Moto Kare [元カレ] It really isn't too bad at all [Rating: 7/10] my few cents worth..
i personally feel that hirosue ryoko has made some slight breakthroughs in this drama... in the first few episodes, i felt like her characer, makoto, was a complete bitch... saying things to cause nao (rina's character) to become emotionally stressed, etc etc... basically being nasty... in such a light where she is portrayed as a strong and somewhat arrogant young lady and those later episodes where we see her true feelings towards her ex-bf and of course, her regrets and remorse (remember the part when the both of them were waiting for the train in the evening after she poured out her feelings him, she quoted the phase 'how true it is when people say that one will only learn to treasure something after it is lost') the audience is brought to a different level in makoto-- her softer, lonelier side as opposed to her stronger and more confident self earlier on...
this drama isn't the best to watch if your are looking for sensibility in a 3-sided relationship... even the ending seems just too unfair and 'unjust'... but i can't help but change my feelings for makoto from hate to pity... hirosue has done well in crafting her character's personality... there are defintely alot more to cirticize but this drama is worth your time... | Sekai no chuushin de, ai wo sakebu [世界の中心で、愛をさけぶ] I have nothing much to add... just look at all the [Rating: 9/10] the 1st thing that caught my eye to this dorama is its title; it implies a sort of lonliness (being at the cetre of the world) and loss (crying out 'love')
ok, next to the filmography... i like the way the plot melts from the past (1987) to the present and then back again... its naturally and beautifully done. all the props and settings add to the nostalgia of things, memories and people whom one has lost and can neva b recovered again (i guess thats the central theme)
it's also pleasing to know that the co-stars (namely, ooki, ueda and nakagawa) are given ample opportunities in this dorama... well, not in terms of real-time on-screens, but in the way their roles play an importance to the lead character, matsumoto
though i'm not supposed to reveal too much of the story plot here, i must add the point that the weight of this dorama's success rests much on what happened in 1987 (the cause) and not the present (the effect) so ogata naoto's character (the present 34-year old matsumoto) is only for accounting purposes; so ogata is effectively not the REAL lead actor till the very end, when we all want to know what happens to matsumoto. so for those who may be put off that the lead actors featured in this dorama are not your typical 'asia-wide-popular' japanese artiste, its time to put these feelings aside and watch it cause it is a breakthrough in japanese dorama arena... yes, there can be many 'tear-jerking' j-doramas to come in the future, but there will only be one <<�����E�̒��S�ŁA�������� sekai no chuusin de, ai o sakebu>>... prepare your emotions for a GREAT DEPRESSION |