Rating: 8/10
Genre: Romance/Drama
Language: Japanese
Starring: Kawaguchi Haruna, Yamazaki Kento
I actually watched this one a while ago, but I never got round to writing about it until… today (and “today” should be 14 January because this post is scheduled).
Thanks to my growing fondness for Yamazaki Kento, this is another movie of his that I picked up immediately after seeing him on the DVD cover. Because… why not, right. He seems to appear in a lot of good movies too, so all the more reason to check it out. 😀
He’s not one of the most popular Japanese actors today for no reason, amirite. With that said, on to the rest of the post!
What is it about?
“Isshuukan Friends” or “One Week Friends” if translated to English, is a live action film based on the manga “Isshuukan Friends” by Hazuki Matcha.
It is about a teenage boy named Hase Yuki (Yamazaki Kento) who wants to be close to Fujimiya Kaori (Kawaguchi Haruno) after falling for her during their first (admittedly awkward) encounter. Yet despite all of his attempts to close the distance between them, he gets shut down. One would think that it’s all because of the terrible first impression that he had made with her, but as he eventually finds out, there is more to it than that.
The reason Kaori refuses to be friends with him is because she suffers from a memory impairment; she forgets everything that happened to her by every Monday. Which is already in itself problematic, but her concern runs deeper than that. She feels as though friends would eventually get tired of reintroducing themselves to her over and over again, so why bother?
But being the bright, persistent lad that he is, Yuki isn’t put off by such a prospect. He still wishes to be close to the stoic girl and so devises a creative way of ensuring she wouldn’t forget their newfound friendship.
Is it worth a watch?
If you’re looking for a light film to spend a chill Sunday afternoon with, then yes, “Isshuukan Friends” is worth a watch. Like the majority of anime/manga, the main characters serve as foils to one another; Yuki, who is bright, goofy and optimistic, and Kaori, who is quiet, aloof and pessimistic.
However, in spite of their differences, the pair work well together as a pair- especially with Kento bringing light-heartedness to the screen with ease, a performance that is met with much applause considering the number of cold, serious roles that he has assumed. Really, one cannot help but to be warmed by the sincerity of his character’s persistence. Haruna is not to be forgotten either, as she plays the distant, and emotionally and psychologically fragile Kaori as though it is natural to her.
And the supporting cast? While I would have liked to have seen more of Matsuo Takashi (Kiryu Shogo), the supporting cast as a whole do well in adding more heart to “Isshuukan Friends”. Takashi as the badass, genius friend and Takahashi Haori (Yamagishi Saki) as the kind, caring friend who miraculously does not hold an ounce of maliciousness in her even when the odds aren’t in her favour.
The best part, though? The usual over the top qualities of anime/manga are absent in this live action movie.
All in all, the ideal teenage film to enjoy during the weekend.
