Hello blog. I’m losing my memory.
Yesterday, I asked my friend if she went to 551 Horai and in my dream this morning, I remembered that we literally went together. Maybe it’s because I’m kind of tired AF.
FINALLY, I DID IT!
I did it… I finally spoke to a shop attendant without asking them to repeat themselves and then they just switch to speaking English. To be fair, those shop attendants were extremely kind, like too kind actually, so maybe they knew that I was a student and were just testing me. But I did it. The flow of interaction was still inconsistent, but I at least responded accordingly most of the time. She even made small talk, saying that she feels happy every time she see’s a “777” because it’s lucky (my receipt was 777円). I thought she was saying she feels happy every time she sees a foreigner speaking English, so I thanked her, until I realized what she actually said and I was like “OHH!!! That’s so cool.” It truly was a very lucky experience. I should hang up this receipt as a landmark in my Japanese journey. This was perfect timing because I’ve been considering quitting Japanese. Sometimes it’s discouraging because I’ve been learning for a total of 5 months, and I still don’t understand 40% of what people are saying. At least I know 40% more than when I began. Two months into Japanese 101, I understood about 5% of what people were saying. I guess that’s progress.
SHORT FILM CRAZE
I watched about some short films yesterday, so I want to pretend like I’m a movie critic and rate them. I feel like I look like someone who rates movies.
RATING SHORT FILMS!!!
I’ll be rating on 8 different metrics: concept, plot, script, production design, cinematography, acting, sound/music, and editing (and a BONUS!: “Lasting Impact”). I will also write which metric was a highlight for me. BE WARNED: All of this is subjective to my experience. Also, all films were found on this website: https://filmshortage.com. 行きましょう！
Happy Place by Sarah Monge
“After realizing she may want to date women, Anna goes to her roommate’s cousin’s lesbian engagement party in the hopes of figuring out her sexuality, but discovers something much more terrifying instead.”
THIS WAS GREAT! 9/8. I love when the dialogue is cute like in this film. I don’t know if it was the director, or the actor, or their synergy, but there were little human moments that were so perfect, like at the beginning when she says “I don’t know if I want people to, like, necessarily see me and be like ‘oh… that… is… that dyke.’” I LOLed. However, in the description it describes that Anna finds something more terrifying, but even after watching, I don’t know what this mysterious essence is. It doesn’t matter. Would totally watch again.
Happy Mart by Katherine Hughes
“A happy mart employee is swept up in a late night street fight only to find the mysterious woman is looking for a partner in crime.”
I loved how fun this film was. It was like something I would make if I had cool New York friends and an ok camera. By that I mean, it was really fun to watch, but I had no clue as to what was happening on. There is something special about media that just brings you along for the ride. No plot, all vibes.
Public Freakout by Julia Bales
“A group of strangers argues at a gas station.”
I LOVED THIS FILM SO MUCH! It was too believable, like when the son says “BRO!” to the truck driver when he asks him to put the cig out, I had to rewind a couple of times because it surprised me how perfectly in character he was. The acting was spot on. 9/8!
I Didn’t Like You by Parker Fenady
“Best friends Emilia and Max spy on their friend Jules’ first date, only to realize the real connection may not be between the couple they expect. By night’s end, they unwittingly orchestrate a reversal of the evening’s romantic intentions.”
This film hit most of the marks. Before, I gave it a 8/8, but something in my soul was telling me that that was too high. So I rewatched it to confirm that rating. Upon my second inspection, I realized the script confused/annoyed me and I can’t explain why right now. Acting was really great though.
The Girl Who Cried Pearls by Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski
“At its center is a young girl whose tears transform into pearls, a gift that quickly reveals itself as both a blessing and a burden. What starts as a poetic conceit becomes a haunting meditation on grief, emotional labor, and the cost of turning pain into something others can possess.”
I enjoyed this film. I found the design to be pleasantly nostalgic. I love puppets, and even more, French puppets. Oui Oui. Also, did you know that every French word is either female or male? “branch” is male, “explanation” is (ask Raffael-san). I told Raffaele-san (the Belgian guy who told me about this phenom) that this system was probably made by a crazy person who can see faces on everything. I want to meet the creator of the French language in the afterlife. I think we’d have some really fun conversations. 8/8
Wes + Kyra by Kevin V. Doan
“Wes and Kyra is a story about a vampire couple in New York City who rent a room for three days to drown out their addiction, face the toxicity in their relationship, and grapple with the idea of death as it circles all around them.”
The first thing I loved about this film is the concept. Vampires in a contemporary world is a really cool idea. The second thing is how they displayed the theme of addiction in this film. Through this film, I’ve learned how difficult it is to rid of the poison when it’s your closest friend. What I didn’t love so much about this film is Wes’s acting, and it was pretty boring. I wanted to see more vampire action, like maybe they eat pizza and didn’t know the crust had garlic butter or something like that. That would have been fun. 5/8.
Man, this was fun. I want to do this again tomorrow! I love short films.
When I was on the elevator today, a guy said “髪がきれいです (your hair is beautiful).” I AM FREAKING OUT! I thought that people found my hair a nuisance since it’s not Japanese-pin straight. Thank you random Japanese guy. Thank you. Also, remember that girl from a couple days ago on Instagram? The one that tickles the strings? I can’t stop listening to her. I listen to her as I go to bed because it’s like she’s singing me a lullaby. Cringe. Okay, I’m gonna go. じゃね！