Synopsis
Based on the bestselling comic by Aya Nakahara, Love*Com The Movie is a high-school romantic comedy centering on two students. Risa Koizumi is the tallest girl in class, and the last thing she wants is the humiliation of standing next to Atsushi Otani, the shortest guy. Fate and the whole school have other ideas, and the two find themselves casts as the unwilling stars of a bizarre romantic comedy duo. But as their friendship develops, so do Risa’s feelings toward Otani. Can she be honest with herself and get over her lovely complex?!
Review
There has always been an age old misconception in the world of relationships. Somehow out of all of the things that should determine whether individuals become couples, height, is an attribute that should matter least. But that is not the case in this love comedy, ‘Love*Com.’
If you are saying to yourself that the title sounds somewhat familiar to an anime, you are correct. Love*Com is the live adaptation of Aya Nakahara’s manga and anime series, Lovely Complex. The story revolves around Risa Koizumi and Atsushi Otani and the development of what is to be a complex love situation. Risa has always looked at Otani as a friend and nothing more. Likewise can be said of Otani as well, even though they share many things in common and their friends all believe that they would be a perfect pair, nothing more came out of it. That is until that one faithful day on Christmas.
After various circumstances Otani and Risa agreed to attend an ‘Umibozu’ concert on Christmas, prior to Otani’s ex-girlfriend’s request to attend a party with her. When Christmas came, Risa ended up going to the concert alone. As she made her trip to the concert, she was constantly being reminded of the fact that she was alone by the laughing couples around her. Upon reaching the lowest point of her day, she hears a familiar voice shouting out her name, this voice was from no one other than Otani’s. It was on that faithful day that Risa fell in love with the shorty, Otani.
The show continues on with the interactions with the two main characters and before you realize it, it comes to an end. Love*Com was funny but it felt like it was rushing. Scenes that could have had a bit more development in them were passed over, such as, the history behind Otani and his ex-girlfriend. I mean, just watching the weird mood between the two when they see each other screams drama all over. It was hinted that she left him for another guy, but why? Was there a misunderstanding? Because judging from her looks, she did not seem like that type of girl (*shrug*). I would personally want to know as it pertains to the effect it may have had on the personality of a character.
Love*Com’s goofing off scenes are pretty hilarious, such as, their homeroom teacher’s denial over his wigs and the close up break downs of a particular situation. The way that the movie made it zoom in, and took a 360 degrees angle view of a scene, and the freeze frame of how a character is saying their dialogue along with commentary was amusing. It was definitely a glowing point of the show.
The actors and actresses did a great job with their roles. And the music was excellent. Umibozu’s ‘Is This All Right’ was so ridiculous that it was good. The music video of the song made my day. While I really cannot say that Love*Com is for everyone, those who want to see the live adaptation of the manga/anime should be able to enjoy it. The viewers that are looking for more bang for the buck and time would probably want to stay away, as the movie just does not provide anything out of the extraordinary that warrants a cannot miss status.
Breakdown
Love*Com is an enjoyable movie. The comedy associated with the show definitely earned a few laughs from me here and there. It was especially entertaining when I saw how Risa became flustered over how dense Otani was. The story was straight forward and did just enough to get through. The re-watch value is not really high. Personally I would pop the DVD in just to see the Umibozu music video extra as that was just too… Wow.