Amazing! Deserves All Awards!
DO NOT READ THE SYNOPSIS FOR THIS MOVIE!The long synopsis at the top of this page spoils too much.
All you need to know is: One mute guy and one girl, Japanese romance, maybe sad times ahead.
Honestly, this is one of the best films I've seen in years.
I'd say this is Yamada's best movie since Grasshopper. His performance is always solid but he excels in this; how he conveys and comunicates in this is just amazing. Hamabe, I wasn't familiar with going in but I think she was absolutely perfect too! Her acting was amazing and you could feel her emotions and her journey clearly.
The story itself is just way more than you expect and it's so beautiful and emotional and pure.
If this doesn't win any awards at the end of the year, I'll be shocked and disgusted.
***
Slight Spoilers: I cannot describe how misadvertised this movie is, and I am kinda glad it is. You go in thinking it's just gunna be your typical Japanese romance but it's so much more. I cried the entire time, so definitely prepare tissues!
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A Movie That Lost Its Spark
At first, this movie was quite interesting, but it quickly became boring, leaving me feeling empty. I ended up skip it. I love both actors, but I was really disappointed in this one. It feels like there’s a deeper message hidden in the film, but it didn’t come through clearly. The storyline had potential, but it just didn’t deliver. It was supposed to be sad, but I couldn’t even cry because it was so dull. The ending felt sudden I was like, 'Wait, it’s over?' I’m not going to recommend this movie, but if you still want to watch it, go ahead.Was this review helpful to you?
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Soulless story with a ridiculous plan
I’m quite disappointed in this movie to the point where I didn’t even finish it. The plot, or rather the plan the ML has is so dumb that I couldn’t suspend my disbelief enough for it. Also, the FL was okay with his plan which is mind blowing in how dumb it is.SPOILERS!
His plan is basically to fake being a piano player to trick the FL, a pianist who is blind, to fall in love with him I guess. He says it’s to make her happy but he could have gotten someone to just play the piano for her and not pretend it’s him and manipulate this vulnerable woman who he thinks won’t be able to tell that it’s not him because she is blind. Anyways, he is basically broke but to go through with this ridiculous and idiotic plan with a payoff that I’m not sure he even knows what it is, he gets a night job and is barely sleeping basically breaking himself so he can afford to pay this guy to play the piano and pretend to be him. Dude, what the hell man?! How is this something that makes even remote sense.
Also, the direction the actor received was to act like a zombie. He walks around with this blank look on his face, hunched posture, really weird gait. I know it’s supposed to look like he’s given up on life but it’s not executed well.
Then we find out that the FL knew that it wasn’t him the entire time and she was just okay with this person lying to her, cool, so that’s dumb.
It also felt quite soulless for some reason. The whole plot is supposed to be so moving but it just felt empty to me. Maybe it was the direction the actors were given, maybe it was the stupidity of the plan the ML had, I don’t know. It just felt lacking.
I just don’t get it. I watched the majority of this movie (before I dropped it) in bursts. I couldn’t even watch it for too long before getting too annoyed and bored to continue. I had so much hope for this movie and I’m sad to say it was squandered.
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So much more than a romance: poetic and beautifully filmed <3
This movie showcases an amazing story, pretty deep and far from a conventional sweet romance. As I never read synopsis, I had no idea from looking at just the title and the poster how raw and pure the story was going to be. It exceeded my expectations on a lot of aspects as it is a powerful tale featuring captivating characters developing a strong and beautiful relationship, bounded through their inner and external wounds. It is gut-wrenching and I was on the edge of my seat towards the end.The pace of the story was pretty good in setting up the characters, the relationships as well as what's at stake in their lives. The last arc is truly compelling and I just wish they would have given even more time to the ending...But that's likely me being greedy.
I was totally impressed by the acting. I picked up this movie because of Yamada Ryosuke which I did not see since a while on my screen. I found his acting very convincing. He really worked on his micro-expressions and was able to emote really well. I am honestly so astonished on how good he has become. His chemistry with Hamabe Minami was also very credible.
The sounds are super important in this film: it is the music, the voices, the light noises that are the driving strength of the story...from the beginning into the conclusion. The filmmaking is truly beautiful, there are some pretty brutal sequences and you feel in your gut the pain of the characters. There are also some really pretty and poetic moments.
I would strongly recommend this to people looking for a deeply romantic and lyrical tale. Do not expect sweet and fluffy romance here, that is not the point of the story. It is for sure highly rewatchable for the acting and cinematography itself that bring out the best of this poetic and gut-wrenching story full of sensibility.
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This review may contain spoilers
Anything but silent
I read a lot of reviews and saw a few spoilers about this movie, so I wasn’t sure if it was a film I wanted to pursue. Nevertheless, I decided to give it a shot! Seeing Yamada Ryosuke as a child actor who has grown over the years really resonated with me. His role in Ore No Kawaii wa Mousugu Shohikigen caught my attention and made me more interested in his acting career.He often plays the cold bad boy or the heartthrob that everyone loves, but there was something about his character in that film that compelled me to pay closer attention. This is the biggest reason why I gave this movie a chance.
First off, I really like the title of this movie, Silent Love, as it perfectly captures the essence of the film. Expect a lot of quiet moments and pay attention to the small details—because these elements made the film exciting for me. For example, the gesture of the bell that signaled his presence while he patiently watched over and helped her was quite touching. I loved how he was drawn to her; despite being unable to speak, he did everything he could to help her dreams come true—even going to jail for her. That’s a sacrifice only someone who truly loves you would make.
I won’t delve too much into the storyline, as it is a simple love story: a mute boy in love with a girl who goes blind, and they connect through piano. It may not have the dramatic flair of K-dramas, but if you focus on the details of their acting and expressions, you’ll find the highlights in these subtle moments
Since it’s been a while since I’ve watched a Japanese romance movie, I’m giving it a pretty high rating as it did not disappoint. Instead, it reminded me of the slow pace and attention to detail typical of Japanese films. This was anything but silent for me.
Rating 8/10
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Could be too melodramatic.
How should i say this, recently I have been watching japanese movies centered around romance. So far this movie is the most dissatisfying, not necessarily disappointing, since i didn't know what i was getting into. When i saw who the leading cast were i was really excited. I am an avid fan of the two so to finally have them together was nothing but exciting. The performance they gave, is enough but lt lacks chemistry. They did great for individual scene's and also the prison scene, but it felt like they were focused on how to act and portray their disabled character's. The plot also is a huge issue, in my own opinion it's unnecessarily melodramatic, i feel like they really tried to have a unique storyline. Unfortunately it felt forced and far from the title. With an already sad backstory for the leads, especially the male lead, why would you add more unto it. This felt more like silent suffering than silent love, especially with the amount of violence and depravity in the movie. Half of the romantic scenes is literally, the male lead working his ass off for a performance and the female lead walking with the male lead. Like what the hell man, they should've just focused in the romance of the two. They also should've fleshed out the female leads character to match the male leads. Other than that the cinematography was good but nothing spectacular. I could even score it lower, but i can see the effort done into it and it's not a complete mess. Also one plot point they could have done is the disparity of there social standing in life, i know it's generic but this time they have disabilities so, hahahahah. I don't know it's just not romantic. Also what kinda ending kiss is that, who in there right mind would kiss someone after almost getting into an accident, the same goes to that scene where the female lead gets bumped into and panics because of the crowd but suddenly the crowd disappears when the male lead shows up, like what? Those scenes pissed me off when they were obviously making the movie "realistic" with how melodramatic it was, should've sticked to a more romantic plot. Wouldn't really recommend it, especially if you want a sweet romance but it is has a charm to it, overall it's decent.Was this review helpful to you?
Sometimes silence speaks better than words
I have been waiting for this movie since the beginning of this year. Lovely story of two disabled people finding way to each other's hearts. Yamada Ryosuke once again nailed it; he didn't speak a word, but his facial expressions said it all. People in the comments were disappointed with the lack of communication from Aoi's side, but as a silent film enthusiast, his actions spoke more than words for me.Overall, it wasn't perfect, but a nice watch when you're bored and want to watch something emotional, but it left many questions unanswered, which feels like something is missing. But if you want to watch this, please only go through the tags, not the synopsis, as it ruins the storyline.
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