Released in 2004, Swing Girls is about a group of high school girls and their efforts to start a jazz band. But don't expect the usual Hollywood cliches - there are no parents opposing the idea, or trying to stop them. No villians out to beat them at competitions, or sabotage progress. There really isn't even romance. It's just learning to play music.
Tomoko and her friends are stuck at a summer school math class, when they are given the opportunity to deliver lunches to the school's brass band playing for a baseball game. But they get off at the wrong stop, laze around, and arrive very late. By then, the food has gone bad from the heat, making every member violently sick. Except for one guy - Takuo - and he was planning to quit prior to this incident. Now stuck and in need of replacements, he guilts the girls into learning to play instruments (he was the only one who knew it was their fault) until everyone, including the band's teacher, gets better. But they don't have enough people for a brass band, so Takuo decides on Big Band. In this short time, Tomoko, who is usually very flighty about her interests, never sticking with anything for very long, finds a passion for the saxophone. But before their first performance, the "real" music makers show up, and they never get to test their new-found skills. However, an idea has been planted, one that won't go away until it can grow. Why not branch out on their own?
What I think is really cool about this film, is the fact that the cast was actually learning to play the instruments along with the filming. They weren't pretending to go through the steps - they really were. So, you're actually moving with them as they evolve in their skills. The end result is quite impressive!
Now, I do have some nitpicks. Only some of the characters were semi-developed, given "types" (like loud-mouthed Tomoko and food-loving Naomi) or given ample camera time. There were subplots left hanging and it doesn't really have any closure to it. But I think it's still enjoyable, and nothing is shoved down your throat or completely boring. You see the girls struggle to afford their own instruments, gain exposure, etc. without any huge cement walls blocking them from truely reaching their goal - and in the end, do you need all that Hollywood drama anyway? They did it, they learned something about music and themselves, and that's what matters. Also, they did their own performances, too. No "dubbing" was involved. How is that not cool?
Did I mention the ending credits sequence is adorable? If nothing else, see that!
Official Site [In Japanese]
Trailer Buy DVD Has English subtitles!
