Blue (2003)

I watched the movie and my initial reaction is that I liked it. Though produced in a probably small budget the movie manages to capture beautiful portrait-like scenes, almost like the still life paintings central to the plot. The ambiance sound blends perfectly well with the film scenes, you become immersed in the film's world.The spirit of the manga remains in the movie, some elements from the source material were changed but the movie's message is how destructive your decisions can be. We see Endo and Kirishima making decisions that will break the hearts of people they care about. They don't make those decisions with malice, they are just two young students.The manga's minimalist art is translated into film successfully, not using a constant soundtrack, or quick edits. Instead the music is used subtly, only used in important milestones in the relationship of the main characters.The acting and dialogue is minimal, the camera is detached and many times we're far from the actors' faces, so the actors make full use of body language, making scenes look like theater. The result is in my opinion delightful and adds tension toward the film's climax and other crucial revealing scenes.Very good story, acting, photography, and soundtrack (both ambient and music). however some scenes could've been snipped that were not crucial to the plot.

When I watched this move, I felt that Japan is a beautiful country. Filmed in provincial cities of Niigata, and Takaoka (Toyama prefecture) Blue captures the lives of two high school girls from Spring to Autumn.The movie is beautiful in many ways, but especially in the way each scenes are shot. Director Hiroshi Ando is a veteran of directing youth oriented movies, but also has an eye for sharp clean images.Mikako Ichikawa who played Kayako Kirishima won the best actress award at the 24th International Movie Festival in Moscow with this movie.The movie that's written, and acted by Gen-X writer and actors has all the subdued feelings of that generation. Both Mikako Ichikawa and Manami Konishi are models, and are unusually tall for Japanese women, Ichikawa hitting 5'7", and Konishi at 5'6" tall.Both Ichikawa, and Konishi has successful career as actors, and are familiar faces in Japanese TV now.I liked this movie for the beautiful imagery. The small stories that's inserted as the scene changes were almost like moving poems. I wanted to see more of relation between Endo, and Kirishima but the movie just kept going without drastic change in the flow.The movie is well crafted and is definitely worth seeing.If you're interested in visiting the areas that this movie was shot, here are the locations:Niigata City:Mandaibashi bridge by route 7 Furumachi Mall Niigata station (West side connector pass) Keiwagakuen High School (The art room scene)Takaoka City (Toyama prefecture):Fushiki High school (Near JR Etchu-Kokubu station)

Blue is one of those artsy films that portrays itself as smart and classy by being very slow and low-key. Which can be great, if done properly. But is utterly boring if executed poorly, which is the case for Blue.The barely-there plot is simple and can easily be summed up in a paragraph. If you read a synopsis, you'll pretty much know what it's all about. But that's OK right? You don't need plot if you've got a solid character study. Well, that's also a problem, as the central romance revolves around two introverted girls with little personality and even less to say. I was completely unable to care about the characters, who barely seem to care about each other. Nobody ever really seems happy in this movie. Emotions are muted and smiles are rare. They never have a convincing reason to love each other, which I suppose is not unrealistic, but it's not interesting. Everything is so internalized that there's nothing to see. Then there's the cinematography, which should be the saving grace but isn't. Scenes are well-structured and shot, but are constantly of such boring material that it doesn't matter. The editing is fit for a three-toed sloth, with scenes routinely lasting five beats longer than they should or having no reason for existing than to realistically depict the dull monotony of life. Occasionally, there's some great visuals to be had. There's a beautiful twilight shot towards the end of the two girls in front of a vending machine that illuminates one while leaving the other a silhouette. However, such moments are fleeting, and the vast majority of the film is visually bland. Also, there is almost no soundtrack, so it's not even an interesting film sound-wise.If you're interested in this film, I suggest you read the manga first. It's got better pacing and is only a single volume long. The film adapts the basic story, but also changes quite a bit. The two have their similarities, but feel quite different. I know there is sure to be a niche audience for this sort of thing, but it's not me, nor will it be the average viewer. It may resonate more if you're gay or can at least identify with the characters. For me though, it was just unforgivably boring. Know what you're getting into and approach with caution.

The way how this movie was made is breathtaking. From the decors to the actors play, this movie fares far better than anyone would expect from such a story. There aren't many scenes where u'll See a crowd, mostly because the setting for the movie isn't some big city, but rather some small province town. The movie is poetry in motion, calm, almost too peaceful to bare. On a side u have Kirishima who is pretty much an introvert girl. But Kirishima, despite being an introvert(she doesn't talk much in the movie), it's a person that follows her feelings, instincts and dreams. On the other side u have Endo who is an outcast because she broke the society's rules: she felt in love with an older, married man, she got pregnant and had an abortion. Endo says about herself that she goes with the flow, and that actually it is the reality of her character. Even in the movie finale, you will see in the message sent by Endo to Kirishima(a recorded videotape), the kind of person that she is. Between Kirishima and Endo you have Nakano(Endo's best friend)and Kirishima's lunch group(some other three girls). It is really interesting how the relationships are evolving. First Kirishima brings Endo to her group, then Kirishima sleeps with the love interest of someone in her lunch group. Maybe the evolution of those relationships is characterized by a phrase said by one of Kirishima's friend: "When we've split the money for the cake in four, then was good; when Endo came, still was good, but then, you(Kirishima) and Endo left.Three is not a good number". Then Endo presents Nakano to Kirishima, and the three of them are quickly become real good friends. Kirishima's love for Endo develops in steps, nothing sudden or unexpected. But there is so much sensuality in the relationship between the two girls that u can almost feel it. In the summer vacation, Endo gets a phone call from the guy who left her pregnant and she leaves Kirishima. When Endo comes back, she finds a different Kirishima. Nakano told Kirishima where Endo left for summer and Endo at her return try to hide the truth. Somewhere in the summer Kirishima meets again the guy that provoked the rupture between her and the lunch group. They talk and the guy says something very important: Kirishima is the one who gives the most in her relationship with Endo. But Kirishima also believes in second chances, and at Endo's return she gave her the chance to come clean. The braking between them is almost brutal after the lies told by Endo, and yet after a certain period the two of them makes up. But u can feel that something very important was lost. When Kirishima propose that the both of them should go to Tokyo and live together, Endo dodge her proposal. The finale of the movie finds us with a single Kirishima, and a videotape sent by Endo, a videotape that says through images "I just go with the flow"A movie for soul and mind, a movie for someone who wants a "most likely to happen" story. And a movie that leaves with so many mixed feelings: melancholy, sadness, and yet a certain optimism and a feeling that all will be okay after a while.