The Editorial Department Discusses Movies We Want to Watch During Summer Vacation
—One day at the note editorial department—
Tantan: "It's been really hot lately, hasn't it? Yama-san, what are you planning to do this summer?"
Yama: "I plan to eat watermelon ice cream in a cool room. What about you, Tantan-san?"
Tantan: "Summer festivals! But on other days, it's just too hot, so I'll probably watch movies in my room."
Yama: "That sounds great, movies! I'd love to know your movie recommendations, Tantan-san!"
Tantan: "I'm curious about your recommendations too, Yama-san! Why don't we watch each other's recommended movies this summer?"
Yama: "That's the best idea ever. I'll follow you for the rest of my life!"
On days when the heat is intense, why not relax at home and watch some movies?
This time, we will introduce movies recommended by the SKY PerfecTV! note editorial department.
▽ For those wondering who Tantan and Yama are
Click here for the profiles of the SKY PerfecTV! official note editorial staff
Entry No. 1: "The Boy and the Beast"
(Introduced by: Tantan)
One night in Shibuya, Ren, a lonely human boy, meets Kumatetsu, who has come from "Jutengai," a city where beasts live, and decides to become his apprentice. Named "Kyuta" by Kumatetsu, he develops a bond like that of a parent and child with Kumatetsu while training desperately in the beast world. Kyuta grows up to be strong, but after accidentally returning to the human world and meeting a high school girl named Kaede, he begins to search for where he truly belongs. Meanwhile, an incident that involves both the human world and the beast world breaks out... A story of the bond woven between a beast and a human, and Kyuta's growth.
Tantan: "Speaking of summer, it has to be Mamoru Hosoda's films! I even went to see the musical adaptation by Gekidan Shiki, and it really was a great story...! While 'Summer Wars' and 'Belle' also depict scenes of moving between reality and virtual worlds, I love the contrast in 'The Boy and the Beast' where you are fully immersed in the beast world and then suddenly return to the human world. Also, you can't help but love every single character. I could watch the banter between Kumatetsu and his followers, Tatara and Hyakushubo, forever, and it's also amazing that they are voiced by Koji Yakusho, Yo Oizumi, and Lily Franky."
Yama: "Mamoru Hosoda's films! They always feature cumulonimbus clouds, so they really feel like 'THE summer movies' (laughs). I thought they were unique characters, but they were played by voice actors with different charms! If you went to the beast world, Tantan-san, who would you want to talk to the most?"
Tantan: "Exactly, the interactions as anime characters are great enough, but it's even better when you imagine the people playing them. I'd like to talk to Ichirohiko, because he's a handsome guy with a 'salt-face' (laughs)."
Entry No. 2: "Harry Potter"
(Introduced by: Yama)
Harry Potter is a boy who grew up being treated coldly by his uncle's family. On his 11th birthday, he receives an acceptance letter from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, which leads him to discover that he comes from a family of wizards, that his parents were murdered by the dark wizard Voldemort, and that he is the only "boy who lived." While building friendships with his classmates Ron and Hermione during his school life, his fated battle with his nemesis Voldemort begins.
Yama: "I hesitated to introduce this because it's a well-known masterpiece, but with the recent Harry Potter whirlwind on stage and at the studio, I couldn't resist (laughs). When I was in elementary school, I loved the world where the magical world and the human world intersected and watched it with excitement, but watching it as an adult, I find myself drawn into the scattered foreshadowing and the complex emotions of the characters. I realize it's a work that can be enjoyed by any generation. By the way, I think the most tear-jerking scene in the Harry Potter series is when Neville is awarded 10 points in 'The Sorcerer's Stone,' and the coolest spell is 'Piertotum Locomotor,' which Professor McGonagall used to move the stone statues and armor to protect the castle in 'The Deathly Hallows.' I fully welcome any disagreement!"
Tantan: "I only knew 'Expecto Patronum,' so now I know two spells (laughs). I'll use that when I want to move stones! What magic would you most like to use, Yama-san?"
Yama: "When you want to move a stone (laughs)."
I want to use the Cushion Charm invented by Elliot Smethwyck. It's a spell that contributed to improving the comfort of riding a broomstick, and I'm sure people with hemorrhoids all over the world would want to use it."
Entry No. 3: "Summer Time Machine Blues"
(Presenter: Tantan)
A sci-fi research club at a university. In the heat, they accidentally spill cola on the clubroom's air conditioner remote, breaking it. However, the next day, a time machine appears in the clubroom. They decide to "go back to the past to get the remote before it broke," so they time-slip to yesterday and succeed in getting the remote while trying not to be seen by their past selves. They try to play pranks acting like people from the future and try to undo yesterday's mistakes, but upon learning that "if you change your past selves, the 'present' will disappear," the club members rush around in a panic to fix the past they changed. It's a comedy film.
Tantan: "It's a so-called time-slip movie, but the theme is super small-scale and ridiculous: 'going back to yesterday to get back a broken AC remote.' If you let your guard down thinking that, you realize that there are actually tons of foreshadowing clues scattered throughout the footage from the very beginning, and you start watching it seriously halfway through (laughs)."
Since it's a 2005 film, it has a slightly nostalgic feel with items, clubrooms, public baths, and old movie theater scenery, giving it a retro-emotional vibe. It's also fun to see young versions of great actors like Eita Nagayama and Juri Ueno."
Yama: "Sounds interesting! Putting your heart and soul into something trivial—it has the same vibe as 'Gintama,' which I love... I can see myself getting hooked on this (laughs). The more trivial the trigger, the funnier it is, right?"
And I'm curious about the retro-emotional feel too! It sounds fun to watch a slightly older work and reminisce about various things!"
Tantan: "Exactly. Old manga and games appear as props quite a bit, too."
By the way, what would you do if you had a time machine? I went to a certain idol's concert recently and had a god-tier seat, so I might whisper to my past self to make sure to make a fan service fan and bring it."
Yama: "A fan... that's not trivial! Isn't that the most important mission for an otaku?"
Hmm, there are things I want to redo and futures I'm curious about, but I wouldn't use it myself. I feel like I can cherish each day because I can only experience it once.
Oh, but I would want to make a fortune by running a time machine business!"
Tantan: "No, give back the emotion I was feeling halfway through!"
Entry No. 4: "The 9th Life of Louis Drax"
(Presenter: Yama)
Nine-year-old Louis falls off a cliff and falls into a coma. Born after a difficult labor, strangely enough, Louis had experienced life-threatening accidents eight times every year since then. Are these phenomena, which don't seem like coincidences, the work of someone with malicious intent? Who exactly is Louis, who keeps getting caught up in accidents and incidents? While Louis, who holds all the keys, continues to sleep in his hospital bed, his doctor, Pascal, approaches a shocking truth that no one could have expected...
Yama: "If I had to introduce this work in one sentence, it's 'a psychological suspense story of love where the secrets of a boy who almost died nine times in nine years are all revealed in the final nine minutes.'"
The structure of collecting foreshadowing clues and leading to a twist in the final nine minutes is satisfying, and while it's a psychological suspense, it makes you think about what true love is. I look for both the surprise of 'So that's what it was!' and the poignancy of 'Sob, sob' (sobbing from being overwhelmed) in movies, and this is a work that combines those two, making me want to watch it again in the summer when I have time.
Also, the lead, Aiden Longworth, is just so cute, and the mother, Sarah Gadon, is just so beautiful—that's a point I have to recommend (laughs)."
Tantan: "It's the same foreshadowing-collection type, but this one is a serious one involving life and death (laughs)."
Isn't the last nine minutes crazy? My motto is to never say 'What does that mean?' the moment the lights come on in the theater, no matter how much of a 'thinking' movie it is, but I'm worried if my head can keep up with what it all meant in the last nine minutes."
Yama: "I'm curious about your unexpected motto, Tantan... but the foreshadowing in this work is relatively easy to understand, and honestly, I think some people might guess the ending."
However, the deep love depicted at the end cannot be watched without tears, so I think it will be 'sob, sob' rather than 'what does that mean?' Is that okay with your motto, Tantan?"
Tantan: "I'm in a 'sob, sob' state for most movies, so it's no problem at all!"
I'm a crybaby, so if I watch it while drinking at home, I might not be able to stop at 'sob, sob' and might end up calling you, Yama, in tears."
Yama: "Heatstroke is scary, so please make sure to hydrate as much as you've cried."
Tantan: "It was fun because there were movies that are famous but I've never actually watched properly, and movies I didn't know at all!"
Yama: "That's true. We introduced two works each this time, but I'd like to know other movies you recommend, Tantan!"
Tantan: "Yeah, yeah, let's both watch lots of movies at home for the rest of the summer and talk again after summer vacation!"
Yama: "What a great senior!"
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