Norwegian Wood (the film)

I do not like the movie version of "Norwegian Wood". It is only acceptable. I think turning a book into a movie is not pleasant. Much of a book is completed by the reader's own imagination. This makes it hard to please everyone. I was not pleased by the movie. I think the actors are acceptable except for Naoko. Midori’s casting is very lively. I think the biggest problem of the movie is its editing. It cuts either too much or too little. The movie is 2 hours long. It cannot be any longer. The choice of content is confusing. For example, completely cutting Reiko is acceptable (although I liked her parts in the book). It is regrettable that there is not enough time to show Midori's charm. Her special quality of saying she hates her parents and not fearing death is not fully conveyed. I think the movie is very fast-paced to advance the plot. This causes Toru's loneliness to not be fully shown. There are other details. For example, after Toru falls asleep in the room of Reiko and Naoko, he wakes up and talks with Naoko. Naoko speaks in a whispering tone for too long. It is uncomfortable to watch. I think the movie might have felt better if I had not read the book twice.

Mingyuan Sun