Sky Of Love (Koizora) – Starring Yui Aragaki (新垣結衣)

I can’t help but to draw similarities between my favourite Japanese star YUI and the 19 years old model turned actress turned singer Yui Aragaki that go slightly deeper than just a name resemblance and a birthday that is only 3 months apart. Both starred in a rather sad movie (“Midnight Sun” for YUI), both look so pure and cute and innocent, sound so pure and cute and innocent, and both released a studio album after the show (I will review Yui Aragaki’s new album in my next post and YUI’s albums are “From Me to You” and “Can’t Buy Me Love”) with very similar vocal texture as well.  But as a true fan of YUI, what do I make of Yui Aragaki?

Music talent to be addressed in a separate post, Yui Aragaki does have acting talent for the romance drama genre.  It is hard not to fall in love with her on the screen (though I must say, Cynthia was more delighted by the main actor Haruma Miura instead … those sexy lips she said).  I had no idea what “Sky Of Love” was about.  I wasn’t even sure if it was a tear jerking movie at all.  All I knew was that the novel that the movie was based upon was once featured on paper late last year.  A cell-phone novel that took the Japanese market by storm.  I read that the cell-phone novel genre tends to have short sentences (hence a rather short and engaging plot development?) and chided by the old school novelists.  Initially, this cell-phone novel was hosted in one of the Japanese websites amongst many others.  I guess if the story is good, it doesn’t matter where it started.

In a few short and vague words, “Sky of Love” is about a young girl falling in love for the first time, vowed not to fall in love again, and found courage to love someone forever.  Cynthia criticize this particular genre as something that comes straight from a template; every Japanese or Korean tear jerking movie tells the same story.  I do agree that they are all there to basically jerk your tears.  But if you look at the typical Hollywood action thriller or romance or any type of mainstream movie, there are always three stages of the plot: the development, the conflict, and the resolution.  I learned that from the PC game “The Movies” (hey, geeks can be quite ‘knowledgeable’ by playing games too you know!).

Sometimes I ask myself, why do I love the Japanese or Korean or Thai horror movies if I don’t really scream that much?  Or why do I love the Japanese or Korean romance drama if I don’t really cry?  Anyway, Cynthia in her own words told me that she cried till she got a headache.  TK used the same amount of tissue paper as Cynthia for a totally different reason (running nose … ha ha ha).  I am not sure what TK’s friend makes out of the movie.  I may be bias.  I personally like this movie very much – both the storyline and the acting.  Predictable storyline most of the time, there are some rare moments that delight and surprise.

Related Blog Entry: Yui Aragaki (新垣結衣) – Sora (そら) – Girlie Voice, Good Song Choice, But Doubtful Vocal Skill.