
a review by JustJaredHere

a review by JustJaredHere
I saw a reviewer write "If I don't act this way, no one is going to like me" and it encapsulates this anime completely. I went in to this movie with the expectation of a yuri romance with a unique twist of being able to stop time. Instead, I got more of a psychological drama of internal conflicts on what it means to truly express who you are and what you want to be.
We have Moritani, one female lead whom is introverted, scared to communicate with others, and has the power to stop time for 3 minutes. The 2nd lead, Murakami, is the heroine that we learn of the central theme the movie showcases
The lead Murakami essentially tries to be a "good girl" and behave in a way to have her classmates meet many of the expectations they have of her for them, creating this perception that by doing this, she can be well liked and make friends. Moritani, on the other hand, notices this and through the course of the movie tries her best to understand Murakami, her behavior, and what is going on in her thoughts and emotions, but can't really understand her and wants to know why Murakami behaves that way. By finding out that Murakami has did her darndest to learn every facet of hear classmates so she can be well like, even since being a very little girl, Moritani effectively challenges this, showcasing the internal conflict and distorted perception Murakami has to making friends. She truly believes that if she doesn't meet people's expectations, holds herself to be around others, other facets of being in many social circles, then she won't be liked, loved, and be lonely. Moritani challenges this distorted perception, and tells Murakami that she doesn't need to do this, to be open and true to her true individualistic way of expressing herself, and for both Moritani and Murakami to not rely on this power of stopping time to be together. At this very point, a confusing story filled with metaphors gets understood and connected together at this moment.
Fragtime isn't so much a yuri romance, but rather a drama showcasing how a distorted perception can affect your life and you come to believe this distortion, challenge it, and comes to terms to who you really are and how you want to portray yourself. The movie doesn't bring in tropes such as "they're lesbians" or "they're both girls", but rather the yuri romance is just a regular romance with the purpose of highlighting what kind of dynamic they 2 leads have with one another and bringing out the distortions Murakami has, as well as the issues Moritani has.
I'd say that Fragtime is worth the watch, to see how the 2 leads are, their dynamic, and the central theme it conveys.
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