Vivant

Vivant, the 2023 Japanese TV series on Netflix, is nothing short of a masterpiece. Its captivating storyline, stellar performances, and impeccable cinematography make it a must-watch. The series effortlessly weaves together drama, suspense, and cultural nuances, creating a truly immersive experience. Vivant stands out as a shining example of top-tier entertainment, leaving audiences eagerly anticipating each episode. Highly recommended for anyone seeking a brilliant and emotionally resonant television journey. I hope they will make this type of series in the nearest future so the whole world could enjoy it.

The series is set over three countries, Japan, Mongolia and the imaginary Balka which is home to a major but mysterious terrorist organisation. An ordinary businessman Yusuke Nogi played by Masato Sakai is suspected of transferring billions of yen incorrectly to a foreign company and he is tasked with recovering it. The story then involves so many twist and turns as he falls deeper into a dark world that it's difficult to keep track of who is good and who is bad. The actors all do a sterling job particularly the lead who seems meek and mild but you soon realise that he is certainly not that. The real star of the show is the scriptwriters who lead you down many different paths and make this an entertaining watch.

The main characters that stoled this show are Nozaki, Chingiss and Bekis. Their presence is what made this show. Nogi's character didn't really fit the bill as a secret agent. They were trying to make him the japanese version of Johhny English. The actor would have been more suited for a role in maybe a Japanese revival of the hit US series Three's company as Mr. Furley as he looks just like him. Getting on to the story. The first couple of episodes were slow but then started to pick up. The scenery was beautiful and the acting of both chingiss and Noazaki were stellar. Both actors were properly picked for their respective roles as was the actor who played Bekis later on. A definite must watch even though the ending wasn't what should have been.

The shooting technique and camera movements are too rough. Unable to showcase the strengths of the storyline and engage the audience; the standard should not be like this. The filming technique for action suspense seems quite unskilled. The dubbing and music fail to immerse the audience and do not convey the atmosphere of the scene.

It wastes the skills of professional actors, giving the overall production a sense of wastefulness due to various unprofessional aspects.

The actors are top-notch, but the filming techniques lack immersion. Filters, camera movements, background music, and overall flow noticeably lack quality and feel awkward. It seems the director's style doesn't suit the storyline, impacting the integrity of the work. Handing it over to another director might result in a better outcome. It's a shame considering the excellent acting and storyline.

I just have finished only the first episode and wanted to write this appraisal for the Actors here. First of all, great job to the Mongolian actors, especially Chingis and Jamin. But the dialogue and language skills of the main actor and actress is remarkable. Of course they had accents, more noticeably in English, but who cares about that, it is a Foreign language after all. But their Mongolian was almost perfectly done. Especially the intonations, emotions and feelings. A bit more meaning and feeling missed but that is just nitpicking. As well, great job on the localization, changing the labels, uniforms, license plates and few other things and managed to turn locations in Mongolia feel somewhat culturally same but identically different. Kudos 😉💪.

Edit: Ohhhhhh my god, ohhhhhhh my god, the bloody Wooden Toilet scene! I grew up having a phobia on falling accidentally into a Wooden Toilet (Modon Jorlon in Mongolian) 🤢🤢🤢. Brilliantly done. "Yellow teethed homeless guy" should have his own series 😂.