Four years have passed since that emotional marriage proposal at Tsukushi Makino's high-school prom, and Tsukasa Dōmyōji announced his engagement to Tsukushi to the entire world. At an engagement dinner between their families, Dōmyōji's mother, who has been strongly against their relationship before, presents Tsukushi a tiara, which is estimated to be worth roughly 10 billion yen, as a token of their engagement. But that night, the tiara is stolen by somebody! Then, Dōmyōji and Tsukushi travel around the globe to Las Vegas, Hong Kong, and even a deserted island to get the tiara back—the legendary tiara that has been believed to "bring eternal love." In the meantime, where and what are the "F4" fellows, who have just gone separate ways, doing now?
Reviews
Powerful
Good start, but then it gets ruined
I wanted to like it more than I actually did... But much of the humor totally escaped me and I walked out only mildly impressed.
One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.
Hana Yori Dango Final, the movie (2008, Boys Over Flowers, the third chapter of the Boys Over Flowers Japanese trilogy) centers around testing our engaged rich boy Domyouji, and poor girl, Makino, to see if they have everlasting love. Our couple doesn't know they are being tested as they travel to Las Vegas, Hong Kong, and an Island, until the end. The F4 (Flower Four), 4 close friends that are sons of Japan's wealthiest, help the couple during their tests. This movie is a fitting epilogue to the TV series (Hana Yori Dango season 1 and Hana Yori Dango Returns season 2). Endure the first half of the movie and you'll get the payoff in the second half.What I liked about Hana Yori Dango Final a) Domyouji (Jun Matsumoto) and Makino (Mao Inoue) get quality screen time as a couple. Sometimes in the TV series it seemed like the actual moments as a couple were limited. The last stop of their test, the island, was where they shone as a couple and their on-screen chemistry was excellent. b) Domyouji's character was mature and strong in this movie. I appreciated how his love for Makino was unwavering. d) Unconditional loyalty for each other is what F4 gives each other. Rui, Soujiroh, and Akira were supporting characters in this movie, but their friendship is the backbone of the entire series. e) I loved how Domyouji's evil mother turns out to be like the Grinch whose heart grew 2 sizes. She finally smiles and shows love, it was a pleasant surprise to see her be a positive force. f) Makino's parents also were supportive and I appreciated their willingness to make the hard choice to test the couple too. g) Wedding was perfect and showcased the couple's love and the F4 friendship. It was beautiful and touching ending to the series. h) the closing credits have a long-shot camera take of the season 1 ending airport scene, Makino finally declares her love Domyouj, one of my favorite moments of the series. I found it satisfying to end the movie with that pinnacle scene.What I did not like a) Makino's hesitation that she and Domyouji could make it as a couple forever bugged me. Domyouji's love is unwavering. Makino's wavering belief was annoying. b) The first stop in Las Vegas was a bit ridiculous and I was glad to see them leave this location. c) the second stop, Hong Kong, was better than Las Vegas, but not riveting stuff.
So the movie was a hit in Japan and it REALLY is!I would've wanted a third season instead but come on, it would've dragged the story more and it'll be pointless. Despite the fact the movie isn't at all adapted from the manga but the characters itself, at least it still had the essence of the characters and I adored the ending! Doumyoji still had his "weak Japanese" moments and Makino is still... well, Makino!In this movie, their relationship is TRULY tested and yeah, course us fans would know that they would be together, still, but, think of it as... a double check to make sure that they'll be okay to stay together forever through the toughest times.Also, IMO, this movie really did finalize Hana Yori Dango and I loved how it all turned out in just over two hours!
I just can't comprehend how bad this movie is. The level of acting in this movie is below acting school level. Maybe it's because I kind of figured out who was behind everything from the beginning, but story was extremely poorly written and felt draggy.This movie is so corny that if someone came to me with this script and asked me to make it cornier, I would be stumped. They just decided to put everyone who ever appeared in Hana Yori Dango dorama series.A lot of money was wasted for this garbage, and I can't believe this movie was number one grossing live action Japanese movie for the year.Avoid this movie unless you're a fangirl.
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