that you didn't have a strong connection to them.
For that reason, the actors, I don't think, could have done much better then they did. I think the main selling point for this film was the fact that they are attractive. That probably adds a lot more to the film then you would get otherwise. The music wasn't too memorable.
Just to note, make sure it is a good subtitled version because I found the version I watched (which to be fair was on a Cathay Pacific flight, so I would have expected more from paid translators) didn't have very good wording with it, and didn't translate what was written down, which seemed to be quite essential (I can't tell though).
Also make note that the ending is the most frustrating thing you will ever see and brings more questions then answers. However if you google it, you find out what the final plot was meant to be and you feel a bit more satisfied. Also look {https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1E-qugSxZLA} as it has the deleted scene at the end. The director was an idiot for cutting out the ending because it kind of ruins the film - or at least it ruined a good 7 hours of my flight as I got frustrated for not seeing the ending.
Overall, I would get too frustrated to watch this again. At points I enjoyed the film, but I think it just wasn't well done. I enjoyed the theoretical story line, but wish that it was done better (preferably as a drama).
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I believe it was casted well for the characters they wanted to create. Personally, I dislike the I-have-no-feelings-but-I-am-attractive male characters, which is presumably the route they wanted to have Uehara have. To think about this, Shiraishi did well. It is a similar thing with the female lead, where the character is relatively over-the-top, but it is quite clear this was the aim so it is not a problem. If these are the sort of characters you enjoy to follow, then this drama is very much something you should watch. I know when I first watched this, I really enjoyed these sorts of characters.
The music was quite repetitive, but personally I do not believe overdone. It wasn't like most dramas where they have an overplayed sad song for all sad situations. This makes it quite good and bareable.
I don't believe it has a big rewatch value, but it I will certainly watch the sequel.
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The story was quite beautiful really. Shuta was a very sweet, caring character which made the story very nice. On face value, the friendship is portrayed quite well. I think they fitted quite well into the story and they had fairly good charisma. However, thinking about the story line, it is similar to things I have seen before, but more friendship based (did I mention it is quite friendship based). It is not completely original, and seems like a mixture of a few dramas and/or films. Despite the lack of originality in the story, it's a good storyline.
However, due to the lack of originality and the feeling of having seen this before, it does not have a huge rewatch value. This does not mean you have seen it before, and it is worth watching, but it is familiar.
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Itazura na Kiss: Love In Tokyo 2
3 mensen vonden deze beoordeling nuttig
Story - 9.5
I loved the story within this series. Even though it's not original, I think it is a lot more pure and lovely to watch compared to the original series. However it is less of an on-going story line, and more like each of the episodes are slightly off course. In the first series, there was a clear ending goal, whereas in this series it is less of a straight line, and more like going around a huge house, where you are going to different strange places just to see what it is like. Despite that, I think that is a lot sweeter, but then again wouldn't work without the first series.
Acting/Cast - 8.5
I think the acting gets a lot better within this series. This may have been due to the progression of the actors or the characters, but it seems a lot more fluid. The only critism I can properly think of is I think the change between the actors of Irie Yuki was a bit strange, because I think the second actor didn't get the full personality of him out.
Music - 8
Similar to how I viewed the first one, within this series the opening theme was very catchy. However it didn't play a lot of music, but to go from that song, I liked the music.
Rewatch Value - 9.5
I think this has a larger rewatch value then the original because it was so much cuter. Also having watched the first one, I wouldn't be confused by the general plotline, but I would appreciate rewatching this one more then the first series.
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Itazura na Kiss: Love in Tokyo
3 mensen vonden deze beoordeling nuttig
Story - 9
I have given the story 9 because I absolutely adore the Itazura Na Kiss story line. However, to follow a story line, it mustn't change drastically. For this reason it does not have a 10, because of course it cannot be original, but it was still a good take on the story! If you have already watched a version of this story (eg. Playful Kiss) then I wouldn't skip out on this drama, but I wouldn't expect too many differences. It is still a good watch in my opinion!
Acting/Cast - 7.5
My main critism about the casting is probably the difficulty of playing Irie Naoki. I think Furukawa Yuki is very good looking and good at pulling a straight face, which is mostly the character. Despite this, I think the character is too dull in that sense, as he only seemed to show emotion in the last episode. This may have been the characters or actors fault, but I can't be sure. I think Miki Honoka did an extremely good job, especially given the age she was when it was filmed. The character of Kotoko is very over the top, and I think she portrayed her very well. Personally, I think the version of Kinnosuke was better in the Korean version. Overall the acting is quite good, but could be better.
Music - 8
The music in this drama, when played, was catchy. The opening theme I enjoyed, and I thought was very good relating to the drama (although Kotoko's face when she is 'crying' is hillarious). However I didn't feel like music was played very often, especially compared to other dramas I've seen. Despite this, I like there being less music, but it may not fit everybodies tastes!
Rewatch Value - 7.5
I think I would enjoy rewatching it because, as I said previously, the Itazura Na Kiss story is great and I personally love it. However with there being several versions, I don't think I would rewatch it any time soon, because if I want to see the story again, I have a variety of choices to watch. However this is not the fault of this specific drama but of the fact that it is a widely popular storyline!
Overall, I think it is a good drama, and if you enjoy the Itazura Na Kiss story then you should certainly watch it!
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The story I really enjoyed. The concept is good, but as I previously said, it became repetitive. It felt well structured. You couldn't tell what the exact story line was, but you knew what he was going to do. You also never felt what the producers were intending, because you can tell whilst watching it that they need it to run for 16 episodes so it won't just be that easy. Saying that, there are points that are good. One major story point, don't watch if you do not like the thought of a teacher marrying a pupil. 'Coach' was their highschool coach, marrying a pupil. I didn't really like that concept (or the character but thats a different matter), so if I had known that was part of it I would have been put off a bit.
I think overall, the acting and cast were good. Each suited their character very well. I think especially the main two characters. Not more can be said really, there wasn't a problem in that departement.
The music suited the drama well. It wasn't a typical high school cheesy drama, so there was no catchy opening theme tune. However it has good tunes for different scenarios, which helps build the mood for the audience. It also incorporates the music quite nicely with singers and performers. As my boyfriend pointed out to me, they also clearly at some points used a microphone for live singing, which is nice!
However, I don't think I would rewatch it. It is a sweet drama, but it became repetitive, and it got to the point for me where I thought I was watching to just find out, and once knowing the story line I didn't want more. It didn't have a particular spark for me and it didn't seem particularly sweet, just a bit frustrating.
Overall, it was a good drama and I would say to give it a try, but its not amazing and it can get frustrating.
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The characters within it, I think, were done very well. Suwa was portrayed extremely well. Given his situation within, I think the actor did a very good job of showing the audience the emotions which his character would have had, as well as not losing his personality. Within the film with such a detailed, emotional plot, often the personalities of the characters are lost. However you can tell with the character of Suwa, that his personality was not lost. The only critism for the characters is I felt like Kakeru and Naho were not as filled with a personality as I would have liked. They were both rather dull outside of the trauma. Despite that, the writers may have seen that as an effect of what was going on, so it is not a huge problem.
I think the music fit the story, but I can't remember the music too much. This may have been the plan to be fair, because to come out of a film like this and remember the music more would be a bit sad. I would have to rewatch it to fully judge the music.
I would definitely rewatch this film, as it is such a beautiful film. However I would have myself prepared. It is a truly beautiful film, and I would recommend it to anybody!
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