Grab your box of tissues, put on your comfiest onesie and settle in for a night of heartbreak with the bittersweet Netflix movie Drawing Closer. The Japanese romance film is determined to bring us to the depths of beautiful despair, so to help you prepare for this emotional rollercoaster I’ve put together everything you need to know about the movie ahead of its June release.
Drawing Closer Premise Explained
Drawing Closer is based on a well-loved novel by Aoi Morita titled Yomei Ichinen to Senkoku Sareta Boku ga, Yomei Hantoshi no Kimi to Deatta Hanashi. It was published originally on an online self-publishing website.
The translation of the title is The story of how I, who was told I only had one year to live, met you, who only had half a year. Although quite long-winded, it does explain the premise of the film. The official Netflix synopsis also explains what to expect:
“Drawing Closer follows the intertwined lives of Akito Hayasaka and Haruna Sakurai. Portrayed by Ren Nagase in his first Netflix role, Akito is a young man who has given up on life after receiving a terminal diagnosis — until he meets someone who rekindles his will to live. Natsuki Deguchi plays Haruna, who becomes Akito’s beacon of hope.”
Release Date
Netflix have announced that Drawing Closer will premiere on June 27th, 2024.
Who is the cast?
The full cast list is still under wraps, but we do have the names of our two leads. Ren Nagase is playing the part of Akihito Hayasaka, and Natsuki Deguchi will assume the role of Haruna Sakurai.
The Soundtrack
The composer for the film’s soundtrack is Seiji Kameda and the New York-born actor and composer may be familiar to many of you out there. Fans will remember him from many other amazing projects, including work on the 2016 One Piece film, Gold, Attack on Titan, various Pokemon shows, and Let’s Go Jets from 2017.
The theme song is by Fujifabric, who also appeared on the soundtrack to the sassily titled It’s Boring Here, Pick Me Up in 2018.
The Work of Director Takahiro Miki
Japanese director Takahiro Miki, born in 1974, has had a long and illustrious career in film, and I am sure that many of you who are reading this will know some of his previous work.
One of the hardest workers in the industry Miki would direct the 2011 movie Control Tower, a relationship drama between two lonely teenagers. He would go on to direct consistently, with films such as 2012’s The Dragon Braves, 2013’s The Girl in the Sun, 2014’s Hot Road, 2015’s Have a Song of Your Own, 2016’s Yell for the Blue Sky, 2017’s My Teacher, 2018’s Kids on the Slope, 2020’s Your Eyes Tell, 2021’s The Door Into Summer, 2022’s Tang, and 2022’s Akira and Akira.
