On MDL Feeds, I recently posted a conversation from a movie and asked in which country this happened. The answer was England and the movie was Breathe (2017).
The story of Breathe is 'Japanese-like': The young guy becomes paralyzed from the neck down, but despite the terrible circumstances, with the support of his lover, he manages to start a new and meaningful life. It's based on a real story and amazingly enough, the director is the son of the couple! So highly recommended.
Despite all the similarities and its good things, I asked myself the question: why didn't the movie move me emotionally as much as some Japanese dramas do? I might write in more detail later, but It's my short answer:
1. There is some important difference in emphasis: While in Breathe, the focus is on individual freedom (the ability to live outside hospital, to travel, ...), in the Japanese, it's on togetherness (how much others rely on you and vice versa, feeling the warmth of each other, ...). I'd like the latter much more!
Two MDL members noted to some other differences:
2. As Abzzski mentioned, in the Western culture, it's more common to see a woman standing her ground. Here, the female character shows her love in a really strong and assertive way: Despite the aggressive attitude of her beloved, she doesn't hold back. In fact, in some sense, she fights and wins the 'battle'.
3. And as acom mentioned, both characters speak directly, something that can be expected more in the Western context.
You can read the conversation below, but I need to emphasis that these distinctions are not clear-cut, so you might see a Japanese woman really assertive, direct, powerful, .... It's just about probabilities.
Man: Why do you keep on coming here?
Woman: I don't really know.
Man: I'm no use to you. You really must leave me here.
Woman: Well, it wouldn't look very good. And apparently, I love you.
Man: You don't love this. You can't love this.
Woman: Apparently, I can.
Man: Well, I don't want you to. Don't you understand that? Makes it harder for me.
Woman: Yes, I can see that. ...
...
Woman: Maybe I can make life a little better for you.
Man: Don't want your duty.
...
Woman: Everything's as bad as it could possibly be. But I can't go on coming in here and have you say that you wish you were dead.
