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Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Speed

Yesterday, after playing badminton, I went home immediately and found myself in an isolated world. Out of nowhere, loneliness visited me on a cold autumn afternoon. Its presence was too strong to be ignored and made me end up watching the film 5 centimeter per second.

rush

At what speed I must live, to be able to see you again? This question summarizes the entirety of the Japanese-animated film. It was just too real for me as I can relate to some parts of the movie.

The plot is set in Japan beginning from the 1990s and ending in modern day, with each segment centered on a boy named Takaki Tōno. It is important to note that the first episode takes place during a time period when cell phones are uncommon and e-mail has not yet reached the general populace. More here

While some may not like the ending, I absolutely enthralled by it, enthralled in the sense that not all stories will end on a happy note. The ending was an open-ended kind of sort, though some of my questions were answered after a second viewing.

As I said earlier, I can relate to Touno’s character. He had all the chances and opportunities to be with Akari but he prioritized his work among anything else. Yet, he still had this feeling towards her that won’t simply go away. Moving on was foreign to him.

The animation was very well done and it some parts it looks very real especially the scenes at the train station. The soundtrack, especially the main theme, One More Time One More Chance was very poignant beyond words. Some lyrics of the song goes like this,

I’m always searching for your figure to appear somewhere .
On the platform, in the windows along the lane.
At a street crossing. In the midst of dreams.
Even though I know you couldn’t be on that place.

Damn, that hits me. Its been years ago since I last saw her but why I still dream and hope that one day will meet again. Thousands of people are always at the train station but sometimes I can feel that I will see her there. At the coffee shop in Yokohama station. The same place I last saw her where the smell of our untouched coffees still lingers.

Yes, she has all the right to change her number, email add or block me. Despite of that, I still went to her place but the door was never opened to me. I just heard footsteps speeding towards to door and perhaps after checking out that it was me, it was if permanently locked.

But why do I still hope of meeting her someday? Sometimes, I think she had moved on already but every time I twll myself about it, tons of what ifs just popping up. Yeah, those what ifs indeed.

Time will have all the answers.

/totomai
11/24/09

19 comments:

  1. i have yet to see the movie in full. but the song "one more time, one more chance" has been in my ipod for months now. i loved it even without yet knowing how beautiful the movie it was featured in was.

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  2. actually same here atty. i also have that song even before knowing that its the theme song of this movie.

    well, some may not like the ending though :-)

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  3. a couple of years ago, my japanese teacher introduced to me yamazaki masayoshi and among all his songs, we tried to interpret one more time, one more chance. i fell in love with the song since then. it was the first (and probably the only) song i tried to sing and memorize by heart. i just think it's so soulful. feel ko rin kasi ang acoustic. pero hindi ko pa nakita ang movie. i'll check it out. :)

    time has all the answers. time simply teaches us the value of waiting. :)

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  4. Hi Kit,

    I think you should watch the movie. T'was a perfect song to the film. Yup its very soulfoul and its currently on repeat mode. lol

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  5. wahhhhhh ~~ naiyak naman ako sa drama mo

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  6. kung ako siguro nakapanood ng movie na yan, baka super makarelate din ako.. dun pa lang sa lyrics ng theme song, feeling ko, akmang akma sa moving on posts ko hahaha!

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  7. Amfufuness. Pauupakan ko yan Fafa. San ba nakatira ha? Sabihin mo nga.

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  8. I don't know this movie at all, but it sounds like something I would love! Interesting post!

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  9. It sounds like a great movie...sad how we can be so attracted to someone who does not feel the same for us. When I was young it was painful...thankfully, I haven't felt that way for a long time.

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  10. Oh, by the way, that is an amazing picture of the flower petals just ready to burst out of the pod!

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  11. Thanks Lilibeth, life has ways of teaching us things :-)

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  12. Beautiful, Totomai -- evocative and sad. Sometimes the "what ifs" can lie heavy upon a person's heart.

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  13. I don't know the movie but I love the theme as I know the feeling of trying to find a face from a lost love

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  14. Another very poignant poem. Thank you.

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  15. Endings are usually only happy in fiction. Hope you find your answers.

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  16. I, too, can so much relate to Takaki and your own love story. Yep, I can say that one is.

    There is also a girl that I can't stop thinking. We met like a year and a half ago. Like you, she changed her number, etc. Even if time itself kinda prohibit us from seeing again, I still hope.

    Thanks for the invite, sir. It's a wonderful read. :)

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any thoughts to distill?

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