Welcome to my weekly blog post where I give thoughts on dramas I’m watching but not recapping.
This week I finished recapping Our Dining Table with episodes 9 and 10. Thankfully the show gives us one last dish in the final episode, hot pot! I’m not quite done recapping yet, there’s still the special episode which I will cover next week.
This week I finally watched:
My Beautiful Man: Eternal (Movie) – 劇場版 美しい彼〜eternal〜 – 2023
A recent Japanese BL movie.
The continuing adventures of Hira and Kyoi, a socially awkward introvert and a cold and intense model/actor.
Here’s a link to my recap of season 1 and season 2 of the My Beautiful Man drama.
At this point, I have to accept that I’m a fan of season 1 and the books. Season two and this movie didn’t do much for me. Would I like them more if I hadn’t read the books? There’s no way to know, but here’s a short dissertation on why it didn’t work for me.
Let’s Start With The Story
Hira is still in college, vaguely pursuing a photography award to be worthy of Kiyoi. This doesn’t go anywhere. He’s also working as a photographer.
Kiyoi is working as a model and actor.
Some conflicts happen that are largely out of their control but they work on them together. Nothing is developed deeply, it’s more a mishmash of the book scenes hit one after the other. Anything unpleasant is quickly resolved, and rather than build up danger or threat or darkness, there are odd stylized moments.
Everything happening just flows by in a pleasant way. Kiyoi and Hira have a few cute and funny scenes, but not enough.
The dark theme at the core of the novel, about fandom and love and what is good and bad, is a mere suggestion. Without that intensity holding everything together, it feels very vague and shallow.
But we know I don’t require a strong plot, so let’s get to what really bothered me.
The Characters
Kiyoi is now a kinder and gentler person who is sensitive about others. He worries that Hira doesn’t love him the obsessive way he used to — even though he originally didn’t like that obsessive love because he felt Hira didn’t really see him. But this is his starting point in the movie.
The resolution of this, the dark harrowing emotions, are skipped. After a big dramatic scene with Kiyoi and Hira in peril, we don’t see them recover together. We quickly move on to something lighter.
Hira is less of a buffoon than season 2, less weird and intense than season 1, and a more typical introvert. He’s struggling with what most of us struggle with, his job. He doesn’t know what he really wants to photograph and feels inadequate compared to his mentor. He has a few interesting conversations with this mentor and grows as a photographer. At least we get to see the resolution to this arc on screen.
Final Thoughts
Since I use food metaphors a lot in my reviews, this movie reminds me of those fizzy-flavored water drinks. I find them frustrating because they mostly taste like water, but with a hint of fruit that makes me wish I were eating actual fruit.
A lot of people love those drinks though, just like a lot of people loved this movie. From comments online I’m unsurprised to learn people who didn’t like season 1 liked this movie. With all the darkness either cut out or quickly moved through, it’s an easy pleasant watch. The harsh qualities of Kiyoi and the creepy qualities of Hira have been watered down, making them easier to like.
But what I really loved about Kiyoi and Hira was just how unlovable they were. Despite that, they loved each other and figured out how to be together. They pushed and encouraged each other through hard times made harder by their strong personalities. Lucky for me, I still have that Hira and Kiyoi in season one and the books.
And those who love this lighter version of Hira and Kiyoi have season 2 and the movie. Everyone wins.