Tag Archives: Acting

Akane-banashi Review

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It’s time for a series about Rakugo. It’s not an art that I was familiar with but essentially it is about telling a story where you play all of the roles. There are not elaborate costumes or any big special effects. You have to pull everything off on your own, including playing any instruments if needed. Having a whole series around this could be tricky since you’re going to need to write a bunch of stories and convincing characters who can pull off all of the roles. I’d say the show does a pretty good job of it. Rakugo is probably not something I’d be very interested in watching in real life, but anime adds that extra pizazz.

The story follows a girl named Akane who is really interested in Rakugo. She grew up idolizing her father’s Rakugo but one day he is suddenly expelled from the profession entirely and his career as a pro died. Akane has spent the last 6 years practicing her craft and aims to prove that her father’s skills were real. She will have to go through many challenges if she wants to be the best, but she is determined to prove herself.

The show definitely amps up the drama with her father to the point where you may even think that he’s dead for a while there. That may have been a little too dark for this one though, the motivation of wanting to prove the critics wrong is good enough. The series is pretty realistic all the way through by also explaining how her father could have joined a different master but just chose not to. It would have been hard to blacklist someone from this career entirely after all but it came down to pride. He didn’t want to succeed in any other way which is completely his decision but honestly to me that just means it wasn’t his life.

Akane feels like someone who would keep on fighting no matter what she had to do. Switching masters is something she would never want, but she wouldn’t just let her career get short changed like that. As someone even brings up, the guy who expelled her father wasn’t even his direct master. I feel like the dad could have pushed back on that. In general I’m just not a really big fan of this guy. I’d also like for him to be way more present in Akane’s life.

The show goes into this and he has his reasons but I didn’t think they were good enough. I’m a much bigger fan of Akane’s mom who is always there to support her. Her role is not huge since there’s not as much she could do here but it’s enough to know that Akane has her in the corner and is someone to talk to.

Akane is fairly young but since she has been training since childhood, it makes sense that she is really good. I was glad that the show really acknowledged this instead of making her a rookie for some reason. There are still plenty of different ways to make challenges for her and the show handles this well. She is absolutely a prodigy but there are other prodigies around as well so the competition will always be fierce.

Akane speaks up for herself and is a very fiery character. While she sometimes does have to play nice because of how formal the environment is, I give her full credit for not just letting the others roll over her. She also doesn’t stay down about anything for too long. All in all, she’s definitely a standout character and one of the best ones in the show. The cast is already getting pretty large with characters being set up for season 2 but so far they’ve mainly been good.

Issho works well as the main villain as well. He certainly does believe in protecting the future of Rakugo and so for him expelling the father wasn’t personal. (Welllllllll future seasons may change that framing a little bit) I don’t think his goals always make sense though. For example he talks about how the art is completely dying and they need to inject new life into it. Then it would make sense to keep as many pros as possible right? Publicly expelling a bunch of trainees and scaring the rest seems like it is absolutely backwards compared to that. Issho’s excuse is that it would water down the sport but that’s just hard to buy into.

Still, the show makes sure not to treat him like some 2 bit criminal. He’s still nice to the press and maintains a solid public figure. The guy even jokes with a reporter that he has to be nice because otherwise who is going to laugh at his stories? Rakugo isn’t always for making the audience laugh but that’s definitely the case in a majority of the stories. So that expelling moment was controversial and a mask off type of instance but it’s not who he usually is. I look forward to his continued rivalry with Akane. Rivalry might be the wrong word but they will certainly be going against each other.

Shiguma is another one of the big Rakugo masters and so he ends up being the one who trains Akane. He’s a bit mixed about this and didn’t want to be taking on any more apprentices but couldn’t really turn her down given the context. He’s a nice guy who doesn’t usually make a bunch of waves but may have to change that now. As the youngest member of his school, Akane is spoiled by all of the characters. If anyone goes after her, it’s not Shiguma’s job to protect her and he made that promise to her mother.

Another character in Akane’s corner is Jumbo. He used to be a bully back when she was growing up but he did mature over the years. Now he does his best to support her dreams and is always there with a kind word. He even talks to her teacher in an effort to help change her mind and let Akane pursue her dreams. He’s a character who doesn’t appear a whole lot but he really does make a difference in these small ways which I appreciated.

Then we have the teacher, Machiko. She has a small but important role here as well. It makes sense to be skeptical about Akane’s decision not to continue with school and to become a Rakugo player instead. There are so many ways that could go badly and Akane is young to be making such a permanent life decision. Still, Machiko keeps an open mind and ends up helping quite a lot.

From Akane’s teammates, Koguma is my least favorite. I do want to underscore that this doesn’t make him a bad character inherently but he’s just less interesting than the others. His gimmick is that he’s usually timid but gets really bold when he’s on stage. He also likes to tell stories by thinking about the lore behind them. So nothing bad there but I feel like Akane has probably already surpassed him.

Hikaru is one of Akane’s rivals and she does have a leg up in being a voice actress. She is used to throwing her voice around and doing all kinds of impressions. That’s an incredibly useful talent to have at her disposal. Some of the others try to use it as a diss but they’re just coping. Akane has the edge in experience so that makes for a pretty good contrast between the two of them. I definitely look forward to her appearing more.

Karashi is Akane’s other big rival and he likes telling a more modern twist on the classic Rakugo stories. It’s an incredibly good idea because telling the same stories over and over is really not a good idea. It’s got to be one of the reasons that Rakugo is dying. Particularly since the stories are all ancient and the characters don’t talk like normal people. It just doesn’t end up making for a particularly engaging product. Karashi is rather full of himself but that’s how a rival should be, so he’s definitely a compelling character.

Kaisei is one of those future rivals. Right now he is so far ahead of Akane that you can’t call it a true rivalry but down the road you can see how they would be fighting it out. He is a bit of an overbearing character who really gets up in your face and he gets away with that because of his talent. We only get to see him perform in a vague way so it’s a bit hard to say just how good he is but based on how he’s presented, he’s the best of the younger performers.

Maikeru hasn’t done much yet but he’s the more senior member of Akane’s teammates. So he clearly has a lot of ability and will be someone that Akane is not able to surpass so easily. Kyouji is another senior member but he gets a much bigger role than the others. He essentially takes on the role of being Akane’s hands on mentor. He walks her through the basics that she wouldn’t have encountered in practice and encourages her to keep up her grades as well. He doesn’t want her to sacrifice things needlessly which is important.

Kyouji is a well balanced character although he doesn’t strike me as being super talented. Naturally that’s not the case but his Rakugo just feels ordinary. Likewise we have Guriko who also helps to tutor Akane but he doesn’t seem to be immensely talented. This is actually building up to a plot point though so that works out. It is rough to be surpassed by someone who just joined the clan so I can get why that would be annoying. That’s the power of a prodigy.

Now as the show went on there are two questions that will come to mind. The first is, how will the show manage to show how skilled each Rakugo master is? The title intentionally avoids showing Issho or the others giving their full performances while we are still watching the trainees going through the motions. That said, it’s just a bit hard to picture how different you can really show the art of Rakugo. The series will have to get real creative there.

The second question is, how come the characters are all stuck to using the same stories over and over? I guess it’s answered to an extent with how Issho really loves tradition but then of course the art is dying out. Imagine if you really love watching a cooking show but they always make the same 10 items? It’s why I really liked Karashi because he had the right idea. Throwing a modern twist into these stories is a great way to get to the audience. It’s something that I’d like to see other characters doing. Maybe not making it modern per say, but switching up some details.

The animation is pretty solid throughout the show. It’s not like you’re going to be able to show off a whole lot here since there aren’t fight scenes but the colors are on point. The character designs work well and you can tell that a lot of attention was put into it. The soundtrack is a little less impressive. Not bad but the opening really didn’t click for me. The themes during the show are good though. So I wouldn’t call this one super memorable but it’s not bad by any means.

This show also shows how important writing is in getting you invested. I’m personally not all that into Rakugo even after watching the series. I tend to prefer the moments around the actual performances because I just enjoy competition. Give me all the tournaments and the trash talking around them. The Rakugo itself just seems a little too basic. I would really need the other actors around because one person trying to play them all would just start to feel a bit cheesy to me. Like I would be cracking a grin even when I’m not supposed to be. The stories aren’t painful or anything, they’re just not super engaging so far.

Overall, I definitely look forward to seeing where the next season goes here. There are going to be a lot of tournaments as Akane tries to move up the ranks and that always means more rivals to overcome. The show has a very pleasant vibe to it and so the episodes go by quickly. It’s definitely going to run into some challenges on how to make the fights stay interesting/how to increase the power levels and so I want to see how that’s handled. You don’t need to be a big fan of Rakugo in order to enjoy this one so that’s a solid credit to the show.

Overall 7/10

The Thrill of It All Review

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It’s time to look at a pretty old rom-com with Doris Day. This is a film with a pretty fun plot although the ending doesn’t really work so well. I’d say the main character ended up making the wrong call. Still, the writing is pretty strong as always and the humor is consistent. It’s a film that you’ll have a fun time watching even if it doesn’t end up being one of the all time greats or anything like that.

The movie starts with introducing us to Gerald who delivers a lot of babies. It’s pretty fun work and he’s really well known in the neighborhood. People just like the guy. Meanwhile his wife Beverly runs the home and does a good job of looking after their two kids who are always getting into mischief. Well, one day the two of them attend a little gathering and watch a commercial for a new soap. Beverly ends up telling a story about how she used the soap and the boss of the company immediately wants her to do the commercials. Beverly is reluctant at first but they will offer her a ton of money so she accepts. Beverly quickly becomes a sensation and now the company’s products are all flying off the shelves.

The family is doing really well financially but it’s having a social toll. Beverly and Gerald both work rather difficult hours now so they are never home. Gerald starts to become jealous at this point and realizes that he will have to find a way for Beverly to leave her job. He tries quite a lot of tricks to get her out. Will Beverly be able to keep her job or will she ultimately need to go back to being a housewife and leaving this wealth on the table?

This film came out quite a long time ago, but even so it’s hard to really sympathize with Gerald all that much. He gets on her case about this almost right away so at that point the hours and such hadn’t been an issue yet. He just didn’t want her to leave the house for a job and seemed pretty proud of it. What hurt his case right out of the gate was when Beverly produced an article he wrote about how women should explore career opportunities to find fulfillment. He quickly says that it didn’t apply to her which isn’t really much of a counter argument. He really tries every trick in the book to get her back so Gerald looks bad throughout the whole movie. Particularly as a lot of the things he would get upset about weren’t even directly Beverly’s fault. The studio had a tendency to take things into their own hands which would ultimately backfire.

Gerald’s tricks could also get a bit dirty at times like pretending that he was cheating on Beverly. That’s certainly not something to do lightly and just makes him look pretty bad. Beverly was never doing anything like that. As a main character she’s pretty solid. The fame never even remotely goes to her head and she handles all of this like a class act. She still has to work with the kids throughout this at times so she’s busier than ever. Beverly may not always be able to make the times work for everyone but at least she tries. It’s also pretty honest work. It’s not like there’s anything remotely sketchy about her line of business. It’s advertising for a very reputable company.

The company also desperately needed Beverly. Their current commercials were really using quite desperate measures to try and sell the soap which would not work on most of the viewers. After all, the guys who would fall for these tactics aren’t likely to buy soap. It’s worth noting that this is another scene that makes Gerald look quite bad. Come to think of it, the guy definitely has a lot of unfortunate mishaps throughout which make me root for Beverly even further. I think the main things he could reasonably get upset about was the studio taking over his home and the big swimming pool destroying the backyard so he can’t golf anymore. Those are pretty sudden and hard to adapt too.

As this encompasses the main plot , Gerald’s jealousy is the only thing that holds the film back. From the start you already know how this is going to end which is unfortunate. The film could have definitely have had a better ending. It’s not an ending that wrecks the film though. Either way I thought it was pretty fun and the writing is on point as always. The cast of characters are fun and even if Gerald is on the wrong side, he has a lot of fun moments as well. The Thrill of It All as a very quick pace about it so something is always happening during the movie. That’s always been an important aspect for any film.

Overall, The Thrill of It All may be dated in many respects, but it’s a movie that is worth watching. It tackles some nice topics like how people are still quick to buy things if they see it in a commercial. For me commercials are mostly pointless for products but if it’s a food commercial then I’m in. I think everyone has something that they are willing to look into further if it’s on a commercial. The film also pokes fun at how some shows would use the same plots over and over again and the audience doesn’t catch on. It’s pretty exaggerated but definitely fun to see. I’m always up for a few good natured shots thrown in. If you’re up for a fun little film about getting rich overnight then this is a solid one to check out. Who hasn’t thought about suddenly being on TV like this?

Overall 6/10

A Star is Born Review

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It’s time to look at the original version of A Star is Born. It’s definitely a title that I’m sure just about everyone is familiar with thanks to all of the remakes. Does it really hold up to such an illustrious legacy though? It’s not a bad film, but the second half does ultimately end up hurting the movie. It’s an ending that isn’t particularly great and one character is pretty annoying the whole time.

The film starts off with a girl named Esther expressing her desire to be an actress. Her family almost literally laughs her out of the house so her grandmother tells her to pursue her dreams. Esther heads on the train to Hollywood and gets ready to be famous. The problem is that there are a lot of other people who want to be famous and so she has hit a dead end. She meets a guy named Danny who has some connections, but instead of a part in the picture she is relegated to maid service. Still, this works out as she is noticed by washed up actor Norman who still has a lot of influence within the company. He’s happy to help her get famous so that they can get married, but when she begins to exceed his popularity can he handle the pressure?

One thing I’ve noticed about a lot of the old school male leads is that most of them seem to be really insecure. The instant that the heroine passes them they start getting really whiny and petty. Unfortunately Norman is no exception. He crashes her party and sulks for the majority of the movie. It’s easy to forget that they’re together at times. I’d give him credit for retiring and all, but he then starts to get into fights and tarnishes her reputation. He even gets thrown into the asylum for his antics. Sure, Norman’s over the hill, but he was famous for a while so you’d think that he could at least enjoy that part. Of course, how famous he ever was is probably debatable since nobody seems to even know the poor guy.

Esther is certainly a much better character. Her only weakness is that she gets emotional very quickly as she cries if you insult her. Fortunately I’d say that showbiz went well for her and has toughened her up by the end. She is able to put up a strong front and her talent was shown to be the real deal. She didn’t just go to Hollywood, she excelled while she was there. It’s also good that her granny was around to keep her on the right track as she almost made a big mistake at the end of the film. So, Esther was solid, but I think if she was less emotional then she would have been even better.

Meanwhile we have Danny, who was an interesting character. His voice is incredibly memorable so odds are that it is the part about him that you will remember the most. I’m not sure if it was intentionally humorous or not, but it did make him fun. His first scene was a bit rough though as he starts yelling as Esther for no reason. That scene probably could have been cut out since it makes absolutely no sense. He pretty much gets written out once Norman shows up though. Norman’s pr agent makes for an intense, albeit mean spirited character. He’s good at his job and he can even fight so you can’t ask for much more than that. Meanwhile the owner of the company is a nice enough guy. He kept trying to help Norman even when the actor made that difficult.

As for the ending, while it was unexpected I can’t say that it was good. If anything it just makes Norman look a whole lot worse than he was looking already. Rather than accept the new status quo and turn his act together he figures that it’s time for desperate measures. His answer is never the proper answer to anything. It’s just a way to escape a problem, not a way to solve one. I wonder if the newer films will switch that ending. I hope they do since it will definitely help the character be a little more redeemable.

As for the writing, it’s pretty solid for the most part. When the film attempts some humor scenes they tend to work well like Norman’s beer with a touch of soda gag. The romance isn’t handled quite as well as it’s hard to take Norman seriously since it seems like he typically likes flirting with everyone. It doesn’t make him look all that genuine but I suppose we can give him the benefit of the doubt. Esther just seems a little too trusting and quick to romance as well. Given that her goal is to be the best, I feel like romance would just be a big distraction for her. Ah well. The film’s pacing is pretty solid and although the film is fairly long it never drags on which is always important.

Overall, A Star is Born is a reasonable film. I wouldn’t call it amazing, but it was passable. The idea of someone walking into Hollywood and then rising to the top is a classic, but consistent premise. If executed well it makes for a nice, uplifting story. If it’s cashed in then it ends up being super cheesy and you wonder what happened to the other actors for them to all be surpassed in such a short amount of time. I’ll probably see the remakes soon and I get the feeling that they may have the edge this time, but if you haven’t seen the original it’s probably worth checking out. It is a classic after all.

Overall 5/10