Skip to main content

Taiikukan Baby (Japanese) [Gymnasium Baby]

This film had a cute story but somehow the way it is executed, it never manages to life above its below average status. Swim team romance, love triangle, teenage love; on paper it seems to have right ingredients but the execution is strictly average with some really bad editing happening here.

Shibahara is high school who enjoys swimming. His father is the coach of the team and Shibahara was born after his father's affair with one of his students and hence his nickname is 'Gymnasium baby'. When he is diagnosed with some heart condition, he os forced to quit swimming team and his father/coach starts favoring another student Murai. Murai feels an affinity and attraction to Shibahara and asks him to become his coach. The two spend time together and soon enough one day Murai confesses his feelings and kisses him. This leaves Shibahara confused and runs away and tries to avoid Murai. Shibahara tells what happened to his best friend, Kato, who takes an overprotective attitude towards him and another defensive towards Murai, since he is also in love with him. A love triangle and competition of sort starts with a very confused ending, of three of them finally coming together.

The story is nice, as I said before, but you know what, I couldn't get myself past their oversized coats that the students would wear. I know its silly but very funny at the same time. Now coming back to the story, the editing of the film was either off or something else. A lot of scenes would randomly show up which didn't make any sense. Suddenly Shibahara becoming Murai's coach, like what was actual coach doing then? Where was Kato all this while? The kiss between two guys was so sudden. Why was Shibahara so upset with his dad? What was he doing all this time when he left home after exam and his realist came for college? And a lot more random things. Also the way Murai approaches Shibahara is very bullish, almost creepy. He talks like a dominant screamer and almost creepy. He literally forces Shibahara to like him. There is absolutely no organic growth in their relationship. Its like one guy professing his love for the other out of nowhere and the other guy better accept because he doesn't have a choice. Kato's love and admiration, at least, seemed more natural. And ending is so open and unresolved, you can make it whatever you please to make it. There are much better Japanese BL stuff out there that this one is completely avoidable. (3/10)

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Sei no Gekiyaku (Japanese) [Dangerous Drugs of Sex]

Every person has their own unique way of dealing with loss. This film is as much a psychological thriller as it is a soft porn BDSM portrayal of two young men that makes the film overall horrifying as well as humane. It is really hard to describe the genre of this film in one word. Its important not that the film has some really disturbing scenes so if you go into seeing this film, please proceed with caution. Although any sexual non-consensual activity is not ok, this film has its won strange way of showing that suicide is not the only solution to all life's problems. Makoto is a regular office goer, who just finds out that his girlfriend is probably cheating on him. ON top of it, his parents sudden death coming back from a trip that he forced them to take, he gets completely dejected and decides to commit suicide. Unknown to him, he is saved by mysterious man Yoda Ryoji, and he wakes up finding himself tied up in leather and belts in a very BDSM setting. This mysterious saver soo...

Drug Shore (Chinese)

Apparently tis film was adapted by a true story Well, true or not, movies/series about drugs are not easy to watch. I have always said that drugs is like the end of life for anyone. For those who sink into this sea of addiction, some manage to swim upstream to recovery, while others cannot make it to the shore. The film may not be the best, but it does have a noble intention to remind everyone of the evil affects of drugs and combining that with sex. Ah Zhe is in a happy relationship with his influencer boyfriend. On his partner's birthday, they end up going to a party, which interestingly is being hosted at a drug dealer's house and this is where for the first time he is exposed to the world of drugs. The duo somehow do it just enough and come back home but next day Ah She gets invited by the dealer Xiao Fei for a meal. The dealer has a soft corner for Ah Zhe, but before anyone realizes, Ah Zhe's life spirals out of control when slowly he starts doing more and more drugs, ...

The Shortest Distance is Round 3: Fallen Flowers

Continuing with the weird trilogy of "The Shortest Distance", I am so glad that finally I am done with part 3 and won't have to deal with this again in future. Thankfully, as of now the makers have not announced any further parts; which will save all of us on this earth from the embarrassment of watching this in near future. After the first 10 minutes are used in sort of recapping bits of first two parts, the story moves forward. Haruto is now starting to have feelings for Ruka, the mysterious pole dancer from second part. In a fit of rage, Ruka ends up killing the goat man and to save him and Haruto, Shibahara asks them to go underground. Meanwhile Shibahara continues the search for Seiya (the guy who had cut off Haruto's penis). It turns out Seiya is now also taking care of the original club owner from part 1. Both of them were released after they had informed Shibahara of Aoyama's secret location. Shibahara tortures Seiya's boyfriend leading to Seiya killin...