User Reviews (2)

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  • akasaka329 October 2012
    This was not so bad. Not bad at all.

    The characters are like those in girls' mangas. They all are unrealistically nice and pure. Boys at that age cannot be like that.

    Moreover, each of them has unrealistically unique characteristics. For example, one of the main characters lives in the room full of the comic books. (When and how did he bring them to his room? and does he go to the university to begin with? It looked like he did not go outside at all before he started training.)

    So, I felt disgusted first.

    But still, in the end I got impressed at this movie because it successfully depicts the beauty of running.

    There are some beautiful images, like Kakeru's running on the road in the morning. The goal tape seen from Haiji's point of view.

    And the way Kakeru runs is so beautiful that everyone can be admired. I think that is the actor's achievement. He must have trained hard for it.

    In total this is not bad movie. in fact, to be honest, it was moving.
  • Just watched this at a Japanese Film Festival here in West Australia. One of the festival organisers gave a short synopsis prior to the commencement of the movie and said that the story is indicative of the Japanese spirit. It is a story about a group of underdogs who compete in what is Japan's biggest relay race, the Ekiden, which is contested by universities and telecast throughout the country. This particular group are given no real chance of winning, but through some soul-searching they develop into a well-oiled machine.

    I wont say whether they win or not at the end for it is worth seeing for the end alone.