Update

Flash bulletin! Showings start today for Dive!

Chiang Mai movies update Saturday, September 20, 2008

by Thomas Ohlson

Major Cineplex (only) opens the film Dive! today (Saturday) in Chiang Mai in a special sneak preview, at 8 pm at Airport Plaza.

Presumably, this will be good for tomorrow as well.

Please note that the film is Thai-dubbed only! No English subtitles!

Also, the business about there being an English-dubbed version of Boonchu 9 at Airport Plaza is incorrect. Major Cineplex staff told me it was a mistake on their website.

I have included below my comments on the film Dive! as they appeared in my regular newssheet, plus another picture. You can see more images from the movie at its website here, or via MThai, here.

Dive! Japan Drama – 115 mins – Director Kumazawa Naoto continues his successful streak of youth films with the teen sports flick Dive! Based on Mori Eto's best-selling novel, Dive! follows the diving dreams of three teenagers, played by Ikematsu Sosuke (left), Mizobata Junpei (right), and Hayashi Kento (center), who won Best Newcomer at the 31st Japan Academy Awards. The three young stars underwent diving training for three months in order to convincingly portray their characters onscreen. Seto Asako co-stars as the boys' coach.

Teen diver Sakai (Hayashi Kento) first joined the MDC diving club because he was impressed by the diving skills of Fuji (Ikematsu Sosuke) whose parents are both Olympic divers. Both Sakai and Fuji's diving dreams are on the rocks though when the club falls onto hard financial times. New coach Asaki (Seto Asako) tells them there's only one way to save the team from disbanding: they must produce an Olympic athlete. But clashes between the new coach and the team only throw the club into further disarray, especially when Asaki recruits a new diver (Mizobata Junpei) to the club.

Three young men try to turn their dreams of Olympic gold into a reality in this sports drama from Japan. The Mizuki Diving Club has enjoyed a reputation for transforming talented young divers into world-class champions, but in recent years the club has had a run of bad luck, and with few winning divers emerging from their ranks, sponsorship is dwindling and unless things change the MDC could go out of business. Faced with this grim possibility, the head coach (Ken Mitsuishi) swallows his pride and brings in Coach Asaki (Asaka Seto), a lovely but determined instructor who intends to restore the MDC to its former glory. Asaki puts her focus on three young divers she's convinced have the greatest potential -- Yoichi (Sosuke Ikematsu), the head coach's son, who despite his talent had has problems living up to his father's expectations; Shibuki (Junpei Mizobata), a loner given to sharp mood swings; and Tomoki (Kento Hayashi), who Asaki feels has the potential for greatness despite his less-than-impressive record. With qualifying events for the Olympics coming up soon, Coach Asaki pushes herself and her students to the limit, preparing Yoichi, Shibuki, and Tomoki for the all-important qualifying meets, but can the boys handle the pressure that comes with the most prestigious event in sports? Dive! is based on a novel by Eto Mori, which was later adapted by the author into a popular manga series.

~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide