Nana to Kaoru is supposed to be a romance comedy around S&M. There really aren't movies tackling this topic from the viewpoint of high school kids (it's Japan folks) and certainly not in this lighthearted manner. The manga is great, it shows really unique "plays" (they call them "breathers", a term that accurately shows the direction the manga wants to take with S&M) and CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT! And then we have this abomination.
The story line is mildly adapted, the "breathers" are too mild and lack eroticism, the atmosphere is comedic, it doesn't look filthy at all (it has to be even a little bit), the chemistry between the duo which is the most important element of the story is nonexistent. I don't need to analyze this any further, there was no saving grace for this movie.
But I really want to rant about the acting. Nana is... OK, she lacks expression but it is a cheap production and I didn't expect anything great. That doesn't justify Kaoru's acting. HE IS NOT SUPPOSED TO BE AWKWARD, HE IS ANTI-SOCIAL, IT IS DIFFERENT! Seriously, they got him all wrong, the original character is usually distant and an introvert but in front of Nana he is supposed to be a bit more confident, especially when it comes to breathers, where he becomes a man dominating the woman, a completely different person, a master to Nana, touching her, talking her down, making her feel the humiliation needed in order to do proper S&M. They got none of that and watching him got on my nerves every time.
Just don't, I think there's an anime short adaptation, or even better, read the manga.
The story line is mildly adapted, the "breathers" are too mild and lack eroticism, the atmosphere is comedic, it doesn't look filthy at all (it has to be even a little bit), the chemistry between the duo which is the most important element of the story is nonexistent. I don't need to analyze this any further, there was no saving grace for this movie.
But I really want to rant about the acting. Nana is... OK, she lacks expression but it is a cheap production and I didn't expect anything great. That doesn't justify Kaoru's acting. HE IS NOT SUPPOSED TO BE AWKWARD, HE IS ANTI-SOCIAL, IT IS DIFFERENT! Seriously, they got him all wrong, the original character is usually distant and an introvert but in front of Nana he is supposed to be a bit more confident, especially when it comes to breathers, where he becomes a man dominating the woman, a completely different person, a master to Nana, touching her, talking her down, making her feel the humiliation needed in order to do proper S&M. They got none of that and watching him got on my nerves every time.
Just don't, I think there's an anime short adaptation, or even better, read the manga.
