I had very high expectations of this film- with its unique premise and the reviews I read. I almost expected to be let down by how I had already judged it a masterpiece before watching. But no, Now I… did not let down.

The film is realistic and beautifully told. It’s is a gorgeous film that achieves a lot with so little. The film obviously has a low budget, is filmed simply with an equally sparse soundtrack yet it is one of the most powerful and moving things I have seen for a while. The storyline is so basic yet could so easily go wrong, but it never gets convoluted or ridiculous: it’s so real that it hurts. You are left feeling awkward for Satoru as he struggles to work or talk, left feeling sympathy for his mother as she breaks down etc. The actor who plays Satoru barely says anything yet conveys so much with his movements and facial expressions- and this is the same for the other actors who perform there parts so realistically you wouldn’t think they were acting. The simple camera movement almost helps to keep it real- it’s filmed in natural lighting with all the background noise not isolated in its own world. Overall, you feel like you are looking in someone’s real life- not watching a movie.

For those of you who feel isolated sometimes or often because of your different interests then the film becomes even more powerful, it’s easy to see yourself as Satoru who keeps to himself and pushes away other people. Yet because of the strong acting and the way it is filmed you can understand all the characters and somehow feel like you know them, even though you are never told much about them.

The only thing I dislike about the film is one scene which felt out of place and then the ending which I dislike for purely personal reasons; at the end of the day the main character has found someone who does and says all the rights things to help him out. In life it’s rarely like that. That is my own pet peeve though and really, I think that this film it works. The way Tosawa steps into Satoru’s life and changes it feels perfectly natural.

And that out of place scene mentioned is soon forgotten about when the film climaxes to it’s final conclusion. The ending was amazing, telling you just enough for it to be closed but also being open enough to leave you to imagine what happens for yourself. I found myself moved and almost in tears by the end. And it also made me think alot about myself and about…just things in general.  It’s not the sort of film that will be forgotten easily for sure.

Highly recommended!

“My wish isn’t a shooting star, please let it reach you. If everyone is alone, we wouldn’t have met”

Aquarian age was released in 2008 starring Dori Sakurada, Rakuto Tochihara, Takuya Uehara, Keita Kimura, Akio Fukuhara and also a special appearance by alice nine. and Takeru from SuG. I watched the trailer for Aquarian Age a long time ago, and it intrigued me. Now finally I got to watch the movie. At the end of the day you remember the good things about a movie the most, and this movie though not without flaws also had some pretty awesome parts to it that overall come together for a decent film worth watching.

The movie focuses on several high school boys who discover that they inherited latent genetic traits — among other things, wings that sprout out of their backs. They soon find themselves caught in a millennia-old war between secret organizations who have been fighting each other since the beginning of human society.

(Warning: very long, rambly story recap under here.)

On the whole what I liked about the film was made to be rather realistic, or at least believable. It is a beautiful film: gorgeously shot, and I love how dark and gloomy the lighting is. It suits mood of the film and makes it very beautiful to watch. But not only is it aesthetically beautiful, but what I really loved about this film was the relations between the main characters and the characters themselves. Nothing is as it seems, mystery makes the film because you have got to keep watching to find out the truth and see what happens. But the family relations, friendships, and a lot of the characters themselves were so interesting, too. From the beginning I liked them (the characters) and watching them deal with their circumstance, was often moving. Scenes like with Kaname, alone in his room getting up and nervously turning to see the scars on his back where his wings are. Scenes like the ending between Noaya and Kaname where they decide not to harm each other, but to join forces to do the ultimate good. These scenes and others were not only beautiful to watch, but also gave the film a bit of depth and emotion. I guess this human element to it also contributed to how believable it was.

Of course this film had the potential to look cheap, but there is clearly high budget here again making it look wonderfully realistic. The wing scars are so believable that they are almost grotesque, and other effects are also done very well. Right at the end the actual wings were freaking awesome too o_o There are also brilliant and varied settings to again make it feel very real: and hinting at a large budget. Of course there are a couple of things that did ruin this overall believability of the film. For instance, where is everyone else? Apart from the concert crowd at beginning, the streets always strangely deserted which is weird. Did they spend everything on effects and setting instead of wasting it on some extras or something? XD Other instances also made it obvious what it was based on e.g. evil priests. I did not get those evil priests, and they were laughable. I loved Nakuara, and I think the setting of the church was gorgeous but the evil priests…no just no. The priests also got the typical OTT ‘evil guy’ music which didn’t help. The music sometimes, not just with the priests, was too obvious but other times, modern and awesome and totally fitting. Again, I loved the opening with the alice nine. song. This is possibly the best song I’ve heard from alice nine. (minus rainbows) and I am now listening to it on repeat.

The actors themselves were decent. It didn’t help the three main characters looked so alike because gloomy footage and heavy shadows made it hard to distinguish who was who, and I admit because of something this stupid I was confused at the beginning. But apart from that weird observation, the acting was generally good, only sometimes feeling forced (with the doctors, organization members, and of course…the damn priests). Maybe linking back to how empty this film was (no people on the streets at all) I think sometimes things were just too convenient. Everything linked together too well. And it was never explained why Tsukasa knew Nakuara, and was also a bit strange how Kaname seemed friends with the one guy, and didn’t really know Naoya then suddenly he was best friends with Naoya (BL vibes included) and other guy just disappeared until he was needed again. That guy was one obvious plot device, I didn’t even catch his name, although thankfully they gave him a bit of family background which saved him from being too generic.

Lastly, I’m glad that by the end the film surprised me. I totally did not expect the ending. I was suspicious of the culprit, but not in the way it ended up. Throughout the film, the perpetrator was made out to be anyone and so of course it is good that it wasn’t too obvious.

So despite its flaws Aquarian age is going to be a movie I recommend. It started well, dragged a little, and then ended perfectly. Although not a unique storyline in the world of fantasy, it was done pretty well. I had low expectations for this film, but I ended up enjoying it.

Hormones(ปิดเทอมใหญ่ หัวใจว้าวุ่น;Pidterm Yai Hua Jai War Wun)is a 2008 Thai Comedy/Romance movie. It stars Charlie Trairat, Unsumalin S., Sirachuch Chienthaworn, Focus Jirakul and Sora Aoi. This film could be compared to Seasons Change as it is also film about teenagers learning the lessons of life: although in Hormones it’s all about love. Set in summer break when school is out, the film features 4 separate stories linked together with themes of teens being teens, and of course love. Each is bittersweet, yet still extremely funny throughout with an ultimately happy ending.

1) The first story follows two boys who are fiercely competitive with each other. Both are players, but things will change when they unexpectedly bump into an old childhood friend. They didn’t think much of her before, but she has grown cute since they last saw her two years ago. Both decide to go after her, which causes a rift in their friendship as they fight to win the girl. They decide that whoever gets her phone number first will have the girl, and the loser will have to admit defeat. But Nana may not be as clueless to this as she seems. In the end, she may be the one to defeat and change them. Or at least make them realise the importance of friendship. It’s not all about love is it?

2) The second story is about a geeky boy who loves the popular girl. Even though she’s known to be hard to get, love makes you do some crazy things that completely go against your personality. Relentlessly, desperately he pursues her trying to make her realise he doesn’t want to be the nice friend; he wants to be her boyfriend. No matter how embarrassing, he’s willing to do anything to make her realise his feelings. Although in this story, it’s about the boy realising they cannot be together and accepting it and moving away from it which is more unusual and actually makes this storyline slightly sad even if more realistic/believable.

3) The third story is the crazy-ist and most unrealistic of the four. It’s about a young girl who is completely obsessed with Didi, a gorgeous and popular Taiwanese pop-star, to the point she stands in the street and screams at a cardboard cut-out of him, spends huge amounts of money on imported CDs and then proceeds to take the cardboard cut out home and treat it like it’s the real thing. Yes, this girl is delusional. She even puts her all into learning Chinese to prepare herself for the concert of his so she can meet him and talk to him. But when his concert is cancelled, she falls into depression which allows her to see the reality of her situation. In her despair she sends Didi a video of her singing the basic Chinese she has learned, not expecting anything in return. But maybe she has a future with Didi after all… (and her running into Didi and him not thinking she’s crazy and delusional and kind of liking her is what makes this unrealistic I think)

4) The fourth story contains more mature themes, and an older couple. I think they are college students here. They are already established before the film begins, in fact their three year anniversary is approaching. Both are deeply in love with each and from the outset they seem like the perfect, happy couple. However now on their summer break the girl leaves to work outside of the city leaving her boyfriend behind. They agree that he will join her for a few days on their anniversary. Whilst she’s away he stays loyal to her. But he misses her and comes a day earlier, only to meet a gorgeous Japanese girl on the train. You see, he loves Japanese girls. And so he lies to his girlfriend and spends a wild day and night with the girl who he cannot help but be attracted to. She’s gorgeous, sweet and friendly (and Japanese). But when things get hot and heavy he realises he cannot go through with it, he loves his girl to much. So with renewed enthusiasm he sets out to see his girlfriend. But it’s already too late; she knows. Has he thrown away his relationship or…?

Each story is woven around the other, connected by a fantastic youthful OST (some really catchy pop rock themes ^^) and the feelings of each group as their stories go from light-hearted and funny, to serious and bittersweet before reaching the happy ending. The movie is downright silly at times, completely serious at others but overall so much fun to watch. I laughed so much during this movie. Even though sometimes the humour is blatant, it still works very well. What I also loved about this movie was the insight it gave into a teenager living in Thailand. Some films are so glamorous they don’t really count as a cultural insight, but in this film you could see a lot of ordinary Thai life: from Trains, to parties/clubs and bars etc. Not to mention ordinary teens and friendships… it just added something even more interesting to the film from a foreigner’s perspective.

Overall I highly recommend this. Although its primary audience may be teenagers, anyone looks for something fun that doesn’t require too much thought could enjoy this movie ^^

The story begins with In-woo: a shy and awkward young adult, who has naturally never experienced love. On a rainy night in 1983 he meets Tae-hee as she runs for shelter under his umbrella. He is taken by her, and comes back to that place in the hope he will meet her. She never turns up, and he has no choice but to give up until he sees her at college and in his own way, begins to pursue her again. It’s so cute watching In woo trying to subtly woo her but only coming across as awkward, and completely obvious. But their personalities compliment each other exactly, and eventually Tae-hee returns his feelings. They develop a very strong bond. Time passes though and before long though In-woo has to go off to the military (mandatory military service) and so he and Tae-hee arrange to meet beforehand one last time so she can send him off. He waits, and waits some more but she never turns up. Unknown to him at the time is the fact that in her rush to see him, Tae-hee has become involved in a car accident and died.

Now 2001 and In Woo has moved on in life- he has married, has a daughter and teaches language at school. The job we see him in now is at an all boys school. There is a certain student, Hyun Bin who attracts his attention and he cannot help but give him special attention so that before long rumours are flying about them being in a relationship. And although In-woo thinks he is going crazy, he knows in his heart that Hyun Bin is Tae-hee’s reincarnation- it is her, and he cannot help but remember their times together and the promise they made that when they died they would meet again, and they would recognize each other. Slowly but surely his life falls apart, but he knows that the only one he loved is Tae-hee and he cannot let go of those feelings. Only, those feelings now directed at a 17 year old student, and a man. Hyun Bin is angry at first, but gradually he remembers too. But due mainly to people’s prejudice it seems in this life they cannot be together…

The film is carefully placed, never including too much detail but telling just enough for the viewer to understand and to empathise with the two lovers. There is comedy, romance, and angst but it never wallows in it- so the story isn’t dragged out until you are bored and waiting for something to happen. I loved the end, where everything began to tie together and then the ending monologue with the two souls chatting casually between each other, and In Woos confession that he will love her forever. It’s sad in a way that although you see them happy together, at the end of the day they cannot be together. Yet you feel relieved and safe in the knowledge they will meet again and hopefully get their happy ending then. The story really comes full circle, but still leaves enough for the viewers imagination. What will happen to them in the future we don’t know, but we surely have felt the power of the bond between them.

As I said, it doesn’t have a huge impact on one but it’s a highly enjoyable film that never does anything wrong. Worth watching ^_^

The story follows the relationship between Ootani and Tachibana, and not them finding out they love each other and becoming a couple rather they are already a couple, who have been together so long they know each other inside out, right down to their individual habits and feelings: they probably don’t know what life is without the other. Although their romantic relationship is a secret between them alone, they are known for always being together. Currently they live together, and have done so for almost two years. They have always been together, and never question if they will part. Everything seems perfect and they are so happy together, to the point they probably take such simple happiness for granted. Their little world is finally disrupted though when they suddenly meet an old high school friend, Yuki, who seems to have a crush on Tachibana, making Ootani feel jealous and insecure. A gap forms between them, for once they do not understand each others feelings and suddenly there are obstacles in the way of their happiness. It’s as simple story as it sounds, yet it conveys so much. What really makes this film is just how cute, sweet, and romantic it is. The subtle little glances between characters, the small actions, watching how people interact etc. It’s nice, keeping a calm relaxed pace and always staying light-hearted.

Although sometimes it becomes apparent that the story is lifted from a manga, most of the time is appears very realistic: or maybe it’s just one those stories which draws you in so much until you completely believe it is real. This simple but enchanting film is easy to sit back and chill out to getting completely lost in it in the process. Watching Ootani and Shinya together made me smile. They are such a beautiful couple and I love how they were portrayed as normal people in a normal relationship (and they were already together which makes a change). Both are pretty ordinary the way they act and also look. Good looking yes, but still they look like you’re average student. You could tell they had been together a long time to, which is probably down to the good acting. The actors here really portray their characters well. Tokuyama did well as the shy yet slightly childish Ootani and Saito was excellent as the more outgoing and confident Shinya. And in fact, the perfect chemistry between them was so good to the point where they really do make you think they are a couple. The last sex scene between them was also unique; simply it’s so tender and romantic that it’s almost cheesy. And again, the chemistry between the two actors completes that as another tender romantic scene to make you grin like an idiot. XD As you can tell, watching these two was probably what I enjoyed most XD But Matsuoka also did a brilliant job of conveying her characters own insecurities in subtle looks etc. I actually liked the character of Yuki, who was also a relatively normal character- cute, outgoing, sweet and kind. And although originally she seems to be the bitch to hate for destroying their relationship, she does become a character with whom you can sympathise with. Yes, the characters they portray so well are characters you can love. They are not the most 3D characters ever; you don’t know much of their pasts or their dreams. All you really know is their current selves, how they currently live their lives and then through that you get glimpse of their personalities: but yet somehow it’s more than enough. It means the film isn’t burdened by angsty pasts, nor dragged out too long so they can stuff in all those memories.

Admittedly there’s no passion in this, there’s no fiery emotions or extreme lust/anger/hatred etc. It’s not like they broke up, nor did anyone/everyone die (*cough*Bangkok love story*cough*) or get brutally murdered in a crime of passion (looking at you there Boys Love): more like their relationship teetered for a moment, then they got back together and their relationship became stronger for experiencing those new feelings of Jealousy and insecurity. Yuki herself also grew from losing her love. So as a simple love story it’s just perfect and sometimes…it’s nice to watch something that doesn’t depress you for days afterwards but instead lingers as a happier memory

The story takes place in a music school in Thailand over one year and covers the three seasons that Bangkok typically experiences – summer, winter and monsoon. Seasons Change centers around High-school student Pom who has a major crush on the extremely pretty and talented Dao- an aspiring violinist. A little impulsively he decides to follow her to music school. Knowing his parents would never agree to it, he lies to his father and mom: pretending to be going to medical school. However there is someone who knows- the father of another student Aom. He calls on Aom to keep his secret and she agrees. For now his secret is safe and even though going to music school was an impulsive decision, Pom is actually a very talented drummer (really it’s awesome watching him play). Through his drumming he meets three other students, quickly becoming friends and together they form a band. For a while he doesn’t take music seriously, and has fun with the band and college life until he joins the orchestra (because once again, Dao is there).

Through orchestra him and Aom become best friends while Pom still holds onto his crush for Dao, eventually realising that she doesn’t even know who he is, and then perhaps unknown to him his feelings begin to fade. However the film also deals with Pom’s growing love for music- using it as a way to show how he grows up and matures. He learns to appreciate classical music, develops passion for it and quits his band to focus fully on the orchestra and classical music. The film focuses on him coming to terms with his love for music, his feelings for Dao (and for Aom) etc. This compared to sport, was something I really loved about the film. As a musician myself, watching a film revolving around music was a highly enjoyable experience. (They even had a full orchestra- harp, bassoon, double bass and percussion included! It was awesome. Furthermore this thankfully isn’t another film to use Pachelbel’s cannon either…instead to suit the title they used Vivaldi’s four seasons. For me personally, this was appreciated as I rather enjoy Four Seasons over yet another edition of Cannon. Basically, I really loved the orchestra scenes.^^)

Soon Pom’s awesome drumming skills lead to him being offered a scholarship abroad, and he decides once again to follow Dao to Germany… and then his father finds out. And at this point I’ll leave my summary, because this is where the film finally introduces a little angst before the happy ending. You could see this sort of ending, and it was the ultimate in fluffy endings- but it was the perfect ending. And this was a good film overall, simply because it really did make me feel so good. The music throughout was awesome too. One problem with the film was it did drag on at times; it was a very long film and at times I grew impatient with it. But it was also very funny and there were also some really sweet scenes that kept me watching. So overall, this was a fun film to watch (even if nothing particulary outstanding.)

To be honest it wasn’t bad but it certainly wasn’t the best thing I’ve ever seen. The fact that it derived from a manga was very obvious as the story wasn’t very strong, and had some cliche and silly situations (”coincidences”) which could only be found in a manga. Hell, the entire plot is something you’d only find in a manga. Even the conclusion and the way it was set out was manga-like. Well, anyway…

Fukami Noboru is quiet and talented, studying photography at university. Another student on the same course Kouhei notices him and although at first makes fun at him along with his friends, he is subconciously drawn to Noburu. On one particular day he hasn’t done his homework and goes to the library to find books to help him, and within one of the books he finds a photo of two twin boys: immediatly recognizing the one as Noburu. Now curious he goes to meet Noburu, who never admits it’s him even as he snatches the photo away in defense. Slowly though, he is getting to know more about Noburu and Noboru (unwilling or not) is opening up to Kouhei in return.

The first part of this film is really dull, and filled with cliche- the film is really hard to get into. Kouhei is a little annoying as a character too, as is his girlfriend who doesn’t seem to even serve any part in the entire film apart from screaming loudly and annoying “Kouhei!!!!!” and to look pained as she sees Kouhei losing interest in her for Noboru.

The film does get a little more interesting in the second part where Kouhei sees Noburu entering a bar when walking home late at night, and unable to believe it (Noburu doesn’t seem to be the person to be out that late drinking) he goes to the bar the next night and waits to be able to confront him. Although after waiting for hours it doesn’t seem like he’s going to turn up, but of course just as Kouhei goes to leave he arrives. Kouehei immediatly recognizes it’s not Noburu, younger brother Ryo is loud and outgoing- very different from his brother. They drink and talk- forming a strange friendship whilst getting very drunk in the process. The whole drunk scene was very very amusing. Plotwise, Kouhei has been drawn into the world of the two brothers. You can see him beginning to be more and more obsessed with Noburu- talking about him alot, talking to him to try and get him to open up and now getting to know his older brother.

Finally the film has failed to build up much tension, but the concluding section of the film that follows was pretty interesting- enough to make me forget the cliche and the overall confusion. The twist is finally revealed, that shock horror Ryo is dead…and I think Noburu is just acting as him to keep him alive or something like that. It doesn’t make much sense. Naturally Kouhei becomes the one to hold him as he cries and confronts the pain of losing his brother he has suppressed and it’s all happy happy by the end with Noburu and Kouhei as a couple. I couldn’t have suspected the whole there aren’t no twins thing, and that did make certain things earlier in the film make more sense although the explanation they gave for it was wierd and well, stupid. Doesn’t make much sense overall and a lame conclusion if you think about it properly.

However Itsuka no kimi e was an enjoyable film overall, even if pretty average. Certain bits didn’t really make sense… but I wouldn’t expect it too. I would have appreciated the film to have more depth, and for Kouhei to be a better character. But it was OK, although I think it would have been better left as a manga- this didn’t work that well live action!

(Update: I happened to eventually stumble upon the manga this was based on and it’s definitly alot better, more compact and focused…)