The story was rather unexpected to me. It does not really qualify as a romance but rather as a coming-of-age journey for two young people finding each other and building an uncanny friendship. It is a good concept but there are some elements lacking in the plot building to make me totally invested in the relationship between the main characters.

There are two timelines which both have their importance but there is unfortunately not enough time to develop both of them well enough. Moreover, the pacing of the movie felt quite uneven when switching from past to present. The flow of the plot gets better after the set up and there are some scenes between the 2 main protagonists that are thoughtful and leaving a lasting impression on the viewer.

The cast is overall okay: I enjoyed the performances of the two main leads playing the younger roles. I found the acting of the adults a bit too mild and subdue...but it might have to do with the script making their characters quite passive.

The soundtrack is nice but does not stand out among other Youth Japanese movies. Similarly, the production is quite standard for the genre: it is efficiently supporting the story-telling, nothing more.

I would recommend this to people looking for a melancholic youth story. It is a sweet-and-sour tale which might bring you down before picking you up.