Didn't expand on any of the interesting themes upon which it touched. Some nice shots and a decent lead performance, but overall a bit half-baked.

This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.

A real grower. The first 30 minutes or so, I thought the film was forced and trying too hard to set itself in a period of time, with lots of pop culture references, gameboys and old iMacs. But as the years passed, the film settled into a much smoother rhythm and allowed the development of a couple of good storylines, which weren't all predictable. The performances of the cast also grew much stronger as the film progressed.

Another wonderful, understated Japanese film that just tells a nice story. No gimmicks, a few plot holes, but overall it's a great character-driven film.