'Love Strikes' is a film that certainly has a lot of imagination. Like 96.4% of contemporary Japanese films, it's based on a manga, though the film version takes it to another level. Fujimoto is a 'second virgin' working at an online pop culture magazine, a source of much politically incorrect humour for his work colleagues. On meeting a fellow music nerd, a female one, on Twitter - regularly referenced throughout the film - he then hits a period of moteki: a purple patch with women. But, in his desperation to be with his first love, Miyuki, he finds that success with women brings him problems he has no idea how to handle, leading to more pain, frustration and angst than being hapless with women ever did. But, being another rom-com (aren't all films about youth?!), all works out fine in the end.
With music an important element in the film, director Ohne throws in various emotional musical numbers, directed as karaoke routines, complete with introductions and sing-a-long lyrics. All this provides much hilarity. Interestingly, one of the highlights of the film is the closing credits, based on the social networking sites often referenced throughout. At times, the realism in 'Love Strikes' is strong, showing the stresses and strains that social media and mobile communications put on young people in love, with Fujimoto often becoming obsessive over the most trivial of things. (Though with Fujimoto's character being thirty- one years old, it's difficult to know how youthful this really is.) However, all this angst seems to be written off with the happy ending, which detracts a little from some of the film's more serious points. Though with its various pop culture references and cameos by leading J- Pop stars, such as everyone's favourites Perfume, 'Love Strikes' proved to be 'big in Japan'.
With music an important element in the film, director Ohne throws in various emotional musical numbers, directed as karaoke routines, complete with introductions and sing-a-long lyrics. All this provides much hilarity. Interestingly, one of the highlights of the film is the closing credits, based on the social networking sites often referenced throughout. At times, the realism in 'Love Strikes' is strong, showing the stresses and strains that social media and mobile communications put on young people in love, with Fujimoto often becoming obsessive over the most trivial of things. (Though with Fujimoto's character being thirty- one years old, it's difficult to know how youthful this really is.) However, all this angst seems to be written off with the happy ending, which detracts a little from some of the film's more serious points. Though with its various pop culture references and cameos by leading J- Pop stars, such as everyone's favourites Perfume, 'Love Strikes' proved to be 'big in Japan'.