[Movie Review] The Liar and His Lover

 



 

The Liar and His Lover can be considered an old movie-- released on December 14th, 2013-- it is one of my favorite movies. The movie touched my feelings the first time I watched it and it still does every time I play it.


The movie tells the story of a young couple which consists of Riko and Aki. The two are musicians who fall in love after a strange encounter on a bridge after Aki's break up from his popular singer girlfriend. However, Aki doesn't know that Riko is a musician--or a singer to be exact-- and therefore he tries his hardest to hide his identity from her. He is hoping his undiscovered identity will help him to have a normal relationship. Riko, admitting that she falls in love at first sight to Aki, is anxious to tell Aki that she loves to sing.


The movie is an adaptation of the manga "Kanojo Wa Uso Aishisugiteru" by Kotomi Aoki. I have to admit that I have never read the manga but the movie already impresses me so much that I believe the manga is supposed to be a lot better than the movie!


In 117 minutes, the movie has successfully brought us to the enjoyment of music -- and lyrics!-- at its finest. As a musical movie, lyrics are an important aspect to the movie-- along with the instrumentals and such-- which has been delivered greatly by the movie. The pace is not too slow and not too fast-- it gives the audience enough time to develop an understanding of what happens in the movie.
The interactions of Takeru Sato and Sakurako Ohara also gives an innocent vibe during the movie-- which matches the movie's mood anyway. If I read the manga, I would probably love the interaction of Riko (Sakurako Ohara) with Shinya (Masataka Kubota) than Aki and Riko. Usually, the second love interactions in manga are a lot more interesting than the main couple itself. However, because I didn't read the manga, I fall in love with the main couple. Aside from the fact that Takeru Sato is unbelievably handsome in this movie.


Aside from its perfections, the movie suffers some moments of awkwardness-- at least in my opinion. Maybe because Riko is played by Sakurako Ohara who was a new coming actress (this movie is her first movie after all), there are some scenes where her expressions and gestures are just... awkward. The other awkward moment is the existence of Riko's band. I mean, the band only gets a small amount of screen that I feel sad for them. There is a scene where the two members of Riko's band meet Aki for the first time. One of them confronts Aki right away, calling him NEETO (?). The scene feels just a little bit rough to me as the gesture is a little bit stiff on that.
But after all, the movie leaves a deep feeling to me as the plot moves smoothly-- giving a spice of how entertainment business runs in Aki and Riko's situation, a portrayal how past can always ghost the current us and our decisions, a relationship that can work just fine even after several heartbroken moments.


The scenery in the movie is great for future saving-- in case you are missing the movie or something. The beautiful voice of Sakurako Ohara also can please your ears during the movie especially during the closing song "Chippoke na Ai no Uta". And, during the movie, Crude Play's songs are sung by Shohei Miura, his voice is just gold!
To be exact when you read a manga where it is about songs-- musical manga?-- I tend to be disappointed because even if the lyrics are important, I need the music. And so far this movie shows me how it can be done so well.


And, one small note, in the movie, Aki and Riko has a real age gap and 'experience' gap where Aki has been in the industry longer than Riko is. This just excites me much-- yes, my personal preference is kind of random! But I like that Aki and Riko are not separated by just one year age gap which makes me take this story even more seriously. Oh, and I like how an ex-girlfriend can sneak into their relationship and everything can be handled in a way that would make Riko fall in love again and again with Aki.


I first came across this movie on a flight from Melbourne and I had to search this movie for months before I finally can watch the real ending!
I highly recommend this movie for you to watch!
 

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