Saturday, January 13, 2007

 

Crying Out Love, in the Center of the World (世界の中心で、愛をさけぶ)

As I already decided, I didn't go to LA this weekend.

Instead, I stayed at home with tears running down my face like two rivers.

No, not because I feel sad for not going for the road trip, but because of a Japanese film I just watched: "Crying Out Love, in the Center of the World" ("世界の中心で、愛をさけぶ").

世界の中心で、愛をさけぶ This is a beautifully shot and profoundly touching film about love and grief. Normally I am not really into sappy romance movies, because many of them insult my intelligence. But this sentimental drama completely captivates me and I cried and cried and cried again.

In "Crying Out Love, in the Center of the World," Saku and Aki are two high school classmates in the 80s. They fall in love and use audio cassettes to record their diaries for each other. However, this romance didn't last forever. And 17 years later, when Saku comes back to his hometown, he is still consumed by his love of his life time.

The film travels between two time lines seamlessly and never slows down on building up the emotion through a brilliant performance by a terrific ensemble cast. I believe in and feel the love between the characters, which is why I am so deeply moved by their love story.

The film is also very philosophical on grieving loved ones. For example, Uncle Shige said to Saku in the film:

"Heaven's just something invented by survivors. My beloved is there, someday we'll be reunited. We want to believe that."

And I also want to believe that even after I die, my love will still live on, after "tying up some loose ends."

My rating: 9 out of 10.


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