Top 3 reasons why Flavors of Youth is one of the beautiful tales on Netflix.

Flavors of youth © CoMix Wave Films and Haoliners Animation League/ Netflix

The Japanese animation industry has been maintaining its dominance worldwide due to its unparalleled and unique concept on which the films are based on, assisted by well detailed and embellished animated visuals. Have you ever seen an animated clip that showcases the tiny details of a food item that perfectly emulates with the emotions and feelings of a person?

It's rare...

A couple of days back when I was confused while choosing an animated film for my late-night entertainment, I came across a NETFLIX original anime flick named "Flavours of Youth". 

 

I did a bit of research on this film before watching it, and I was wonderstruck when I found out that this flick was made by the studios who gave the critically acclaimed film "Your name".

Though it didn't stand up to the level of the above-mentioned film. Undoubtedly it lived up to my anticipation.

Flavors of youth © Haoliners Animation League and CoMix Wave Films /Netflix

'Flavours of youth" is a 2018 Chinese/Japanese animated anthology drama film that presents three different stories on three different persons.

Directed by Yoshitaka Takeuchi, Haoling Li, and Jiaoshou this anthology drama is like a rollercoaster ride that tries to connect the viewers with the concept of emotional experiences of three different people. Most part of the film is set in the Chinese capital city of Beijing.

The movie starts off with a bowl of noodles and ends up with an overwhelming teenage love story set in 90s. This 3 episode drama film is a precise addition in the slice of life genre. 

Allow me to mention the top three reasons why you should watch this film. 

1) Elaborated piece of animation :

Flavors of Youth © CoMix Wave Film and Haoliners Animation League/ NETFLIX

The reason behind my statement can be obtained from the first short story (The Rice noodles) of the film that speaks about the dull and monotonous life of a Chinese employer in Beijing and how he reminisces his childhood days when he used to enjoy one of the best noodles at his town.

From the busy streets of Beijing to the best noodles the protagonist ever had, both the scenes were elaborately made up that it perfectly delivers a contrasting delineation of human emotions. The soupy noodles that the protagonist had during his academic years and the noodles he usually feeds at the populated city of Beijing was a symbolic reference of two different lifestyle and phases of his life. This particular scene was introduced accurately by the help of well embellished animated visuals and satisfactory dialogues. It's possible due to the presence of the studio who gave us anime like YOUR NAME.

This storyline strengthens the nostalgic instincts of a person

2) It gets better and better.

Flavors of Youth © CoMix Wave Film and Haoliners Animation League/ NETFLIX

Though the first story was a bit short and it didn't disclose much about the protagonist. The second story (A little fashion show) subtly portrayed the life of a Girl (Yi Lin) who lives her life as a fashion star and acts as a single guardian for her sister (Lulu).  She gets a competitor who was slowly trying to dethrone her from the top spot, so for the sake of maintaining her beauty and her position our protagonist deteriorates her health and ruins her final chance of reclaiming the top spot in the fashion show.

This event made her realize that certain qualities don't last long. You have to keep on fighting for the top position.

This particular arc was centered around the main protagonist which is Yi Lin due to which an impressive character development was witnessed in this story that contains a hidden message of "self-realization and struggle".

3) An unexpected final arc:

Flavors of Youth © Haoliners Animation League/NETFLIX and CoMix Wave Film

The third story (love in Shanghai) surprised me. Out of all the stories, this was a pre-eminent addition to the anthology. A silly mistake that disrupted a blooming teenage love story was enough to make your eyes teary. When cassettes used to dominate the music shops and people used to listen to tape recorders this story was based on that period. A struggling Architect (Li Mo) finds an old cassette that was recorded by his high school

love (Xiao you), it contains a message which he ignored back in the 90s due to his far fetched goal. Will he be able to find out the message present in the cassette? You have to watch it yourself.

What makes this story different? Is it due to the profound feeling of love it showcases? I mean who doesn't love these teenage love stories but what makes it perfect is the emotions and overwhelming dialogues it contains. The painful scenes of silence and separation which is followed by the mega revelation can easily spellbind the viewers by it's magic

Undoubtedly the final minutes of the movie was a golden ticket for this film to get worldwide praises.

Flavors of Youth is a beautiful tale that entangles you in the world of emotional variations a person usually witness in his life. A heartwarming tale that can't be ignored.