J-Drama review- Celeb to Binbo Taro

Taro Sato (Yusuke Kamiji) has been poor all his life. Since the death of his wife, his situation has become even more desperate as he has to raise his three kids by himself and has no real marketable skills. So when he applies for a job that he doesn't expect to get, as a chauffeur to a rich young woman, he's surprised when he does. His employer is Alice (Aya Ueto), your usual spoiled rich kid. Her father is a hotel magnate and her mother a popular actress. She's never wanted for anything her whole life and expects to get everything she wants. She and Taro have nothing in common, and, at least in the beginning, all they do is get on each other's nerves.

The drama stars Ueto Aya who is a very popular actress in Japan though I find her acting mediocre and Yusuke Kamiji, who is the guy you can see with Ayumi Hamasaki in her tours.

The drama is okay. It has an interesting start. The events take make unexpected turns. The last few episodes are especially good. The transformation of Alice from a selfish, rich, spoilt girl to a humble and caring person shows that every one can change. The drama was nothing spectacular. It had its share of good scenes and its share of boring scenes. The excessive potrayl of Taro's poverty was not so good. I mean, we know he is poor, no need to overemphasize it. The realtionship of Alice and Gotoda is one of the focal points of this story. The addition of friendly and caring side characters gives this drama a good atmosphere and makes it more watchable.

I would not strongly recommend watching this drama if you are looking for something great. It is actually mediocre. If you find yourself genuinely interested in the story or want to see Aya Ueto in many beautiful dresses, watch this drama.

Ratings
Plot-4
Characters-2
Actors-2.5
Script-3
Direction-3

Pros- Good character development
Eye candy settings and dresses

Cons- Cliched plot
Mediocre acting
Somewhat disappointing since it doesn't go where it seemed to be going

J-dorama review- Kimi Hanin Janai yo Ne?

Morita Sakura is a peculiar "freeter" (freelance part-timer) who dreams of becoming a mystery novel writer. While switching between various jobs throughout the series, she also becomes an assistant to Officer Udagawa, a detective who discovers her excellent memory and reasoning skills. On the other hand, Udagawa (who has just joined the police ranks through his father's connections) is fairly inept and has a tendency to fall in love with female suspects.

Kimi Hanin Janai yo ne stars Kaname Jun who has acted in popular dramas before and Kanjiya Shihori who is also quite famous in the acting world.

The drama started out well. The fact that Morita Sakura is an aspiring novelist whose novels are always rejected by the editor, provided an interesting change from the usual detectives. Udagawa does have some sense but he usually is unable to get enough proof to prove his point. His character seems rather unrealistic at times, especially the fact that he is so gullible. The two make a terrible team, with Sakura doing everything and Udagawa present there just as her sidekick.

The first epiosde was somewhat good but the subsequent episodes were just copies of the first. The person Udagawa falls in love with always turns out to be thr criminal which was very annoying. Since the criminal is revealed within the first few minutes of the episode, there is not much left to find out. As a viewer, I found this a serious flaw. The mysteries are not  complex like the ones in Galileo or Detective Conan. I could solve these mysteries easily.

Kimi Hanin Janai yo Ne? is a drama  worth skipping. As a mystery drama it gets no points. The criminals are obvious, how they did it is too easy to figure out, the motives of all the criminals are pathetically weak and the characters are pretty boring. There is an attempt to spruce up the plot by using fragments of memory that Sakura cannot remember. It succesfully builds towards a climax but ends in an anti-climax in the last episode. The ending, though happy, was thoroughly disappointing.

A true waste of time.

Ratings
Plot-3
Script-3
Actors-4
Characters-2
Direction-3

Pros- Started off well
Unusual occupation (aspiring novelist) for a detective story

Cons- Kaname Jun does not act well
Unrealistic characters
All criminals have extremely weak motives
Not much suspense
It is neither mentally or emotionaly satisfying

Movie Review- Yellow tears

Yellow tears is a movie starring all the five members of Arashi as the main characters. It is based on the manga 'The young ones' by Shinji Nagashima.

The story follows the experiences of four friends- a manga artist (Ninomiya Kaunari), an author (Sho Sakurai), A singer/composer (Aiba Masaki) and a painter (Ohno Satoshi) who decide to spend the summer of 1963 together in Ninomiya's house. All four have it hard trying to break into the artistic world. Ninomiya wants to write literary manga for children which is constantly rejected by his editor who thinks it won't sell. Sho Sakurai can't write a good novel. Aiba Masaki enters singing contests but can't seem to win and Ohno Satoshi paints well but is dissuaded by a tragic incident. All four of them decide to live at Ninomiya's house in the summer while trying to follow their dreams. They have to pawn the guitar, fountain pen, painting and clothes to eat. It follows the hardships of their life.

Ninomiya Kazunari gets the main role. Sho Sakurai, Aiba Masaki and Ohno Satoshi have a lot of role too. I was disappointed to know that Matsumoto Jun is only a side character. Kashii Yu is another side character who is Aiba Masaki's lover in the beginning but gets married to Matsujun in the end.

The series is realistic and I should warn viewers that the ending is not good. It maintains a lull and peaceful atmosphere, much like a lullaby. It vibrates with 1960s elements. I was surprised to see Arashi starring in a realistic and old movie like this. The songs resemble Kyu Sakamoto's style. Only enka was missing from the movie. There is nothing comic or modern about this movie at all. Its the kind of film you'd expect Hibari Misora not Arashi to act in.

Most of the series follows the protagonist's struggles and conflicts with reality. One thing I noticed was that none of the protagonists had any sense of business, commerciality or promotion. The singer just composed songs without thinking about recording deals, the painter paints without thinking of selling paintings or holding exhibitions and the author gets nowhere near completing his novel etc. Such poverty according to me is unrealistic but since the protagonists are not enterprising and cannot think of business, it is only obvious that they remain poor. The movie is rather pessimistic.

Aiba Masaki falls in love with Kashii Yu but later falls out of it. Ninomiya's ex girlfriend marries another man, the waitress Sho had a crush on marries someone in her home town. Most of the time, the protagonists live in poverty, trying to freeload on each other. However, their friendship is quite deep and they never blame each other. They decide to get serious in the middle of the movie but in the end, they give up on their dreams. Sho's favourite french novelist's saying- 'Life never deceives man. Life has never deceived man.' appears many times in the movie. Matsumoto Jun is a part timer who helps these four artists occassionally. He appears rarely in the movie.

Spoilers- In the end, they end up going their seperate ways after Ninomiya's mother dies and the others write him a touching letter. Shinkasen arrives in Japan and Olympics is hosted. A year later, they have a meeting in the 'ship' (a cafe). Sakurai Sho becomes a door to door salesman, Ohno Satoshi becomes a club manager in Alaska, Aiba Masaki becomes a construction worker and Nonomiya is the only one who follows his dream and continues to create manga he likes. The series was quite pessimistic. It is hard to believe that none of them succeeded especially after the writer shows their dedication to their craft.

Overall, a very realistic/pessimistic movie. Fans of Honey and clover might like it. It is rather oldish and viewers might find it hard to relate to a 1963 movie. Shinji Nagashima's works are based on the hard life of mangakas. He was Osamu Tezuka's assistant at one time. The movie is sleep inducing (boring) and very slow moving. The ending just put me off. Next time I hope Arashi acts in something better which does justice to their acting skills.

Characters- 4/5
Acting-3.4/5
Script- 3.5/5
Story- 3.6/5
Overall-3.7/5

Pros

Realistic Characters
Unique story
Theme

Cons

Ending
Boring/hard to relate to
Slow paced
Matsumoto Jun had very little role
No good songs
Pessimistic

Drama Review- Yukan Club

Yukan Club is a popular shoujo manga and one of the best selling shoujos. It has not been liscenced but a drama adaptation was made. An anime was also created.
I started reading the manga but the illustrations are bad and all the chapters have not been scanned. Therefore, I decided to watch the drama.
The drama stars Kat tun's Akanishi Jin and Taguchi Junnosuke. Actresses Minami and Kashii Yu also act in the drama. Popular model Emi Suzuki of chinese origin acted in the drama too. It had around 12% ratings. Not too high. Akanishi Jin, Kashii Yu and Junnosuke Taguchi won awards for their performance in the drama.

The drama is about the life of six elites- son of the chief police inspector (Akanishi Jin), daughter of a single jewellery designer mother (Emi Suzuki), son of a hospital owner (Yokoyama Yu), daughtr of the Kenbishi corporarion's owner (Minami), son of the Swedish ambassador (Taguchi Junnosuke) and daughter of a popular artist and tea ceremony queen (Kashii Yu) who form a club to solve mysteries in the free time called Yukan Club (Leisure club).

Compared to dumb rich people like Tsukasa of HYD, these six are pretty smart. They solve complicated mysteries for killing time and sometimes to help people. Each have their own strenghts, weaknesses and motives.

The series incorporates supernatural elements with ghosts appearing in two episodes of the 10 episode drama. There is very little romance in the series and it is shallow. It is mainly a mystery series. The idea of six rich elites solving mysteries was unique. The mysteries are more of thrillers since they don't require much logic. Each character has a unique personality that somehow fits into mystery solving.

The mysteries are more realistic and do not seem to be cooked up just for the sake of the detectives solving them (unlike mystery mangas like Case closed, Kindaichi and Poirot). They are common issues like corruption, kidnapping, gambling etc. which are seen in society.

The members of the club with exception of one or two are generally bad at studying. They are the student council because they are popular in school. They have a private room with the sign 'Yukan Club' outside the door. The school somewhat looks like Trick heart castle from Atashinchi no danshi. The settings and backdrops were very beautiful and like Atashinchi no danshi. I think both dramas were shot in the same studio.

The script was decent and most characters acted well except Emi Suzuki who was stiff. The supporting characters were just as strong as the main characters. Chief inspector Tokimune and Kenbishi chairman Mansaku and his wife were among the most amusing side characters. The mysteries with the exception of the last one were not very serious and were there just to pass time.

Kat tun recorded the song 'Keep the faith' for the drama which became a #1 hit. The song plays only during the ending or some important scene. The series has a lot of comedy. It is light hearted.

Overall, a good drama for teens to watch. Good for light entertainment otherwise but nothing memorable. The series never gets serious. I want to read the manga. I hope it is liscenced soon. The story is a break from monotonous detectives, private eyes, love dramas and soap operas.

Acting- 4.3/5
Cast-3.2/5
Story-4.4/5
Backgrounds-4.4/5
Characters- 4.5/5
Overall-4.2/5

Pros

Acting
Unique Story
Characters
Backgrounds

Cons

Nothing memorable
The theme song didn't fit well
Some actors were stiff
Worse than the manga (from what I heard)

Japanese Movie review- Swing Girls

Set in present-day Japan, Swing Girls is the story of girls who meet and are deeply fascinated by jazz. The heroine is a very typical Japanese teenager. Her character is suggestive of the hidden problem of today children. She lacks any special interests or motivation and dislikes making any effort. But when she discovers jazz, she discovers something she can be absorbed in and begins to transform herself. At first, she is not able to even make a noise. But she and her friends practice and come to be able to play their instruments. They slowly come to be fond of jazz and take part in a music competition.

Swing Girls was quite popular in Japan when it was released. It stars Juri Ueno, Kanjiya Shiori, Hiraoka Yuta, Motokariya Yuika and Yukari Toyoshima.

When I started watching the movie, I was immediately hooked to it. The goofy personalities of the characters is lovable. The way everything goes wrong in the beginning when the girls go to deliver lunches to the brass band is also hilarious. But the real fun starts after that, when they practice for the brass band. One of them blows bubbles with the trumpet instead of playing it! Through practice and hard work, they start showing some promise, but when the band returns, they have to give up. Undettered, Juri Uueno decides that she will make her own jazz Big Band.

The best thing about this movie was the comedy. You can't watch this movie without laughing all the time. The humour was what I loved the most about this movie and what kept me watching. The actors don't act too well which was one weak point. I have seen better from Juri Ueno in Nodame Cantabille. The actor (Hiraoka Yuta) seems too lost throughout the movie. I guess it is because this movie was a very early work of many of these artists and they have become better now.

The jazz instrumentals that they play in the end are quite nice and I love their body language which makes jazz seem more interesting. Their interpretation of jazz as loud and cheerful opposed to slow and melancholy shows the energy of youth.

Overall a great movie to watch and well worth its popularity.

Ratting

Characters-4
Acting-3
Cast-3.5
Direction-4
Script-4.7
Plot-4.3

Overall-4.2

Pros- Humour
Interesting characters

Cons- Poor acting

IMPORTANT NOTICE

Review Carnival will no longer feature reviews on anime and games. It was getting too overwhelming to review so many things. The blog will now review books, manga, j dramas/movies and j pop only. Though  know that some of you will be disappointed, it was necessary to do this. Review Carnival now is more focused than before and I think that is  a good thing. Author interviews and free ebook giveaways will still be featured. The games and animes already reviewed will not be deleted and can be found in the archives.

Thank you for your time and support.

Bestcritic

Movie Review- G@me

G@me is a 2003 thriller film starring Yukie Nakama and Naohito Fujiki as the protagonists. The movie received generally positive feedback. It was based on a thriller novel by Keigo Higashino.

The story revolves around the kidnapping of Yukie Nakama who is the daughter of Katsuragi, the famous vice president of Mikado beer. Naohito Fujiki is an employee in an advertising firm who is given the responsibility of designing a promotion plan for a new variety of beer produced by Mikado. Katsuragi coldly disapproves of his plan. To take revenge, Naohito plans to kidnap his daughter whom he sees sneaking out of the house that night. Yukie Nakama plays along because she wants the money.

The film is categorised as thriller and lives up to it. There are a lot of romantic elements in the story. There are several sub plots woven into the movie and it always has some shocking relevation to make. The whole kidnapping and sub plots are treated as games.
Just when the movie seems to be coming to an end, another shocking fact is revealed. However, due to Naohito Fujiki's stoic acting, nothing makes an impact. Yukie Nakama acts well for the role but this is not one of her great projects. The story (plot) is good. Katsuragi is clearly the best actor because he acts like he should.

The romance seems a little fake especially at the beginning. Yukie Nakama looks good, as always. I am a fan of Yukie Nakama and I saw the movie because she is acting in it. The movie is not very long (around 112 min.). The plot is what keeps the movie going. Still, the impact of twists and turns was minimised.

Another problem was the greatest problem faced by japanese movies- ambiguous ending. These kinds of endings work well for horror not for romance. Just when everything seems to be right, the ending suddenly takes a turn for the worse and Naohito Fujiki says 'game over'. It really annoyed me to see a stupid end like this to their romance. The romance is an important element of the storyline.

Overall, this movie was nothign great or even good. Okay for light entertainment but nothing more. The cast is what made this movie sell.

Acting- 3.9/5
Story-4.2/5
Music- 3/5
Characters- 4/5
Overall-3.5/5

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