In Japanese film, we often find a blurring of the lines between characters’ dialogue and the lyrics of any given theme song — so much so that the narrative thrust of the film is often considerably dependent upon the theme song’s lyrics, and vice-versa. Below are seven examples of Japanese films and theme songs that seem perfectly made for each other, and in some cases actually are — in fact, in two examples, we see how preexisting Japanese pop songs served as the inspiration and source material for full-scale film productions. Raise the volume and push play! “Hitomi o Tojite (Closing Eyes)” by Ken Hirai Film: Crying Out Love in the Center of the World/世界の中心で、愛をさけぶThe second-highest grossing Japanese film of 2004 (beaten only by the massive anime hit Howl’s Moving Castle) also delivered that year’s most popular music single in “ Hitomi o Tojite (Close Your Eyes).” The story of a marriage-averse young man, Sakutaro, his young love lost to tragedy, and his struggle to accept and move forward with adult love, was an exceedingly fertile narrative for a Japanese love ballad. In tandem, this film and its de-facto theme song are regarded as the starting point for modern Japanese cinema’s “Pure Love” sub-genre.
Hitomi o Tojite, Ken Hirai’s 20th single, became his best selling song and a major hit in Japan, crowning domestic charts and becoming an inspiration for multiple covers in Japan and other Asian countries, including Taiwan and South Korea.Main Cast: Takao Osawa, Ko Shibasaki. Director: Isao Yukisada 2. “One Love” by Arashi Film: Boys Over Flowers – Final/花より男子 ファイナルBased on Yoko Kamio’s manga of the same name, Boys Over Flowers – Final was indeed the last statement in a series of filmed works in the Boys Over Flowers canon. The somewhat convoluted narrative, which includes international intrigue and adventure centered around an heirloom tiara, follows the trials and adventures of working class girl Tsukushi’s relationship with and engagement to her upper-class boyfriend. The film’s male lead, Tsukasa, was played by Jun Matsumoto, who is also a member of Japanese pop supergroup Arashi.
The group custom-composed “One Love” as the film’s official theme song, and they even performed in accompaniment with a live, in-character performance by the film cast at a promotional press conference.Main Cast: Mao Inoue, Jun Matsumoto. Director: Yasuharu Ishii 3. “Haruka” by GReeeeN Film: Rookies Graduation/ROOKIES 卒業Another manga-based film with an pre-established television legacy, Rookies Graduation tells the underdog, hard-luck redemption story of a group of misfit, ne’er-do-well baseball players and a coach with his own problematic history.
The boys eventually pull most of their acts together, coalesce into a proper team, and work toward getting into the high school baseball tournament. Rookies Graduation is textbook Japanese melodrama, which is most effectively delivered with the appropriate J-Pop accompaniment — in this case the very successful yet also critically acclaimed group GReeeeN, along with their theme song “Haruka” and its sibling compositions.Main Cast: Ryuta Sato, Hayato Ichihara.
Director: Yuichiro Hirakawa 4. “Hanamizuki” by Hitoto Yo Film: Hanamizuki/ハナミズキUnique thus far on our list, Hanamizuki is actually inspired by its own pre-existing theme song of the same title. “Hanamizuki” the song, first released in 2004, is a widely celebrated ballad of love, loss and longing — all easily lending themselves to the tale of Sae and Kouhei, which begins with young love in Hokkaido, fades somewhat tragically with time and distance, eventually dissolves due to unforeseen tragedy, but is then given a glimmer of hope right at the end.
Bluntly, and literally stated, these two pieces of art fit quite perfectly!Main Cast: Yui Aragaki, Toma Ikuta. Director: Nobuhiro Doi 5.“Rain” by Sekai no Owari Film: Mary and the Witch’s Flower/メアリと魔女の花In addition to a soundtrack from highly regarded composer Takatsugu Muramatsu, Mary and the Witch’s Flower features the song “Rain” by Sekai no Owari, a hugely popular rock act famous for the staggering production quality of their live shows. The animated feature, based on Mary Stewart’s The Little Broomstick, is the simple yet engaging story of a young girl named Mary (voiced by Hana Sugisaki) who finds a mysterious flower that can turn her into a witch, but only for one night. Satoshi Fukase, the lead vocalist and primary artistic force behind Sekai no Owari, was immediately inspired by the film’s imagery and message — the result, a custom-composed anime theme song, remains one of 2017’s top-charting tracks.Director: Hiromasa Yonebayashi 6. “ZenZenZen-Se” by RADWIMPS Film: your name./君の名は。The critically acclaimed your name.
Also became a huge financial success in 2016/17, earning well over $350 million and quickly ascending to its spot as the number one top-grossing anime of all time. A massive part of the film’s success was the standalone music score and the wildly popular theme song, “ZenZenZen-Se,” composed by rock group RADWIMPS. Amazingly, in just over one year, the song’s official YouTube posting has over 150 million views.
This article is about the Japanese TV drama. For the Bollywood film, see For the Singaporean TV drama, see. For other uses, see. Good Luck!!Genre,Created byStarringEnding themeRide On Time by (1980)Country of originOriginal language(s)No. Of episodes10ProductionProducer(s)ReleaseOriginal networkOriginal release19 January –23 March 2003External linksGood Luck!!
( グッドラック！！) is a 2003 starring. The story revolves around an up-and-coming pilot, Hajime Shinkai, and portrays his interactions with others as he progresses along the road to becoming a captain.
As is common in many Japanese drama series, it blends drama and romance with comedic elements. This drama also emphasizes hardship of being a pilot or a cabin crew, and the serious nature of the industry they're in, which puts thousands of lives in its hands. Contents.Cast.
as Hajime Shinkai ( 新海元). as Kazuki Kōda ( 香田一樹). as Ayumi Ogawa ( 緒川歩実). as Urara Fukaura ( 深浦うらら).
as Jane Naitō ( 内藤ジェーン). as Kenzaburō Ōta ( 太田健三郎). as Noriko Togashi ( 富樫のり子). as Takayuki Abe ( 阿部貴之).
as Park Mi-suk ( 朴美淑)Key characters. Hajime Shinkai (played by ) is the protagonist.
A young, inexperienced pilot who earns notoriety among colleagues for disregarding standards and standing up to superiors. Emotional and easily provokable, he has a strong sense of justice and equally strong love of flying. Ayumi Ogawa , a stubborn, straight-talking mechanic who is as committed to her job as she is abrasive towards Shinkai.
Having lost her parents in a plane crash, she decided to become a plane mechanic to make planes as safe as possible. However, she has profound fear of flying and has not had flown at the start of the series.
Kazuki Kouda is a senior captain and chief of flight operations. Known for his very cold, nearly robotic demeanour, he has not tolerance for anything but perfect professional performance to the border of inhumanity. He is feared and disliked by most of the other characters for being very unpleasant and demanding. Jane Naito , also a (male) captain, is colourful character with a sense of humour and relaxed behaviour. A womanizer popular with cabin attendants, he has been married (and divorced) at least twice, and makes frequent advances towards female colleagues.
Good Luck!! Television Show
Noriko Togashi , a female chief cabin attendant, is committed to highest professional standards, but at the same time cares for her junior colleagues and compassionately coaches them. Ota Kenzaburo , a senior male chief cabin attendant, who can be both very serious about his job and the performance of his staff and cheerful and humorous when interacting with pilots. He is a big fan of Shinkai and encourages him in his development, while at the same time displaying much dislike for Kouda behind his back. Fukaura Urara, a very junior flight attendant who only chose the job for its apparent glamour and ostensibly does not want to pursue this career path, but use the opportunity to find a husband quickly. She does not treat her job seriously and oftentimes behaves unprofessionally, which earns her scolding from other crew members. She is brash and cheeky when pursuing her goals, which include (the unwilling) Shinkai's affections.
Good Luck In Japanese Words
Shimamura Takashi , a young mechanic working together with Ayumi Ogawa, protective of her. Ryoji Shinkai - Hajime's father, once a captain of large ships, now owns a small fishing boat business in the middle of the port of Tokyo. Wished Hajime to take over the family business and has a strained relationship with him because of him choosing to become a pilot instead. Kaori Ogawa - Ayumi's good-natured sister, with whom she shares an apartment. Makoto Shinkai - Hajime's younger brother, a high school student, with whom Hajime frequently fights.
Japanese Good Luck Characters
Park Mi-suk , a Korean neighbour of Shinkai, who perplexes and embarrasses him with displays of affection, implying a relationship between them (which does not exist). Serves as a comedic relief between the more serious scenes.Summary The series presents the characters interacting at work and outside of it. The focus are the flight operations, with the crew characters finding themselves inflight together having to deal with some difficult or unusual occurrences, such as unruly guests, equipment malfunctions, medical emergencies and diversions. The characters have to prove themselves handling those situations, and their relationships are both put to the test and develop.On the ground, the characters meet at ANA's main base at, as well as restaurants and bars and the characters and their families' homes. The series features many scenes in the outdoors, including portraying characters driving or riding a boat. Some scenes are shot actually on location at Narita, at the ANA headquarters and maintenance hangars, with ANA employees serving as extras.Reception Good Luck!! Topped the Japanese drama ratings with 35% of the Japanese viewership in 2003.
The first episode aired on January 19, 2003 with ratings of 31.6%, the third highest ratings of an opening episode, behind and, also starring.The single episode ratings are as follows: EpisodeNationwide0131.6%0227.5%0328.6%0427.6%0530.9%0628.2%0728.9%0829.7%0933.5%1037.6%Average30.41%Trivia and notes. World-famous ballet dancer guest stars as himself as a passenger in Episode 5See also.References.