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Lonely Castle in the Mirror Director Keiichi Hara on Bullying and Other Social Issues Facing Childre




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FireChick
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Joined: 26 Mar 2006
Posts: 2499
Location: United States
PostPosted: Mon Jun 19, 2023 9:11 am Reply with quote
Awww, this was really sweet to read. I own the original novel but haven't finished it yet, but I have read the whole manga and watched the movie in Japanese. Learning that Tsujimura endured bullying herself as a child really gives Lonely Castle an extra layer to it because it's partly based on her own experience. Now I really need to finish reading the novel. I'm of the mind that if people want to forgive the bullies who were cruel to them, it should only be if the bullies are genuinely repentant after the fact and actually make the effort to earn said forgiveness. If not, or if they just want you to brush it under the rug, especially if the bullying was violent in nature, hell no. There's never an excuse for bullying, and I agree with Tsujimura in that if you don't want to forgive the people who were cruel to you, that's valid, especially if they show no remorse.
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Wasureta



Joined: 21 Dec 2015
Posts: 56
PostPosted: Mon Jun 19, 2023 10:49 am Reply with quote
I watched this movie on the airplane going to Japan. It was a good movie. I liked the twist. It's another story that needs an epilogue tho.
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Multi-Facets



Joined: 15 Oct 2019
Posts: 261
PostPosted: Mon Jun 19, 2023 11:19 am Reply with quote
I hope Tsujimura-san's work can help so, so many kids. <3
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joemuszynski



Joined: 09 Apr 2020
Posts: 59
PostPosted: Thu Jun 22, 2023 5:37 am Reply with quote
As the film points out, high school bullies often just grow up and become adult bullies. As with most “high school” anime, the themes and problems do apply to adults, as so many never learn the lessons they should have when they were younger. I love Hara’s films and this was no exception. I thought it was brilliant.
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ViviP



Joined: 26 Apr 2023
Posts: 73
PostPosted: Thu Jun 22, 2023 10:10 am Reply with quote
Quote:
When doing research for the film—going over numerous articles and interviews—Hara came upon a quote from Tsujimura that he found particularly profound: “When it comes to your bullies, there's no need to forgive them.” Such a statement runs contrary to the popular common sense in Japan—that when you grow up, you should forgive those who bullied you and move on with your life. “It's a really bold statement from Tsujimura,” Hara stated, “And I feel exactly the same.”


Isn't this really, really bad advice?
The idea of 'forgiving' a bully is supposed to be a personal "this person doesn't upset me anymore" and freeing yourself. Like, who cares what the bully or anybody else thinks? that's the whole point of getting over it.
People grow up, change and move on, so it's very likely that the person that bullied you hasn't existed for years. By hating an internal fictional child forever, you're just going to keep yourself at that fictional child's level forever.
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yuna49



Joined: 27 Aug 2008
Posts: 3804
PostPosted: Thu Jun 22, 2023 12:59 pm Reply with quote
Went to the premiere last night and was rather disappointed. I liked Hara's Miss Hokusai a lot, but this film seemed more like a TV series in movie form. (It was produced by A-1 Pictures; don't know if that had something to do with its look.) Lots of scenes with the cast standing around talking and little animation. I've seen enough seasonal high-school anime to know that bullying and isolation are serious problems in Japanese schools. Can't say I gained a lot more insight into that issue from watching Lonely Castle.
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Flameshadowwolf



Joined: 05 May 2021
Posts: 68
PostPosted: Fri Jun 23, 2023 12:42 am Reply with quote
ViviP wrote:
Quote:
When doing research for the film—going over numerous articles and interviews—Hara came upon a quote from Tsujimura that he found particularly profound: “When it comes to your bullies, there's no need to forgive them.” Such a statement runs contrary to the popular common sense in Japan—that when you grow up, you should forgive those who bullied you and move on with your life. “It's a really bold statement from Tsujimura,” Hara stated, “And I feel exactly the same.”


Isn't this really, really bad advice?
The idea of 'forgiving' a bully is supposed to be a personal "this person doesn't upset me anymore" and freeing yourself. Like, who cares what the bully or anybody else thinks? that's the whole point of getting over it.
People grow up, change and move on, so it's very likely that the person that bullied you hasn't existed for years. By hating an internal fictional child forever, you're just going to keep yourself at that fictional child's level forever.


I think this may be more cause in Japan, the thinking is to stop standing out in society and go with the flow even if that means forgiving them right away. As time passes you may choose forgiveness as a way of freeing yourself but on your terms rather than at the connivence of others.
Life would certainly be easier if you could ignore the opinions of others but seeing your bully thrive while they committed awful acts against you is certainly a tough pill to swallow
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