Linda Linda Linda (rewatch)

Just some of things I love about this movie:

* Beat Happening posters on the walls of the practice room.  Beat Happening was very popular in Japan, in fact they recorded their first EP there.  Their DIY indie-pop music fits in perfectly with the movie’s musical sensibilities.

* James Iha’s instrumental score.  It’s really good.

* Kyoko suggests they cover the ultra-chipper J-pop band Puffy.  Kei responds, “Are you serious?”

* They discover a tape of “Linda Linda Linda” and bounce around singing into skull-shaped maracas.

* Son’s confused look as she gets invited into the band, and her panicky reaction when she realizes what she’s agreed to.

* The endearingly awkward conversation between Kei and Son at the bus stop… the start of a friendship.

* Nozomi’s little brother walking around repeating, “I’m hot”.

” Son practicing in a karaoke room, building her confidence and getting into it.

* Laughing at themselves after a terrible run-through of “My Right Hand”.

* Takako’s rooftop comic stand/juice bar.

* Son trying to cheer Kyoko up for being late to practice, giving her a playful little neck rub.

* Son’s nods of half-comprehension.

* Nozomi being impossible to wake up.

* The band’s amusement at Kei’s irritation/embarrassment with her ex-boyfriend.

* Son giggling over seeing Kyoko’s underwear.

* Sneaking into the practice room late at night, trying to play quietly and cracking themselves up.

* Yusaku uncomfortably confessing his love for Son, a traditional Japanese rite of passage.  Son’s reaction: “Can I go now?”

* Nozomi makes dinner for the band.

* Son rehearses her stage banter to an empty auditorium… you can tell how much she loves her new friends.

* Kei throws a “beef dart”.

* Kei’s “big hand” dream, featuring The Ramones.

* Moe and Takako stall for time.

* Rinko and Kei reconcile, in a way.

* Kyoko loses her nerve with Kazuya.  Not everything can result in triumph….

* ….but that ending is triumphant in spades.  What a joyous, cathartic moment.

* The smile that never leaves my face from the beginning to the end.  I love these girls.  I love their music and their humor and their problems and their friendship.  I don’t know if there is a better movie about adolescence.  It’s a thrilling, endlessly pleasurable experience spending time with Son, Kei, Nozomi and Kyoko.  Long live Param Maum!

Rating: Masterpiece (97)

IMDb