Sukitte ii na yo (2014)

Country: Japan
Format: live-action
Genre: romance, youth
Cast: Fukushi Sota, Kawaguchi Haruna, Ichikawa Tomohiro, Adachi Rika, Nagase Tasuku, Nishizaki Rima, Yamamoto Ryusuke, Yagi Arisa, Miura Toku,
Synopsis: Tachibana Mei is gloomy girl who keeps distance from other people. Her life changes when she hits Kurosawa Yamato who happens to be the most popular guy in the school. By saving Mei from a stalker with a kiss, Yamato wants Mei to trust him and be at least his friend, if not even more.
Rating: 4/5
It is based on same-named manga by Kanae Hazuki. I can already say that it is a shoujo-manga, so be ready for some overly lovey-dovey unrealistic scenes.

Yamato is the most popular guy even when it is unintentional fame, but for his misfortune his friendliness sometimes backfires him too. Sometimes he does not seem to understand or notice that his good traits can also hurt people around him, even if he is very caring of his friends. He is not afraid to show out what he feels and he seriously likes to kiss a lot, what makes it really cute as Mei is so different from other girls. I must say that sadly it was my first time seeing Fukushi Sota acting, but I'd say that he was rather decent. Nothing too surprising, but not bad either. He is able to play all that Yamato is, so it was great. But I wait to see him more, because I have heard a lot about him.

On the other hand we have Mei who has trust issues and believes that Yamato can do much more better than being with her. That also leads to getting hurt when friendly Yamato spends a little bit too much time with prettier and more successful girls. I have heard that in live action she lacks of aggressiveness that Mei actually had at first, so in live action there is only the fatal kick that brings them together. But I did like her lack of'words character, because she was shy to say or do these kind of romantic gestures and she was aware of her flaws. (just discovered that in a way I am similar to her at that point). Kawaguchi Haruna is becoming a star of live-actions because this girl has done a lot and successfully. I think she is perfect for the role.

Nakanishi can be a big jerk in some moments and then he can be super cute again. He really wants to show off and be a cool guy, but he does not know how to act when he has to be sincere. In a way he is Yamato's shadow. Most of the time he is with Yamato and when he is organizing things then Yamato has to be there to make it successful. In addition, the only girl Nakanishi is serious about has her eyes set on Yamato. I kind of a felt sorry for Asami-chan. She is girl with rather big boobs and that is making her lose her confidence as other girls keep making fun of her and most guys are interested just in her boobs. While most of the world is obsessed with big boobs, then actually they can be real misfortune for a woman (misfortune that I do not know). She can look a bit naive and stupid, but as she says "Smile is the best camouflage".

I like Aiko kind of girls. They can be really bitchy, but at the same time they stick with their friends in any situation. She is the kind of girl who I would like to bitch slap really hard and then hug. She has issues that are difficult to solve and that makes me feel sorry for her.
Kai-kun. I have seen Ichikawa Tomohiro acting before and I am happy to see that he has improved a lot since last time I saw him.. or the role was better for him to show his abilities.
Megumi. Arisa Yagi is actually Japanese fashion model who took part of "We got married" series and was married to Shinee's Key. "Sukitte ii na yo" was her first real acting role and I think it was successful. Of course the fact that she had to play a model made it easier for her.

The kiss scenes are not so beautiful, they are more like smoosh on the lips and that is it. But at the same time, there is a lot of kissing for a Japanese movie and I really like how Kawaguchi Haruna really seems to lose her mind with every kiss. Have you ever kissed somebody that makes you lose your mind?
I also like how it touches school bullying as it is still a big problem in today's schools. School bullying is not only violence, but also distracting yourself from a friend who is bullied makes it even more difficult. I am not going to talk about my messed up middle school years, because they where not easy for me, but I think that this movie makes a really good point how to fight against it and that no matter what revenge is not the solution. I actually could write a whole book on bullying if I'd only had time and interest.
The soundtrack is provided by One Direction. Song is "Happily" - there are some great covers made too. It is really sweet high school love story that makes me really want to fell in love again and have someone to kiss and gain courage to say "suki da yo!" because I have never said this to another person..