Bay and I went to the theater today to see The Apartment. Neither of us had seen this 1960 classic before, but we knew it was considered essential viewing for movie buffs, so we were excited to experience it on the big screen.

I found it very entertaining and also fascinating as a glimpse into what life might have been like back then. Of course, it is a movie, so who knows how closely it reflects reality, but it felt believable enough. Some moments were genuinely shocking, like the doctor slapping Fran multiple times to keep her from falling asleep, and the wild office party with drinking, dancing, and making out right there at work. The casual attitude toward cheating on spouses was also surprising.

Aside from those eyebrow raising moments, I thought the movie was excellent. I especially enjoyed seeing actors I recognized from other films all together here, and in their much younger years.

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Tonight I went out to see The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, and wow, what a fantastic movie! It had a little bit of everything – action, comedy, a touch of sci-fi, and just the right amount of romance. The story kept me hooked the whole time, and the animation was gorgeous. I found myself grinning, laughing, and maybe even tearing up a little. It’s one of those movies that makes you wish you could time travel too… or at least relive the joy of watching it for the first time again!

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I finally got around to seeing Moana 2 this afternoon, and while it has some flaws, I did enjoy it overall. The pacing was a little off, which I suspect is a result of the project’s transition from a TV series to a movie. That said, it was a fun, funny, and visually stunning film.

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My friend and I went to see Pompo: The Cinéphile at the theater as part of our anime-watching habit. Whenever GKIDS has a special screening, he buys the tickets, and I buy the beer (the theater has beer on tap!). It’s something I really look forward to!

Anyways, I thought the movie was excellent. The plot is basically the making of a movie, but there are so many little inspirational nuggets thrown in that I was kind of blown away and even got a little emotional. What a movie! And maybe it was the beer too. But regardless, Pompo: The Cinéphile left me with a positive attitude and life seemed just a bit brighter.

A very nice little gem of a film. Go see it!

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This evening I watched the Chinese animated films White Snake 白蛇：缘起 and Green Snake 青蛇 back-to-back. I thought the animation in both was great, but enjoyed White Snake much more than the sequel.

The setting of White Snake’s ancient China was more appealing to me than that of Green Snake’s dystopian mish-mash city. White Snake was filled with stunningly beautiful scenes, whereas Green Snake was filled with non-stop action, which was hard to take for two hours.

I believe there will be a third movie in the series, but it looks like it’s going to jump a thousand years into the future… oh well.

As far as the plot of both movies, they were nothing special. I think the main draw for me is the beauty of the animation (where the first film really shined). But I am still hoping for a more interesting plot to tie up the series.

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I finished Keiichiro Hirano’s novel At the End of the Matinee today. I thought it was excellent… in fact it had me awake until 1 am the other night, totally engrossed in what would happen between the two main characters, Makino and Yoko. But for this blog post, I wanted to compare it with the movie adaptation.

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Simply put, this is a case of “the book is so much better than the movie”. But it’s because there is so much more in the book that could possibly but shown on-screen. First off, I’d say the book was one of the best I have read in a long time, whereas the movie was kind of “meh”. There’s so much internal dialogue in the book that would be impossible to bring to the big screen, including elements of PTSD, survivor’s guilt, as well as large episodes of how the long-distance romantic relationship between Makino and Yoko. In the movie, these are only quickly touched upon and make it seem like the two are jumping into their romance (and even breaking off engagements!) without much thought. There is a scene in the movie where Makino says he would kill himself if Yoko ever committed suicide. It happens so out of the blue (and makes Makino seem like the kind of person you should not be alone with), in just their second in-person meeting that it seems implausible for him to have those feelings. However, the book details in length their internal struggles and feelings, the conversations in their Skype calls, and the development of their the long-distance relationship that happens before that in-person episode even takes place. With that back-story, his declaration doesn’t seem so out-of-the blue. I would say that character/relationship development is the most interesting part of the book. I think it’s impossible to translate or convey that on the big screen.

One of the problems with reading the book and then watching the movie is that I can’t objectively watch the movie without thinking of the book. I know so much more about the characters and what is going on inside their heads and hearts, and that knowledge gives life to the on-screen performances. So I am only guessing that the movie version doesn’t work well on its own… but maybe it does? My viewing experience must be very different from those who only watch the movie, but is the same as those who have read the book.

Perhaps a better way to look at it is that the movie is a companion to the book, adding visual illustrations to “the real” story (ignoring some of the substitutions like Paris/Baghdad). In that sense, I am pretty satisfied with the casting of Masaharu Fukuyama and Yuriko Ishida in the main roles. They pretty much fit in with what my mind’s eye saw when reading the book, but the actors had an impossible task to show the characters’ depth and feeling in just a few scenes. The movie did attempt to convey the serious internal struggles of each by using some “intense” cutscenes but these were just unsatisfying and cliché. The scene in which Makino agonizes over Sanae’s betrayal was so terrible, it actually reminded me of the infamous Darth Vader “Nooooo!” scene.

But speaking of the book, I mentioned it was one of the best I have read in a long time. In fact, I gave it a 10 on my 2021 movie/book list! I was very interested in the story of two people in their 40s developing a romantic relationship and all the feelings that come along with it. The huge plot twist where Sanae puts a stop to the Makino and Yoko’s reunion in Tokyo was amazing. That was the part that kept me reading late into the night. I was expecting for the deception to be revealed quickly and the consequences to Sanae’s deplorable actions to be dealt out with conviction. But it didn’t happen that way at all. The plot took a much more satisfying and plausible turn. The two main characters continue with their separate lives, wondering why the other suddenly cut off the relationship. I guess this is where the 40-something-year-old’s life is different from a 20-something-year-old’s. Even Sanae’s deception was understandable. (Book version FTW!)

But throughout the years where Makin and Yoko continue with their separate lives (an the ups and downs), they often think back to each other and realize they still love each other, even though they have new families. So do they ever meet again? Well, you’ll just have to read the book or watch the movie to find out. And I would steer you towards the book version.

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I have a bunch of movies on my computer that I need to watch, and looking at the list, I decided to just start alphabetically. A Scene at the Sea / あの夏、いちばん静かな海。 is a 1991 Takeshi Kitano movie about a deaf man who starts surfing.

I enjoyed the relaxed vibe and 90s-era clothes. So uncool and yet so kakkoi (cool). The story was not anything to write home about and the end was kind of a head-scratcher, but it was an interesting movie, if only for the nostalgia. On a positive note, the soundtrack was really good, which can be expected from the great Joe Hisaishi.

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I saw Children of the Sea at the theater with my good friend, and I thought it was excellent! I wasn’t so sure about the character design at first, but the facial expressions quickly grew on me. The landscapes, clouds, and background art were amazing, and the word “Wow” was constantly running around my head.

The story itself was interesting, but I wasn’t a fan of the “2001: A Space Odyssey” moment, as my friend so accurately called it. Still, I liked all the characters. A very fun and beautiful film, well-worth watching, in my opinion.

What I also noted was that the soundtrack is fantastic. Joe Hisaishi captured the mood with a minimalistic orchestration perfectly. I loved it so much. Give the Spotify playlist a listen at the end of this post if you are curious!

I hope you get a chance to watch Children of the Sea, especially if you love the warm summer ocean breeze.

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I was browsing Amazon Prime Movies and came across the Satoshi Kon movie Millennium Actress so I made some popcorn and settled in to watch it.

I enjoyed it a lot! The story was cool and imaginative, following the story of a veteran actress Chiyoko’s career, with flashbacks to different genres of movies in various historical settings. The scene where Chiyoko appears as a scientist/doctor in a kaiju movie was one of my favorites, even though it only lasted a few seconds. But the transition between the genres was so cool. There was also a nice amount of action and fighting during the ninja-assassin scenes which was very well-done.

I’ve never thought that the character style in Satoshi Kon’s movies were to my liking, but I might finally be coming around. Some of the expressions in Millennium Actress were fantastic. Definitely a recommended anime to watch!

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Tonight I watched the 2004 Japanese movie Crying Out Love in the Center of the World / 世界の中心で、愛をさけぶ, which was the breakout movie for my current actress crush Masami Nagasawa. I love melodramatic tear-jerkers these days and I knew going in that this was a sad story (you find out early on that Aki passes away), but I didn’t know that the story’s time period would also include a lot of nostalgic interest for me.

The story switches between 2004 (present day) and 1986, when the characters were in high school, which means the characters are the same age as me and Mariko. Adding to the nostalgia, Aki (Masami Nagasawa) and Saku (Mirai Moriyama) exchange messages to each other via cassette tape and it’s fun to see the old Walkman models and compact boom-boxes in action – it almost makes me want to find an old cassette player.

The plot is more interesting and complex than you might expect, and there’s a bit of mystery as to who the character Ritsuko (Kou Shibasaki) really is, and how the cassette tapes connect the past to the present. But it’s the acting that really impressed me. Most of the scenes are quiet are drawn-out, so all attention is on the acting and I am happy to say that it does not disappoint. A+ from the entire cast.

I really liked that the story Crying Out Love in the Center of the World is so pure and innocent, yet can still be so moving. There’s no controversial, disturbing, or uncomfortable scenes – it’s just a story about love, loss, and trying to move on.

I rate it 9 out of 10 on the enjoyment meter!

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