SYNOPSIS:
Kumiko Yamaguchi, aka Yankumi (Yukie
Nakama), oversees the new students of Class 3D of Akado High
School. Her class is full of delinquents, but she tries her
hardest to teach them not just about academics, but about
lessons of life. However, she’s also the granddaughter
of a Yakuza boss, Kuroda of the Kuroda Ikka, and is seen as
the next in line to head the family business.
Her
true passion lies in teaching however, and she's forced to
lead a double life and keep her family a secret from the public.
However, her Yakuza upbringing also happens to give her the
strength and the experience to reach out to her students,
and at the same time provides many moments of comedic relief.
MOVIE REVIEW:
It can either be a blessing or a curse – TV series which make it to the big screen. These feature film adaptations are often made targeting the loyal fan base of the original TV series, while attracting new fans who have otherwise heard of the hype and are willing to fork out money to watch the movie with no idea of what happened in the series. Over at Hollywood, recent examples include J.J. Abrams’ wonderful adaptation of Star Trek (2009) and Chris Carter’s not so wonderful The X Files: I Want to Believe (2008). Nearer to home in Japan, we have this “movie special” which follows the stories from the first three seasons of the TV series. Is it a successful commercial project? Probably, in the eyes of followers who have watched all three seasons spanning from 2002 to 2008.
For those who have no idea who this bespectacled lady standing haughtily on the DVD cover (this reviewer included), what we can tell you is that she is the granddaughter of a powerful mafia boss. And because her parents died when she was younger, she is next in line to head the family business. To inject drama into this, our protagonist’s lifelong dream is to become a teacher, and despite her family’s objections, she becomes a teacher at a boys school (how convenient), and teaches them valuable life lessons while keeping her family background a secret.
While this 118 minute movie can serve as a standalone production with the above synopsis, many viewers may be lost in the plot with various recurring characters emerging throughout the film. We are sure the class 3D she teaches here does have some background tales and jokes which first time audiences will not be aware of. And we are also sure that among the myriad of characters which appear throughout the movie, there are some of them who had significant roles in the TV series.
The plot isn’t exactly what you’d call exciting. If you have seen one “teacher inspires delinquents” movie, you’d probably seen them all. Good thing though, that the cast is pretty eye candy (the finale calls for the heroine to take off her glasses, gasp!). As far as Japanese movies go, this one fares well in terms of production values. Given the success of the TV series, the producers probably had confidence to throw in budget to make sure that the bigger sets and the required extras are properly taken of.
Director Toya Sato has done a decent job in translating the success of the TV series to this movie version. It will please the fans who will probably treat it as a lengthened TV episode while enjoying the hysterics and comedic plots acted by a cast they are familiar with. For the rest of us, it’d probably be forgettable and in a worse scenario, a bore to sit through.
SPECIAL FEATURES :
This Code 3 DVD includes the movie’s Trailer and TV Spot.
AUDIO/VISUAL:
The movie’s visual transfer is fine, and is presented in its original Japanese dialogue.
MOVIE RATING:
DVD
RATING :
Review
by John Li
Posted
on 1 March 2010
|
