I'm guessing the whole point of this movie was to show a realistic "slice of life" look at gay men in Tokyo and how they connect with each other. The idea behind it is actually pretty interesting, but the film spends a good 35 to 40 minutes just setting up the characters. The problem is it feels so disjointed that you start wondering why they bothered giving these people backstories when those details are never mentioned again later on! The story kicks off by introducing us to Tomayo, a student in his early 20s who is hanging out with two close friends. He meets a gay bar owner who takes an interest in him right away, which basically starts Tomayo’s journey of figuring out his own sexuality. Then we meet an 18-year-old guy who is more on the effeminate side; he’s desperate to find love and be in a relationship, but he keeps getting rejected. He ends up sleeping with one of Tomayo's close friends. After that, we meet Akiko, a 33-year-old corporate worker whose coworker...
The story kicks off by introducing us to Tomayo, a student in his early 20s who is hanging out with two close friends. He meets a gay bar owner who takes an interest in him right away, which basically starts Tomayo’s journey of figuring out his own sexuality. Then we meet an 18-year-old guy who is more on the effeminate side; he’s desperate to find love and be in a relationship, but he keeps getting rejected. He ends up sleeping with one of Tomayo's close friends. After that, we meet Akiko, a 33-year-old corporate worker whose coworkers are always bugging him about why he’s still single. It turns out he actually has a long-term partner, and the two of them are hosting a house party where all these different people eventually meet up. There’s clearly some tension between Akiko and his partner—maybe they think the other is cheating—and things get even more awkward when a handsome photographer named Kenichi shows up. These seven guys spend the night drinking and laughing together, but as they get drunker and stay in that small space, things start to heat up. Everything is brand new to Tomayo, who is just starting to accept that he’s gay. When he catches Akaki and the photographer kissing, he accidentally blabs to the whole group. This starts a huge argument where everyone shares their own opinions on how to treat people, what a "boyfriend" really means versus just a relationship, and how empathy and sex fit in. It all ends with a long speech from one of the guys reminding everyone that gay people already deal with so much hate from the world, so they shouldn't be mean or arrogant to each other.
Since this is just a slice-of-life film, nothing really gets explained and there aren't any big resolutions at the end. It's just a tiny glimpse into the lives of these men, who are meant to represent different parts of gay life in Japan. You won't like this movie if you're looking for a normal story with a beginning, middle, and end, but that doesn't mean the movie is actually good. The dialogue isn't very interesting, and sometimes the tension between the characters doesn't feel like it’s earned. The acting is just okay across the board; nobody really stands out as being great. Each guy is looking for love or loyalty, and they all add to the movie’s main theme about trying to find a place to belong—whether that’s as a partner, as a person in the gay community, or in society in general. By the end, the film tries to show how being treated as an "outsider" by society makes people feel lonely and alienated.
The movie had good intentions when it came to its subject matter, but in the end, it feels like it tried to do too much in a very short amount of time without having a clear direction. (4/10)
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