NODAME CANTABILE (のだめカンタービレ)

Fall 2006

Nodame Cantabile is about two gifted music students; Noda Megumi or Nodame for short (Ueno Juri) and Chiaki Shinichi (Tamaki Hiroshi) who are vastly different in terms of character, but possess near genius musical talent. At a young age, Chiaki was influenced by classical music when he lived in Europe. Having a famous pianist as a father, he was able to experience many musical events. He met a famous conductor named Vieira who taught him many things as well. Unfortunately, his parents divorced and he moved back to Japan vowing one day to return to Vieira and become his pupil. On the flight back to Japan Chiaki went through a life threatening crash landing. He did grow up to become a dedicated, disciplined, student of music, but due to the horrible flying incident, he could not get himself to fly on a plane. Everyday that passed by seemed useless as he grew unsure of what he was doing with his life in Japan. This is when he meets Nodame who coincidentally happens to be his next door neighbor. He hears her playing the piano at school and first thinks that it is terrible, but realizes that it's actually very good. Nodame is attracted to Chiaki, but he is turned off by her quirky behavior and undisciplined lifestyle. Despite their differences, they develop a strange relationship which changes the course of their lives in a way they never dreamed of.

Recommendation: Nodame Cantabile is based on a best selling manga and like most dramas based on manga or anime, I always brace myself for some major quirkiness. I wasn't shocked to find some here, but it actually wasn't as bad as say Hana Yori Dango. Masumi, the gay timpani player was the hardest to take, but other than him and maybe Mamoru, the second best conductor in the school, I think everyone else was quite pleasant although I understand that it is probably intended to be like a manga. Ueno Juri was really good playing a weird Nodame and Tamaki Hiroshi was good playing a stern Chiaki. I thought with the other good cast members like Eita, Mizukawa Asami (who are both in Last Friends with Ueno Juri), Takenaka Naoto, and Toyohara Kosuke, the comedy worked well. The story revolving around classical music was not only informative, but I really appreciated the genre more after watching this series. It's probably true that there are many talented musicians out in the world and since I can't play a lick of any instrument, it was quite inspiring. I really enjoyed this series; it was not only funny and uplifting, but I have to give out high marks for originality. It was a creative story about life, friendship, and the love for great music. Bravo!

STORY: 1.0
ACTING: 1.0
DIRECTING: 1.0
CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT: 1.0
EMOTIONAL FACTOR: 1.0

5.0 Out Of 5.0 Crowns