What I found instead, to my surprise, was a mere 20 minutes, possibly less, devoted to this moment. A performance and a half, not getting too much into specifics, something that caused me to quickly glance at my watch in disbelief after watching it, wondering just how fast the movie had gone by for me. Against all odds, this was nothing more than the introduction to what is the main plot of the film, and a plot, in my opinion, much more poignant and human than it would have been had the decision been made to focus on one competition alone.
There is something inherently human in the expressions and reactions of all the different characters. You can sympathize with all of them; you can see friends, teachers, yourself, and people you know reflected in them; and you can understand why they feel the way they do. The game is over, and suddenly it's time to face reality, prepare for exams, make decisions as to how to face the new stages of life, and pass the baton to the next generations. The loneliness is palpable: where before there were six, now only half of them remain; the previous excitement and anticipation turns to frustration or longing in some cases, and anger in others. I won't go into details to avoid spoilers, but I will simply say that I was able to relate to a good number of scenes that conveyed, in a perfectly subtle and natural way, feelings that, in my opinion, were not at all easy to communicate.
There are, however, instances of melodrama where I found myself rolling my eyes. Watari is a fantastic character, but I can't help thinking that more than one of his scenes fell victim to an over-dramatization that was not at all necessary, though I understand where the impulse to portray him that way comes from.
And the ending... is to be expected, totally foreseeable, and no one should anticipate any crazy plot twists or strange surprises. It's an ending that elegantly delivers the message it intends to and is meant to deliver. At the end of the day, we do the things we love because they bring us joy, because they bring us together, because they make us feel alive, or, as is often reiterated in the film, because they make us “fly,” free and in control of our lives. Forgetting this is dangerous, and something that ends up bringing along some very negative consequences. When we tell ourselves that the goal is to “get the win," “make money," “reach the goal," and that is the only thing we focus on, we lose sight of what is right under our noses, the people around us, and, most importantly, the happiness of being in the moment.
It is a very “mindfulness” type of message, one that we have heard a thousand times but which never hurts to hear again from time to time, and much less so when it is represented in such a human and gentle way. Highly recommended!
