Crying Out Love, in the Center of the World (Sekai no chushin de, ai wo sakebu)
"I thought I might be using a lifetime's happiness in a moment. I was that happy and she was that beautiful." A young boy stands on the red earth of Australia under its blue sky. It is 17-year-old Sakutaro Matsumoto. His time with the girl comes back to him. The colored sand runs through his hands and a tear appears on his cheek. He wakes up. It's 2004 and he is 34 years old and in Japan. He thinks "I have been in a world without her for 17 years." Returning home to see his old high school for the last time before it is demolished, Saku confronts anew the loss of the love of his life, Aki, to leukemia 17 years ago. Now a medical researcher at graduate school, he has been living as if half of him died with her since then. Based on the bestselling novel that sold over 3 million copies, the past and present come together in this love story that is both pure and sad. (asiawiki-2004)
Usually, I just avoid this kind of (melo)drama. The one where there is a cute, young couple who love each other very much and then one dies. But I gave a chance to 1 Liter of Tears and thank God I did, because I loved it. So I decided to give this one a chance, especially since the reviews were good and most of them were "I cried as much as/much more than I did with 1 Liter of Tears". And even more because the couple were Ayase Haruka and Yamada Takayuki, two good actors.
Alas, I did not like this dorama. I should have seen the movie instead (which has two amazing actors, the ones that portrayed the older couple). I think that Haruka's smile felt too fake, like she tried too hard to look cute and innocent and happy to make the audience sad once she got sick. To me, she wasn't very likable. I doubt of her feelings all the times when she was healthy. What were her true thoughts? I think that, although Takayuki can certainly cry, this was not his best role. Sometimes it was like watching Kame act. And I am not saying Kame is a bad actor (quite the opposite) but Takayuki is on a different level, so this felt a bit amateurish for me. I didn't feel the romantic chemistry between them, it was almost like a sister and her younger brother to me :( and when they kissed... OMG, Haruka really needs some help in that area... she needs to react, not stay there like a statue without even pouting her lips! Terrible :S
The story dragged for too long. This was certainly made to be a movie only, not a drama. I wasn't engaged in their love story, so for me, the end did not feel sad at all. And I think that Saku stretched his sorrow for just so many years, he truly needed help if he couldn't move on 17 YEARS after her death.
Many scenes were just too melodramatic (Aki trying to commit suicide, the accident of the new woman, the older Saku's tears) and some were eye-rolling (the many, many times Aki says "Saku-chan"; Saku planning their wedding when they were in the island).
On the other hand, I like his friends and her friend. One of his friends looks like he is Tanaka Kei's brother; and her friend Tomoyo looked so much like Horikita Maki (so pretty). I liked that the whole atmosphere felt nostalgic, because it happened in a time where cassettes and walkman were popular. I liked that they communicated thru cassettes, and I liked the little town where they lived. I liked the OST that accompany the episode, but not the ED.
I can't believe people compare this dorama to "1 Liter of Tears". It is an insult. I mostly skimmed the last episode... I just wanted it to end :(
**My rating: 3.5/10**
Usually, I just avoid this kind of (melo)drama. The one where there is a cute, young couple who love each other very much and then one dies. But I gave a chance to 1 Liter of Tears and thank God I did, because I loved it. So I decided to give this one a chance, especially since the reviews were good and most of them were "I cried as much as/much more than I did with 1 Liter of Tears". And even more because the couple were Ayase Haruka and Yamada Takayuki, two good actors.
Alas, I did not like this dorama. I should have seen the movie instead (which has two amazing actors, the ones that portrayed the older couple). I think that Haruka's smile felt too fake, like she tried too hard to look cute and innocent and happy to make the audience sad once she got sick. To me, she wasn't very likable. I doubt of her feelings all the times when she was healthy. What were her true thoughts? I think that, although Takayuki can certainly cry, this was not his best role. Sometimes it was like watching Kame act. And I am not saying Kame is a bad actor (quite the opposite) but Takayuki is on a different level, so this felt a bit amateurish for me. I didn't feel the romantic chemistry between them, it was almost like a sister and her younger brother to me :( and when they kissed... OMG, Haruka really needs some help in that area... she needs to react, not stay there like a statue without even pouting her lips! Terrible :S
The story dragged for too long. This was certainly made to be a movie only, not a drama. I wasn't engaged in their love story, so for me, the end did not feel sad at all. And I think that Saku stretched his sorrow for just so many years, he truly needed help if he couldn't move on 17 YEARS after her death.
Many scenes were just too melodramatic (Aki trying to commit suicide, the accident of the new woman, the older Saku's tears) and some were eye-rolling (the many, many times Aki says "Saku-chan"; Saku planning their wedding when they were in the island).
On the other hand, I like his friends and her friend. One of his friends looks like he is Tanaka Kei's brother; and her friend Tomoyo looked so much like Horikita Maki (so pretty). I liked that the whole atmosphere felt nostalgic, because it happened in a time where cassettes and walkman were popular. I liked that they communicated thru cassettes, and I liked the little town where they lived. I liked the OST that accompany the episode, but not the ED.
I can't believe people compare this dorama to "1 Liter of Tears". It is an insult. I mostly skimmed the last episode... I just wanted it to end :(
**My rating: 3.5/10**