Prodigy (2007)

I'm sure many people would feel confused once the credits roll down the screen. I definitely was.

Usually with movies, there are clear events escalating to a climax and falling down into a natural end. It hits you, "Oh. The movie's over."

Either it delivered or it did not. With 'Shindo', I was jolted from the movie by the black screen because I was waiting for something more because the story did not feel complete. This, though, doesn't mean it was an awful movie or something I did not enjoy. I simply found 'Shindo' an oddball.

At the beginning, we're introduced to a middle-schooler who dislikes playing the piano but is attracted to the sound of it playing one day as she's walking down her neighborhood. It turns out the one playing the bad tune (according to her) is Wao Kikuna, who's practicing for his music school audition. A very strange friendship(?) begins from that day when she gives him some tips to improve his playing.

Now you'd think there's plot right there, right? The audition would be the perfect climax, albeit cliche. But it's still off the mark because the audition is never the central story. Uta comes over at random times and spends time in Wao's room while he plays or does nothing. There's a bond between the two, something that's not quite friendship but not yet love, age gap notwithstanding. Uta is the classical prodigy while Wao's the traditional hard-worker who lacks that touch of talent but is willing to make up for it with effort. Uta seemed to inspire Wao and add that something more to his piano playing, and Uta enjoyed his "sucky" playing.

There were also characters that seemed like potential love interests for the two but the story never went there. There's Uta's father's story, which was never explained properly. Uta seemed to have something going on with her ear, but we never get to know if it's merely psychological or physical.

With these missing elements, you end up with a story that never truly goes somewhere and many unspoken and nameless things that leave interpretation up for grabs.

Having said all of this, I do not regret watching this movie. I'm less frustrated than confused. All the same, I liked the calm and quiet atmosphere it had and enjoyed the undefined relationship between Uta and Wao. Though it's frustrating, maybe things are better left unsaid.

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Has it ever happened to you that a friend or a colleague asked you: "How 'bout a beer down at McGinty's (Arnold's, Rollo's, or however you call the joint you get your booze from) after work? We could grab a burger and watch the ball game afterwards!" to which you replied: "Buddy, you had me at 'beer'!"...you know, right? Well, in the case of this "Shindo / Prodigy", they had me at 'Narumi Riko' and 'classical music', LOL! Which is why I didn't take a look at who the writer was - something I usually do when in doubt whether to watch something or not. Had I checked beforehand, I would have known what to expect from the same guy who gave us "Camouflage" and "Ueno Juri to Itsutsu no Kaban" ('nuff said...URGH!). I really loved the music, as well as Narumi Riko (I got the feeling she's the kind of actress you either love or hate; me, I adore her). The rest of the cast did also well. The plot was okay. All in all, I could've given this an 8, a 9 or even a 10. BUT. But...the writer - who I'd bet has watched too many "Nouvelle Vague" flicks and read too little about scriptwriting in his youth - gave us a story with more holes than your regular swiss cheese. Minor characters without the slightest function (Kanjiya Shiori's, for example; but also Narumi Riko's classmate), weird scenes that aren't the least bit explained (like, the "ending"), and basically the viewer is supposed to do the writer's work in his stead and imagine all the untold story - which is, like, half of it! Now, if I were more objective in my reviews (something I'm not, I always point out just the opposite, that my reviews are to be taken as VERY subjective!), then I'd probably give this a 5 or even less (as I think I would if it had been about, say, origami - or anything else I'm not interested in - instead of classical music, and if the FL had been portrayed, say, by Naka Riisa or Fukada Kyoko instead of by Narumi Riko). As it is, I give it a 7.

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