Kudos to the casting producer!
Ansel Elgort is the perfect choice to play «Aderustainu-san» in one of the most exciting shows of the season! He has the full package: witty, cheeky, earnest, skilled, tenacious, terribly handsome, barely fragile, fresh and sincere.
I also found Sho Kasamatsu a fantastic finding! He is a magnificent Sato indeed, a performance to be remembered! We are familiar with Ken Watanabe's acting as he is a very well-known actor in the West, and he delivers a fine and credible character as usual. The rest of the cast is also fabulous.
Having lived in Tokyo myself, everything felt very portrayed to me. Only a few secondary actors seemed to be more nissei than issei, or even ethnically mixed.
Elgort's effort at Japanese is remarkable (can he really speak it or was it just coaching and memorizing words for the sake of the show? His aikido shomenuchi moves were also enjoyable); I even found it very funny when he fakes on purpose an awful American accent to pretend he speaks a poor Japanese.
The script was precise, interesting, thrilling. And though I ignore how much of the story is authentic and how much is fiction, it really doesn't matter because you are not expecting to watch a documentary. Just a superb story finely directed, set and performed.
The pilot, by the way, has the signature of Michael Mann, who quite probably is the best Action Pilot Director of the last quarter of century, and it sets the tone for the rest of the episodes.
I am looking forward to second season, and I truly hope they will not let this flunk.
Ansel Elgort is the perfect choice to play «Aderustainu-san» in one of the most exciting shows of the season! He has the full package: witty, cheeky, earnest, skilled, tenacious, terribly handsome, barely fragile, fresh and sincere.
I also found Sho Kasamatsu a fantastic finding! He is a magnificent Sato indeed, a performance to be remembered! We are familiar with Ken Watanabe's acting as he is a very well-known actor in the West, and he delivers a fine and credible character as usual. The rest of the cast is also fabulous.
Having lived in Tokyo myself, everything felt very portrayed to me. Only a few secondary actors seemed to be more nissei than issei, or even ethnically mixed.
Elgort's effort at Japanese is remarkable (can he really speak it or was it just coaching and memorizing words for the sake of the show? His aikido shomenuchi moves were also enjoyable); I even found it very funny when he fakes on purpose an awful American accent to pretend he speaks a poor Japanese.
The script was precise, interesting, thrilling. And though I ignore how much of the story is authentic and how much is fiction, it really doesn't matter because you are not expecting to watch a documentary. Just a superb story finely directed, set and performed.
The pilot, by the way, has the signature of Michael Mann, who quite probably is the best Action Pilot Director of the last quarter of century, and it sets the tone for the rest of the episodes.
I am looking forward to second season, and I truly hope they will not let this flunk.