Akiko Ohku continues her winning films about the joy and pain of love with a carefully guided tale of fate and infatuation.
Opening as a breezy romantic drama-comedy about a lonely college boy who seems to have miraculously found the girl of his dreams, “She Taught Me Serendipity” steers into deeply affecting emotional territory when cruel fate intervenes. Following her tales of young women seeking fulfillment and direction in life (“Tremble All You Want” and “Hold Me Back”, audience award winners at Tokyo in 2017 and 2020), Akiko Ohku’s first male-focused film is another winning mix of gentle humor and touching human drama that will speak to viewers everywhere. Following its world premiere at Tokyo, “Serendipity” should win plenty of admirers at festivals ahead of its planned local release in April 2025.
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Based on the 2020 novel by popular male comedian Shusuke Fukutoku, Ohku’s latest movie initially presents as a campus rom-com. An awkward second-year student whose perpetually open umbrella serves as a security blanket and safety shield from the friendship groups he’s not part of, mop-topped Konishi (Riku Hagiwara) would be completely alone without his one-and-only buddy, Yamane (Kodai Kurosaki), a goofy guy whose eccentric fashion sense provides a constant source of amusement. Konishi’s only other enjoyment is spending time with Sacchan (Aoi Ito), a spirited young musician who works alongside him scrubbing a local bathhouse clean after hours.
Having gazed longingly at a seemingly friendless student he calls the “solo soba noodles girl,” Konishi finally musters the courage to talk to Sakurada (Yuumi Kawai). With lovely writing and pitch-perfect performances from her well-matched leads, Ohku nails the giddy, almost other-worldly exhilaration that people experience when somehow, magically, fate appears to have found your perfect match. It begins with Sakurada telling Konishi “I don’t have a single friend” and continues as they share thoughts and discuss remarkably similar sorrows and life experiences that further prove they were meant to be together. A cheerful “who’s the most unhappy” competition seals things.
When Sakurada tells Konishi she was “a former shut-in,” he responds with, “I’m a latchkey kid … zero friends.”
“What’s happening to us is serendipity,” replies Sakurada. “Hooray for lucky coincidences.”
Much of this chaste romance takes place in public spaces such as cafes, art galleries and bowling alleys that are strangely empty apart from the lovebirds. This clever ploy brings to visual life that cocooning feeling two people can get when rushes of love and deep emotional connection make it seem like the rest of the wo -
rld doesn’t exist.
It is of course a certainty in romance movies that things will change. It’s also a fair bet that many viewers will have guessed that Sacchan secretly has feelings for Konishi, but few will anticipate the raw power of her confession to him. In an extraordinary scene that runs almost eight minutes and contains very few cuts, Sacchan does much more than tell Konishi how much she loves him and how crushing it is to have known deep in her heart that her feelings would not be reciprocated. She also tells him exactly what he is thinking at this precise moment and how they will both act next time they see each other.
Like many young men in this situation, Konishi finds it impossible to respond, but the tiny muscle twitches in his face during his stony silence tell us he knows that everything he’s heard is true. It’s a beautiful piece of scripting and superbly delivered by Ito, who seems to be speaking for everyone who’s experienced the heartbreak of unreturned love in early adulthood.
At this point, the film and its protagonist take on new dimensions. Without abandoning its sense of humor and romantic heart, the story focuses on Konishi finding his voice and growing in emotional maturity when confronted by a tragic incident. Though some basic plotting is a little rocky at times and it feels just a tad overlong, the film’s strong emotional foundation and richly drawn characters guide it to a poignant and rewarding conclusion.
Filming Konishi and Sakurada’s early scenes in 4:3 ratio before widening the frame permanently at a significant turning point, Ohku keeps things lively with offbeat touches and flights into fantasy. Konishi and Sakurada are sometimes seen in split-screen, even though they’re standing right next to each other; characters walk through beating sun into blinding rain and back again in what looks like a single unbroken shot; Sakurada “listens” to wood and her interior verbalizations of sounds around her are heard on a thought track. What’s remarkable and satisfying about these odd little moments is how well they add to our understanding of the characters and events shaping their lives.
Reuniting with regular cinematographer Natsuyo Nakamura and long-standing editor Hiroyuki Yoneda, Ohku has created a crisply packaged and deceptively deep gem that makes splendid use of pop tracks including “Hatsukoi Crazy” by Spitz, alongside Tai Matoyoshi’s subtle score.
‘She Taught Me Serendipity’ Review: A Lonely Young Guy Learns Lessons in Love and Life in Appealing Romantic Drama
Reviewed online. In Tokyo Film Festival. Running time: 127 MIN.
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