10/10 is my rating. This is a 2023 Japanese Romantic movie with a run time of 110 minutes. It is based on novel "Kokan Uso Nikki" by Iiyo Sakura

First I provide a unique synopsis then review

Synopsis

When 2nd year high school student, Nozomi Kuroda (Hiyori Sakurda) finds a confession letter in her desk, she cannot believe it is from Jun Setoyama (Fumiya Takahashi) the most popular boy at the high school. Although not sure what to do at first, Nozomi writes a reply and leaves it with Jun’s gym shoes. After they exchange notes a couple of times, Jun starts his reply in a diary and writes if they fill up the diary they will date. Just when she starts to feel a connection, Nozomi learns that the letter that started it all was actually intended for her best friend, Erino Matsumoto (Mizuki Kayashima). Embarrassed by the mistake but also starting to have feelings for Jun, Nozomi decides to continue the exchange. Nozomi discovers that Jun is able to readily express his thoughts and feelings and his transparency causes her to learn to be more open herself. Nozomi and Jun also start to see each other more frequently in person as their friend groups overlap and Nozomi struggles to hide her romantic feelings for Jun. When the deception is eventually revealed, will Jun’s feelings on paper translate to genuine love for Nozomi? Or will he be disappointed he was not writing Erino after all?

Review

I loved this movie. It was a slow build, heartfelt romance. I appreciate it did not have all the over-the-top displays of physical contact and there was nothing “woke” in the storyline. I would watch it again and highly recommend it to anybody that is a fan of heartwarming romances. There were even some surprises in the plot so it was well written enough to add some intrigue.

#OurSecretDiary #KokanUsoNikki #HiyoriSakurda. #FumiyaTakahashi. #MizukiKayashima