Beautiful Life

I was going through a friend's FTP site when I stumbled upon 11 episodes of Beautiful Life, a Japanese drama. I remember watching it in 2000 (I was 14) & boy, it made me weep. Nostalgia had me staying up until 3am downloading each episode & it was worth it. Every tear.

Plot
Kyoko is a beautiful, cheerful & independent woman despite being confined to a wheelchair due to an illness. Shuji is a moody, attractive & a fiercely talented hair stylist. They started out fighting & quarelling with each other but they began to fall in love with each other. Shuji learns the hardships Kyoko endures as a handicapped person & Kyoko learns to let someone else take care of her. Life is beautiful for the pair but when Kyoko's illness takes a turn for the worse, the 2 of them learn that love is worth any sacrifice & to work hard to be happy together.

Cast
Takuya Kimura smolders as Shuji; he fits so well with the broody, careless personality of Shuji. Takako Tokiwa is ADORABLE & plays Kyoko perfectly, from being cute to annoying to strong & determined. The supporting cast was amazing too, each character played out well to create a strong framework focusing on the couple.

Music
I am now OBSESSED with Konya Tsuki no Mieru oka ni performed by B'z, the guitar riffs are AMAZING & the instrumental version makes me cry. The other songs in the soundtrack are awesome too & perfectly sets the tone for each scene.

Watch it on YouTube here.

Conclusion
Since the film is incredibly successful & held the TV rating record of drama in Japan for over 30 yrs, this is worth the watch. The beginning is cheerful, the ending is sorrowful & I end up watching it again from the beginning to relive the couple's joyful times. 

*You can watch it online here (with English subtitles).
*I have the OST of the drama, feel free to contact me for it.

Comments

mpejal2 said…
request to put my link on this blog or review my blog or link exchange
June 7, 2009 at 8:27 AM
Rowan said…
I'll confirm with you later :)
June 8, 2009 at 1:13 PM
CDanvers said…
plz rowie...the stuff here is too old school. lol
June 15, 2009 at 6:20 PM
Rowan said…
Pfft grow a romantic bone :p
June 17, 2009 at 10:37 PM
Anonymous said…
my god! u found this one! i love that once!
June 19, 2009 at 1:29 AM
Rowan said…
Really? I have the whole series, I can pass to you! It's awesome! :) I'm addicted!
June 19, 2009 at 10:40 PM
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