J-Drama review- Celeb to Binbo Taro
Friday, November 5, 2010
Taro Sato (Yusuke Kamiji) has been poor all his life. Since the death of his wife, his situation has become even more desperate as he has to raise his three kids by himself and has no real marketable skills. So when he applies for a job that he doesn't expect to get, as a chauffeur to a rich young woman, he's surprised when he does. His employer is Alice (Aya Ueto), your usual spoiled rich kid. Her father is a hotel magnate and her mother a popular actress. She's never wanted for anything her whole life and expects to get everything she wants. She and Taro have nothing in common, and, at least in the beginning, all they do is get on each other's nerves.
The drama stars Ueto Aya who is a very popular actress in Japan though I find her acting mediocre and Yusuke Kamiji, who is the guy you can see with Ayumi Hamasaki in her tours.
The drama is okay. It has an interesting start. The events take make unexpected turns. The last few episodes are especially good. The transformation of Alice from a selfish, rich, spoilt girl to a humble and caring person shows that every one can change. The drama was nothing spectacular. It had its share of good scenes and its share of boring scenes. The excessive potrayl of Taro's poverty was not so good. I mean, we know he is poor, no need to overemphasize it. The realtionship of Alice and Gotoda is one of the focal points of this story. The addition of friendly and caring side characters gives this drama a good atmosphere and makes it more watchable.
I would not strongly recommend watching this drama if you are looking for something great. It is actually mediocre. If you find yourself genuinely interested in the story or want to see Aya Ueto in many beautiful dresses, watch this drama.
Ratings
Plot-4
Characters-2
Actors-2.5
Script-3
Direction-3
Pros- Good character development
Eye candy settings and dresses
Cons- Cliched plot
Mediocre acting
Somewhat disappointing since it doesn't go where it seemed to be going