Japanese Manga Live Action 2018

Nisekoi: False Love (Japanese Manga Live-Action Review & Summary)

• Genre: Romance, Fake Love, Youth, School, Romeo & Juliet; Young Love
• Date Released: 2018
• Origin: Japan; Adapted from a Manga by Naoshi Komi
• Film: 1 hour 52 minutes

 

Cast:

• Kento Nakajima as Raku Ichijo
• Ayami Nakajo as Chitoge Kirisaki
• Natsumi Ikema as Kosaki Onodera
• Haruka Shimazake as Marika Tachibana
• Daigo as Chitoge’s Bodyguard
• Kaede Aono as Chitoge’s second Bodyguard

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I just finished watching this live action film and I can say that it is one of the better mangas.  It is enjoyable, with a beautiful and fun cast.

Raku is a second generation Shueigumi Yakuza.  He was rather frustrating his father because Raku is a pacifist.  He is studious and doesn’t want to get involved in any trouble or the ‘business’.

Raku is quite happily dreaming of the day when he will meet again his childhood ‘fiancee’ who he promised marriage when they get older.  As a token, they each had a memento of their promised future union.

Raku has the locket and the girl of his dreams had the key that would unlock the locket.

He was just about to go to school when his father told him to come home straight after class.

He was just able to get into the gate before the school guards locked them.

He was still congratulating himself with his luck and agility when out of nowhere a blonde blue-eyed girl came jumping over the gate and knocked into Raku.

He was so annoyed and more so when he noticed that he was missing his locket.

And then an angelic face came into his vision, handing him his locket.  It was Onodera, his secret crush.

At the class, their homeroom teacher announced that they had a transfer student from America and to give her a warm welcome.

It was the blonde, blue-eyed girl called Chitoge.

Raku and Chitoge had hate at first sight kinda thing, as Raku was still smarting from being accidentally kicked by Chitoge.

As Raku had promised his dad,  he got home early.

His father was pleased to see him and quickly told him that their yakuza gang is facing a very trying time at the moment and the last thing they needed was a vendetta fight with a rival gang.

So his father and the leader of a rival gang, Beehive Gang, who does not want to start a war as well had concocted a plan of having Raku and the Beehive gang leader’s daughter to have a fake love and fake relationship.

And when Raku saw the daughter, he was so shocked but not as shocked and annoyed as Chitoge.

Just that day she called Raku a white thin beansprout while he called her a giant gorilla.

But in the end, the children understood their parents’ predicament and allowed themselves to be persuaded as fake lovers.

Early the next day, Chitoge was at Raku’s house for their whole day date.

To start with they were just tolerating each other because they did not have a choice as they were stalked by members of both their yakuza families.

Chitoge’s bodyguard was particularly ferocious as he had a bit of a crush on Chitoge, who he calls the princess.  He continuedly tested Raku if he was good enough for the princess.

When they went back to school, someone had already told their school of Raku and Chitoge’s love relationship.   They were congratulated warmly with banners and confetti.

But Raku saw Onodero’s rather sad sweet little face.

As if Onodero was not enough!  There was another transfer student, who was the daughter of the police chief.

It looked like Raku was a bit of a heartthrob because the new girl, Tachibana, wanted him as well.

Three girls and Raku.

But Raku, despite the initial hate with Chitoge was actually watching over her.  He told her how to make friends with the other girl.  Chitoge was the opposite of Raku, she like pugilism and tolerate the violent behaviour of the Yakuza gang.

It was the school festival and their class had to make a presentation.

Onodero suggested staging Romeo and Juliet, secretly hoping to become Juliet to Raku’s Romeo.

Raku was unanimous as Romeo and Chitoge was put forward as Juliet.

During the rehearsal, Chitoge noticed that Raku liked Onodero.  The feeling was mutual.

Chitoge made some issue of not wanting to play Juliet anymore and recommended that Onodero replaced her.

On the day of their performance, they were having a quick dress rehearsal when Onodero had an accident, hurting her legs.

A limping Juliet would not do so their teacher suggested immediately that Chitoge take back the part.

The play started very well, loved by students, and both members of the Yakuza factions.  But as the play progresses, they started to adlib with their own dialogues.

Instead of confusing the audience, they loved it even more.  They can’t get enough of Romeo & Juliet.

During the dying scene, Juliet drank her poison, Seeing that Juliet was dead, Romeo was going to drink his vial of poison as well but Chitoge got up and grab the poison.

She then told Romeo/Ruka to forget about her, marry someone else,have a long and happy life.  She then drank the poison and died.

Ruka was given a chance to improvise but he really felt the scene and looking at the beautiful, virginal Chitoge lifeless, he took a knife and stabbed himself.

The audience was very moved.  The Yakuza were crying.

He then got a message to meet at the rooftop.  He was so happy thinking that it would be Chitoge but when he got there, it was Onodero who was waiting for him.

She asked him if he had completely forgotten her?  She then showed him the key she had all these years.

Ruka was amazed.

Onodero confessed to him that she likes him and had been waiting for him.  She gave him her key necklace and he used it to open his locket.

Inside were a couple of rings made from tiny beads.

Ruka gave one of the rings to Onodero.

Onodero asked him if he remembered what he promised her all those years ago?

Ruka said “Yes’ but he cannot fulfil the promise anymore because…

Before he could explain further, Onodero said she understood.

Ruka then raced to the airport as he heard that Chitoge was going back to New York for good.

There was a traffic but Tachibana who learned that Ruka was racing to the airport sent some police to clear a pathway for Ruka.

Chitogo’s private plane was already taxing away when Ruka got to the runway.

Luckily Chitoge saw him and stopped the plane.

They did have a lovey-dovey where Ruka said that it was not fake love,  He was always been in love with her.

Awww . Cute ending.

The End