The direction in the film is good. The film combines a weird surreal dream like atmosphere combined with gritty realism that creates a unique style to the movie. The film contains very interesting shots in the film as the weird unique interesting way it presented makes the film feel one of a kind. The film is both realistic and surrealist at the real time creating an interesting clash of styles. The film is ultimately very quirky and creates a surreal bizarre tone throughout the film as this style plays into the poetic childlike wonder. There is a good surreal dram like style throughout the film, as the film contains themes of the idea of youth ending and that everything changes and comes to an end. The film has a childlike innocence to it, as shown with Anno’s ability to take a normal story and present it in a not normal way. The film has an interesting use of montage sequences, that are used to showcase a theme in the film being the boringness of life, as there are shots and scenes in the film that feels like stock footage that add to the dream like nature to boring sequences. The film contains a good use of rapid-fire editing, as shown with a musical segment of them paying creates a weird surreal childlike innocence.
This childlike innocence is contrasted with a realism to the film creating a sense of loneliness. There is a lot of moral ambiguity in this coming-of-age story making for an overall darker film that’s this genre typical affair. This is shown with the older men taking advantage of younger girls creating a chaotic environment for the characters in the film. The men they go on dates with all have very distinct personalities as the girls in question are ultimately scammers with a plan to get money. The film has a good montage editing style to it as the ring they want to get acts as a McGuffin in the film the object of desire that they want. Within the film the girls are manipulative getting money out of men, this links to themes of coming of age as well as sexual maturity as they get with older wen becoming women as both the men in the film and the women are using one another to escape the loneliness in their lives. The film feels like a snapshot of people’s lives as it made up of vignette artistly showcasing the theme of depression in the film. The film juxtaposes the realism of its themes of depression with a surrealist wacky style, as the highs and lows of youth a shown with a depressing realism. The girls in the film are depressed and manipulative with links into the themes of this ultimately being a high school coming of age film. The main plot of the story is that the girls want to buy a ring at the end of the day form the subsidised dating. The ring acts as a McGuffin the object of their desires which is symbolic of growing into maturity as the ring links into the idea of marriage, as again the film is ultimately about people’s maturity into adulthood.
The film makes normal things look surreal. When the girls try on the ring, they become infatuated with it symbolising their maturity into adulthood becoming women. The girls and the film have a fake viner of sexual maturity to them and the film shows how that can be manipulated, with the girls having a fake cuteness to them. The film is weird and surreal with female led characters shown through the female gaze as they manipulate men for money. The film has an interesting use rapid fire editing and weird camera angels as the film shows that throughout all the weirdness the film is about girls who care for each other. The film has weird framing and a zany crazy style. The film shows the loneliness of people with a montage of girls getting them, as the girls are seemly trying to be mature although at the end of the day, they are still children. The film is full of weird, bizarre people, as the film has a weird sweetness as well as a disturbing nature to it with the weirdness in normal settings as they go to the video store. The film has very surreal elements to it with an inner monologue and crossfades as she says the films in her head, this is contrasted with sexually disgusting acts in the video store as the film shows the dark reality behind the dream and the carelessness of people to each other. Hiromi then slips into depression because of this questioning herself in a weird surreal sequence, he then sets up a date with another weird man as they comminate thorough sign language on the opposite end of the tracks. They have a bizarre dynamic as he is older, but she is more mature as this sequence is filmed in an interview documentary style. The climax of the film is disturbing and filmed in a POV perspective.
The climax of the film is surreal and depressing. Hiromi questions herself lying in a pool of red after symbolic of blood for a suicide attempt. She has spiralled into depression as she can’t do anything and doesn’t want to do anything. She cannot talk to anyone anymore because of depression as she walks though Tokyo in a daze with a burled POV. Hiromi meets Koyayashi and returns his phone as he thanks her for saving his cat. He reveals he broke up with his girlfriend as he states Hiromi has value and that she shouldn’t sell herself cheap her existence is valuable, and she shouldn’t die. At the end of eh film she returns home sad and depressed as she couldn’t buy the ring and it’s all pointless. She finds the kindness of her family annoying but knows they have done anything wrong. She states that she doesn’t have the confidence to try and fail again which she always does. Her depression is shown with the fact that she didn’t dance with her sister, she didn’t help her dad with his computer, she didn’t go to the hospital with her mum. This depression continues as when she goes out with her friends, she misses something she states that to want is to be helpless she is in the depth of her depression, but she confronts it trying to make something happy and good.
Asumi Miwa does a good job as Hiromi Yoshii the main character of the film who is a depressed young girl who tries to buy a ring. Kirari does a good job as Chisa Noda one of the girls trying to get the ring. Hirono Kudo does a good job as Nao Yoki one of the girls trying to get the ring. Yukie Nakama does a good job as Chieko Takahashi one of the girls trying to get the ring. Misturu Hirata does a good job as Kagegawa. Mitsuru Fukikoshi does a good job as Yoshimura. Moro Morooka does a good job as Yazaki. Tooru Tezuka does a good job as Uehara. Ikkei Watanabe does a good job as Kobayashi. Tadanobu Asano does a good job as Captain CEO a crazy person who tries to kill Hiromi. Nana Okada does a good job as Hiromi’s Mother, and Leo Morimoto does a good job as Hiromi’s Father.
The writing in the film is good. Hiromi’s dad in an otaku for British culture and builds model trains as all the characters in the film are lonely wanting something. The film has a sense of normality that is interrupted by weird feigns throughout. As the film has a kind of poetic notion about having to do something that has no point is a punishment and symbolically dying from it as no one cares. The film continues poetic voice over about everything changing. She doesn’t understand everything, and that people’s feelings change as friendships end and new ones appear as everything is a cycle and she wants to capture it before it disappears. Hiromi laments about wanting to be taken away as every day is the same. She fears about not knowing what the future will bring and she wants a day that will be memorable. Hiromi gets harassed by a guy leading to a self-reflective monologue about her breaking up with her first boyfriend. She then gets chatted up by an older guy who wants to take them out to dinner. They agree and they learn about his life, having a daughter in high school and gets angry as they don’t listen to him as he tries to impart life advice as he has a bad life. Everyone in the film is bad the guys are sleazy scumbags, and the girls are scammers, they are intelligent as they know what they are doing as they want to pick up guys with money.
Hiromi decides to go on a diet to help her get dates as they talk about weight which is common with teenage girls. An older guy tries to chat them up for a date. They guy is full of himself pretentious, but the girls are playing him as there is a certain sadness to the character throwing parties. Through this subsidised dating they buy a camera as they then get a phone and use it to leave messages with it. The girls in the film feel heartless and detached as they don’t really care their parents worry about them, as fancy stuff is the ultimate object of their desires. The girls lie that they like the divorced old man, as the sexual desire in the film is influenced by her mind and the mood as the other people are just as important to it as she is. She then ends up gets wet from this and starts masturbating as all she wants to do is talk to her friends and have sex with her boyfriend but can’t. Hiromi is disconnected from everything and that she states how she wanted to be a dancer. The film ultimately showcases people who have no idea what to do with their lives as Hiromi dancing with her friends was important to her, but she finds out that important things turn ordinary. The film is zany and over the top as since Hiromi was dumped, she states that she then manipulated older men for sex and money. She states her and her friends talk about everything but are not good friends they either talk when they shouldn’t or stay silent when they shouldn’t, all of this is wrapped up in a high school film where they still must worry about their exams in this coming-of-age film. The girls reminisce that their high school life is over, and their youth is over as their girls get their nails done trying to be mature as well as getting cloths shopping for bras and bikinis. The girls try on the ring as Hiromi becomes infatuated with the ring symbolically becoming a woman.
The shop opens at 9am tomorrow so they have 24hrs to make much money as they can to get the ring. The become obsessed with the ring and the older guy they meet symbolising their maturity into womanhood. From this they then chat up men and goes on dates for money, as one hand they like to miniplate men for their own gain, but they are also helping them. The girls within the film are depressed and fake happiness, the girls play a manipulative game operating this like a business with the girls on the phone booking clients. The clients in the film are very clearly defined and bizarre as one of the makes them chew grapes and collecting them as a fetish business selling them for money. The girls don’t like men as they don’t understand them and don’t neat to talk to them or about them, however they actively participate in this idea with people buying grapes that were crushed by them. there is a sweetness and sadness to the film as the follows girls care for her, she feels humiliated by these men as she just wanted to have friends. Hiromi wants to be equal to everyone as they have borrowed ID from thee dates as they talk about the stuff, they had showing how sleazy the film and characters are. The ring is the object of Hiromi’s desire as they have option but assisted dating weather they want to or not sating you can. Do whatever you want if you put the effort in. She then gets another client as they set this meeting up though a montage. She then sets up a date with another client who thinks he made a mistake as she insulates him. He, however, is mentally unstable as it is shown they typically these types of people are weird as they don’t usually talk to women. He states that he has a neurological disease and is weird and hated he then gets the girl to give him a hand job is the video store as he runs away.
Hiromi cleans her hand as she slips into depression questioning herself in a weird surreal sequence. She then gest a cool form the guys that sets things up as she tells him what happened. They set up another date however she decides to meet a guy called Captain CEO who left as message for her to go on a date with him. they meet at the train tracks and communicate through sign language. They go to as love hotel were its relived, he has mental health problems as they explain the idea behind breaking up with people. They go to a love hotel and after some awkward small talk he finds out her plan to get the ring. As they eat, they talk as she states she wants the ring and bigger breasts whilst he wants to be the smartest person in the world as they both don’t know what to do with their lives. He confronts her and garbs her stating his plans to rape, kill and robe her before he stops just intime paying her little money and leaving. Hiromi meets Koyayashi and returns his phone as he thanks her for saving his cat as he reveals to her that him and his girlfriend broke up, as he states she has value and not to sell herself cheap and that her existence has value, and she shouldn’t die. At the ending of the film Hiromi breaks down sad and depressed stating she couldn’t buy the ring as it was all pointless. In her depression she states she finds the kindness of her family annoying but analogies that they haven’t done anything wrong, as she doesn’t have the confidence to try and fail again. This is stated with her not dancing with her sister but helping her dad with her computer and not going to go to hospital with her mum. She states when she goes out with her friends, she misses something, stating to want is to be helpless as she in in the part of her depression but she confronts it making something happy and good.
The cinematography in the film is good. The cinematography is decent throughout and has a weird surreal dream like style. The film has a gritty realistic look to it with a good use of fisheye lenses. The film has a good use of POV shots and close camera shots. As well as this the film has cool POC camera shots of a toy train as well as handheld shaky cam and interesting overlays. There is an interesting shot look up from the bottom of the bicycle as she’s riding as the film has lots of very unconventional shots. The film has a cool x-ray effect and an interesting shot from the inside of a fan. The film has some good tracking shots and an interesting use of the camera being inside of things. The film has sweeping camera movements as well as the web cam being used as a camera. The sweeping cameras have evil dead style movements as well as interesting use of low and high camera angles. The film has an interesting use fade effects and extreme close ups. The film uses weird angels with the camera constantly moving all over the place as the girls hang out with them spitting on the camera. The film has some interesting POV shots of them holding the camera and a POV of the ring. The camera zooms out far away sometimes as well as the camera being attached to things like a microphone. The film has a good use of overlays as well as rapid fire editing with weird camera angles. There are sections where the shots are vertical as well as weird tracking shots. There is an interesting shot were camera goes down the staircase as well as an interesting use of split screen. The film also uses Dutch angels and CCTV footage. The film also has as good use of red lighting and a cool shot of a girl in a pool. The film also has a cool special effect when her stuff starts shooting around the room.
Love and Pop is a weird interesting unique film that fans of Japanese cinema should watch.