No Touching At All

No Touching At All is a slow sunrise. And sometimes that's even more beautiful.

How do you review No Touching At All when your main memories are awkward silences, lingering glances, and two grown men acting like feelings were a government conspiracy?

This film really looked at office romances and said, "What if we removed all unnecessary noise and replaced it with yearning?"

Shima had already learned how to survive disappointment.

Keep your distance.

Keep things casual.

Don't expect too much from people.

Simple.

Then Togawa walked into his life and immediately made all of that significantly more difficult.

Because unfortunately for Shima, Togawa possessed three dangerous qualities:

Patience.

Kindness.

And the ability to see straight through him.

Naturally, disaster followed.

Yonashiro Sho brought so much quiet vulnerability to Shima that sometimes it felt like watching someone trying to hold themselves together with sheer determination.

And Watanabe Shu as Togawa?

The king of gentle persistence.

The emperor of emotional intelligence.

The CEO of asking, "Are you okay?" and actually waiting for the answer.

Their relationship wasn't built on dramatic confessions or grand romantic gestures.

It was built on small moments.

Shared drinks after work.

Conversations in elevators.

Walking home together.

The kind of moments that don't look important until one day you realize they've become your entire world.

And honestly?

That's exactly what made this story feel so real.

Because love doesn't always arrive loudly.

Sometimes it arrives quietly.

Sometimes it sits beside you after a long day at work.

Sometimes it asks if you've eaten.

Sometimes it waits patiently for you to believe that you're worth staying for.

And can we talk about the people behind the camera?

Director Chihiro Amano understood exactly what this story needed: restraint.

The film trusted silence.

It trusted body language.

It trusted the audience enough to understand what wasn't being said.

The pacing was quiet, deliberate, and deeply intimate.

The office spaces felt ordinary.

The city felt ordinary.

The lives being lived inside them felt ordinary.

And somehow that made everything feel extraordinary.

The cinematography deserves special praise.

The fluorescent office lights.

The rainy streets.

The late-night trains.

Every frame felt grounded in reality.

And the soundtrack?

Minimal.

Subtle.

Perfect.

No Touching At All wasn't trying to reinvent romance.

It wasn't trying to shock you.

It wasn't trying to emotionally destroy you.

It was simply telling the story of two adults learning that vulnerability might be terrifying, but loneliness isn't any easier.

This wasn't enemies-to-lovers.

This wasn't friends-to-lovers.

This was emotionally unavailable office worker × emotionally intelligent man with the patience of a saint.

10/10.

Would absolutely stand awkwardly in that elevator, share convenience store drinks after work, and watch these two slowly learn how to let someone in all over again.

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Underdeveloped and unmemorable as a watch in 2025

I mean, for the time in which it came out (2014) it probably has its place, but I cannot see that it had a point except a show of a relationship. It was too short to give characters any substance, so they have none. Shima's concerns seem underdeveloped. Togawa's intentions abandoned. Way too short for a viewer to make any sense of anything.

I liked Togawa, he was so himself..a bit quirky and kind of no nonsense type of a guy.

Overall, it did not give much, if anything to me. But it is not offensive or annoying in any way.

Therefore, I do not think it warrants a recommend from me.

Thank you for reading.

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Not alot of Touching

There are some films that just resonate with you as a person -- Yonehara Kosuke character would be relatable to any quiet disillusioned adult -- who hasn't been effected by a betrayal & who also hasn't been pulled out of your slump by a Taniguchi Masashi eternal optomism & acceptance == I love Japanese films full stop -- they get the angst of the human condition better & it is portrayed by Japanese actors amazingly -- I find there is always a sexually preverted edge to these films but in No Touching at All it is used effectively to propelled a very slow moving plot -- this isn't an action , nor is it an overtly sexual film , it is more a film that shows how a person's hurt can be overcome & healed when the right companion comes along

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Love and Fear

I'll try to make this an unbiased review.

The story is about Shima, who's been hurt by a previous relationship in which the other guy denied him and his identity out of fear and a bit of internalized homophobia. It's also about Togawa, who's never been with a man before, but can't help finding everything about Shima cute. Shima might talk a lot of bullshit but he's an insecure overthinker, while Togawa just goes with the flow and lives in the moment.

There are a lot of moments in the movie that don't seem like much, but they mean a lot to our characters and have impacted their actions, and I really appreciate that. It's not always fun trying to guess what the characters are thinking, but a lot of the times actions speak louder than words, and I just had a great time with that.

The issue I personally have, is the lack of sound in this movie. Specifically, music and background noise. It was too silent. And that gave it a weird awkward feeling that affected the performance of the actors. Some scenes that were supposed to be powerful came out a little bland.

Otherwise, it was an enjoyable watch. There were a lot of "read beteen the lines" moments which kept me interested enough to pay attention. I felt emotionally connected to the characters the more I found out about them, and it felt real. The interactions and the conflicts are all understandable issues, and maybe that's what I find the most appealing about this movie.



I highly recommend reading the manga. I am a huge fan of the author, Yoneda Kou. It's an amazing work and definitely better than the movie.

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Best nostalgic remedy

Whenever I'm depressed or feeling the blues I go back to old Asian movies specifically Japanese BLs, because some of them are done very well even better some nowadays ones, and considering the era they are well made and acted, so I kinda travel back in time when I watch them and satisfy this nostalgic craving, this movie checks all the boxes.

It's so beautiful, calm and healing.
Story is really simple and easy to follow, the vibes are relaxing and the end is just lovely, the cast are all great and their act and chemistry is ok considering this is 2014 movie, you can't ask for more.

Just I have nothing to say, if you love BL just watch it, it worths every minute ~

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Old-but gold-office BL has a quiet and sad ambience

I'm always a fan of media that take a realistic approach into queer couple's relationship and this movie is made for me. This old-but gold-office BL has a quiet and sad ambience about how 2 people with their own past heal and love eo.
It's kinda like a sadder and reserve version of Old Fashion Cupcake. Togawa is the boss who cares for his ppl while Shima is the subordinate with a broken heart due to the past with his ex. He feels insecured and he hurts both himself and Togawa. But I'm glad finally they worked it out.
I actually really like this one. The movie is a good adaptation considering its 5-day filming period with only $5 budget. The only problem i have with it is the camera angles, they wasted so many valueable scenes with those far and cornered angles.

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simple execution of a deeper plot

this was one of the first bls i ever watched when i was getting into the genre and it has stuck with me all of this time. while this film seems relatively simple in comparison to some of the higher produced shows i’ve watched in more recent years, i still find myself being drawn to the rawness of this film. i really like the main lead, shima, and resonated with his insecurities and his flawed approach towards his new relationship while still trying to heal from the past, which was mirrored through togawa’s past trauma. the main thing about this film is that both of them are flawed, and have had difficult pasts that they help eachother to grow and somewhat move on from which i enjoyed watching (and since rewatching).

(side note; this is my first review so if you’re seeing this hihi ^__^)

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Faire le tri de son passé et regarder le présent...

Je n'ai pas lu le manga dont le film est adapté. J'y ai passé un bon moment grâce à la subtilité des dialogues, malgré une mise en scène plutôt décevante.

L'intrigue est une simple romance de bureau entre deux hommes. Les deux personnages semblent diamétralement opposés dans leur tempérament et leur style de vie, pourtant, ils ont tous les deux souffert par le passé.
Togawa Yousuke boit, fume et semble se ficher de tout avec une personnalité quelque peu grossière en apparences. De l'autre côté, Shima Toshiaki est un introverti blessé qui préfère s'oublier lui-même, quitte à passer pour un homme désagréable aux yeux des autres. Pourtant, le premier est un supérieur hiérarchique gentil et attentionné, tandis que le second est simplement une biche blessée qui tente d'avancer avec ses blessures.

Au fil de l'histoire, les deux hommes vont se rapprocher au point que les sentiments vont presque être incertains une bonne partie du film. Shima est émotionnellement passif, tandis que Togawa passe pour un bourrin plus d'une fois. Et pourtant, chacun devient la raison d'avancer de l'autre.

Je n'attendais pas du film qu'il déverse tous ses dialogues sur un plateau d'argent. Encore une raison qui me fait apprécier la subtilité du cinéma japonais. De plus, le final se révèle différent du genre habituel et s'achève sur une belle note.

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DOR E AMOR

Esse filme foi tão bom, a atmosfera simplista, os diálogos filmados com uma única câmera e de uma única perspectiva, a história de fundo e a superação de tudo isso é definitivamente o ponto alto, e bom, é o filme todo.

Tudo é calmo e introspectivo, tanto que nem a trilha sonora se atreve a se mostrar e estragar o momento.

Gosto de como do mais absoluto nada, em um momento em que uma chave vira tudo mudou entre eles, e como consequência se apaixonar era inevitável.

Minha única ressalva é para o final em que eles se reconciliam mas não existe perspectiva de um relacionamento de verdade porque cada um mora em um lugar diferente, é um relacionamento a distância e eu sou a maior hater de relacionamentos a distância porque eles não funcionam e todos sabermos disso. A partir do momento em que eles se uniram deveria ter um plano, uma meta, mas isso não nos foi mostrado e acabou partindo um pouco o meu coração, porque vemos apenas a ideia de algo.

Mas num geral esse é um excelente filme e já se tornou um dos meus favoritos de todos os tempos. Nada supera a melancolia e conexão japonesa.

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