BootDigest Such a frustrating disappointment

SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped

Hayden Kane There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

Erica Derrick By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

CountZero313 Hiroko loses her lover Fujii to a mountain climbing accident. Two years later, involved with his buddy, she struggles to overcome her grief.Itsuki experienced puppy love-hate with a boy in school who coincidentally had the exact same name. Oh, and she can't shake a nasty cold.Hiroko and Itsuki live at opposite ends of Japan, do not know each other, but could pass for twins.From such small, incidental, trivial fragments of life Iwai weaves together a magical, deeply cathartic film. Hiroko and Itsuki exist in the same temporal moment, but travel through metaphysical time in opposite directions with regard to their feelings towards Fujii. Hiroko retreats from her love in order to grieve properly, and finally let go. Itsuki inches towards her memory of Fujii, finally waking up to the realisation that he was her first love. Neither Hiroko or Itsuki can make the journey without the other, their dialectical relationship propelling them both towards a confrontation of sorts with Fujii. Hiroko will bellow through her confrontation at a mountainside at dawn. A prosaic message, mundane even, one that repeats the first letter written in the film, but one that manages, as Hiroko cries it out again and again, to touch your soul. Itsuki is to be blind-sided by Fujii, when the secret of his obscure library-card project is revealed in a simple scribble, and Itsuki's fragile hopes come to fruition.There are truly funny moments in this film - Itsuki pedalling the bike to provide light for Fujii to read, Ranran's manic take as the class nutter, and most of all the nervous laugh of Itsuki's unthinking uncle. It is also very touching at times, such as when the grandfather says he will not walk to the hospital, he will run (and then wonderfully undercut when he falls flat on his face). The whole thing together shimmers with a purity and vitality that words cannot do justice to, the photography has to be seen. Love Letter is a masterpiece from a living genius.

Chaude As if there are any more comments that need to be written about how great this film was....Here is another.There are many factors of the story, and the director(also the writer), Shuji Iwai, tells them beautifully and seamlessly.Each story could stand on it's own, but in fact it is each story that moves the film.Though it originally is about Watanabe Hiroko, the character Fujii Itsuki(female) takes over the story to the end.This is a movie that makes you think about it long after it's over. That's why I bought it. So, I can watch it when ever I want. There are no life lessons to be learned(except maybe listen to the "crazy" grandpa) nor a message to take away from this. Yet, the film grips you until it's finished. Wrapped up in these women's lives and memories, and scenic cinematography that Japanese films are well known for.In conclusion. I'm still thinking about it.

Nguyen Huong I have just seen that film. And I love it. At first I bought it cause Takashi Kashiwabara played in this film ^_^' He is always handsome and cool. When i saw this film , i think the one Fujii Itsuki (male char) truly love is Fujii Itsuki (fermal char ) . And Fujii_chan loved him too, right? so when the first he met Hiroko Watanabe , he thought she looked like Fujii_chan. And he loved her at the first sight. During the junior high school, Fujii_kun is so cool and special, very popular, too. The name he wrote in the library card isn't his name, is it??? very secret. And it's very pity when he died. The sense when Hiroko_chan said " O genki desu ka ? Watashi wa genki da !!! " is so touched

dleboone (contains spoilers) A woman, Hiroko, loses his fiancé Itsuki to a mountain climbing accident. A year later, she finds his high school yearbook. Not quite gotten over his death, she jots down the address of his old home and writes a letter to him (sort of a `letter to Heaven'). She does not expect to receive a reply because, to her knowledge, his old home has been torn down. But she does. It turns out that there's a woman with the same name as him and it is her who she mistakenly addressed the letter to. The woman happens to be in the same class as him in high school. A correspondence develops between the two women, as Hiroko, unable to let go and feeling slightly jealous, wants to find out more about her fiancé. Both gradually learn the truth more about the man. Oh yeah, the two women also look like each other.Strong points:-intriguing storyline, great storytelling technique and the plot nicely unfolds.-amusing scenes, especially those showing the idiosyncracies of the characters, helps move the story alonggreat winter scenery and camera shots plus a music score that complements the movie.not a melodramatic romantic drama, thankfully, despite what the title might suggest.good performance by the actress playing the dual role, although the story wasn't really demanding on the cast. She was cute, of course. The Itsuki Straight Flush - borrow all the unpopular books in the school library so that you'll have only your name written on the books' cards. (Not possible now that everything's computerized)-nicely played out ending. At first, I thought it was rather corny. The schoolgirls show Itsuki the drawing on the back of the library card. She's moved to tears. Yet, all that time the guy was to her only a boy who had the same name as her, causing her misery during her high school years. But I suppose all this time she chose to be in denial that the boy had interest in her and he is special to her in some high-school-nostalgia kind of way. So seeing the drawing broke down her denial and thus moved her to tears. Maybe the ladies can explain this. Will you be moved to tears if you found out that some guy you knew but don't care much about has feelings for you?Weak points:need to overlook some of the contrived coincidences. The main one, which is the pivotal point of the story, being that a guy and a girl share the same name and are classmates.the rather melodramatic climax where the grandpa carrying Ms. Itsuki to the hospital in 40 minutes and thus saves her life.the tree named after Ms. Itsukiwhat does it have to do with the story? It's rather distracting.I can rationalize why the movie is called The Love Letter (which screams melodrama), but I think it'd be more elegant to call it Letter to Itsuki or Dear Itsuki.Rating: 8.5/10