Nana (II) (2005) User Reviews

Fun

[YetAnotherOpinion · 8/10 · 6 February 2006]

I saw this on an AA flight back from Japan and have to say it was a pretty enjoyable flick, so much so that I'll request netflix to carry it if/when it comes out on DVD so I can watch it with my wife.

It behooves me to add a bit of context, unlike quite a few of the people here, I've never read the manga, so for me this was a standalone movie with no preconceptions of what the characters should look/act like. I thought they were reasonably developed, interesting characters with good amount of depth.

My only real issue (as is frequently the case) is the manner in which they subtitled this movie. It's hard for me to ignore the subtitles if they're there, and worse, when they are poorly done then I spend an irritating amount of time interrupting myself mentally, thinking "Wait a second, that is not at all what (s)he said". This may just be my problem but it's definitely irritating. At the same time, they were not so drastically different that they significantly changed the feeling of the whole movie, which is frequently a complaint heard about English language movies with Japanese subtitles.

Japanese women's struggle or harmony of self-identity?

[shu-fen · 7/10 · 11 September 2006]

An IMDbian recommended this and underlined that it is an adaptation of a popular "shoujo manga" (girlie/chick comics). The NANA sensation can be compared with the craze caused by Densha otoko (Train Man) in Japan. Even the American girls find time to flip through it. Well, as the last page of chick comics said goodbye to me some twenty years ago, and my old bones cannot hold much dross energy for punk or rock n' roll music after work, sorry, not much interest shed in the first place. Besides, Nana was never heard to me. Just that the very last rental ticket was idling so I grabbed the VCD without much expectation... but it turned out to be a delightful surprise.

The names of the two Nanas and their room 707 are very interesting. "Seven" in Japanese is pronounced as "na-na", a universal lucky number. Two Nanas live together in a "na-na-tse-row(zero)-na-na" room, they rob all the luck of the world! The family names of the Nanas exhibit tellingly their characters. Nana KOMATSU, the traditional Nana who only longs for getting married was born with a last name means "a small (ko) pine tree (matsu)". Imagine a tiny pine tree in a traditional Japanese still and quiet landscape painting, not a grand view, right? And the modern Nana, Nana OZAKI who is independent and strong enough to brave any storms in her life, is given by Heaven a grandiose label, "a huge (o) mountain summit (zaki)". Comically, Mount Everest sprang from my head when I made the analogy. Their names are so self-explanatory, so graphic, so vivid.

Two namesakes of paradoxical personalities live under the same lucky-lucky roof in harmony, both traditional and modern qualities exist, fuse inside one body (Room 707) without causing any conflict. On the contrary, they are helping and inspiring each other. They happily found each other. That is the ideal of the original author Ai Yazawa: the attitude, the attribute, the bearing, the idiosyncrasy of 21st century Japanese feminism (woman figure).

While watching it and laughing at the lousy English lyrics of the loud songs, I remembered two other movies: "La double vie de Véronique", which is right now stirring a little hot talk in town intriguingly. (It really beats me a lot why it suddenly becomes so popular in its second coming after its first screening in 1991???) Two identical Weronika/Véronique live their separate lives in France and Poland. She came across/found her so accidentally in a commotion and they got connected in a mystic way. They are actually searching for each other and found though a little late.

Another is Ingmar Bergman's Persona. Destruction, selfishness, atrocity, tragedy... are fitting negative words to depict this one, though. Elisabeth Vogler ("Vogler" -- Old German "Bird-catcher") a self-made-mute actress (Liv Ullmann) who so determinedly and cruelly wills to divorce herself from the pain of her own existence/façade which she has been playing for a long time and is now fed up with. She transfers absolutely her "self" (identity) on to Alma ("Alma" -- Spanish "Soul") a nurse (Bibi Andersson), who somehow envies her, and causes her collapse. The actress tries so hard to dump forcefully the pain she dislikes onto a weaker partner to make her like herself. A stronger "her" tortures the weaker "her" inside a dead quiet remote country house.

And how wonderful it is to see the 22-year-old Ryuhei Matsuda (bass guitarist Ren) has grown into fuller manhood and has shrugged off the enigmatic androgynous air he displayed in Gohatto (1999). (Gosh! He looks like neither boy nor girl... though with an enticing face.) Another good discovery.

The present day Japanese women are struggling with the pulling forces of the traditional and the modern feminist values, some may have found it, some still groping, some in the mid-way of a tunnel, some in a cul-de-sac. May every Japanese woman's identity be successfully located so as to achieve an inner "harmony", a pillar idea of the Japanese society and culture.

Definitely Enjoyable...

[mk723 · 7/10 · 29 April 2006]

So after hearing about the Nana mangas for a while, I finally broke down and started reading them and became immediately obsessed. Therefore, within a week of reading the mangas, I had to watch the movie.

As far as adaptation screenplays go, I thought this movie was very solid. They chose their material well, and cut out appropriately. But of course, it is difficult to be 100% satisfied with a film when you're so in love with the source material. I was disappointed with the actual story arch of the film because I felt like it barely tapped into the intensity of the Nana's relationship because they failed to really, really show the progression of the friendship, in my opinion.

I was also slightly disappointed by the music, not because the music was bad, but because it wasn't what I was expecting. Perhaps because I am an American with very little exposure to Japanese music, I was expecting Trapnest to be a lot less pop (well, I thought they might be pop in the way that Evanescence is pop) and I definitely expected Blast to be more traditional Sex Pistol, Clash, etc. style punk rock.

But regardless, I enjoyed the movie very much and would indeed recommend it to fans of the manga.

Surprisingly mainstream, ultimately a feel-good movie

[harry_tk_yung · 5 November 2005]

Those who have watched "Kamikaze Girls" and expected "Nana" to be much of the same are in for a big surprise. In "Nana", they will find neither avant garde characters nor black humour, but instead a very mainstream story, told in a traditional way, and wonderfully told, I hasten to add.

Two girls have a chance encounter on a train, and later more chance encounters, are both called Nana (one is actually the pronunciation of a Japanese name). At the first encounter, one is dressed completely in black, the other completely in white. Nana-W, "cute and fluffy", on her way to be with her boyfriend in Tokyo, is also the voice over narrator. Nana-B, a rock vocalist as cool as you can get, has her story told in simple flashbacks. Nana-B comes with a broken heart; Nana-W is going to get one.

Without getting too much into the plot, it suffices to say that Nana-B (in flashbacks) initially did not follow her guitar-player boyfriend Ren to Tokyo because she wanted to prove herself rather than live in his shadows. Three years later, now ready, she heads for Tokyo herself, encounters Nana-W on the train and winds up sharing an apartment with her. Nana-W on the other hand ends up losing her boyfriend but helps Nana-B to regain hers.

I have simplified the stories, which are rich with supporting characters, well played by an ensemble cast that have taken their roles to a perfect length, leaving a firm impression without getting too much into the spotlight. And there is no villain in this movie. Even Nana-W's boyfriend Shoji who falls in love with another girl, and the girl he falls in love with, deserve considerable sympathy. Shoji, by the way, is played by Yuta Hiaroka who is just adorable in "Swing Girls". Ren, Nana-B's guitar-player boyfriend, is played by the Japanese star who many consider to have the most beautiful face, Ryuhei Matsuda and if you have seen "Gohatto", you'll understand why.

In "Nana" we also see a very popular reverse in roles as in "Kamakaze girls". Nana-W starts out as sweet but woolly-headed, helpless cute damsel but ends up not only being able to get over her heartbreak, but also instrumental to Nana-B's mending a broken relationship. Nana-B, so cool and tough, actually has a weak spot in her heart. But in the end, it's the friendship and comradeship between the two girls that gives this movie an uplifting, feel-good ending.

Visually, we are treated with some stunningly melancholic snow scenes, as well as a mesmerising surreal frame from the laced window of the girls' apartment.The sound is equally captivating, particularly Mika Nakashima's rock numbers.

But that's not all. "Nana" has a more subtle sub-text, surrounding the rock musicians' strive for success. Ren's heading for Tokyo is no different from someone leaving everything behind in the home town to seek fame and fortune in The Big Apple. When we see him a few years later, he seems to have got to where he wanted to be, but has he really? He is with a top band, but is obviously not as popular as the other guitarist. He later intimates that he got there by sheer hard work, not talent. That is all very educational but isn't talent what it's all about with music? Seeing Ren's "success" would almost be a disillusion to Nana-B, who firmly believes that SHE has talents. Maybe there is no answer and perhaps asking the question is already taking the movie beyond what it intends to be.

Really enjoyed this film

[xgr-69010 · 7/10 · 10 October 2017]

As far as manga animations go Nana is a success and, despite my rule against sequels, I am going to watch Nana 2 next.

Two girls who could not be any different find companionship, friendship and enduring love. Differences are ignored and left by the roadside as the two come together and stand shoulder-to-shoulder. It is cool and fun. The music is handled well, as well as the emotional turbulence. The music is billed as punk, but is real just pop rock.

The girls are so cute and thin. It is great to see slim and healthy girls not being hated on by other girls. it is sad, but true. I guess Japan is a different story. Still, one has nice hair and the other one has a masculine short bob.

One last thing: if you rent an apartment on the seventh floor and there are no elevators you are clearly telling your parents 'do not visit.' lol

Absolutely Excellent, a true lesson to Hollywood of how to convert a comic/book to the big screen.

[willuknight · 10/10 · 13 March 2006]

You can rest assured that this is one of the best media adaptations I've seen, and it's the best Manga <> Live Action Movie conversion i have ever witnessed.

All of the main cast looks as if they have come to life direct from the manga, and they feel real and vibrantly true. About the only negative i could say is that Shin doesn't look young enough (mainly because he's too tall, his style however is perfect and natural). About the only character that didn't jive with me was Nobu, but apart from that everything is perfect - from Yasu to the members of Trapnest, to Sachiko to Juu-chan, all perfect, living as naturally as real life.

Full credit has to go to the stylists and costume designers, who took NANA's unique and wild style of clothing and made it a living breathing stunning showcase you want to reach out and touch.

With regard to the story, i have nothing but praise for the authentic adaptation and brilliant pacing of the story. The movie basically covers from where Nana (Hachi) got on the train to go to Tokyo and it ends just after the concert, when Trapnest came over to Nanaes's (plural possessive of Nana) apartment. The ending is one that feels right, and wraps up nicely the threads throughout the movie. It leaves open the possibility of a sequel and most importantly, doesn't change the source material.

For all of you out there who have never read Nana you'll be pleased that for the movie, NO PRIOR KNOWLEDGE OF NANA IS NECESSARY. So you can go and watch it right now.

I've already mentioned how closely the movie follows the source material, and it is a joy to behold the manga come to life and acted out for this 2 hour movie. I have a very short attention span but for NANA i was on the edge of my seat.

With the NANA manga featuring detailed themes of music and bands, a question is how well real life was able to bring to life the exultation of the songs. I wasn't that wowed by the first BLAST track, but the ending was definitely nice to listen too. In particular Trapnest sounded awesome.

I could write on and on singing my praises for this movie,So what are you waiting for, watch it!!!!!!

Poor Shin!

[theroseduelliste · 7/10 · 17 September 2005]

I wonder if people that weren't already fans of the Nana manga would really understand the movie. I think that unless you had read the manga, a lot of the movie might be lost for viewers. The movie script was almost word for word from the manga, it was pretty fun to see it all on the big screen though.

As for the characters, both of the Nana's were perfect for their roles. Yasu was good, Nobu was not what I expected (but it worked), but Shin...poor Shin. He looked like he was in his 30's...they kind of killed his character, which is a shame since he is my favorite! Shoji, Jun and Kyosuke were all eerily perfect for their roles. I think they were the funniest part of the whole movie.

Exactly what it should be

[thorsaeng · 10/10 · 17 November 2005]

I am one of NANA comic books' fans, so that's why i really love this movie! It contained all details i wanted it to have. The actors were so real, especially Kyosuke, it was like he jumped out of the comic books! The soundtracks went along with the scenes very well. And they did all the emotional scenes pretty touching. I could laugh and cry along with Nana and Hachi. Both the comic books and the movie perfectly complete each other. When I read the comic books, I have to imagine the characters' voices but in the movie I hear their voices and I deeply get into their feelings. Mika Nakashima was so good at expressing her voice. Aoi Miyazaki was the perfect Hachi, she was cute and innocent. Yuna Ito wasn't so much like Reira but loved her voice though. I really wish they will make NANA II!!!

Nana (2005)

[SnakesOnAnAfricanPlain · 7/10 · 17 January 2012]

Nana may suffer from being a condensed version of an expansive Manga universe, but it also knows exactly how much time to spend on individual plots strands. Nana is a coming of age, female friendship film that handles immature and young emotions with absolute maturity. The most impressive aspect was creating a relationship between one of the protagonists boyfriends and another girl. It easily could have made him a villain, but instead took an unbiased look at how the relationship came to be. Luckily, for a film focused on bands, the music is relatively good. Nakashima and Miyazaki both inhabit their roles well and build up a believable friendship. Highly enjoyable, even if it doesn't quite feel complete.

Marvelous, touching, please learn from Nana and go for your dream.

[siumarzi · 9/10 · 12 November 2005]

In my opinion,

NANA is a touching Japanese film. You have to be really concentrated and understand the main characters' feeling. Indeed, this film made me cried for twice :*)

Both main characters are called NANA. They met each other for once and again when they were deciding to rent a flat. Since both of them like the flat so much, then they decided to rent it together and live together. They started to know about each other and also secrets... OK I'll stop telling you and let you to watch it yourself :) - It seems to be a boring movie at first, but surely it turned out to be not. There's no doubt that the story frame is quite boring. If you had paid attention and understand the main characters' feeling, you could feel that it's interesting and touching.

HIGH RECOMMENDED :)

A Nutshell Review: (DVD) NANA (2005)

[DICK STEEL · 8/10 · 8 October 2006]

My curiosity was piqued when I saw many of the DVDs on sale at various shops recently, so was actually wondering what the movie's all about, until I chanced upon a copy (Special Edition too) at the Esplanade Library. In giving it a shot, I'm pleasantly surprised, at the story it told, as well as the eye-candy available of course.

It contains an extremely strong story of friendship, of love and the falling out of, adapted from a popular Japanese manga of the same name, by Ai Yazawa. You might liken it to Feel 100%, as it touches on life, romantic love, and friends. This is the story with a theme primarily centered on Fate, of how two strangers sharing the same name Nana, be the same age, come to meet one night on a train to Tokyo for their own personal reasons, and how they grow to be best friends. The two girls can be so different from each other, one being a kawaii (cute) bimbo, while the other is a rock chick (which I thought was in the mould of Garbage's Shirley Manson) with her own rock band called Black Stones.

While the narrative is forward moving for Nana Komatsu (Aoi Miyazaki), in following her objective to be in Tokyo with her boyfriend Shoji (Yuuta Hiraoka), Nana Osaki (Mika Nakashima, a real life singer) is in the city to try and achieve her big break for the band. However, flashbacks and the slow revelation of Osaki's backstory too revealed a romantic tangle she had with an ex-band member Ren Honjou (Ryuhei Matsuda), who now plays for a successful outfit called TRAPNEST.

It's an account of the two Nana's romantic relationships with the guys in their lives, and how they encourage and support each other through turbulent times during the relationships. While Nana Osaki may be kawaii, her clingy puppy dog attitude may put some guys off, who might prefer the more confident Nana Osaki. But pride too is an obstacle, as I know from personal experience how two very ambitious persons can stumble unwittingly, and perhaps reluctantly sacrifice love for personal career.

Before you dismiss this as a chick flick, I'd like to say I would think otherwise. It may look like one, but it's tremendously well made, with a well paced narrative. Perhaps having the manga serve as a source provided for richer characterization of the leads. The two actresses who play both Nanas too couldn't contrast each other perfectly, and all in all, it's a very pleasing, despite the down moments in the story, movie to watch.

By the way, the sequel has already been filmed, and is pending a year end release. I don't suppose we'll get the opportunity to see it in the theatres here, so will have to cross my fingers for a quick DVD release.

This Code 3 DVD Special Edition by Panorama Entertainment comes with 2 discs. The first contains the movie and a full length commentary by director Kentaro Otami as well as the two lead actresses Mika Nakashima and Aio Miyazaki. Listening to them during the commentary, they revealed which shots were kept close to the manga source, and which had to be changed for reasons ranging from aesthetics to form. No worries though, as the commentary comes with subtitles as well, in both English (though there were some grammar/tense issues with "shotted") and Chinese. Audio comes in a Dolby Digital 5.1, which allows for a truly rock-concert like atmosphere during scenes when the bands perform.

The second disc is the feature disc, consisting of

• Making of NANA,(33mins 25s), follows the production from the 15-16 Jan 05 when filming began, including the director and cast interviews, as well as deleted scenes (filmed but not used in the movie) - Premiere Screening in Japan, 7 July (for obvious reasons) 2005 (3mins 10s), in Rippongi, with the director and major casts sharing their thoughts on the movie and of the characters they play. - Stage Appearance in Japan, 3 Sep 2005, (3mins 55s) with the director and major casts sharing their thoughts of the movie again. - Asia Premiere in Hong Kong, on 2 Oct 2005 (4mins), with a press conference attended by director Kentaro Otani, Mika Nakashima and Ryuhei Matsuda, and the attendance at the premiere screening complete with a cosplay contest. - Four theatrical trailers, without subtitles (Runtimes of 1min 48s, 30s, 20s, 34s) - Four TV Spots, without subtitles (Runtimes of 17s, 17s, 30s, 17s)

strictly for the manga fans only

[LunarPoise · 3/10 · 18 November 2006]

A lot of what has been written about this film focuses on how faithfully the manga was adapted. On balance, it seems the manga fans are satisfied. If you are a fan of Nakashima's music, you will also, in all likelihood, get something out of Nana. And the under-14 crowd might enjoy it. For the rest of the world, this film is puerile.

In fact, even the under-14s should keep away from this. The two protagonists, Nana and Hachi, represent the extremes that young Japanese women are meant to live up to - fluffy, cutesy air-headedness, in the case of Hachi, or chain-smoking, unprotected sex'ing, don't-give-a-f%#k posturing in the case of Nana. It is a glib rendition of Japanese womanhood presented through the filter of corrupting middle-age adults. This film was a huge hit here in Japan, and a lot of the younger element of that audience will think these women are something to aspire to. That thought depresses me.

Having said that, it is not difficult to figure out why this film has succeeded commercially. The manga origins explain (but do not necessarily grant clemency to) the absurd coincidences, contrived conflicts, distilled emotional manipulation and clunky dialogue. The surreal interior sets, in particular the medieval bathroom shared by Nana and Ren, and the stately-home-style apartment Nana and Hachi share, are seductive. There are some fine looking boys and girls to look at, (even if the over-rated Matsuda gives off the same wooden air he sunk to in Gimmy Heaven). There are catchy tunes here. Nana as a character has some attitude and Nakashima's performance has charisma. But how is it possible to not loathe Hachi? This is hardly Miyazaki's fault, she no doubt only worked with what she was given, but such facile, image-obsessed females do exist, and are celebrated by uninformed women and misogynist males, and this Cult of Cute makes it all the more difficult for ambitious, talented females to succeed. I kept waiting for Nana to slap Hachi, or at least give her a good shake. Instead, Nana is co-opted into the Hachi world, and delivers up her 'dream' for her at the end. If there is a sub-text to this film, it is that no woman can succeed or be truly happy without a man coming to her aid.

Now that Nana 2 is out, maybe it will re-dress the balance. Nana will dump Ren and make it on her own as a vocalist. Hachi will stop shaking her head when she speaks like a nodding dog in a car windscreen, shave her hair off, come out of the closet and begin an affair with her ex-boyfriend's lover.

Or maybe it will just be more vacuous fare that the blissfully ignorant teenage masses will flock to.

A Young Film that starts off well but gets boring

[Chrysanthepop · 7 January 2008]

I liked the freshness in the first half of 'Nana'. The two girls Nana (Nakashima) and Nana (Miyazaki) meet and are reunited by 'coincidence'. Then they decide to move in together and we are shown glimpses of their worklife and lovelife. However, in the second half, as the film shifts to Nakashima's Nana's lovelife, it gets painfully slow and boring. The film was slow to begin with but the first half managed to stay enjoyable. The 'reunion' in the end looks rushed.

The instrumental pieces in the background score add to the freshness and winter season. However the songs are quite bad. Cinematography's quite adequate. From the two Nana's, Miyazaki is the better actress. Even though she frequently shows her toothy smile, she brings out Nana's naivety, vulnerability and cheerfulness with tremendous ease and makes her character very likable. Conversely, Nakashima is mostly wooden. She pretty much has one expression on her face throughout the whole film. The supporting cast ranges from adequate to wooden.

So to speak, 'Nana' could have been very enjoyable had the second part received more consideration. This film may appeal more to the younger generation.

Touching

[FlorianLaur · 8/10 · 9 November 2019]

I first saw this movie on a flight home from Indonesia, back in 2006. I remember crying at that time and maybe that's why I didn't watch it for some time since, even though I really loved it back then. So now I finally watched it again, 13 years later (and after visiting Japan 3 times since). It's nice to see several locations, such as Tokyo stations (didn't change much since then).

Nana to me is a touching and sad movie, even though it has a happy ending. Similar to some Japanese romance movies I watched, one might find certain scenes a bit cheesy (the dramatic train scene for instance), but even though I also felt it did seem a bit cheesy, it was touchy non-the-less.

In the first half of the movie, we deal mostly with cute, girly Nana's love life and her relationship with her boyfriend. She seems to be your traditional Japanese female who dreams of being married and handling the household. It is good that her bf doesn't seem to agree with this as he pushes her to find her own place and job. Ultimately, it proves to make her stronger.

Around half way through the movie, we focus more on the tough Nana's story that is only hinted at in flashbacks. This is where the movie really got to me. I'm not sure why, maybe because it speaks to my own/our own experiences with heartaches and pain that can come with love? The love between Ren and Nana seems so pure, so giving. It makes it all the more sad to see them fail at first, due to being proud people. You just feel that theirs is the kind of love that is really one in a million and hard to find.

Tough Nana isn't your typical Japanese girl. She isn't super cute or overly attractive. But her vulnerable side that shines through makes her very attractive, because you can feel that hers is a love that is as pure as the beautiful snow we often see in the flashbacks.

A scene close to the end where she suggests that they one day grow old together, after they have outgrown their pride and vanity made me cry. I guess that's where film has real life beat. In real life, no beautiful or sad music is playing over those special moments you share with others and no beautiful speeches are addressed at us.

The film might have been stronger if Nana and Ren didn't seemingly get back together in the end, but rather kept their melancholic distance. That's closer to real life, I think.

Still, I think Nana is a beautiful movie, not just for women, but for all of us who ever went through a heartbreaking time or felt they once had true love...

Nearly Perfect

[dissintegrate · 9/10 · 29 March 2007]

To all the naysayers who claim this movie is purely a fanservice to manga readers, go watch something else. I watched this movie before I even knew there was a manga, and loved it. I laughed, I cried, I thought the music rocked... The only reason I am giving it a nine, is that after reading the manga, I realized how much they took away from Hatchi by not giving her the back story she needs to make her a truly likable character.

Other than that, if you are a girl, of any age, (not just the under 14 lot) you can appreciate that time of getting out on your own, into the unknown, and all the pitfalls that come with trying to make it. Its not just about the romance, in this case, the romance is shown as something that holds people back. Its a pretty effective statement about trying to find your way without men, and then when you are whole, you can have the whole romance thing.

And come on, the guys are pretty hot in this movie, thats enough to watch it on its own.

Great movie, looking forward to the second one.

[poisonedsodapop · 8/10 · 19 December 2006]

This movie followed the manga very faithfully and did a great job at casting all the characters. They looked as if they were cut from the page and placed in the movie. I'm actually rather disappointed that they changed much of the cast for the second but that's a tale for another review. It was very believable and all the characters fit their manga counterparts perfectly. The rocker Nana (cause I can never remember their last names) was one of my favorites. Her voice is beautiful and the song she sings in the movie is amazing. The song performed by Trapnest was good as well but Nana's voice is just amazing.

The story line is torn directly from the manga, as I've said. Very very few deviations from it. The story is very touching and some of the more emotional scenes are so well done in live action. The only thing that I didn't like about the movie was how it ended so abruptly. It just didn't seem finished but I guess it leads into the sequel. I highly recommend it if you've read at least up to volume 5 in the manga. Even without it though you can watch this movie. Definitely check it out.

Nana : why should it be a movie?

[elise_skellington · 5/10 · 20 May 2006]

I am a great fan of the manga and to see the movie for me was not really a disappointment because I knew it would not be a great movie, and so it was... nevertheless, you can enjoy the movie because it is a great reproduction of the places in the manga (just like the apartment the two girls share), and you just cannot say that it is not faithful (plot, dialogues) but the characters are so boring because of the way they act... and you have in the movie the worst kiss ever (you'll understand when you'll see it!) and the worst way of walking (Nana, the "rebel" one) of the cinema! So if you are a great fan, it is better to watch the "anime" which is excellent.

Normal

[gianmarcoronconi · 8/10 · 13 June 2023]

Film that tells a story of a very normal life and does it in a very sweet and very entertaining way, the story revolves around two girls named Nana, one very transgressive, always sad and singer of a band that was once quite famous and the other instead is temperamentally the opposite, always happy and full of energy but in life she can't find a path and a defined passion until meeting Nana decides that her path will be to be her friend forever. The film is very beautiful and unexpectedly has a happy ending which is impressive because from the very beginning the way the narrative is set up one imagines that there won't be so much happiness and instead it is strangely very happy.

Otani Kentaro's "Nana" is the near perfect mass-appeal date movie that both guys and gals will love.

[jmaruyama · 8/10 · 20 May 2008]

Based on writer/artist Yazawa Ai's best selling "Shojo" (girl's) manga series which ran in the Japanese publication "Cookie" (Ribon), "Nana" had all the makings and elements of a hit movie - A young and attractive cast (check), a cool music soundtrack (check), trendy fashion (check) and an overly romantic "chick" friendly storyline (check and check). It's the type of movie Hollywood producers dream of and I wouldn't be surprised if someday, it gets remade by Disney with "High School Musical" alumni like Vanessa Anne Hudgens or Ashley Tisdale.

Yet, while Yazawa Ai's "kawaii" characters and melodramatic story does have its universal appeal and won many manga fans, the movie's success is in large part attributable to its magnetic and alluring star, Nakashima Mika.

When she debuted in 2002, her powerful vocals and ethereal songs garnered many adoring fans and sold even more albums. With her lanky "Olive Oyl" figure and striking good looks it was not long before she found herself starring in a movie.

In Otani Kentaro's (Travail, Avec Mon Mari) "Nana", Nakashima's first major film role, she plays it safe by portraying the title character of Ozaki Nana, a "sexy tomboy beanpole" singer who fronts the Japanese punk rock band "BLAST" (AKA The Blackstones), who are less like The Sex Pistols, Clash or The Ramones and more akin to Gwen Stefani and No Doubt than anyone else.

Lead singer Nana and lead guitarist Honjo Ren (Matsuda Ryuhei) were longtime lovers since their garage band days in Hokkaido, up until Ren's fateful decision to leave Hokkaido for bigger opportunities in Tokyo, a move which literally broke Nana's heart.

Two years later, wanting to follow her dreams of becoming a rock star, Nana decides to go to Tokyo as well to make a name for herself. By a chance coincidence she meets up with another young country girl who is also heading to Tokyo.

The hopelessly cute Komatsu Nana (Aoi Miyazaki), with her long boots, girlish pastel colored wardrobe and giddy personality is the complete opposite of the brooding, dark Nana O., yet by uncanny coincidence they share the same first name and age. Nana K. is heading to Tokyo to be with her boyfriend Endo Shoji (Hiraoka Yuta) who is going to art trade school there.

Nana K. and Nana O. part ways when they get to Tokyo but soon find themselves reunited again while out searching for an apartment. The two agree to share a modest, flat which by kismet/serendipity is on the seventh floor (nana kai) and is numbered "707" (Nana Hyaku Nana).

Yet luck is not with Nana K. as she loses her part-time job with a small vintage furniture shop as well as her boyfriend to another girl, the squeaky voiced, Lolita-like Sachiko(Saeko). Nana O. comforts Nana K. and they begin to form a special bond and friendship. Nana O. even gives Nana K. the complementary pet name "Hachi" (eight).

Nana O. also hits some rough spots. She reforms her old garage band from Hokkaido and begins playing at various small gigs. Yet Nana O. still can't forget her former lover Ren, who she discovers has since become a popular guitarist for the pop/rock band "Trapnest" fronted by Japanese- American vocalist Layla/Reira Serizawa (Hawaii local and J-Pop idol Ito Yuna), and it's up to Nana K. to help Nana O. by helping her get back together again with Ren.

This is Nakashima Mika's movie and she seems born to play the part of Yazawa's spunky heroine. Nakashima's confident and natural acting style is fun to watch and she brings a lot of charm and likability to her role. She seems at home with her character's rough n' tough punk persona which is all the more amazing since her real life J-Pop persona is completely different.

Miyazaki Aoi (Gaichu, Su-Ki-Da) is so darn cute in her role as naive Nana K. From her stylish girly clothing, to her all-too-sweet personality, she seems like a anime girl come to life. Yet Aoi makes it work and so the results are less irritating and contrived and more endearing and enchanting. She's the type of fantasy girl "otaku" boys would love to have as a girl friend.

Matsuda Ryuhei (Akumu Tantei, Gohatto, Cutie Honey) is also good in his role as Honjo Ren bringing the necessary coolness factor to his rocker role. His scenes with Nakashima are genuinely romantic and they have the right chemistry. One can't help but want to see their characters hook up.

The soundtrack for the film is awesome particularly the edgy "Glamorous Sky" produced by L'Arc En Ciel's front-man "Hyde" which has become Nakashima's signature song. Ito Yuna's tearful love song/power ballad "Endless Story" is also a definite winner and a personal favorite of mine.

While Otani's "Nana" is no "Purple Rain", it does share a lot in common with Prince's movie and other rise-to-stardom films such as the brilliant film "Once". Nana O's struggle to find fame seems to play a backseat to the romantic elements of the story. At its heart, "Nana" is a fairy tale for the MTV reared generation - a story about beautiful people, falling in love and finding happiness and fame. While the music adds to the film's mood and tone,"Nana" isn't a film about the art of making music or the creative process.

While manga purists may be find the movie's truncated story a bit irritating they can take some comfort at the 2006 anime TV series faithfulness to Yazawa's manga.

I loved "Nana" and it is easy to see why both the manga and film adaptation has found such a loyal fan following not only in Japan but around the world. Its universal appeal is a clear testament about the power of love, music and friendship, which needs no translation.

yes the best

[just_a_kid354 · 10/10 · 17 July 2006]

I loved this movie both Nana's were awesome! I love the rocker Nana! ^ ^ i love her. my idol. RN...did not except him to look like that no bu didn't impress me that much i read the manger the manger no bu is better sh J and all those other people are OK for their parts...HM....yeah even tho i didn't get it that much it was quite understandable cause of the manger >< love it! i just wished that it had English subtitles! T_T yeah... should make another movie that comes out from an anime i mean a manger. It was the best of the best. yeah i'm talking like this cause of the stupid spelling thing a lopper.. yes this should be 10 lines sigh

Superb!

[yiuleungf · 9/10 · 22 May 2021]

The story is well executed. The music is superb. It's so full of heart and emotion that I am very impressed. Excellent movie.

Awful, awful, awful...

[moonmonday · 1/10 · 25 June 2006]

Although it came well-recommended, I had already read and disliked the author's work on the terrible series Paradise Kiss, so I was reluctant, however popular the Nana movie ended up being. As I watched it, my worst fears were realized as Paradise Kiss replayed itself in my mind: few likable characters, in this case a scant single character at the end of the movie, who is the most abused of them all and never manages to set that right; ridiculously and needlessly angst circumstances that never quite unfold believably; a miserable setting that makes you wish yourself far, far away from it instead of wanting to become a part of it; and overall too much diddling around and wasting time with useless things that don't add anything to the plot. This movie could've been an hour shorter and lost nothing.

Add to this incoherent editing that make the plot even more difficult to follow -- it's as convoluted and confusing as they get, with people doing things for no real reason, or no actual explained reason -- and some of the most prefab, manufactured music I've ever heard in a film, and you have a formula for disaster. I found myself often wondering how the crew managed to make time seem to pass so slowly, and how on earth they managed to find actors willing to flush their personalities down the toilet to portray some of the most insipid, unsympathetic characters ever to parade across the screen. To boot, most of them are so sickly thin and cardboard, both in appearance and acting, that you'll probably end up stopping the film to go get something to eat out of sheer pity for the bone-skinny actresses chosen to play the lead parts. Really healthy message to send out there, to something that will be seen by countless young girls I'm sure. Not that I'd want to be any of the characters, if I myself were a young girl. The real message of this film is that nice people finish last, and that you might as well throw away your dreams, a direct slap in the face to what you could tell it was trying to give as a message. I have no time for films with that kind of outlook.

It's two hours of your life that you'll never get back. You'd do better to spend it with a bad movie that knows it's bad, rather than one like this that apparently thinks it's the best thing to hit the screen. As things are, I can only hope never to hear "Glamorous Sky" or any of the pop machine terrors cranked out by "Trapnest" again; too much of the film is spent on Trapnest's awful concert, bringing it to a standstill for at least twenty minutes! This kind of amateurish film-making really deserves no place in formal cinema, and certainly not with its budget. It's a classic case of someone not reining in a director who decided to milk his budget for all it was worth.

Disappointed

[dluu81 · 4/10 · 26 September 2007]

so many problems where to start...too many story lines, no clear protagonist, voice-over that didn't add to the story, a subplot with the boyfriend that should've been cut and then it'd have been better and shorter,the lesbian subtext between the two nanas, no clear goal for nana the rocker. and most of the time nana non-rocker is like the best friend who somehow has her own movie though it's still the main actress' movie.

im sure the free flow of scenes works well in manga form and it seems a lot of the manga fans also enjoyed the movie, but for lovers of movies in general, i found this to be meandering and aimless and slow. it's a shame because there's a lot of acting talent here in ryuhei matsuda who was excellent in renai shasshin.

unlike others, i found the look of the film very muted and boring. it reminded me a lot of love letter down to the snow scenes and music, but that movie was better.

Nice adaptation of the popular story.

[lewiskendell · 12 August 2011]

Two very different 20 year old women meet on a train to Tokyo. Other than the fact they're both named Nana, they have very different pasts and personalities. Despite this, they're destined to become very big parts of each other's lives. 

Based on the very popular anime and manga of the same name, this is a fun adaption. The musical aspects of the story are kept, and are as nearly as important to the story as the relationship between the two Nana's. Speaking of, the actresses chosen to play the two title characters are great, and the story is as interesting for guys as it is the girls who are the original audience.

NANA was a good movie, I liked it. Obviously it's more recommended for people who are already familiar with the source material, but even NANA newbies should enjoy this.