Kimi ni todoke (2010) Reviews

• a lovely movie

  martin-fennell2012-05-04

  Well I have to disagree entirely with the former review. I thought this was a lovely movie. I say this not as a teenage girl, but male long past his teenage years. In Japanese movies, and TV series, friendship would seem to be just as, if not more important than love relationships. I was more interested in the friendship between the three girls. than in any potientel love between the two lead characters. I loved the fact that sadako,s two friends refused to believe that she was incapable of spreading rumours about her. In another movie, particularly Hollywood ones, you could see a falling out between them, with dialogue such as "how could you spread those awful rumours about me. I wanted to be your friend, and this is how you repay me. I never want to see you again" of course eventually the truth will come out. I also liked the fact that the real rumour spreader wasn't a bad person.She just did a bad thing.

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• One of the best teen based movie to come from Japan

  ebiros22012-08-08

  Based on a comic of the same title by Karuho Shiina, "Kimi ni todoke" is a movie adaptation done well, and acted superbly by the cast. The story is a play on the movie "Ring". A girl that resemble "Sadako" of the movie Ring is being feared by her classmates. Rumored to become cursed if she looks at you, she is avoided like the real Sadako by her classmates. The girl's real name is Sawako Kuronuma (Mikako Tabe), and she's really a nice girl. While everyone is avoiding her, Shota Kazahaya (Haruma Miura) befriends her, and her popularity begins to grow. She also gets two friends Ayane Yano (Natsuna), and Chizuru Yoshida (Misako Renbutsu) who befriends her. There's a strong friendship between the four of them, and the story revolves around the four of them, their romance, and their friendship. Shota loves Sawako, and he confesses his love to her. Sawako slowly starts to accept the fact that she is worthy of Shota's love, and starts to become active part of his life. The story is superb in describing the intricacies of friendship, and romance of the cast and characters. Each scene highlights the emotions of the characters involved, and how they are maturing in their life. The performance of the cast is fantastic. They really carry the story with their acting, charm, and presence. Without a question, this is one of the best teen based movie to come out of Japan in the past 10 years. It's a delight to watch, with characters that you can identify with.

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• A Satisfyingly Heartwarming Teen Drama, that is neither Better nor Worse than the Anime

  totalovrdose2015-06-25

  For those familiar with the anime this feature is based upon, a number of the scenes will be easily recognizable, and though some changes have been applied, both subtle and massive, the directionality and focus the anime developed is well produced in this live action teen drama. Mikako Tabe is especially brilliant in her role as Sawako, an outcast, who is largely feared in the classroom due to her likeness, in both name and appearance, to Ringu's Sadako, despite her genuinely friendly demeanor, and desire to help, often abandoning her own wants for the sakes of other people. Haruma Miura provides a performance that is equally satisfying as Kazehaya, the most popular boy in class, whose sincerely charming and appreciative attitude towards Sawako, assists in heightening her communicative abilities, allowing her to find friendship and happiness, while also discovering herself. The film moreover, refines the back-story behind Sawako's nickname in a broader, and more visual manner than was attempted in the anime, the use of scenes from the movie Ringu, furthering the resemblance between our favorite long haired ghost, and the sweet high-school student. This is heightened by Ms. Tabe's facial expressions and tone, her socially awkward persona having the capacity to be misinterpreted as sadistic by those unfamiliar with her. These acting techniques enable her character to appear even more reserved and introverted, while her compassionately sweet personality is additionally accentuated, allowing the audience to easily sympathize with her situation. Though similar instances occurred during the anime, the feelings and tone expressed in the series being potentially relatable for those who had experienced comparable occurrences in high-school, this was occasionally accompanied with humor, while the more dramatic atmosphere of the film allows the emotional flare to be more impacting. Despite Sawako appearing equally kind in the anime, this was potentially hindered by the continuous repetition, alongside the longevity applied to certain segments. Where a couple episodes may have sufficed, often these were drawn out, whereas in this live action movie adaption, though a couple of sub-characters and plots are removed, the focus on the primary narrative makes it easier to follow. Moving on, during the anime, the characters could potentially be described as 'stiff' in regards to their movements, while in the film, which is especially true for Sawako (who appears very girly), the bodily gestures further the characterization. The film immediately demonstrates Kimi Ni Todoke to be a love story, the narration occasionally provided by both lead characters strengthening their emotions and points-of-view. Though the awkwardness and tension between the leads is perhaps not as well conceived as it was in the anime, the chemistry, reactions and feelings are very well preserved, and when combined with the musical score, makes for a heartwarming experience. Ume (Mirei Kiritani), who could be described as the antagonist, deserved more screen time. Although her feelings for Kazehaya, alongside her motivations to discourage other girls from attempting to date him are shown, her relationship with Sawako suffers due to the film prioritizing other characters. Furthermore, though Misako Renbutsu may initially seem a strange choice to portray Chizuru, this particular actress on many an occasion playing shy, introverted characters, Ms. Renbutsu shines as this in-your-face opinionated and athletic student, while Natsuna is equally superb in her role as the sultry Ayane. Despite their characters been provided adequate screen-time, the sub-plots regarding their romantic relationships/crushes are largely unexplored, and by the end of the feature, seem incomplete, the film sacrificing these stories for the relationship between the leads. Moreover, the sub-plot about the nefarious rumors spread about their characters is not given enough screen-time to be either poignant or humorous, unlike the anime. At the same time, homeroom teacher and sport enthusiast Ping is potentially the one character from the animation who is the most under-developed. During the anime, the back-story regarding his character assisted in conveying his personality, making his unusually unprofessional antics not only humorous, but greatly enjoyable, while in this live-action remake, his character seems peculiar, a couple of his scenes appearing forced, as though his character was inserted as an after-thought. This is similar to the role of Sawako's parents (Yasuko Tomita and Masanobu Katsumura) whose roles are incredibly limited in contrast with the animation, which is disappointing considering their talents, especially those of Mr. Katsumura. When contrasting the animation with the live action adaptation, the film proves to be neither better nor worse than the anime, but equal, much of the story being based on the first volume of the series. Even with some of the lacking elements that were particularly enjoyable in the anime, this live action remake is a satisfying narrative in a bite-sized package.

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• The anime is better but this is pretty good also

  cesardlg2013-07-16

  I was curious to see what the live action movie would look like. They did a wonderful job casting several of the roles. In the anime, they have the ability to really handle the raw emotions of being excluded or picked on. In the live action, they count on you just being smart enough to fill in the gaps. We of course do and it works but the emotions are much more powerful in the anime. It's the first anime that's made me tear up and the movie did it to me also. If you like the anime, I recommend the movie. If you've never seen the anime, I still recommend the movie and I highly recommend the anime. There is a manga that goes a bit further than both the movie and the anime...just FYI...

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• Ranks up there with The Railway Children and Swiss Family Robinson.

  dondau12013-01-17

  I'm a fan of the anime and found the film to be quite charming and moving, the characters endearing and well acted and the overall feel of the film, wholesome. The casting was spot on for the principals. Mikako Tabe, as Sadako, was especially impressive, as were the the actors playing Chizu, Yanosan, Ryu and Kazehaya. I don't know if this film is for everyone, but as an older person, with a varied taste in film and entertainment genres, I rank it up there with The Railway Children and The Swiss Family Robinson. My only complaint were the constraints put on it time wise. Trying to fit a 24 episode anime into a two hour film is a difficult task. The filmmakers succeeded, but I and I'm sure most fans of Kimi Ni Todoke, could have easily sat through a four hour version.

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