One of those films that presents an intriguing puzzle, the solution to which is not really believable....

There is a lot of offbeat quirkiness in this film, but also some solemn moments and several truly likable characters. A rather wonderful relationship between two brothers, and between them and their parents. And several surprises, including a show-stopper.

These are mostly positive elements that frequently made the film a nice experience for me; but too much here is artificial, straining credulity to the breaking point. A very mixed bag.

I watched it in Japanese; I don't know if a subbed or dubbed version is available. There are certainly many lines that would not be readily translatable into English (as one example, the nickname "Natsuko", summer-child, given to the girl who always follows around Haru (spring)).