Piano no Mori

Piano no Mori tells the story of Shuuhei Amamiya, a transfer student, and Kai Ichinose, a problem child from the rough areas of town. Upon transferring to Moriwaki Elementary and telling the other kids about his talent for piano, Shuuhei quickly finds himself as the victim of bully Daigaku Kanehira.

Daigaku dares Shuuhei to find and play a cursed piano in the forest, which leads him to meet Kai, who claims to be the owner of the piano and the only one who can play it. Intrigued, Shuuhei follows Kai to the hidden piano in the forest and listens to him play a beautiful medley.

Earning the respect of not only Shuuhei but school music teacher Sousuke Ajino as well, Kai now finds himself formally learning how to play the piano.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Ichinose, Kai Main

Ueto, Aya Japanese

Amamiya, Shuuhei Main

Kamiki, Ryunosuke Japanese

Ajino, Sousuke Supporting

Miyasako, Hiroyuki Japanese

Ichinose, Reiko Supporting

Ikewaki, Chizuru Japanese

Maruyama, Takako Supporting

Fukuda, Mayuko Japanese

Amamiya, Namie Supporting

Tanaka, Atsuko Japanese

Homeroom Teacher Supporting

Iseki, Yoshiko Japanese

Kanehira, Daigaku Supporting

Amano, Hiroyuki Japanese

Saitou, Yuuichirou Producer

Ichii, Miho Producer

Taniguchi, Osamu Producer

Yamazaki, Tatsuji Producer

Reviews

Dec 11, 2023

KiidCathedrale

Recommended

4 little mice nibble on the sheet music of the red-haired kid, shimmering fragments tinted with wild notes. Gradually, the piano tames him. Barefoot in the tall grass that grows to the sound of the keys under a radiant moon, a luminous moment of grace where the metronome stops, a few heartbeats in rhythm, breath caught - - - the spectator listens, the music overwhelms everything, subtly infiltrates the bodies; a marvelous journey that scale, we are well, protected by the trees, the foliage, Nature: talent has all the room in the world to express itself. One is wild, the other diligent, two styles opposite, ... but, seemingly, around a stave, they complement and unite courageously to overcome the false notes standing in their way. Piano Forest, a melancholic score, eagerly awaiting to be played again.

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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Oct 18, 2012

aznmagic29

Recommended

I have been reading the manga before the movie even came out so I have a general idea of what was to come but watching the movie without knowing too much about piano was really something. The movie was everything I pictured it would be it had most of the major parts that was in the manga. The movie does not stray from the manga. The movie is about boys name Ichinose Kai and Amamiya Shuuhei friendship through their love for the piano. Kai is portrayed as a piano prodigy because he can play the piano without having taken any lesson and can play a ... song just from hearing it once. Shuuhei has mastered the piano because he has taken many lessons and practice long hours to get where he is today.
The movie is good with an excellent story. The art used in this movie fits it perfectly. The music used in the movie fit but I do not know classical music so I cannot judge. The movie is worth the watch even though it does not seem like at first. I would recommend this movie to anyone that watches anime and looking for an anime about friendship and music.

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

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May 10, 2012

kekekeKaj

Recommended

Ever since I watched "Nodame Cantabile", I can't help but compare all anime about classical music with it - it's insightful in its explorations of the topic, yet remained remarkably accessible and entertaining to those not into it. In an admittedly small sub-genre, it has become the benchmark for greatness, and as a result has an unfortunate eclipsing effect over lesser but otherwise good shows like "Kiniro no Corda" that shares its domain.

To be honest, I hadn't really expected to find other classical music anime that could compare to "Nodame Cantabile", but enter "Piano no Mori", a quiet film that, in less than two hours, ... captured what was at the heart of "Nodame Cantabile" surprisingly well - its passion for music.

"Piano no Mori" revolves around two boys, Shuuhei and Kai, who both have piano as one of the central aspects of their lives. Shuuhei comes from a family of pianists, is forced to practice piano day in day out in order to become a pianist himself. On the other end of the spectrum, Kai found a broken piano in the forest which only he can play; it enthralled him and he has grown up playing it without any formal training. The story starts off with Shuuhei moving to a new town with his family and meeting Kai, who attends the same school. The two soon become good friends, and the story focuses on how their attitudes towards playing piano is changed by one another.

The set up is not too dis-similar to "Nodame Cantabile", with Shuuhei being a bit like the serious, hard working Chiaki and Kai representing the unrefined genius type, blessed with vast, untamed talents just like Nodame. Unlike "Nodame Cantabile" though, the characters are more polarised: while Chiaki also had talent and passion for music in abundance, and Nodame is also (somewhat) classically trained, Shuuhei and Kai have less of an overlap.

This comparison also holds true in other common areas shared between the two anime: while they have a lot in common in terms of what they have to say about music, "Piano no Mori" explores the themes with less maturity, and presents its messages in a more black and white, more straight forward way. As an example, see how easy it is for Kai to play complex pieces by ear, and to play a challenging Chopin sonata after just practicing the scales for a bit. Even for a genius, to play like he does without formal training and proper practice is just impossible. And this is one of my main complaint for the film: while I acknowledge that "Piano no Mori" isn't meant to be well grounded in reality, at times it feels a tad too fairy-tale-esq in light of its generally earnest approach to music.

But because of its earnest approach, its faults are something I'm willing to forgive. The movie covers remarkable breadth and depth, emphasising amongst other things passion, hard work, as well as finding one's self within the music. Shuuhei impresses upon Kai the importance of taking piano more seriously and facing it head on. But while Shuuhei learnt the piano, Kai lived it, and the latter's infectious enthusiasm profoundly effects the former, for whom piano is mostly like a chore. To those who've watched "Nodame Cantabile", most of this will sound familiar.

Unlike "Nodame Cantabile" though, I would hesitate to recommend this to people not into classical music. I just can imagine non-enthusiasts yawning through the first half of the film, though the second half is somewhat more entertaining. Though Shuuhei is a bit dull, Kai makes for an interesting, spunky lead; he pretty much carries the entertainment factor of the show, and often drew chuckles from me with his outrageous antics.

The story of "Piano no Mori" is a bit loose. For one thing it feels incomplete - it's odd that the film introduces the mysterious piano in the forest that only Kai could play, only to ignore the mystery of its magical qualities almost completely. Also, the story is annoyingly inconsistent regarding the piano competition preliminaries that was featured. First they were saying the everyone had to play Mozart's piano sonata K. 311... but then in the competition, someone played a different Mozart piece, and that seemed okay too. Also there was one part of the film dedicated to a contestant whining about someone like Shuuhei being in the region ruining her chances in the preliminaries as though there's only one person who can qualify. In the end, about 10 people qualified, and I was left wondering what the big fuss was all about.

If you like classical music though, these problems will seem small compared to what the film does right. Unlike "Kiniro no Corda", which often seems more concerned about its bishies than the music, "Piano no Mori" focuses on the music, and is essentially a simplified emboddiment of the ideas at the core of "Nodame Cantabile". And THAT, is why it does not disappoint.

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

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NHK Announces Three New TV Anime Series to Air in 2018

The official site for NHK has revealed three new TV anime series to air in 2018. Piano no Mori (Piano Forest) is getting a TV anime adaptation to air on NHK in Spri...read more

Oct 23, 2017 1:36 AM by Stark700 | Discuss (40 comments)

	So why is it "Forest of Piano" and not "Piano of the Forest" srogers1 - Mar 24, 2019	2 replies	by srogers1 »» Jun 8, 2019 7:14 PM
	Poll: Piano no Mori Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 ) Faust721 - Feb 12, 2008	50 replies	by removed-user »» Oct 10, 2018 8:37 AM
	Junko Takeuchi!? Sesam - Jul 6, 2010	1 replies	by Lahve »» Apr 4, 2013 7:20 PM
	Piano no Mori - Seiyuu question. disgust - Mar 18, 2008	6 replies	by cyruz »» Mar 21, 2008 4:32 AM

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