The Ramen Girl (2009)

Wonderful character development!

Waste of time

Blistering performances.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

The light hearted humor and dreamy plot of starting from nothing to achieving something is very appealing to younger kids. It's a shame the rating restricted it from its own audience in theaters, but thankfully it released on DVD very quickly.For a romantic comedy, it does a good job of balancing both while also introducing plenty of different aspects to Japanese culture. The actress herself did a wonderful job at presenting a character who was enticing to watch as she played the role of an apprentice with charm and innocence. I hope this movie reaches the wider audience it deserves.

One of the strangest and most enjoyable Japanese films I have seen in "Tampopo"--a wonderful film about a woman who is struggling to make her ramen noodle shop the greatest on the planet. It's quirky and lovable. Now, with "The Ramen Girl", similar material is being explored and the results are quite pleasant if not in the same league as "Tampopo".Brittany Murphy stars as Abby--a rather spoiled and stupid young woman who foolishly has come to Tokyo to follow a man. She knows none of the language and is totally in over her head--especially since her only focus is this guy. When he breaks up with her, she has nothing.One night, she goes to a nearby ramen shop. There, the owner and his wife speak no English and Abby speaks no Japanese yet somehow she muddles through. After eating the ramen, she is captivated--so much so that she comes back the next night. Soon this dippy lady has a plan--to learn to make ramen like the masters. But, as she knows no Japanese and the owner/chef knows no English, getting this point across to him is practically impossible. So, instead of his taking her on as an apprentice, she becomes like an annoying squatter who won't go home! Reluctantly, he teaches her.This is a film I would rate higher in enjoyment than I would overall. This is because too often the film simply makes no sense nor does Abby. How she learns all this without really understanding the language and culture as well as how and why the man teaches her are all a mystery! It's enjoyable but mindless as well. Worth seeing, but see "Tampopo" first.

Stick with it during the first 10 minutes which is incredibly similar to the opening of Lost in Translation. Then the movie is Lost in Translation meets Like Water for Chocolate meets original Karate Kid. Great acting from the Japanese cast. Amazing how native English-speaking director could get all these Japanese actors to act so well and naturally. He must be a big Japanophile. But unfortunately compared to them, the non-Japanese actors are amateurs. Maybe Brittany Murphy is passable. Nice that it is mostly in Japanese with English subtitles. So a big change from Lost in Translation that came out five years earlier. If you like Ramen you'll love this movie.

"I wanna make people laugh like you do!" Ramen doesn't make anyone laugh. ...unless you add some peyote. Kinda like this movie. So why 2 and not 0 stars? Hmm... Maybe out of respect for the deceased Brittany Murphy. Maybe because it straddled the threshold of "so bad it's funny" and "just bad". Or, maybe I ate some Ramen and it gave me the giggles and now I'm all kinds of generous. There really isn't much more to say about this movie, except that if you do watch it know you can not get a refund on the hour and 42 minutes of life you lost.Maybe you can read a book or knit a sweater or paint your living room while this is playing in the background.