S. Yue Michaelis

Akinori Kimura (Sadao Abe) and his wife Mieko (Miho Kanno) opens an apple orchard in their hometown of Hirosaki, Aomori Prefecture. Due to Meiko's allergic reaction to pesticides, Akinori Kimura has to grow his apples without the aid of chemicals. Because of this challenge, his family endures hardships and suffers severe financial difficulties. Akinori Kimura even contemplates suicide. A miracle then happens .... (asiawiki-2013)

Very heartwarming. Abe Sadao plays the unlucky underdog so well, you can't help but root for him. And in this movie, he has a beautiful wife and 3 cutie girls. More reason to root for him! It was heartbreaking to see Year 1, Year 2, Year 7 and nothing changing. Their situation getting worse and not getting any support from his family and from friends and neighbors. Still he tried and tried to grow apples without chemicals. And never once he resented his wife. He only blamed him.

The setting was gorgeous. Beautiful orchards, the greenery was so pretty.

I feel sad for the father-in-law... the only one who supported Akinori...

Kanno Miho is so pretty. Her tears moved me... She talked funny in the movie but I understand is the accent of that city.

My only complain would be the length of the movie. More than 2 hours. Not that it was dragging (all scenes were necessary), but it still felt long.

This is a slice of life, a touching one, and very easy to watch. The older daughter was very good. Just what her poor father needed :(

Takeo Goda (Ryohei Suzuki) is a high school student 2 m tall and weighting more than 100 kg. He has a righteous character. The male students adore him, but female students do not like him. All of the girls Takeo likes prefer his handsome friend Makoto Sunakawa (Kentaro Sakaguchi).

One day, Takeo saves female high school student Rinko Yamato (Mei Nagano) from a pervert on train. Takeo falls in love with her at first sight. He feels Rinko likes Makoto, but Makoto isn't the one she likes. Takeo struggles to liaise between Rinko and Makoto. (asianwiki-2015)

A veru cute and well done live action! I've read 2 volumes of the manga, and I am currently watching the anime, so I can't compare. But as a standalone movie, I loved it. It is very anime-like, very cute, beautiful cinematography, gorgeous colors, well paced story, and what is the best, I loved the cast. Mainly the 3 main characters... Suzuki Ryohei looked so much lika an anime character, he did the voice and expressions so well without looking ridiculous. Kentaro looked attractive as always (the hair, though, is not my favorite... he looked so cute in "Kounodori", which is my favorite hairstyle so far), and the girl was so cute! In the manga (and currently, in the anime) I find the girl too "kawaii", with that height and that voice ... next to Takeo it looks like a little girl with her father... but the movie worked perfectly because the girl is not short, nor annoying at all. In fact, her smile was adorable!

I would loved that when they confess their feelings, at least they hold hands, but I understand it couldn't be done because Suzuki-san is way older than Mei. That may be my only complain about the movie. About the story (and the reason why I dropped the manga) is when there is that fire and Takeo saves everyone. I think that kind of plot a lazy way to make the MC hero in the girl's eyes and the reader/audience's eyes.

I've read comments of people going crazy about the extra scene in the credits, but for me personally, I thought poor Kentaro couldn't breath properly XD poor Suna!

Mikio (Masato Sakai) is a married man and works hard for the company where he is employed. Then one day Mikio is diagnosed with depression. Mikio's wife is Haruko (Aoi Miyazaki). They have been married for 5 years. Haruko draws comics for work, but they do not sell well. She mainly relied on Mikio for support. Meanwhile, Haruko did not notice any changes in her husband. She begins to blame herself for not noticing any signs. Mikio's depression derived from his work. His company has been pressing him to quit the company. After Mikio quits his job his condition improves, but the dynamics of their relationship changes. (asiawiki-2011)

One of my desires is to watch the taiga "Atsu Hime". I am dying to watch it ^_^ but the dorama is nowhere to be seen/downloaded. I've read so many good reviews, not only about the story and costume and acting, but also about the chemistry between Aoi and Masato Sakai. So when I saw this title, I knew I had to watch it.

The movie is about depression, but it is not a depressing movie at all. In fact, it is rather cute, with all the little drawings (Haruko is a mangaka, and her drawings are so nice). Her diary, about her husband depression, was adorable. But it is not only the drawings, but the support Mikio gets from his wife and his in-laws that was nice. It is not easy to have someone depressed in your home, but Haruko tried her best to support her husband.

I learnt a couple of things about depression, so this movie is not only heart-warming but also informative. And touching, in a couple of scenes. The filmography was great, their little home was cozy and outside, with the sakura blooms, was so nice.

Masato Sakai has such a dorky face, so this suit him perfectly. The movie does not have a beginning nor an ending, which is something that I have found mostly in J-doramas and movies. Which I like, because not everything has to have a beginning and/or an end. Also, although it is a 2-hour movie long, it is never dragging nor slow.

Japan is one of the country with the highest amount of suicides. I've read that it is mostly because of work, which is the main reason why Mikio is depressed. The routine, his work-environment, having to take the train everyday, all squeeze like sardines are enough motives. At least he has his pretty, supportive wife, who is there for him "in health and sickness".

I wonder if this was based on real life...

There are three sisters: 29-year-old Sachi Kouda (Haruka Ayase), 22-year-old Yoshino Kouda (Masami Nagasawa) and 19-year-old Chika Kouda (Kaho). They live at a house in Kamakura, Japanese. Their house was left by their grandmother.

One day, they receive news of their father's death. When the sisters were young, their parents divorced and their father left them. They haven't seen their father in 15 years. Upon hearing the news on their father's death, the sisters attend their father's funeral.

At the funeral, they meet their stepsister Suzu Asano (Suzu Hirose). She is 14-years-old and there are no one to take care of her. Oldest sister Sachi invites Suzu to live with them. (asianwiki-2015)

A lovely movie, where "nothing happens", meaning it is a slice-of-life, the story of 3 sisters and their new relationship with their half-sister. There are no dramatic moments. I love this kind of stories, that are simple and where the setting is in a small town. It makes the story more heart-warming I think.

Regarding the cast, almost all of them are familiar. There are even big names that have like a cameo, since their roles are so tiny. Like Suzuki Ryohei, Ryo Kase and Sakaguchi Kentaro (although the latter is just beginning his acting career). To be honest, I am not a fan of Nagasawa Masami, and I would have preferred if Kaho's role was bigger. I mean, Kaho is miles ahead of Masami, but their roles suited them: Kaho as the oddball and Masami showing lots of skin.

The boy who was friend of Suzu was so cute! And I can't believe Haruka had a role where she was the mistress of a married man. Who wanted to get a divorce, but still.

The best thing about this movie, besides the filmography, is that it is mostly women: women and their love life, women and their family, women and their job, women and their every-day life. Very nice movie.

Emi Hosho (Eri Fukatsu), a not so successful lawyer, is assigned to the one of the most unusual of cases. Her client is accused of murdering his wealthy wife and he his alibi is that he was staying at an inn while suffering from "kanashibar" (sleep paralysis). The only witness able to corroborate his alibi is the 500-year-old ghost of the Sengoku period military commander Rokubei Sarashina (Toshiyuki Nishida) - who sat on the accuser's chest all night long.

Attorney Emi Hosho travels to the inn to investigate further. Emi Hosho also falls into "kanashibar" and soon discovers the 500-year-ghost sitting on her chest. Knowing that the ghost is the only witness who can support her client's alibi, she grabs his hand and pleads with him to testify in court .... (asianwiki-2011)

What a disappointment. I've read so many reviews about this; I was sure I was going to laugh the entire time or so, but no. I may not have laughed not even once. Ok I am lying, I did laugh when my dear Abe Hiroshi tap-danced. Or I may have smiled all the times he spoke. And ok, I laughed a little bit with the taxi driver. But that's it. To me, the movie was super slow, the ghost did not make any sense, wasn't helpful at all. It was like "case? what case?". It wasn't so much about the crime; hello, the real murderer was all happy and free until the last 10 minutes or so; it was like no one bothered to find out who the murder was.

This is my first movie by Mitani Koki; I really thought he was my kind of director. I've read so many excellent reviews about his movies, about how funny they are and all the cameos it has. And that's it. That may be the "best" thing about this movie; all the popular (and good) actors there are. The most memorable, besides Abe-san, could be Fumihata-san, who is everywhere. And the taxi-driver. The rest, MEH. I was disappointed that Kusanagi did not have any lines (he blows the harmonica, and that's it, that's his role. MEH).

Moritaka Mashiro (Takeru Satoh) doesn't want to follow in the path of his uncle who worked as a manga artist, but ultimately died because of exhaustion. Moritaka Mashiro figures he will graduate from school and work at an office. Things change though when falls in love with a girl at school. The girl, who hopes to become a voice actress, tells Moritaka they can marry, but only after they both achieve their dreams. Moritaka then teams up with fellow classmate Akito Takagi (Ryunosuke Kamiki) to publish their first manga. (asianwiki)


I waited so much to see this movie. I think I have never waited so much for a movie before. When the cast was announced I was excited. I thought, and still did while watching it, that Takeru should have been Shuujin, and Ryunosuke should have been Saiko, but nevertheless, it was a good movie. The pace was well done, the special effects were very good as well. There isn't a single slow moment in the movie. All actors were spotted on. And the setting! The department looked exactly the same, the clothes were exactly the same. To see the real Shounen Jump building and offices (at least, I think they were the real locations) was as exciting as it was impressive. All those papers.. thousands and thousands of it. All those mangas!

Speaking about mangas, I was so satisfied to see that the manga used in the movie were done by the same mangaka that did BAKUMAN. His style is unique; any fan of his can recognize his work. And to see works like Otter in real life! Otter is a manga written by Hiramaru in Bakuman, and I always wanted to read it, even if it doesn't exist really.

So, the cast. There was a good chemistry between the lead actors, which didn't surprise me since I know they have worked together before. I liked that they could shake hands -or whatever you called that- only when they get serialized. It was a good point. I like that the "love story" with Miho wasn't as pathetic as in the manga/anime. In fact, they talk several times, over the phone and face to face, and it wasn't awkward, just 2 teenagers getting to know each other. She even sends him a photo of her! Something that lame Miho in anime/manga wouldn't have done. I think the scriptwriter or the director disagreed with the portrayal of the main female character in the manga/anime (it was sexist, let's be honest), so they made her less pathetic and less "I wanna be a seijuu to marry you".

Kiritani Kenta as Fukada-san was SPOT ON! He was excellent, he does this kind of character so well! The one who is rebellious and kind of a gangster but with a big heart. By far my favorite. I love his outfits, his expressions, and I am glad his role wasn't tiny. But well, all members of Fukada-team were good: Hinamaru had his moments of depression that did not fail to make me laugh, Nakai-san was there with his big belly helping his friends... True, no Aiko in the story, but it was understandable. Not all characters could be in a 2-hour-movie.

Yamada Takayuki was, I guess, a mix between the 2 editors the boys have, because he certainly wasn't confident Hattori-san. He even wears glasses and has long hair (again, not Hattori-san), and he is smaller than the boys, unlike Hattori-san. If I didn't have to compare, I'll say he was good, but nothing outstanding.

So, what was my main concern: Nizuma Eiji, who is one of my favorite characters, besides having an unique personality. Was Sometani Shouta exactly like Eiji is supposed to be? No. He wasn't as loud, as crazy, and with such weird and funny expressions and movements as Eiji. Was I disappointed? Well, not exactly. To be honest, Eiji is not a character that can be portrayed faithfully in real life, so what Sometani did was good. He did his role well, he did his research: he walked funnily, slouching, just like Eiji. He has a goody smile, like Eiji. When he has a -metaphoric- battle against Ashirogi-sensei (which was never used in the movie, btw... they go by their names, no pen-names there), he has the wings and when he is jumping, he does an Eiji-pose. Just with that I am grateful.

In the manga/anime, the guys form some kind of alliance when they encounter problems with their editorial. It begins when Saiko is in the hospital and the director forbids him to keep drawing while he is sick. All the other mangaka (Nakai-san, Aiko, Fukada-san, Eiji) support Ashirogi-sensei. Unfortunately, due lack of time, that alliance could not be done as in the manga/anime. Instead, the guys help Saiko to finish his work. I liked that, that we could see it, how the guys, although rivals, are all friends. And although Eiji did not help him in drawing (it would have been very OoC) he helps in another way. Very well done, scriptwriter!

I liked the end, that things remain not-finished: Saiko and his relationship with Miho; their career as mangaka... I liked that they have this brainstorming of ideas with a blackboard, because for us fans, it was meaningful. We know what other mangas there will be, so this was like a "to be continued..."

For fans of the manga/anime, and for people interested in how the mangaka work, this movie is highly recommended. I am very happy to say that I wasn't disappointed and that I highly liked it.

Kanna (Mana Ashida) attends kindergarten in central Tokyo. Her friend was been absent in school for several days. Worried about her friend, Kanna gathers fellow classmates Hiroshitake Taniguchi (Tomoya Hashimoto), Takujitsu Uehara (Ruiki Sato), Kotomi Mochida (Miyu Honda) and Shunyuu Horikawa (Hiroyuki Kuroda) and they take a trip to out to Takao Station in western Tokyo hoping to find their friend. A pact is made before they sneak out of school that no matter what happens they won't cry ... (asianwiki)


I don't think there is a single dragging moment in the whole movie, and most of it was because of the cast. No need to add that little Mana-chan is a wonderful actress, but the other kids were wonderful as well. Like Miyu-chan, who I found adorable when she guested in Shabekuri 007. Or the little boy who cried so well. Or the sick boy who looked like a young Daniel Radcliffe (seriously, he needed a pair of glasses and could have been easily a Harry Potter). Matsushima Hikari, who played one of the teacher, had a tiny role and one I could not fully comprehend. She is supposed to be in her last days as a teacher, and while she is having a smoke and lazing around is when the children run away. I like this actress so much it was like watching an old friend. Her voice, her slim fingers, her calm voice... I wanted to cry just seeing her. She pulls that out of me.

The promise of not crying on their journey is not accomplished, but the children were so good at crying I was almost happy they couldn't keep their promises. It was impossible not to cry a little bit at the end. So while it is a entertaining movie, warm and human, the end was good precisely because of that bitter-sweetness.

Sakurai (Masato Sakai) is an aspiring actor who becomes frustrated with his life. Sakurai then decides to kill himself, but before committing suicide Sakurai heads off to a public bathhouse. At the bathhouse, Sakurai then witnesses a man named Kondo (Teruyuki Kagawa) collapse and lose his memory in front of Sakurai. On a sudden whim, Sakurai switches locker keys with Kondo and pretends to be Kondo. Sakurai soon finds himself in trouble with the yakuza ...



I may be one of the few people (according to all the reviews and articles I've read) that did not like this movie so much. I was expecting more: more laughs, more action, more silliness, etc. And well, look at the cast! Sakai-san, Kagawa-san, Hirosue-san (and oh, that super funny guy, Arakawa-san!). But all in all, the movie was slow and did not live up my expectations.

I really thought that Sakai Masato would play more like a tough yakuza, but he barely had to pretend. He barely had any dangerous adventure. Kagawa Teruyuki was really good, especially since he has the face of a mean yakuza but once he loses his memories, he is supposed to be a normal guy trying to find work in the entertainment business. I really wanted the story to be more focused on Sakai trying to pretend to be a tough guy, and Kagawa trying hard to be a nice guy.

The end was very funny and ridiculous, and in fact, that was the only time I've laughed. I wish the entire movie were as ridiculous and funny as that ending. Unfortunately, the movie was just normal. Very normal.

In the year 1716 a mysterious epidemic stickens men in the country of Japan, dropping the population of men to 1/4th of its prior state. With the drastic reduction of men, the gender roles have become reversed in Japan. Woman become the dominant members of society and males are sought out for the ability to produce children.

A young man named Unoshin Mizuno (Kazunari Ninomiya) hopes to marry childhood sweetheart Onobu (Maki Horikita), but due to class differences realizes this is almost impossible. To raise his social status and also save his poor family, Unoshin Mizuno enters the Ohoku (inner chambers of the Shugun's castle) and attempts to vie among 3,000 other men for the affection of the female shogun. What Unoshin Mizuno quickly learns about the Ohoku is that the men there are all beautiful, but highly ambitious and conniving. In this environment, the 7th shogun Tokugawa passes away and the new shogun Yoshimune Tokugawa (Kou Shibasaki) takes the thrown and enters the Ohoku ...


This movie was really well done, very loyal to the manga (except for the ending). Amazing, but the whole movie is the first volume of the manga, only. I did not notice the manga was so long. So not only it is exactly like the manga, but the locations of the movie were beautiful! The castle, the town, the inner chambers... all so vast and clean and with so much light.

The cast... wow, amazing cast. Nino was good as Mizuno, but I wish he was taller. And maybe more handsome (the story is like that, it is not like I am shallow, but Mizuno needs to be, besides one of the prettiest boys, a strong one, a tall one, an agil one). At least he was very good at fighting. His little feet... <3 so cute. But those sex scenes (nothing explicit, just Nino, err, moving atop of an old lady) reminded me of that article that told that Nino is a sex-beast. Hahaha, impossible not to think about it.

This is the first time I see Shibasaki Kou, the Shogun Lady, and my first impression was, wow, she looks like Nakatani Miki. So lady-like, so imposing. She has a bit of a funny face due her mouth, but all in all, she is very beautiful (those eyes!). She doesn't make an appearance in front of her men until 1 hour and 10 minutes have passed.

All the other characters are actors I love. I can't complain, although, among the most beautiful men, there was one that I think is THE most beautiful, but if you blink, you miss him. He is my beautiful Saito Syuuske. Oh well, Ohkura looks nice, although a bit too feminine, and Tamaki looks handsome as well.

HoriMaki was cute and OK (although as stiff as ever when she has to kiss someone!), Sadai Abe is always good in no matter what role (funny, silly or serious) and wow, Nakamura Aoi, that boy from "BECK" got a kiss in the lips from Nino! Exaclty like in the manga, I am glad they did not exclude that scene merely for that fact. Terrible what these guys have to deal with: Ohkura, being of a lower rank, was the lover of Tamaki (higher rank). But Tamaki again has a lower rank of Matsushima, so he was, again, the lover of another guy.

That is my complain about the story (not the movie). Since the country was dealing with the death of men due the Redface pox, and there was 1 man for every 4 women, why in the world were 800 men inside the castle, while outside the few men left had to sell their bodies to give the women their seed? Why in the world would the Shogun need 800 men, if she could get pregnant just once in a while? Why in the world were men working as maids, and, having to be locked from the outside world, seek physical pleasure with other men, while outside there were hundreds of women needing a man? It was an issue that the same Mizuno questioned... men sleeping with other men and wasting their seed.

All in all, it was a great movie, great costume (but truly, the outfit the men had to wear, and the Shogun, for that matter, was completely ridiculous.. they could barely walk!), great cast... The (my) only problem was the story. At least it ended well (although unlikely).

In order to get rid of widespread doomsday fears in a small town, two residents from there asks magician Naoko (Yukie Nakama) to come to their town as a goddess. When Naoko arrives in the town she sees an a handful of other pseudo gods. Mysterious phenomenons occur in sequence.

Naoko and physicist Jiro (Hiroshi Abe) become fooled by those others. In addition, Detective Kenzo (Katsuhisa Namase) and Naoko's mother Satomi (Yoko Nogiwa) become involved. Their situation goes in an unexpected direction.


Plot wise, it was a bit all over the place. It left me with more questions than answers. Why did they hire Yamada? Why was the need to murder Ueda's friend? Why murder all these people? Why sacrificing themselves at the end? Etc, etc.

Ueda remains Yamada's biggest fan. I love how enthusiastic he is every time she performs. He is cute and funny <3 Although at the end of the meeting where he invited her to come and perform, he, like the big coward he is, denies any relationship with her and let the other mock her. Poor Yamada, she was so hurt she cried ^_^

But Ueda redeems himself at the island; he is always supporting Yamada and she lays her safety in his hands. We get the old jokes again, the sexual ones XD. There is a message that Yamada misunderstands, and I loved how at the end Ueda tries to get what could she have possibly read, but she is always interrupting him, since she is very embarrassed <3 I love these two, how they care for each other but that no one is going to give the first step <3

Stresseman Takenata Naoto has a small role, very small, I was impressed. I looked at his list of movies, and oh my! He has done thousands of movies. He is truly every where.

Riko Narumi has a small role as well, but not as Yamada as a child, which was strange. No, she has a role as the hidden daughter of a couple and possible Goddess of the Turtle. Seems like the Director truly liked her, since she is always portraying Yamada as a child, but if she is not, she still has a role in the movie.

It did not feel like a movie, but more like a long episode of the dorama.