Love Letter (1998)

So much average

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

A tragic, but touching tale unfolds through the remembrance of the two leads about the passed away fiancée of one of them. Miho Nakayama is wonderful in the double role. I must admit I got a little bit confused by who's who though. For those who haven't seen it, Fuji Itsuki is the one with a cold that lives in a house in Otaru, Hokkaido. I know the idea of romantic movies is to live in on the fantasy, but a little too much silly dialog takes that away for me. Then again, I never was much for this particular romantic style of movie, as Wong Kar-Wai's 'In the Mood for Love' is much more up my ally. I may read a bit harsh with regards to Shunji Iwai compared to the other reviews I've seen, frankly it's quite an enjoyable movie, but the thing is he's just no Proust.

I have just seen that film. And I love it. At first I bought it cause Takashi Kashiwabara played in this film ^_^' He is always handsome and cool. When i saw this film , i think the one Fujii Itsuki (male char) truly love is Fujii Itsuki (fermal char ) . And Fujii_chan loved him too, right? so when the first he met Hiroko Watanabe , he thought she looked like Fujii_chan. And he loved her at the first sight. During the junior high school, Fujii_kun is so cool and special, very popular, too. The name he wrote in the library card isn't his name, is it??? very secret. And it's very pity when he died. The sense when Hiroko_chan said " O genki desu ka ? Watashi wa genki da !!! " is so touched

This love story begins with a memorial service for Watanabe Hiroko's ex-boyfriend, Fujii Itsuki. Although he has been dead for a year, it still feels awkward when the dead ex-boyfriend's best friend begins to flirt with Watanabe. Around this time, she decides to send a letter to the old Fujii residence, despite having been demolished for highway construction.I think it's essential for anybody who watches this film to realize that after this point, a second character is introduced who is played by the same actress who plays Watanabe Hiroko. She has a cold when making her first appearance, so this is the best means of distinguishing between the two characters, besides their respective settings.The love story is very culturally Japanese (modern), with the natural reactions of the characters representing very accurately current gender roles and attitudes in Japan. I believe however the story's beauty can be easily appreciated worldwide.

This is one of the best movies that I've ever seen!! In the beginning the story moves a bit slowly and the two characters that Nakayama plays confused me a bit, but it really started to pick up my interest when the "high school days" part started. From there begins an emotional ride of reminiscence and camaraderie. It was truly beautiful...When the most famous scene of the movie played (we all know what that one is ^^), I was in tears!! The ending, the climax, was also tear-jerking in a much more subtle way. Maybe I just love crying during dramatic movies... But if you're like me in that way, then you will LOVE this movie.-Note: It's not available in the US; I picked it up in Thailand on VCD. The weird thing is that I only chose the title because of the cover, and it turned out to be one of my favorite movies!!-