Summer Wars Review

Summer Wars

Japanese Title: サマーウォーズ

Chinese Title: 夏日大作戰

Genre: Science Fiction, Comedy, Romance

Language: Japanese

Year: 2009

Synopsis:

Math wizard Kenji Koiso accompanies his schoolmate Natsuki Shinohara to her great-grandma’s home for the preparation of her 90^th birthday. He meets Sakae Jinnouchi, the birthday celebrant, and is shocked when Natsuki introduces him as her boyfriend. Later on, Natsuki privately tells Kenji that she did that to please her great-grandma and begs him to continue pretending.

Natsuki’s relatives, who are also at the house to help in the preparation, are descendants of a samurai. During Kenji’s stay at Sakae’s place, he receives a mysterious email containing nothing but a series of numbers. Thinking that it is a math problem, he cracks the code and sends a reply even without knowing the sender. The next day, he learns that OZ, a virtual reality world, has been hacked by a high school student. To his surprise, his picture is flashed all over the news, making him the suspect.

The world has been dependent on OZ. With OZ quickly falling to pieces, chaos ensues. The real culprit is an artificial intelligence known as the Love Machine. Kenji has to do something to stop the terrorism. Together with Natsuki and her huge family, Kenji tries to fix the problem before it is damaged beyond repair.

Cheerfulnuts’ Review:

Summer Wars is about helping each other and being confident with one’s skills. Kenji is a boy who seriously lacks confidence despite being a math whiz. In his short stay in Sakae’s house where he gets a chance to meet Natsuki’s relatives, he learns the value of family. When OZ starts to fall into pieces, through Kenji’s determination, the Jinnouchi clan sticks more closely together to defeat the Love Machine.

There’s one point in the movie where the family has to choose between two important things. While OZ is quickly taking people’s accounts, Kenji speaks out (something that he has never done before) and tells the family to focus defeating the Love Machine before it harms another person, to which Naomi violently reacts. She asks, “How can we worry about other people in a day like this?” In a meeting among the males, Riichi agrees with Kenji and says, “You’re right. You have to protect others to protect yourself.” This line may not be true at all times, but I like the message.

I love seeing the characters help each other, and that, I think, is the gist of the story. With everyone’s encouragement, Kenji becomes tougher and more confident. Summer Wars shows us that it doesn’t need physical strength to be a hero. Everyone can be a hero.

My gripe is Summer Wars is a bit overwhelming to watch. It’s easy to get mixed up with the names and the faces. There are too many characters all at once. With so many characters, it’s difficult to fully appreciate each of them. Having said that, the huge number of characters makes this movie much more entertaining. The story is set mostly in a single place – Sakae’s house. I could imagine that if there were only a few people there, I would have felt like watching a movie about human extinction or about a massacre of people living inside a house.

The OZ is a bit complicated concept to understand. I wish the movie would have shown more concretely how the virtual world is connected with reality. Nevertheless, it is very amusing and fun to watch the avatars interact in the virtual world.

My conclusion is, Summer Wars is not really a remarkable movie, but it’s still cute to watch.

Cheerfulnuts’ Verdict:

6 out of 10 stars

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Spirited Away Review

Sprited Away

Japanese Title: 千と千尋の神隠し

Chinese Title: 千與千尋

The Spiriting Away of Sen and Chihiro

Genre: Fantasy- Adventure

Language: Japanese

Year: 2001

Synopsis:

Ten-year-old Chihiro, together with her parents, is on her way to their new home. She is upset about the move and her parents try to convince her that the change isn’t so bad. They get lost and reach an old building with a dark entrance. Curious, her parents decide to go in despite Chihiro’s protest. They get in and find themselves in what seems like an abandoned theme park. They go further into the area and find lines of restaurants with food on the counter. Chihiro’s parents start to eat while Chihiro looks at the place in awe. It starts to get dark, but when Chihiro goes back to her parents, both have already turned into pigs. As she panics, a mysterious boy named Haku comes to her rescue. She learns that humans aren’t welcomed there, and Haku tells her to find work in order to stay and to save her parents. She is later faced with Yubaba, the head of the bathhouse. Yubaba allows her to work in the bathhouse in exchange for her name. She is now called Sen instead. She starts living in the strange world where she encounters different interesting creatures. At the same time, she tries not to forget who she is and why she is there.

Cheerfulnuts’ Review:

This is not just “another” Hayao Miyazaki movie, but rather, this is one of the movies that had rose Mr. Miyazaki more to fame. Spirited Away is magical and memorable. You will see many interesting (and some creepy) creatures in the movie. As a non-Japanese, I am amused seeing even trivial things that are Japanese. I love everything about the bathhouse. The animation is very fluid and an eye-candy. It is not a bit surprising that it had won the Best Animation at the 75^th Academy Award. Anyone who sees the movie would be immediately glued to the screen.

We could also see how Chihiro, the main character, developed into a better person. From a little girl who is afraid of change or trying new things, to a girl who is more courageous, mature, and loyal. I love seeing her grow and develop some friendships in her adventure.

Like most of Studio Ghibli’s movies, Spirited Away has its subtle romance. Even for a movie that caters to younger audience, the romance is not too cheesy and not too corny. It’s just right for all ages.

I really can’t think of a flaw in this movie, except that I don’t get it 100%. Spirited Away is one of those movies that you don’t understand completely but still love. After I finished watching it, there were some questions in my head. But my questions simply made Spirited Away more mysterious and more fascinating. This movie is something I’d love to watch over and over again, making it my all-time favourite. I highly recommend it to everyone. This is a great movie that is very engaging and would keep your eyes glued to the screen from beginning till end.

Cheerfulnuts’ Verdict:

10 out of 10 stars

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Shaolin Review

Shaolin

Chinese Title: 新少林寺

Althernative Title: The New Shaolin Temple

Genre: Action, Drama

Language: Chinese

Year: 2011

Synopsis:

Hou Jie (Andy Lau) is a merciless warlord who thinks mostly about his own benefits. When he defeats Huo Long (Chen Zhihui) in a battle, the latter seeks refuge to a Shaolin temple. Despite the monks’ request for Hou Jie to let his fallen enemy go, Hou Jie still kills Huo Long. Before Hou Jie’s exit, he sees the temple’s fallen board at the gate. Taking out his calligraphy brush, he adds the line “nothing out of ordinary” on the board, thus, insulting the monks.

Envious of his sworn brother Song Hu (Shi Xiaohong), Hou Jie devises a plan to murder him. Hou Jie’s deputy Cao Man (Nicholas Tse), who holds a grudge against him, takes this opportunity to assassinate his superior and his family. Hou Jie shoots Song Hu, but when Cao Man’s hired assassins arrive, Song Hu saves Hou Jie despite the latter’s betrayal. Hou Jie barely escapes with his fatally wounded daughter while his wife (Fan Bing Bing) is saved by the monks (Xing Yu and Yu Shaoqun) who happen to be there.

Desperate to save his dying daughter, Hou Jie runs to the temple to ask for the monks’ help. However, he is a bit too late. His daughter’s injuries are too serious. She dies and Hou Jie blames the monks for not saving her. His wife, angry at Hou Jie for everything he did, leaves him.

Hou Jie meets the Shaolin cook Wu Dao (Jackie Chan). While he mourns over his daughter’s death, Wu Dao feeds him. As Hou Jie thinks about his past deeds, he is filled with remorse. He cuts his hair and tells Wu Dao he decides to become a monk.

Cheerfulnuts’ Review:

With a great cast, the new Shaolin movie seems promising. It is. I’m happy to say that it didn’t let me down. The fighting scenes are superb. The team did the right thing for casting actors who know about martial arts.

Shaolin focuses on Hou Jie’s character development. Andy Lau succeeded in showing how terrible Hou Jie was in the first part of the film and how or why he had turned over new leaf. Viewers can easily see why Cao Man despises him so much. The characters are convincing and the plot works.

Jackie Chan’s fans might get mixed feelings with his “mere” special appearance in Shaolin. Some might get disappointed for the very limited fighting scenes he had. Others might be happy for the new image he had shown in his character. In my opinion, Jacky Chan’s Wu Dao is a likeable character, as his characters have always been in his movies. His presence made the movie much more amusing.

I used to regard Nicholas Tse as a teen idol. Since I saw his Deng Sidi in Bodyguards and Assassins (2009), my outlook of him changed. My respect for him as an actor grew, and I expected that he would give an outstanding performance in Shaolin. He didn’t fail me. Though his Cao Man is not as good as his Deng Sidi, he has portrayed his character well. Cao Man did annoy and scare me.

The downside of Shaolin is it focuses too much on religion. It’s not exactly a bad thing, but viewers with different beliefs should be prepared when watching this film. Since it involves monks, Buddhism is profusely instilled to the audience.

Overall, I like the movie. It has excellent casting, superb acting, engaging story, impressive action scenes, and an amazing soundtrack as well!

Cheerfulnuts’ Verdict:

9 out of 10 stars

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Itazura na Kiss Review

Based on Kaoru Tada’s manga of the same name, Itazura Na Kiss has been adapted a few times for screenplays in Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea. This review, however, is about the 1996 Japanese version, the first ever adaptation of this manga. Starring Takashi Kashiwabara and Aiko Sato.

Itazura Na Kiss (1996)

Japanese Title: イタズラなKiss

Chinese Title: 一吻定情

Alternative Titles: Naughty Kiss, Teasing Kiss

Language: Japanese

Genre: Romantic-comedy

Duration: 9

Telecast: 1996

Synopsis:

After Kotoko Aihara’s accidental kiss with Naoki Irie, Kotoko has fallen deeply in love with Naoki. Naoki is the most popular guy in school. He is very bright and handsome but is very cold to people. Kotoko, however, is an average girl who doesn’t seem to be good at anything. She is everything Naoki doesn’t like in a girl.

When a fire incident destroys all her family’s property, Kotoko’s dad Shigeo accepts help from his childhood friend Machiko. The father and daughter move to Machiko’s place, only to find out, to Kotoko’s surprise, that Machiko is actually Naoki’s mother. Now she has to live with her crush after the humiliating “kiss”.

Wishing that Naoki will reciprocate her feelings, she promises herself to make Naoki fall in love with her, even if he seems to be out of her league. During Kotoko’s stay, Naoki, unknowingly, seems to fall for her.

Cheerfulnuts’ Review:

Itazura Na Kiss is pure silliness. Silly in such a way that it would hurt your tummy for laughing so hard. Japanese comedies have always been hilarious to me, but Itazura na Kiss is one of the funniest I’ve seen so far. I’ve read a lot of viewers comment about how much they hate Kotoko. She is annoying, but I guess Aiko Sato’s acting worked for her role. She is supposed to be as irritating as possible so that Irie-kun would dislike her as much as he could; thus, making the story very comical and amusing.

Takashi Kashiwabara, on the other hand, is perfect for this role. He is extremely handsome! It’s not hard to understand why his Irie-kun is so popular in his school. Kashiwabara’s looks alone could sweep any girl off her feet. Despite the lead girl’s silliness, I’m still tickled pink in every bit of kindness Irie-kun shows to her (no matter how trivial it is).

The plot is very simple and light. It’s perfect to watch after a hard day’s work. Both young and old would find this entertaining. However, just for you to know, I haven’t read the manga and I haven’t watched other versions so I don’t have anything to compare it to. Also, I have no idea how viewers who have watched the other versions would feel after watching this. I have also learned that the author had died prematurely before she could finish the manga series. Since I haven’t read the manga, I’m not sure if the series have ended it “right”. I love the ending though. But I have one gripe with the ending – it’s not convincing at all.

Overall, this drama offers you what it promises: romance and comedy. However, it is more comical to me than romantic. If you want those two in a drama, then you may safely add Itazura na Kiss to your “to-watch” list.

Cheerfulnuts’ Verdict:

9 out of 10 stars

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Year of the Fish Review

Based on a Chinese fairy tale Ye Xian (葉限), Year of the Fish is a 2008 animated film that uses a rotoscoping technique. The actors are mostly Asian though English is the spoken language in the movie. The story is set in New York’s Chinatown.

Year of the Fish

Chinese Title: 魚年

Year: 2007

Language: English

Genre: Romance, Drama, Fantasy

Synopsis:

Ye Xian (An Nguyen) leaves her sick father in China and went to the US for greener pastures. She arrives at a massage parlour and is introduced to a stern-looking Mrs. Su (Tsai Chin) whom they refer to as “Auntie”. While running on an errand, Xian encounters a strange woman (Randall Duk Kim) who has been eyeing her the whole time. She approaches her and is told about her future being filled with bad luck. To counter this, the old woman gives her a magical fish.

As she stays at the parlour, she realizes that it is actually a brothel disguised as a parlour. She refuses to “serve” her clients and as a result, Mrs. Su punishes her by making her everyone’s slave. This marks the start of her difficult times on a strange land.

Cheerfulnuts’ Review:

This is an adult version of Cinderella but with a twist. The plot is familiar to everyone, but it tells much more than a girl meeting her prince charming. It talks about values and principles. Xian greatly values her purity. She stays strong despite being verbally, physically, and emotionally abused. It is a truly admirable trait. In the end, her insistence has paid off.

The movie’s rotoscoping made it more fairy-tale like without appearing too childish. It was my first time to watch a movie using this animation technique. It was fun and weird at the same time. I find it hard to appreciate the actors’ acting after their faces had been blurred. I couldn’t even see An Nguyen’s face (I didn’t know what she looks like).  Though I give importance to the dialogues of a movie I’m watching, I’d also love to see the characters’ facial expressions. Some viewers may find the movie too “painful” to watch, literally. It does hurt the eyes.

Despite my complaint about the rotoscoping, I think it’s a great idea. It is a risky move, but it has its pros and cons. The animation is very suitable to the movie, given that the narrator is a fish. It makes the movie appear like under the water, which is genius because the story is being seen from the fish’s eyes.

My other gripe is the strong Chinese accent of some characters. Some people may have a hard time picking up the dialogues. Being a Chinese myself, I admit that I can’t understand some of the lines. I wish the movie has a subtitle for more pleasant viewing.

Though it is a fairy tale, Year of the Fish may not be suitable for young children because of the theme. I recommend this movie to adults, especially those working abroad.

Cheerfulnuts’ Verdict:

6 out of 10 stars

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Patisserie Coin de rue Review

Patisserie Coin de rue

Japanese Title: 洋菓子店コアンドル

Chinese Title: 幸福洋果子

Year: 2011

Language: Japanese

Synopsis:

Tomura (Yosuke Eguchi) is a culinary teacher and a guidebook writer. He used to be a legendary patissier but has quit making cakes since eight years ago. He visits his friend Yuriko’s (Keiko Toda) café Coin de rue when a girl named Natsume (Yu Aoi) suddenly comes.

Natsume travels all the way from Kagoshima to Tokyo to look for her boyfriend Umi who works at Coin de rue. To her dismay, she learns that Umi has already left and no one would tell her where he’d gone. Upon seeing the job hiring notification at the café and determined to bring Umi back home, Natsumi decides to work there while looking for her boyfriend.

Yuriko asks her to bake and everyone, including Tomura, tastes her cake. The cake, unfortunately, doesn’t meet the café’s high standards. After that, she is asked to taste one of the café’s cakes. To her amazement, the cake tastes much better than her own cake. She begs Yuriko to let her stay and to teach her to bake delicious cakes, to which the latter reluctantly agrees. This marks the start of Natsume’s rediscovery of her passion.

Cheerfulnuts’ Review:

I got excited when I found out that Yosuke Eguchi starred in this movie. I saw some of his shows and I greatly admire his skills. On the other hand, it was my first time to see Yu Aoi. Despite my being unfamiliar with her, she steals the scene every time she appears. I’m not really “in love” with Natsume, but she is a very interesting character.

I wish the movie has stayed more on Natsume’s friendship with Tomura. It would be interesting to see their friendship grow and Tomura becoming a happier person. There are so many plot holes in the movie that it makes the movie a bit unrealistic. Why does Mariko despise Natsume? Why is Natsume so eager to take Umi back home? What’s with the old regular customer’s ambivalent attitude towards Natsume?

The movie does have a poignant moment. When Natsume heard a customer say “oishi” (delicious) after eating their cake, it made her shed tears. It was a very moving scene. She suddenly understood how cakes could bring happiness to people. It gave baking much more meaning.

Patisserie is not an exciting movie, but it’s not boring either. Despite its flaws, it’s still watchable. I would recommend this movie to fans of Yosuke Eguchi and Yu Aoi. However, hungry viewers/cake lovers may also want to give this movie a try. The cakes are very pleasant to look at that they can captivate any hungry viewer. The camera’s constant focus on the cakes made me utter “wow” repeatedly in my seat.

My conclusion: give this movie a try. But if you don’t, you’re not missing anything.

Cheerfulnuts’ Verdict:

5 out of 10 stars

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