su-ki-da

directed by Hiroshi Ishikawa
Japan 2005

The film opens to a black screen, and suddenly a person’s voice is overheard, they say, “Hey Yosuke… Do you remember? I remember…” and thus begins the beautiful film that is Su-Ki-Da (Japanese for “I Love You”). When I heard about this film a couple of months ago, and was fortunate to be able to view the trailer, I was instantly enthralled by the beautiful visuals that were presented in the trailer. I was finally able to obtain a copy of the movie (which has been recently released on DVD), and I can tell you this, I wasn’t prepared for what the film had in store, visually as well as emotionally.

The film follows the lives of Yu and Yosuke, and the story spans from their teenage years all the way to their adulthood. Yu has a major crush on Yosuke, but she doesn’t know how to express her feelings to him, but there is also a slight problem; Yosuke likes Yu’s older sister…and you can probably tell by now there are going to be some problems that arise from this. We flash forward 17 years later, in which Yu and Yosuke run into each other by accident, and old feelings and regrets begin to come forth.What I loved about this film was that each actor played their parts so convincingly; you become absorbed into their world and truly care about the relationship of the two main characters and what the outcome of it will be. From the awkward moments of the characters trying to convey their feelings through words….but just can’t, to the emotional reunion when they are adults, it’s all presented so realistically that it hurts. Even though there is little dialogue throughout the film, the characters body language says more than any words could ever express.

...

For my final statement regarding Su-Ki-Da, is that it was a pleasure for me to watch, and I was spellbound every minute of it. It’s the kind of film that will definitely stick with you long after you've seen it, mainly because of its heartfelt story. From the excellent visuals all the way to its great cast, Su-Ki-Da is a film that will definitely be in my collection. A notable classic in my books, I greatly recommend it.

Excerpt from Cinema-Repose

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Theatrical Release: 25 February 2006

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DVD Review: Big Time Entertainment (Japan) (Japanese Version) - Region 2 - NTSC

Big thanks to Luiz R. for the Review!

DVD Box Cover		CLICK to order from: Thinking of buying from YesAsia? CLICK HERE and use THIS UPDATED BEAVER PAGE to source their very best...
Distribution	Big Time Entertainment (Japan) Region 2 - NTSC
Runtime	104
Video	1.78:1 Original Aspect Ratio 16X9 enhanced Average Bitrate: 6.67 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate
Audio	Japanese Dolby Digital 2.0 (384 Kbps)
Subtitles	English, French, none
Features	Release Information: Studio: Big Time Entertainment (Japan) Aspect Ratio: Widescreen anamorphic - 1.78:1 Edition Details: • Dual-Layered DVD • Film Festivals and Premieres • Interviews • Movie Debate with cast • Trailer • Music Partition • Location Map • Photobooklet DVD Release Date: September 22, 2006 Special Sleeve Paper Case Chapters 13

Comments:

I got this DVD more than an year ago and I didn't know anything about the movie itself... just that it was directed by Hiroshi Ishikawa (Tokyo.Sora). When I opened the package my expectation about the movie was instantly risen, the box is just beautifully designed further anticipating the movie's aesthetics.

VIDEO:
This progressive transfer can be seen as ok - there are no serious flaws but it is noisy, and you can clearly see that in some of the grabs bellow, and lowly contrasted what may give you a light feeling of blurriness.

Just to be clear, this noise could have been caused by a higher ISO needed in low light scenes. Since the movie looks like only used natural light even when the shot was indoor and almost all - if not all - outdoor takes were executed in chilly overcast days it is plausible to assume a higher ISO was used almost all the time. Though in the end I don't care where it comes from, as long as it stays within an acceptable level it's fine... but I think there is room for some cleaning here. Decreasing the brightness level of my TV, just a shade, disguised the noise a bit while also giving a slightly more sharp appearance to the image.

Going further, I saw a edge halo or two (or three...) around the main characters in some outdoor scenes when they stand against a bright background. But, most of the time they are subtle and I don't consider the whole thing fatal.

Now, I am telling you all this but I could easily cope with these issues and watch the movie repeated times and always be pleased by the image. IHMO the film's pale, static and realistic style is not degraded by the noise. It can even be reinforced by it but it may bother some so I thought it important enough to mention.

SOUND:
The sound is also noisy, not too much, but since there are a lot of "silent" noisy moments during the movie you'll listen to a lot of it. But again, maybe it was intentional... I am not trying to sell this idea, but I don't recall being bothered by it the first time I watched this, actually I only noticed the noise long after watching the movie again for this review. Somehow it fits the climate, maybe the complete silence could be more disturbing and tiring, considering the amount of quiet scenes. Bad excuse?

It is hard to have a strong surround experience here (the noise is enveloping though...), the whole thing is very calm with expressions and images speaking louder. But, every now and then, there are some very distinguishable background, the sound quality is quite good in this matter, details are crispy and easy to perceive without ever disturbing the voices' clarity.

The only mix available is a 384 kbps stereo Dolby Digital.

SUBTITLES:
Mia Suzuki's English subtitles are excellent. I usually like Linda Hoaglund's Japanese-to-English subtitles for contemporary Japanese films the most, but I'll pay more attention to Mia Suzuki's work from now on.

This release also comes with French subtitles by Emi Toyokawa, but unfortunately I don't know French.

EXTRAS:
A lot of importance was given to film festivals and premieres, 80% of the supplements are dedicated to them, about 55 minutes worth. There is also a trailer and a "study" of some parts of the film between Aoi Myiazaki, Hidetoshi Nishijima, and the director/writer Hiroshi Ishikawa. This was filmed outdoor keeping the same style of the movie, very classy and the most interesting supplement. Sadly everything is un-subtitled, but you can hear some French and English if you watch the Montreal Film festival supplement.

Now the treat, a detailed location map with the sites used in the movie, a 24-pages photo-booklet with some info written in Japanese, and Yoko Kano's "Deep Blue" music partition complete the package. Top quality stuff, only the soundtrack CD is missing.

BOTTOM LINE:
I find this movie outstanding and very touching. It should appeal to the ones who liked "Tokyo.Sora" (from same director) or "Crying Out Love, In The Center Of The World". I am happy with this release and it has a special place in my collection, but there is also a Korean version available HERE that seems to come with the same supplements and subtitles.

Doesn't matter what edition, I highly recommend this movie!