Japan Cuts XVII Review: In SAYONARA, GIRLS., Senioritis Is Half The Battle In Shun Nakagawa’s Moving YA Drama
3 min. read Our teen years are some of the most crucial areas of our lives. Much of that time is spent in a school environment where the evident part of growing up, ultimately, means learning how to let go. This theme sits at the core of Shun Nagakawa’s 2023 release, Sayonara, Girls., based on Asai Ryo’s 2012 novel. The soon-to-be demolished Shimada High School is where it all comes to a head for a quartet of girls – Manami (Yuumi Kawai, Yuki (Rina Ono), Kyoko (Rina Komiyama), and Sakuta (Tomo Nakai) – as the story kicks off at just a little over a day from graduation. Manami’s turmoil is made vaguely clear in the resonant silence in one of her character’s first scenes as the class runs through graduation rehearsal, when she’s called up to the podium. That stoicism extends a little further to Yuki who is currently falling […]