"Slam Dunk" has been released in China for three days. I hurriedly went to see it with my partner yesterday. Before going, I told my partner that there would definitely be a lot of people wearing Slam Dunk jerseys, but we didn't see a single one. Although, I didn't wear my Rukawa Kaede jersey that I bought many years ago either.
I actually watched "Slam Dunk" quite late, when I was in college, I watched the whole thing. At that time, the TV animation ended after the national tournament selection in the manga, so I went to read the manga to see the national tournament. As someone who grew up watching TV anime since childhood, I did feel a bit regretful after reading the manga, "It would be great if I could see the animated version of the national tournament." Ten years later, my wish came true.
The movie is portrayed from the perspective of Sendoh Akira. In the TV animation, there isn't much description of Sendoh Akira as an individual, except for his fight with Mitsui, his secret crush on Ayako, his court duel with Maki Shinichi, and the alley-oop signal with Sakuragi on the court. The movie introduces his childhood life in Okinawa, with a talented basketball-playing older brother and a cute younger sister. He grows up through bullfighting with his brother, but becomes more and more silent and reserved through comparisons with his brother after his brother's death. Later, his mother moves with him and his sister to Kanagawa.
I really like the scene where he and Mitsui first meet. Akira, who has no friends, is practicing dribbling on the court. The ball rolls to the side of the court, and Mitsui naturally picks it up, dribbles, and shoots, all in one go. I didn't expect it, but the connection between the two started at that moment. At this time, Akira is in the first year of junior high school, and Mitsui should be in the second year. Mitsui at this time should already be showing his potential, and in another year, he will become famous in the prefectural tournament. Mitsui before his downfall was really handsome, full of spirit. Later, when the fallen Mitsui and Akira meet and argue at school, I believe both of them should recognize each other. I imagined the psychological activities of both sides at that time. Mitsui probably didn't want Akira to recognize him as the spirited basketball boy from back then, while Akira might have been surprised that the person who fought bulls with him back then had fallen so far.
The plot of Akira's brother, Sendo Soichiro, passing away reminded me of another anime, "Ace of Diamond." I think the two can be compared.
In "Ace of Diamond," the deceased younger brother, Uesugi Kazuya, was the more outstanding one in the early stages, and after his death, the older brother, Sawamura Eijun, eventually put on the glove given by his brother and stood on the stage of Koshien. In "Slam Dunk," the deceased older brother, Sendo Soichiro, was also the more outstanding one in the early stages, and after his death, the younger brother, Rukawa Kaede, eventually put on his brother's wristband and defeated the opponent "Shohoku High" that his brother had vowed to defeat many years ago. This sense of carrying the mission of another person's wish makes the character of Rukawa more charming. You won't think of him as just a problematic teenager with a bad attitude, or the least noticeable character in the "Five Tigers." He also carries the mission of another person on his shoulders, and he also looks at the stars at night and wonders if Soichiro is satisfied with his current self. I really can't resist this kind of character with the theme of "enduring humiliation and carrying a heavy burden."
The addition of a plot about Sakuragi is very interesting, which is when he goes to pray before the game. At this time, he is already recognized as the number one high school student in the country. He wishes to be given some basketball experience that he hasn't obtained before. After losing to Shohoku in the match, he remembers the wish he made, which is the experience of failure, and it really made me laugh and cry.
I am very familiar with the plot of the whole game because I have read it many times in the manga. Some scenes in the movie were omitted, such as Hanamichi Rukawa's transition from being stuck in one-on-one situations to passing the ball. In the manga, it introduces his earlier conversation with Sendoh Akira and foreshadows the showdown between Rukawa and Ryonan's ace, Sendo Soichiro. Of course, it's reasonable that the movie omitted it, maybe they thought Rukawa's plot didn't need to be extended further.
The climax is the final winning shot. Rukawa breaks through and passes the ball to Sakuragi, who is already prepared to catch it. After catching the ball, Sakuragi silently recites the mantra of his 20,000 shots of training in the summer, takeoff, shot, into the net, game-winning shot. Then, the high-five between him and Rukawa. When I saw that moment, my whole body was covered in goosebumps, my eyes instantly became moist, and my voice was trembling. When you have followed them all the way from being incompatible, arguing, secretly supporting each other, to finally winning together, what do you feel? Who do you think of?
Overall, the movie is great, I really like it. It fills the regret of not having the animated version of the national tournament, but it doesn't completely make up for it. I really want to see the classic scene of Rukawa shooting free throws with his eyes closed, I want to see the scene where Rukawa shows Sakuragi the national youth team jersey at the end, I want to see so much more, but, well, who said the main theme of youth is regret.