Touch (Hong Kong Version) VCD

Although it condenses the long-running storyline to a comparatively truncated 116-minute running time, this particular seishun eiga ("youth film") delivers a cohesive storyline with surprisingly well developed characters, all in all making for a thoroughly satisfying movie. The film centers on Uesugi Kazuya and Uesugi Tatsuya, twin brothers who've been next door neighbors to Asakura Minami since all of them were little babies. In fact, the three of them are so close that their parents even built a playhouse between the two homes so they could hang out together. Even from an early age, the three pals have loved baseball, a love that impels the boys to promise to take Minami to the baseball championships one day at Koshien Stadium in the Hyogo Prefecture.

The film then picks up during the trio's high school years, as they have remained as close as ever, although the brothers have gone their separate ways when it comes to the subject of baseball. While the studious Kazuya (Saito Keita) is an all-star baseball pitcher, the equally talented Tatsuya (Saito Shota) has evolved into somewhat of a slacker, choosing to quit the baseball team in order to pursue an interest in amateur boxing. Although Minami (Nagasawa Masami) serves as manager for the baseball team, faithfully cheering Kazuya to victory, it's to Tatsuya that her heart truly belongs. However, over the years, Kazuya has developed feelings for Minami as well, a fact that inevitably looks to break up the harmony of their childhood friendship.

As fate would have it, Minami never gets the chance to choose between the two brothers thanks to an unexpected tragedy that ends Kazuya's life. After much consideration, Tatsuya is compelled to pick up where his brother left off and help lead the team to the National High School Baseball Tournament in Koshien, not only to honor both his brother's dream, but to make good on the promise he made to Minami all those years ago. However, his decision draws the ire of his mother as well as Kazuya's mostly skeptical teammates. It won't be easy to win them over though, as Tatsuya's baseball skills are a little rusty and his crucial relationship with Minami is at an emotional standstill. By the film's end, it's no longer just a question of whether Tatsuya can win the big game, but whether he still has a shot at winning back Minami's heart.

What unfolds isn't exactly unexpected for anyone who's ever seen a sports movie in their life, but somehow, the filmmakers are able to make both the film's outcome and the journey that preceded it seem fresh and exciting. Saito Shota makes for a fine everyman hero, and the film surrounds him with likeable supporting characters who help bring the story to life, including a secondary love interest for Tatsuya, a tough-talking boxer buddy from school, Kazuya's loyal, but disapproving catcher, and a rival baseball player who approaches pitchers as if he's a master swordsman looking to lock blades with an equally-skilled opponent. Although it's likely that all these characters had more depth in the original manga, their very presence in the narrative is certainly a welcome one.

But what really elevates the film beyond the level of mere teen drama or sports flick is its star actress, Nagasawa Masami. Best known for her fantastic performance in the hit film Crying Out Love, In the Center of the World, Nagasawa's acting here proves to be no less revelatory. With even the simplest of glances or gestures, she brings a youthful energy, endearing sincerity, and naturalistic charm to her character, making even the most clichéd of sequences seem somehow fresh, joyful, and remarkably poignant. Whatever your opinion of baseball, Touch amounts to a fine sports/teen movie hybrid, perhaps most notable as a showcase for the undeniable acting talents of its remarkable leading lady.

By Calvin McMillin