Ex (Hong Kong 2010)

Question: when a movie feels a lot longer than it's actual running time, does that mean you're not enjoying it? Yes, that's a rhetorical question because the answer is fairly obvious. For me, Ex (前度) was such a movie, one that emphasizes the old expression that you don't know what you've got until it's gone. I had a tough time with this one.

Zhou Yi (Gillian Chung), is a young woman with her hand in one too many cookie jars. She has a boyfriend, Woody (Lawrence Chou), that she's planning a trip with until she finds out, at the airport, that he shared some intimate moments with another woman. The two begin arguing in front of another couple, Ping (William Chan), and Cee (Michelle Wai), and through sheer coincidence, Ping just so happens to be Zhou Yi's ex. Let's not try and explore how that possibility is near absurd. This is a movie after all. Cee, trying to be the nice one in this group, sticks up for Zhou Yi and offers her a ride. Ping is in the backseat wondering how this all came to be while his ex and current girlfriend sit in the front talking about his bad habits. How's that for an awkward car ride? Zhou Yi reaches out to some friends and family for a place to crash, as she no longer has a place of her own, but she ends up having no place to go. Going even further out on that limb of generosity, Cee and Ping agree to let her stay at Ping's place for a few days until she can sort something out. Zhou Yi wastes no time making herself at home in Ping's flat and it's clear that Cee isn't as comfortable with her staying there as we may have thought. She can see the closeness that Ping and Zhou Yi once shared and is starting to feel that the two of them haven't fully moved on. During her time in Ping's flat, Zhou Yi and her ex talk about the good ol' times and the not-so-good of times they had together. Zhou Yi talks about the various guys she spent time with after Ping, including the aforementioned Woody, a triad bad-boy (Jacky Heung), and Sol (Derek Tsang), a nice guy cab driver that's actually friendly with Ping. Sure, she's a bit promiscuous, but I guess you sometimes have to see what else is on offer before you realize what you wanted was right in front of you all along. During this short time of being back together under the same roof, feelings for one another begin to rekindle but it's not just the two of them anymore. Are Ping and Zhou Yi really as good for each other as they think?

There are a lot of stories going on in Ex as Zhou Yi recounts her tales of past loves through the fun of flashbacks. I don't mind a movie using flashbacks to fill me in on various important little bits of information, but as a major story-telling piece where I'm constantly being taken back to specific moments in time, well that becomes a bit tiresome for me. Add to that the fact that every time we go back in time, Zhou Yi has a different hairstyle, a couple of which look like wigs, and Ping has a different hairstyle and style of glasses each time. I understand that it's the past due to me actually paying attention to the story, so I find the poorly done costume props distracting. I will say that the performances were quite good and Gillian Chung in particular proved that she's more than just a pop-star turned wannabe actress. I found her character to be really obnoxious at first but once you discover why she is the way she is, it makes sense. This girl has been through the emotionally wringer and Chung does a nice job at conveying that rollercoaster of emotion. The director, Heiward Mak, does a nice job making everything look good. He clearly has a sharp eye, but there are occasions where things get a little too artsy for their own good, leaving an air of pretentiousness hanging. Ex is reasonable in length at only an hour and thirty-six minutes, but I have to question the director's pacing, as the story seemed to drag on and on. A movie this short shouldn't feel this long.

A near mixed-bag with more bad than good, Ex is a movie that gets points for effort but isn't getting a free pass due to poor execution. There's a slick sheen on the proceedings and it's not a complete misfire, but as it all unfolds you're ultimately left unimpressed and even slightly bored. (Lee)

Grade: C

Miporin no Ekubo (Japan 2010)

Oh boy, movies likes Miporin no Ekubo (みぽりんのえくぼ ) are a bit difficult to review, so I guess I'll use a strange analogy to try and describe it. When you see the rundown of a movie like this, it's a bit like a can of Coke; you know exactly what you're getting. That Coke is gonna taste like a Coke every time and these types of movie are always going to unapologetically go straight for your heartsrings. Based on a true story...oh boy indeed.

Miho aka Miporin (Manatsu Kimura), is a 13 year old who is going to die. Boom! Right off the bat we're told she's going to die by none other than Miporin herself. This young girl hasn't had the easiest life. When she was two years old she was diagnosed with leukemia but she fought her way through it like the little trooper she is. She's just starting junior high, things are looking good and we can see that her mother (Ryoko Hirosue), father (Tomoya Nagase), and older sister Minami (Mayuko Fukuda), make up a tight-knit, loving family. On Miporin's first day of junior high school, she's in the midst of new-class orientation when suddenly her vision gets blurred and a sharp pain runs through her head, causing her to pass out. She's taken to the hospital to be examined and the doctor's conclude that Miporin had simply succumb to the pressures of starting school. Whew, close call right? Well Miporin is back to school the next day, in the gym with her friends shooting some hoops, when suddenly the same thing happens; blurred vision, sharp head pain and out she goes. Something is definitely not right here. Her parents rush to the hospital to be by her side and the doctor's decide to do some more extensive testing. After an MRI scan, the doctors sadly inform Mom and Dad that Miporin has a brain tumor. The parents agree to let the doctors go forward with a treatment, which isn't a guaranteed cure, but they're desperate.

Since she's stuck in the hospital, Dad picks up some art-letters at the local hobby shop to try and help lift Miporin's spirits. These art-letters are basically letter sized cards that you can paint on to tell a story or simply to create a picture. Mom and Dad figured it would be a nice, creative way for Miporin to express herself during her stay in the hospital. Miporin really takes to the idea and soon finds herself drawing a new picture everyday. The doctors and other patients are really impressed with her pictures and love gathering around to see what she'll draw next. After the initial treatments are finished, the doctors have more bad news for the family and inform the parents that the tumor has come back and that their initial treatment had failed. All this attention that Miporin's getting has also taken it's toll on her older sister, who isn't aware of how serious young Miho's disease is. Minami begins feeling jealous and starts acting nasty to everyone. She's a teenager. What do you expect? Yes, I'm generalizing. A couple of surgeries later, the doctors tell the parents that they've done all they can for Miporin and that she doesn't have much time left before she passes. That being said, the family feels it's best, and the doctors agree, to let Miporin spend the small amount of time she hast left, at home with her family. At this point, Mom has no choice but to tell Minami how serious Miporin's condition is. The time you knew was coming eventually comes and Miporin passes on, leaving behind 359 artistic letters documenting her journey in the hospital and through her illness. Her family knows how important the pictures were to them, to Miporin and to others that saw them, so they make a decision to ensure that people can continue to see them.

Okay, so that's probably the first time I've told almost every bit of a movie in a review before, but I promise I kept it spoiler-free. So before you yell at me, remember that the main character tells you right away that she's going to die when she narrates! Now, Miporin no Ekubo (Miporin's Dimples), was a made-for-TV movie, or as they say here in Japan, a "television special", which has it's heart in the right place; telling a story of a terminally ill young girl who touches the lives of others through her letters. Even though it's based on a true-story, the melodrama in this film just oozes out of every second of it's one hour and forty-one minute running time. Now I don't know about you, but for me, that can get real old, real fast. The acting wasn't particularly impressive, aside from Ryoko Hirosue as Miporin's mother because, let's face it, she's a pro at this point. The story, again while based on real events, felt as by-the-numbers as you can get. Girl is happy. Girl gets sick. Girls get treated and we're given a ray of hope. Hope gets dashed. Girl dies. You've seen that before and probably many times. When Miporin finally does see the light at the end of the film, her final scene is really over-the-top and young Manatsu Kimura puts on a "dying" voice that is cringe worthy.

Don't get me wrong, I didn't have an abundant supply of "Haterade" before watching Miporin no Ekubo. I like the fact that the real Miporin's letters touched peoples hearts and affected their lives for the better, but I guess her story didn't translate well to the screen for me. Sometimes movies can be just too cliche for their own good. (Lee)

Grade: D

(I don't have a trailer, so enjoy the first 15 minutes!)

Usagi Drop (Anime 2011)

Like most anime, at least that I'm aware of, Usagi Drop (うさぎドロップ) is an adaptation of the manga of the same name, which got it's start in print back in 2005. I've never read the manga, but this is an incredibly cute and charming anime series that showcases the importance of love and bonding in the family unit.

Daikichi Kawachi (Hiroshi Tsuchida), is a single, thirty-something, blue-collar worker who lives a relatively mundane life. On one of these relatively mundane days, he receives a phone call informing him that his grandfather has passed away. It's been awhile since Daikichi made his way back home, but few things can bring family back together like the passing of a loved one. At his family's home, he makes small talk with the members of his family but takes notice of a peculiar little girl that he hasn't seen before. She follows him around the house, staying hidden; clearly shy towards people. Eventually Daikichi strikes up a conversation with her and she tells him her name is Rin (Ayu Matsura), and that her father is Daikichi's grandfather. Say what!? It turns out that Daikichi's grandfather had an illegitimate child with his housekeeper, a young lady by the name of Masako (Maya Sakamoto). As you can imagine, this news has the Kawachi family in a bit of a tailspin and no one seems to know what to do with Rin. There's talk of sending her to a foster home but Daikichi, clearly being of a higher moral standing, feels that Rin is a part of the family and can't be discarded so easily. After a bit of thought, Daikichi informs the family that he'll be taking Rin home with him and will take care of her until he can figure out matters with Rin's mother. The family is in a bit of shock but Daikichi is determined to look after Rin and Rin is happy to go with someone that seems to genuinely care for her well-being. Daikichi's life as a lonely, single man has suddenly changed drastically, as has life for young Rin. Can Daikichi handle his life being completely turned upside down by the daily stresses of being a single father?

Throughout the series, Daikichi and Rin find themselves facing a number of challenges. First of all, they have to get used to just being around each other. Daikichi has to figure out how to enroll Rin in school, arranging his work schedule with her school schedule, buying her clothes and other supplies, dealing with Rin's birth mother, Rin getting sick, Rin making friends with a rowdy little boy named Koki, helping her cope with the concept of death (she tries to understand what happened to her father), and all the other challenges one would face when suddenly having a child thrust upon them without any prior preparation. I can't even imagine! I always enjoy these slice-of-life anime and Usagi Drop does a great job showing the difficult transitions that Daikichi and Rin face with what is essentially their new day-to-day lives. Daikichi is a guy who had a very ordinary life before his grandfather's death but he makes incredible sacrifices in order to accommodate this young girl that he really doesn't know. He's not always convinced he's done the right thing and even questions his ability to watch over Rin. However, he does know that she's family and deserves to be treated as such. Therein lies the really special, heartfelt message of Usagi Drop. Add to that the fact that it's all presented with a wonderfully eye-pleasing art style that is simple and clean, yet still shows attention to detail. Each episode begins with the art done in a painted, watercolor style then transitioning into a traditional, penciled art-style and this series just furthers showing it's character. You can imagine that from the show's content that there is a lot of heart in the storyline and Usagi Drop has no shortage of touching moments. I feel that Rin is an adorable character that you just find yourself rooting for and together with Daikichi, their relationship is really cute to watch. 

If you're a fan of "realistic" anime that focuses more on the human element and our relationships with one another, than Usagi Drop is a sweet series that you're sure to find heartwarming. It feels like an incredibly short 11 episodes and whenever a series feels like it's over too soon, that's always a good indicator of how enjoyable it is. (Lee)

Grade: A