I watched "Tokyo Olympiad 2020 SIDE:A"!

Although the main reason I wanted to go see it was that the music was by Kaze-san.
Man, I'm really glad I went to see it!
Below, I will write my impressions while still feeling moved.

A documentary from a fair standpoint

Tokyo Olympiad 2020 was an unprecedentedly heavy event, with various people from different positions throwing around various opinions for and against it until it was held—no, even after it started—compounded by several scandalous events.
But for the athletes, it is a once-in-four-years grand stage, a stage they have longed for.
Even if it were shifted by a year, the results would likely change, and their motivation would also shift.
For those who were able to stand on this stage and those who stepped down, it was a tournament that came after each of them struggled and suffered.
In this SIDE:A, the focus is on those athletes and the people around them.

Perhaps because it was shot with a long lens, there are many scenes with grainy images, which is actually effective.

The audio was well-recorded, and the sounds—being thrown onto the tatami (judo), hands and feet cutting through the air (karate), the pleasant sound of a bat hitting a ball, and heavy breathing—were realistic and immersive.

The content of the interviews with the athletes and their families is also frank.
The profound words unique to top-tier athletes contained truth and power.

No matter what result awaited them, there is no way that people who continued to fight while believing in themselves are not noble.
It was good that, in addition to the familiar Japanese athletes, the days of many athletes from various countries were depicted calmly and fairly, without any biased viewpoints or commentary.

A documentary film from the athletes' perspective

People carrying their country on their backs, people who became refugees and compete as representatives of other countries, people competing for their families, people who chose not to compete in opposition, people who continue to play sports that were removed from or added to the tournament events, people who raise their voices as athletes while fighting against racial discrimination.
The thoughts of directors, coaches, teams, and families... In many scenes, I was moved by the figures of people purely aiming for the heights, and my eyes grew hot many times.

The words, "Is it wonderful to win at the Olympics? Isn't it more important to aim for the gold medal of life?" sound like common platitudes, but they carry weight when spoken by someone who has aimed for that stage and struggled even once.
It left an impression on me that, coincidentally, two people in the film said similar things.

The Olympics had various complaints, and perhaps because of the film director's bad reputation, the audience turnout for this film seems to be quite poor.
In fact, today, there were only four people in the audience, including me.
But this, I think it's quite worth seeing.
Precisely because it was a controversial tournament, the struggles of the athletes, who must have faced it with feelings many times more complex than usual, are painfully conveyed.
Without giving in to barriers,the figure of someone sincerely devoting themselves to something is undeniably beautiful and strong.

There was a time when the holding of the event itself was in jeopardy due to various reasons, such as political issues and the interests and speculations of various parties.
In addition to that, the blow of COVID-19. A one-year postponement.
In the end, it was held in an unprecedented state where most matches were without spectators.
International affairs are complex, and pandemics and natural disasters have a major impact on people's lives.
I don't think there could ever be a tournament that everyone is satisfied with, and that may continue to be the case in the future.
However, I thought once again that sports tournaments should belong to the athletes themselves more than anyone else.

Fujii Kaze's film music

And after all, what is worth mentioning is the wonderfulness of Fujii Kaze's music.
For the approximately two hours until the ending, it was occasionally performed as background music using a piano and a few other instruments.
It quietly nestled up to the athletes' backgrounds and feelings, flowing without getting in the way of the visuals, sometimes gently and sometimes powerfully.

With the final song "The sun and the moon," my tear ducts finally collapsed.
I thought it scooped up the theme of the film as much as possible and expressed it in the form of music with a perfect interpretation.
Moreover, the lyrics, the melody, and the singing voice warmly wrap everything up.
I don't know if Kaze-san added the music after seeing the completion of this film, or if he made it in parallel after only hearing the plot, but I thought he properly understood the director's intentions and captured the essence.
Furthermore, he brilliantly superimposed it on his own view of life, sublimating it to the point where it is impeccable even as an independent work of his own.
I want to listen to it many times.
I strongly desire a single release. If a soundtrack album comes out, I will buy it.

Lastly.

There may be people who dislike it for reasons such as they were against the Olympics or the director has a bad image.

But I think, a work should be evaluated fairly as a work.

Not limited to films, among creators in every field throughout history, there are people who are wild, cause trouble for others, or are the worst as human beings.

But I want to have an attitude of putting such things aside for a moment and evaluating only the work fairly.

Mozart, Van Gogh, and Taro Okamoto are the same, and there are many other eccentric artists.

But in the end, wonderful works remain across eras, are loved by people, and heal or cheer people up.

I think this film, which recorded the figures of athletes who fought through unprecedented circumstances in the form of a documentary, will surely remain as a work for future generations, along with the memories of the sweat and tears of that Olympics that sparked various controversies.