Although the title may sound like cannibalism, Let Me Eat Your Pancreas is Japan’s another attempt at a touching love story. It may not be as tear-inducing as expected to be, but if anything, the key takeaway is to cherish every day of your life.
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Let Me Eat Your Pancreas is not a horror flick as the name may suggest. Quite the contrary, it is set out to be a romance film, highlighting the story between Sakura, a female high school student dying from a pancreas disease and “I”, a male high school student who happened to find out her secret.
The Good
Running at 115 minutes, the story is complete without any plot holes. The narrative alternates between the present, portrayed by the brown school uniform and led by Shun Oguri, and 12 years ago, portrayed by the green school uniform and led by Takumi Kitamura. The shift takes place from time to time, usually through the same scene in both the present and the past. It may seem strange at first, but the change in time is not difficult to tell.
The Bad
As much as the story is trying to sell its tear-jerking factor, it may come across as weak, if not weaker than other films with similar plot, such as Your Lie In April. No doubt a certain revelation was shocking, it seems to have overpowered the impact of the message Sakura was trying to convey — the main selling point of this movie. The ending was trying to achieve too many things at once, making it hard to realise the potential of this film.
The biggest impact should have been the message Sakura wanted to convey over the 12 years. Unfortunately, this message is nothing out of the ordinary. You might have even guessed it as her intention had been explicitly mentioned. Poor character development and the lack of suspense and surprise could possibly be the reasons why the message did not work its magic. You might be wondering why Sakura is so fixated on making it happen, and whether it even matters to the parties involved.
And The Summary
Although the title may sound like cannibalism, Let Me Eat Your Pancreas is Japan’s another attempt at a touching love story. It may not be as tear-inducing as expected to be, but if anything, the key takeaway is to cherish every day of your life.
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