ChaNee's Weekend Movie Recommendations
Grab a bucket of popcorn, your favorite drink, take a comfy seat and...
Confessions
Kokuhaku
Country: Japan Year: 2010 Genre: Psychological, Thriller
Plot
Moriguchi Yuko (Matsu Takako), a junior high school teacher, suspects that her class had something to do with the death of her 4-year-old daughter, Moriguchi Manami (Ashida Mana). She refers to them as Student A (Nishii Yukito) and Student B (Fujiwara Kaoru). Since they are minors and are protected by Juvenile Law, Moriguchi has decided to take matters into her own hands and exact her plan of revenge.
Personal Thoughts
I have to admit that this movie messed me up in a good way. I found myself saying throughout this entire movie: "These people are crazy and there is no amount of help that could possibly work ". I loved the cast but Nishii Yukito and Fujiwara Kaoru as the diabolical students were the stones that held this movie down. They had me thoroughly involved in their storylines to the point of rooting for their demise.
Happiness Come On
Shiawase Kamon
Country: Japan Year: 2013 Genre: Drama, Family
Plot
Fumie's (Suzuki Sawa) main goal in life is to be happy. That has been her one dream since her youth. She thought she found happiness when she met Matsumoto Tetsuo (Imai Masayuki) and had their son, Tetsuya (Ishigaki Yuma) but shortly after the birth of their son, Tetsuo is taken to jail and Fumie is suddenly a single mother. She begins to experience some hard times while raising Tetsuya and slowly becomes addicted to drugs. As the years progress, Fumie continues to struggle with her drug addiction but never wavering in her love for her son and the constant need to be with him regardless of the growing disdain that Tetsuya has for her.
Personal Thoughts
Sometimes it's good to sit back and watch a movie that doesn't need all the extreme bells and whistles to get its point across. I love this movie for the simple and elaborate portrayal of a not-so-perfect mother who loves her child to the depth of her soul, regardless of the problems she faces in the world. The story isn't perfect and could have been written so much better but the acting gets you to look past the flaws. It's slow moving at times, comedic at times, and melo at times but it's a simple movie about a mother and son relationship.
Tokyo Tower: Mom & Me, and Sometimes Dad
okan to boku to
Country: Japan Year: 2007 Genre: Family, Life
Plot
Masaya's (Odagiri Joe) life doesn't turn out the way he imagines after high school. He has been admitted to the Art University of Tokyo. The only university he has ever wanted to attend but his life becomes about partying, his friends and wasting time. He dares not call home to his mother because he is ashamed of how he is living his life. Until one day he receives a call from a family member telling him that his mother (Kiki Kirin) has cancer. He decides to have his mother live with him and his life begins to change.
Personal Thoughts
If you read my profile, you will notice that Odagiri Joe is one of my biases so you will understand that it was hard to look past his acting and focus on the story at hand but it was well worth it. This story was endearing as well as heartbreaking. It's a wonderful story of a son who not only loves his mother but is willing to take care of her at the most poignant stage of her life. It also displays the strength of a mother that changes the life of those around her. Just beautiful.
If you have any suggestions for movies that I should add to my "watch list", please feel free to message me on my page @ChaNee
Wanting to share your movie recommendations, please contact @Kikimorka
