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On The Sea (UK)

By Golu
This one's a beautiful, tender, quiet romantic drama with a moody atmosphere, set in a tight knit Welsh fishing community. It's a touching story about a man waking up sexually in the middle of his life, and how he, his family, and everyone around him deal with it, which makes it emotional and sentimental without ever getting over the top. The slow burn plays out against a landscape that's as bleak as it is gorgeous, where quiet, closed off men are stuck inside rigid ideas of what masculinity should be. Some people might be reminded of "God's Own Country," but I think both films are lovely in their own way. Jack is a middle aged guy who co-owns a mussel farm with his rough around the edges brother Dyfan, and the tension between the two of them is simmering under the surface right from the start. Dyfan's three sons all help out with the work, while Jack's sulky teenage son Tom keeps skipping out. Jack's been with his wife since they were both 16, and...
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Dōshitemo Furetakunai (Japanese) [No Touching At All]

By Golu
Apparently this film is based on a short story by the same name that was quite popular in Japan. I haven’t read the book but my vies on the film are very average, for various reasons. We will discuss that further.

Shia is a young shy man. Having quit his last job, on his first day at his new job, he meets Togawa in the elevator who is brash and extremely hungover. Only later he finds out that Togawa is his boss. For whatever reasons, at least not clear to me, Togawa takes a liking for Shima and before you know an affair starts between them. Shima is still the shy one while Togawa constantly pursues him. Shia also makes a god friend with another guy in the office who is also close friends with Togawa. Shia has a history with his ex-boyfriend because of whom he had to leave his old job. So as much as he appreciates and likes and wants to reciprocate Togawa’s love, he is scared that this is just a phase for Togawa and pretty soon he will get bored and he will leave him. His worst fears come true when Togawa is offered a job in another city and he decides to take it. Togo really loves Shima and wants to make things work between them and does his best to explain to Shima that nothing will change between them. He moves to the new city, when Shima visits him because he realises that he is also truly in love with Togawa. The film ends with the duo trying to make things work between them.

The story is very simple and has been done ok. But really there is nothing much to it. Why is Togawa attracted to Shima is not very clear. Shima has this dead-exrpressionless face throughout the entire movie which gets annoying after a certain period of time. I think we needed some more back story on him, unless the makers were completely unable to bring out the difference between shyness and autism. :) Togawa’s character was interesting and charming and kept the film alive. He was a man who did what his heart wanted without caring for what others had to think about him. Besides this, I felt that the film was a bit slow. There could have been more energy in the film, or the films overall running time could have been reduced. The positive of he film is the story again. I like the idea of man who is shy & has some bad history finds the true love of his life and his love is ready to accept him and do anything for him.

A strictly average film. Slow paced and and drags at certain point. (4/10)
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Gaston said…
La verdad entiendo tus comentarios. Es innegable que la película pueda ser interpretada así. Sin embargo, yo la valoraría como una película distinta a lo que estamos acostumbrado. La lentitud, el silencio, la sencillez, no solo en los diálogos sino en la fotografía, me hace pensar en la cultura japonesa. Donde la forma de expresarse parece ser mas sutil, breve y sublime al mismo tiempo. Todo esto lo expresa mejor Shima. Si bien siempre se muestra silencioso y aparentemente inexpresivo me resulto fascinante encontrar "esos" momentos donde mediante una mirada, un gesto o una palabra se desnuda completamente frente a Togo. Quizás el mejor momento es cuando, con esa aparente ingenuidad, lo pone celoso a Togo al final de la película. El evidente control de Togo de repente se ve superado por una frase de Shima. Y cuando Togo le dice que va a ser un buen novio, Shima se sonríe por primera vez en la película. Ese momento es increíble. Creo que estamos acostumbrados a la exuberancia a hacer todo evidente. Esta película nos recuerda la importancia del pequeños gestos, de hablar desde el silencio. A mi me gusto mucho. La única critica que le haría es que evidentemente la financio Malboro y el cigarro se roba escenas que no debería. A propósito, muy buenas pelis!
December 21, 2015 at 4:37 PM
Golu said…
Welcome to my blog and I appreciate your comments. Yes, small gestures do make a huge difference. I hope you will follow my blog and be an avid reader
December 22, 2015 at 3:52 AM
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