Spidersecu Don't Believe the Hype

Sameer Callahan It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

Kamila Bell This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

Aspen Orson There is definitely an excellent idea hidden in the background of the film. Unfortunately, it's difficult to find it.

bandw This is a drama that takes place in a 24-hour period. In that period we get acquainted with the two main characters--a young Japanese woman, Akiko, and an older man, Mr. Watanabe. Akiko is a student and works as a call girl on the side (or is she a call girl who works as a student on the side?) Mr. Watanabe is a retired sociology professor who, in his 80s, keeps an oar in the water by working on translations.Against her wishes Akiko is asked (actually instructed) to travel some distance from Tokyo to entertain Mr. Watanabe for the evening. By filming scenes in unexpected ways the movie kept my interest in spite of its being slow moving. For example, the opening scene in a bar has a voice-over from Akiko while the camera stays focused on a table other than Akiko's. I expected that the people at the table being viewed would be of interest, but, no. The camera finally focuses on Akiko. I can understand why some people may find the pacing tedious, but most all scenes ring true and with each scene we learn a little more about the characters. Much is communicated non-verbally, like a bored yawn from Akiko or Watanabe's dozing off while waiting in traffic but running down three flights of stairs like a young man in an urgent situation. Many scenes take place in cars, for example there is a scene in a taxi where Akiko listens to seven messages on her answering machine. We learn from that scene that there is a third important person, Noriaki, who is Akiko's boyfriend. Well, he seems to want to be her boyfriend to the point of marriage, but Akiko's feelings for Noriaki remain somewhat of a mystery. In fact Akiko remains somewhat of a mystery. Her grandmother is in town and wants to visit, but Akiko ignores her phone requests and then cries over why she is reacting that way. Akiko seems to know she is behaving like an ass, but persists in it. The night that Akiko spends with Mr. Watanabe does not play out in any way that I could have imagined--I was left to provide some details on that.I found the non-traditional storytelling refreshing. This is a film equivalent of a short story driven by character development. And, like a good short story, its ending packs a punch.P.S. Noriaki should patent his process for replacing timing belts on Volvos--he accomplishes in ten minutes what usually takes hours.

madventuring It felt strange that the opening and closing scenes of this film were the most dramatic but it felt mostly like a lot of potential gone to waste. What really made this film bearable was its photography and atmosphere which, although being fantastically produced, directed and shot, felt like I was observing a canvas rather than the painting itself. This isn't to say I didn't enjoy the film, the characters seemed interesting and the dialogue didn't seem forced or used as a way to fill up the hour and forty-five minutes that the film ran but instead it was done to infuse atmosphere and felt very natural. It was immersive in the use of music (which I am lead to understand is a trademark of Kiarostami's) and it all seemed very real - which may be its own downfall.I think a 6 is fair. I wasn't blown away by this.

Red-125 Like Someone in Love (2012) is a Japanese movie written and directed by the great Iranian filmmaker Abbas Kiarostami. Kiarostami brings his quiet, thoughtful style to a culture that is surely very alien to him. Japanese viewers may note cultural errors in the movie. My thought is that Kiarostami can look beyond cultural differences to universal themes.The movie, set in Tokyo, stars Rin Takanashi as Akiko, a young provincial woman who is a call girl. (She doesn't walk the streets. She works out of a bar, whose owner arranges the sessions at people's homes.) As the movie opens Akiko is facing two immediate problems. Her jealous boyfriend is on the phone, demanding to know where she is. Akiko is a college student, and her boyfriend is aware of that. He doesn't know that she's a prostitute, but he can sense that something isn't right, and he suspects her of cheating.Akiko's grandmother is visiting Tokyo that day, and desperately wants to see Akiko. Akiko would love to meet with her, but the bar owner is adamant--she must go out on a call to an important client. The client is Professor Takashi Watanabe, played by Tadasi Okuno. Akiko has no choice but to ignore her grandmother and visit the professor's apartment.Prof. Watanabe is a gentle, lonely widower. He has prepared a special dinner for Akiko, and he's playing Western music. (It's Ella Fitzgerald singing "Like Someone in Love.") It's more like a seduction scene than a paid sexual encounter.Akiko spends the night at the professor's home, and he drives her to the university the next morning. It's at that point that the film takes a different turn, because Akiko's violent boyfriend confronts her on the university steps. All of this action takes place in the first third of the movie. In the remainder of the film, Kiarostami continues to explore this unusual and somewhat threatening love triangle. This interaction among three very different individuals provides a fascinating look into human relationships. Where these relationships will lead isn't always obvious or predictable. I enjoyed this intelligent, thought-provoking movie. It will work well on DVD. It's worth seeking out and watching.

mc12000 To this day I still do not understand why there are people (most probably "Asianophilic" Caucasians) who try to give meaning to a a Asian film which, for all intents and purposes, just does not have any deep meaningful messages to impart. Because if this was an American or English film, it would have been slated as boring and a waste of time. But just because it is Japanese, there are people who are automatically impressed and seek to find hidden and meaningful truth in something which is actually as empty as the abyss....One reviewer was asking how the fiancé found out the truth in a matter of hours. The answer is, it was not a matter of hours because we already knew that Akiko was meeting him for lunch. And that is presumably how she got her cut, and also how the fiancé knew the old man's address (i.e. he followed them). Funny how the reviewer did not ask why the old man did not call the police.... maybe a hidden meaning somewhere? In any case, I found nothing likable in any of the characters but the one I hated the most was the lead character. Someone who can willingly ignore her Grandmother for the entire day deserves no pity and the fact that she could have met her at the train station (but did not) made me detest her all the more.