I Give My First Love To You (僕の初恋をキミに捧ぐ)

*spoiler alert*

What happens when you find out that you wouldn't be able to live before you turn 20? What happens when you are told you can't eat salty foods nor play any sports?

So, I was watching a 2009 Japanese movie called 'I Give My First Love To You'' (僕の初恋をキミに捧ぐ) last night. The plot line of this movie is about a boy named Takuma Kakunouchi (portrayed by Masaki Okada) who was told that he would die before he is 20 and a girl named Mayu Taneda (portrayed by Mao Inoue) who gives him the chance to experience love.

The story starts of when Mayu and Takuma are little kids in the hospital. Takuma is a patient, with heart disease, that have been hospitalized by Mayu's father (a cardiologist), Dr. Takahito Taneda. Here, they meet and become friends. They soon develop feelings for each other, but a twist in fate appears. They both learn about Takuma's illness and that he won't live before he turns 20. As a result they both make a promise/ wish on a four-leaf clover that Takuma will marry Mayu when they turn 20.

As time passes, they are both grown up. Mayu still continues to support and love Takuma. Because as time passes, Takuma knows he is getting closer to death; he tries to distance himself from Mayu, trying to ease her pain later on when he dies. He decides to attend an elite high school, where he thought that Mayu wouldn't be able to get in.

To his surprise, Mayu managed to get in with outstanding exam result that she becomes the 1st year student body representative. She scolded Takuma in front of the whole school hall in her welcome speech. Here, they where known as lovers.

Another twist of fate appears when Mayu meets a guy, Kou Suzuya (portrayed by Yoshihiko Hosoda), who has feelings for her. While Takuma meets a old female friend who has the same illness, Teru Uehara (portrayed by Natsuki Harada).

Through the turn of fate; a heart donor appears, giving Takuma a chance to live once more. However, he later finds out that they donor was his friend Kou, who was announced brain-dead in an accident. With this, he refused to go ahead with the operation. He later suffers from a heart attack and was rushed to hospital. He wakes and realised that he has a very short time to live, so he takes Mayu to varies places as their honeymoon. The finally end up at the field where they first kissed. He gives Mayu a letter when he wrote when he was 8 and tells her that he was lucky to have met her.

He later returns to the hospital with another heart attack. But this time he doesn't survive. Mayu is devastated and runs to the hospital rooftop and opens the letter which told everyone to be happy when he's gone.

The movie ends when Mayu borrows Takuma's urn (containing his ashes). She goes to a church in a wedding dress; thus fulfilling their promise when they were young, marrying each other at the age of 20.

Overall, I would give this movie a 8 out of 10 :)