ザラ Notes: 花より男子ファイナル Hana Yori Dango Final

10 July 2008

花より男子ファイナル Hana Yori Dango Final

Title: 花より男子ファイナル Hana Yori Dango Finaru (Final)
English Title:

Boys Over Flowers Final
Boys Before Flowers Final

Country: Japan
Language: Japanese
Year: 2008
Cast:

井上真央 Inoue Mao
松本潤 Matsumoto Jun
小栗旬 Oguri Shun
松田翔太 Matsuda Shōta
阿部力 Abe Tsuyoshi
松嶋菜々子 Matsushima Nanako
佐田真由美 Sada Mayuki
藤木直人 Fujiki Naohito
加藤夏希 Katō Natsuki
西原亜希 Nishihara Aki
佐藤めぐみ Satō Megumi
小林すすむ Kobayashi Susumu
石野真子 Ishino Mako
加賀まりこ Kaga Mariko
冨浦智嗣 Tomiura Satoshi
瀬戸早妃 Seto Saki
深田あき Fukada Aki
松岡恵望子 Matsuoka Emiko
デビット伊東 David Ito
加藤貴子 Kato Takako

SYNOPSIS

嵐 Arashi - One Love

Dōmyōji Tsukasa and Makino Tsukushi are engaged to be married. Tsukasa is certain that he wants to spend the rest of his life with Tsukushi but Tsukushi is having some doubts about marrying Tsukasa.

After the press conference where their wedding date is announced, Tsukasa's mother presents Tsukushi with a tiara called the Smile of Venus, a family heirloom that symbolizes eternal love and happiness. Each precious stone in the tiara was named after a place: America’s hope, Hong Kong’s tear, The love that floats in the Southern Sea, and the Secret of Ancient Times.

Unfortunately, the tiara gets stolen and the two go on a search to retrieve the tiara. Their search takes Tsukasa and Tsukushi to Las Vegas, Hong Kong, an idyllic island in Southeast Asia, and other places.

However, every time the two manage to get their hands on the tiara, they always lose it. Does this mean that the Tsukasa and Tsukushi are not meant to be together?

REVIEW
Although this is a movie sequel for the first two Hana Yori Dango dramas, the storyline for Hana Yori Dango Final is not based on the manga. I think this is primarily the reason why something about the movie feels really different. For instance, some key characters may have retained their names but their characterization in the movie is completely different from their personas in the previous dramas.

One of the good things about the movie is that Dōmyōji Tsukasa and Makino Tsukushi are together for most of the movie. It seemed to me that the time the two spent together in this movie is longer compared to the time they spent together in the previous two dramas combined.

I enjoyed the movie's tremendously romantic scenes although the lines were indeed cheesy. The lead actors have great chemistry together so it's probably why they are able to make things work.

(Makino is looking for the necklace in a swampy area in the dark...)
Makino Tsukushi: I'm sorry, I... lost it. The necklace of Saturn.
Dōmyōji Tsukasa: Eh? Although it was a very important necklace for us, Makino, the most important thing for me is you. Don't make me worry because of trivial things.

Dōmyōji Tsukasa: I just thought of it while being here. Hard or sad things will be halved if you share it with another person. Funny and happy things are doubled if you do it together with another person.
Makino Tsukushi: That may be true.
Dōmyōji Tsukasa: A life on this island might not be that bad after all. Here, I can be together with Makino all the time without being disturbed by anyone.
Makino Tsukushi: Speaking of this, Dōmyōji's dream... What is your dream
Dōmyōji Tsukasa: (looking directly at Tsukushi) It already came true... I love you.

But personally, I think the whole movie was kind of pointless. I see it as a means for the production team to satisfy the fans' need for more Hana Yori Dango.