An Anime Review of 'The Moment You Fell in Love'

The Moment You Fell in Love is a story that exists parallel to the events of I’ve Always Liked You. These are the events that revolve around the younger siblings of the two leads in the first film during the same basic stretch of time. There is also a show that further expands on the characters further, however that is something we are going to be talking about another time. Till then we are going to be talking about whether this was better, worse, or similar in quality to the first film. The film clocks in at the hour mark so it is a quick watch.

The narrative for this film is quite simple, and once again, just as the previous film, it deals with love among the characters. How we behave around the people that we love, how we see them differently, and how we feel when others are taking the precious time that you want to spend with them. I found that this story was far more relatable in the characterization of the various individuals, and it did not try to hold anyone above others, instead we got a selection of characters that are all flawed, and are trying to do the best they can with what they have. The previous film focused on the wrong two individuals as they were presented in a faultless manner that made them feel unrealistic, which the actions of the siblings that lead this film feel far more realistic as a result of the way that they make their decisions, and the way that they act.

This film also has a far more interesting group of characters surrounding the two leads, making the interactions with them far more dynamic than that of the previous. This leads to some interesting conflicts as a result of these different personalities clashing, while also leading to moments when friendships are made. Much in the way the first film does, there are some individuals that are portrayed in a manner that is clearly set up as less ideal in the eyes of the film, and tries its best to show that only one pairing actually works.

There are instances where characters are set up in an interesting manner while being completely underutilized, or serve only to provide a plot point and never really have much relevance in the narrative from a character and emotional point of view. As such some of the actions that are performed do not make sense. That being said these are a minority of instances, as the strength of the leads and the chemistry between them and their friends makes the faults far less noticeable in comparison.

Visually speaking, this film is at a standard that is far higher than that of the previous. So much so that it makes some scenes in the previous film seem like a powerpoint presentation. In fact, I would go so far as to say that this film is superior in every way when compared to the first, save for the setting up and mishandling of a couple of characters. It also does a fantastic job in expanding the character roster in an organic way complimenting the first film in a great way. The best part of this film is the minimal usage of the older siblings, as they were portrayed in such a positive manner with a complete lack of faults that they were unrealistic, however seeing them from this new and far more brief perspective makes them far more interesting as characters.

I would go so far as to say that I would have preferred to have seen this film first, so that I would have been far more interested in the older siblings and their friends, however, I already know their story, and that would only lead to disappointment. Between the two films, this is the superior, and this is a romance that I would highly recommend.