OP here.
>>82126109I should state that I'm not Japanese. I'm American living in Japan. From what I've seen at the theater, the people did enjoy it and I think it will do just fine performance-wise. I wouldn't go so far as to say it will be massively successful.
>>82126248The theater I went to was about 2/3 full, but I do know that two different shows later in the day were almost packed. (I went at the earliest showing at 9 am).
I don't know about the reaction from boys and girls, but for the show I went to at least, there were hardly any children. It seemed to be more of a group outing or a dating movie. I saw a good number of couples in attendance.
>>82126274That's a good question, but I really doubt it'll have any kind of social impact on the people. It's an interesting thought though, because here in Japan, the people really do think in segregated terms. Anyone who doesn't look like them is "a foreigner." It doesn't matter if you were born and raised here. That also counts for citizenship. You're just not a full Japanese citizen if you're not ethnically fully Japanese. Even biracial (half Japanese, half whatever) get grief. So a movie that tries to get the viewer to look past these differences in Japan is kind of fascinating, and I do wish I had natives to get their opinions on it. As the movie just came out, there's really no one to talk to about it yet, but perhaps in the future, I'll get the opportunity to ask around.
>>82126673I feel the same way sometimes when I see other fellow Westerners.
Also, I should mention I watched the subbed version, not the dubbed.