Hula Girls

I caught the trailer for Hula Girls before the movie The Wind That Shakes The Barley started.

Finally got to watch it. There were two female leads who totally looked the part. Yu Aoi and Eri Tokunaga both possess an aura of innocence found exclusively in girls on the cusp of womanhood.

The movie is about a Japanese mining town facing structural unemployment as the town, built upon the sweat and toil of their forefathers, looks set to face widespread retrenchment. As another mine closes with 2000 miners being laid off, a move to develop a tourist attraction with an Hawaii theme was vehemently rejected by the townfolks.

The Hawaiian Centre, as the attraction is called, recruits a troupe of women with zero experience in hula dancing as they train up in order to go on a promotional tour around Japan to attract tourists to the Hawaiian Centre.

The plot is simple, plot twists are predictable and ultimately satisfying because you get that warm fuzzy feeling when the credits roll. A dramedy that talks about changes; changes to post war Japanese economy as it faces the second globalisation wave to open up trade since Commodore Matthew Perry (not the actor of Friends fame) in the 19th Century. Changes to a Japanese way of life where livelihood must be eked out through hardwork. Changes to a Japanese town built on a commodity that is increasingly being replaced by alternatives. Changes to the young women during that time as they begin to seek a fairer standing in the society. Changes to two girls on the cusp of womanhood and the decisions they made. All done with lots of humour.

Worth the $$$

And just because I am so enamored by Yu Aoi, I shall paste her photo here:


I like take a second look at girls who can carry off the vintage/jeans look. The frilly blouse with tuxedo pleats and button-up collar, fitted jeans that are worn but not faded plus simple flats, MJs or summery wedges.