Library Wars 2 Movie Review

Title: Library Wars: The Last Mission

AKA: Library Wars 2

Genre: Action, Romance, Thriller

Origin: Japanese

Release date: October 10, 2015

Cast: Okada Junichi, Eikura Nana, Tanaka Kei, Fukushi Sota, Matsuzaka Tori and Kuriyama Chiaki.

“Media Betterment announces new controls on media. A bright future for our society a sound upbringing for our children. Eliminate harmful books, media, and thought. Juvenile of fences are down 2.3 percent since the Betterment Act was passed. We must eradicate harmful books and harmful thought. The burning of books is suppression of thought! This country now exists under a reign of terror!” (intro of movie)

The sequel continues after the special. Kasahara Iku (Eikura Nana) has figured out that Dojo Atsushi (Okada Junichi) is the man who saved her favorite book and her first love. Unable to confess her love, she tries not to act different around him; but when one of her coworkers decides to burn some confiscated book she is framed for it, and in order to save Dojos reputation she takes the blame.

On the opposition - the Media Betterment Committee – someone is feeding hate toward the Library Defense Force. While the LDF is out on a mission helping a fellow Library set up a confiscated book drop off, the MBC decides to go all out and remove the task force once and for all…

Compared to the first one I liked this one a bit better, but it was no less to the first one. For some reason when you watch it you don’t think about how absurd the ‘wars’ are, and yet when you have to explain it; you kind of face palm yourself. The movie is so great, and I love that it isn’t a movie about people hating other people, rather it focuses on the issue such a free will and thought. Though there is the usual villain, and the ‘us’ against ‘them’ vibe flowing around. As the climax goes this movie nails it, as even I was pretty shocked when I understood what was happening – so that is quite the achievement.

I absolutely adore the lead couple: the fact that she is taller than him, and that he has to look up to meet her eyes *amazed* And for some reason you don’t really feel the age gap at all… so great acting! To be fair the movie has a lot of thin layer of missing substance, but they actually make up for it by giving the characters such great chemistry and personalities.

So would I recommend this movie? Yes, I would. But I believe people should watch the first one – just to get the entire picture, and be a bit loose on the entire ‘war’ thing.

☆☆☆☆ / 4 out of 5 stars

♥♥♥♥½ / 4½ out of 5 hearts

99.9 Review

Title: 99.9

AKA: Criminal Lawyers

Genre: Legal, Drama

Episodes: 10

Broadcast period: 2016-Apr to 2016-Jun

Theme song: Daylight by Arashi

Cast: Matsumoto Jun, Kagawa Teruyuki, Eikura Nana and Kishibe Ittoku.

In Japan the conviction rate is 99,9% which means when someone is prosecuted the chance for being exonerated is only 0,1%, so if you are innocent your chances are very low. This drama follows a special team of lawyers and paralegals challenge the system by taking on the cases of 0,1% to find the truth.

Miyamoto Hiroto (Matsumoto Jun) is a lawyer who lives for finding the truths behind cases that includes investigating himself. Though he has zero interest in money, he has a high sense of honesty.

When he offered a job in the special unit he declines at first, but after some time he agrees as his curiosity for cases increases. Partnered with him and also an ambitious man is Sada Atsuhiro (Kagawa Teruyuki) who hates the idea of honesty, and prefers to work FOR the clients so that they can win – different than Miyamoto who refuses to lie no matter the reason. The two are forced to lead the team, but soon find a common goal and try to win the 0,1% cases...

Another Arashi drama! I simply love their dramas since they are probably some of the best Japanese idol actors out there, good enough to lose the 'idol' and just be seen as actors. Matsumoto has had a couple of good ones, and to be honest I was afraid he'd do a romance again (not that he's bad at it, just way too typical), so you can imagine my surprise when I saw him in a drama with no romance. It is also one of the few where the focus is mainly on the sub-stories of the drama, and doesn't really have a main storyline that fills the plot. This makes it easy to follow even if it is quite heavy with the law and legal talk going around.

Besides that, the general drama is not really one of my favorite. It is interesting, but not something you watch to follow every single week, and it doesn't keep you on edge – not that it is necessary for it – but it makes it pretty slow paced while watching.

All in an okay drama to watch, but not a drama that keeps you on edge.

☆☆☆½ / 3½ out of 5 stars

♥♥♥ / 3 out of 5 hearts

Library Wars SP Review

Title: Library Wars: Book of Memories

Genre: Action, Comedy, Romance

Origin: Japan

Release date: April 27, 2013

Cast: Okada Junichi, Eikura Nana, Tanaka Kei, Fukushi Sota, Kuriyama Chiaki and Suzuki Kazuma.

Continuing from the movie, this special is about managing regular life and that of being a ‘protector of books’.

After being stroked on the head Kasahara Iku (Eikura Nana) is starting to believe that Dojo Atsushi (Okada Junichi) might be her ‘prince’ who saved her favorite book years back. While worrying how she’ll face him, after all she has said to him, she is visited by her parents, who have come to see her job. The only problem is she had told them she was a clerk, and not a solider in the special task unit.  Dojo, because of his personality is at first very upset of her lying about her profession, but decides to help her out. Komaki Mikihase (Tanaka Kei) on the other hand keeps a close relationship with Nakazawa Marie (Tsuchiya Tao) a hearing impaired girl that visits the library every once in a while. After recommending a book to her, about a hearing impaired girl falling in love, Komaki gets arrested – and it’s up to the LDF to save him…

I was trying not to spoil much of the special, as it is a special, but I am not sure that I gave it a good summary. Oh well… The special is a bit different than the movie, as there are way too many restrictions to TV versions compared to the movies, but they still managed to make it both interesting and quite genuine to the movie. I watched the entire thing in one go without any breaks, and I really like the entire relationship with Dojo and Iku, I can’t really put my finger on it. The age gap is pretty apparent as well as the height difference, but they grow on you… or me. All characters are written with finesse, and they are just my cup of tea.

Okay, I won’t spoil anymore. It’s is a good watch, but you’d need to watch the first movie though…

☆☆☆☆ / 4 out of 5 stars

♥♥♥½ / 3½ out of 5 hearts

MIRACLE: Debikurukun no Koi to Mahou Movie Review

Title: Miracle

AKA: Miracle - Debikurukun no Koi to Mahou / Miracle - Devil Claus' Love and Magic

Genre: Romance

Origin: Japan

Release date: November 22, 2014

Cast: Aiba Masaki, Eikura Nana, Han Hyo Joo and Ikuta Toma.

Hikaru (Aiba Masaki) is an unsuccessful manga artist, who not only is unable to get a breakthrough, but is indecisive in everything he has ever done. His best friend Anna (Eikura Nana), a competent and rather successful sculpturing artist, has always been protective over Hikaru. She knows everything about him, and has had a one-sided love for him which Hikaru hasn’t grasped at all.

Though unsuccessful, Hikaru draws ‘Debukuru-kun’; Santa’s evil counterpart, and post flyers all over the town at night. This is his form of stress release, as he is the ‘sorry’-type – apologizing every time something happens.

One night he bumps into Tae Soo Yeon (Han Hyo Joo) whom he falls immediately falls for, and believs he is destined to be with. After explaining the situation and Soo Yeon to Anna, Anna realizes who that woman might be – her project boss. So she promises Hikaru she’ll help him. Will Hikaru meet his destined woman?

Again a movie I picked up from the Japanese variety, though this one has another factor for me watching, and that is mainly because of Aiba Masaki. I think I have almost watched everything available online of Arashi drama/movie and this is no exception. This is the first Aiba romantic drama – in the actual sense of romance being the center of the movie, so I had to watch it.

The overall idea of the movie very Japanese as there has to be a bit of an odd characteristic, in this case the animated Devil Clause who is always in Hikaru’s mind, but that doesn’t weight too much to the movie, not does it annoy you too much. Surprisingly you feel kind of like Devil Clause is Hikaru’s mind, which is also quite interesting. Aiba as Hikaru was okay, I kind of feel all his character’s overlap – they are all quite cowardly to some extent, but I guess that is his image? And Eikura Nana as Anna was quite good at keeping her character real... Maybe she growing on me?

Now to the good part: is the movie recommendable? Well, I half-enjoyed it, as I was half-bored with it. The movie lacks somewhat depth, which is translated in the overall story to be honest. But then again, the acting somewhat has a bit of charm… So I dunno, maybe? Haha..

☆☆½ / 2½ out of 5 stars

♥♥♥ / 3 out of 5 hearts

Library Wars Movie Review

Title: Library Wars

Genre: Action, Comedy, Romance

Origin: Japan

Release date: April 27, 2013

Cast: Okada Junichi, Eikura Nana, Tanaka Kei, Fukushi Sota, Kuriyama Chiaki and Suzuki Kazuma.

In 1988 the Media Improvement Act was put in motion by the MBC (Media Betterment Committee). The MIA has the sole purpose in censoring books and other material deemed too violent or too vulgar for the public. Due to the publics aggression and refusal to cooperate, the MBC was granted arms, in order to abide law. This sparked the LDF (Library Defense Force), and was formed in 2004 to oppose censorship: who also was provided arms.

Kasahara Iku (Eikura Nana) is opposed to the censorship, and was once in an iffy situation with the MBC since her favorite book almost got censored. But she was heroically saved by a LDF, whom she is unable to recognize. This event leads her to join the LDF. Here she meets her instructor Dojo Atasushi (Okada Junichi), whom she cannot stand, but little does she know he is the very hero who saved her.

In 2019 after a serial murder is arrested, horror books are found in his home. This becomes a public stunt for the MDC, as they decide to ban all horror books – but the LDF refuse. So the wars of the libraries start…

I heard about this movie from an episode of VS Arashi, and I have always been a fan of Okada Junichi, so this was not a problem to watch. There was one thing though: I didn’t think it said ‘Library’ as in the place where there are books, but I thought ‘Liberary’ as in liberty, or at least there was a miss translation. I was quite surprised it actually was LIBRARY as in the place with books, and that LIBERARY is not a word. So… Yeah, a movie about censorship of books, and actual was, with guns and swat uniforms. Believe it or not the idea is not THAT bad, but seriously… people die… like you know… guns and shooting… FOR BOOKS. I love books and I am against the entire censorship, but dying for books in the 21^st century is barbaric. Like really. How stupid do people need to become in order to have other people die, just because you can’t agree on censorship?!

Anyways… It is really well-made and action packed. The pace and story is great, so is everything about the relationships – a decent movie with all it need. I don’t really like Eikura Nana, but she was bearable here. Okada is awesome as usual, so no complaint from me.

All in all, a great and entertaining movie.

☆☆☆☆ / 4 out of 5 stars

♥♥♥♥ / 4 out of 5 hearts

Hajimari no Uta SP Review

Title: Hajimari no Uta

AKA: Song of the beginning

Genre: Human drama, School

Broadcast date: 2013-Sept-23

Cast: Matsumoto Jun, Eikura Nana, Toda Naho and Kunimura Jun.

Nakahara Wateru (Matsumoto Jun) is a rookie photographer living in Tokyo. He is offered an opportunity for a career, to go to Hagi and make a pictorial of the small town. Sounds like an easy job, but for Watery Hagi is not just any town, it is his hometown, which he had left in order to follow his dreams. When he arrives in Hagi he meets up with his family but also visits his old school, where he encounters his high school girlfriend Imachi Natsuki (Eikura Nana) working at that very school as a teacher, and also as the teacher in charge of the choir club. Natsu and Wateru had made the promise to become teachers together once they finish college, but Wateru had broken the promise, and Natsu takes advantage of that by making him be the pianist in the choir club.

While working both as a photographer and a pianist Wateru notices the beauties he had forgotten, and starts to find himself loving what he is doing…

This being a Matsumoto Jun drama I have to admit, I am a bit surprised. This is not exactly his genre, but somehow he manages to make it his own. The thing about this and this is also the biggest part for the rating, is that the special is way short. Yes 1½ hour is not a lot to begin with, but seriously I didn’t get much of it. The “growth” part should have gotton more screening time, else was just short. Maybe it is because it’s because of the huge amount of stories in it that makes it so long. With that I mean we get the main story, the love story, the friend story, the school story and the family story. Making that in 1½ hours is a bit tight, and they don’t really manage to ‘fill’ me… On the other hand acting is great, and the scenery is amazingly beautiful.

Is it recommendable? Yeah, but don’t expect the big thing here…

☆☆☆½ / 3½ out of 5 stars

♥♥♥ / 3 out of 5 hearts

Naka nai to Kimeta Hi Review

Title: Naka nai to Kimeta Hi
Genre: Bussniss, Work
Episodes: 8
Broadcast period: 2010-Jan-26 to 2010-Mar-16
Cast: Eikura Nana, Kawaguchi Haruna, Fujiki Naohito, Kaname Jun and Anne.

Tsunoda Miki (Eikura Nana) just finished college, and was lucky enough to get hired in a big firm. Her younger sister has a leg injury, and has to get surgery because of it, so this job will help her pay the hospital bills. Together as a newbie is Tachibana Marika (Anne), with whom she befriends instantly. She even finds an office romance with Nakahara Shota (Kaname Jun), who fell for her sweet personality. Life couldn’t get better, except life isn’t as easy as it seems. Due to minor mistake, and jealousy from Marika, Miki becomes a target for severe bulling where she once almost lost her life. But instead of running away she decides to stay and deal with it…

When it started I liked it, a lot, but it suddenly became too ‘goody-goody’. Like suddenly even the wrongdoers, who almost killed the lead twice AND was probably a good reason for another time where the lead actress tried to kill herself, were forgiven and, which was the worst part, got what she wanted. I mean, I know it’s a drama, but honestly, it’s not that realistic. There is no way in hell one would forgive that, heck not only forgive, but just live with people like that, second even if she were able to do so, why would they? I mean its bull… Watch it if you like the theme bulling, and have some weird dream about it being able to solve itself with “the goodwill of one’s heart” (sarcastic)… Make me annoyed…

☆☆☆ / 3 out of 5 stars

♥♥ / 2 out of 5 hearts