Linda Linda Linda

What stands out to me the most about Nobuhiro Yamashita’s 2005 film Linda Linda Linda (inspiration for the riot grrrl band the Linda Lindas, the title taken from Japanese punk band The Blue Hearts’ song that the girls in the film are covering) is how joyful it is: it’s about four teenage girls who are learning to function as a band together in a short period of time, but there are no institutional obstacles in their way, no outside mocking or hatred for their enthusiasm or dedication. Instead, Yamashita focuses on their dynamics: if there is conflict, it comes from how the characters handle pressure and stress, from the difficulties of learning and getting used to new people and shifting into a functioning relationship with each other. It’s a film about shared passion and the magic of puzzle pieces fitting perfectly to form a picture, which captures the very essence of what it means to be a band that performs well together and manages to convey that enthusiasm to a rapt audience. This sets it apart from the film that it reminded me of, watching it for the first time more than 25 years after its release: Lukas Moodysson’s 2013 film Vi är bäst!, which captures the same love of music, but is about the outside obstacles in the way of its protagonists that are difficult to overcome.

At the beginning of the film, the success of the band is precariously balances. The original guitarist has injured her hand in a basketball game and the singer of the band has left alongside her because of conflicts within the band. The remaining three girls decide to press on without Moe (Shione Yukawa) and Rinko (Takayo Mimura), with Kei (Yû Kashii), the band’s keyboardist, learning how to play the guitar, and the recruitment of the first girl they set eyes on across the school yard as their new singer, who just happens to be Korean exchange student Son (Bae Doona, Sense8), who still struggles with her Japanese fluency and doesn’t really know what she’s agreeing to at first, but then embraces the challenge enthusiastically (the scenes of her practising by herself in a karaoke bar are some of the best of the film). It takes them a while to find their stride together, especially with Son changing up their dynamic, but the narrow time window to perfect the song they pick – the film pays close attention to how they go through old cassette tapes, reverently picking something that probably just predates their births forces them together in late-night sessions and shared attempts to gather the necessary resources.

I also really enjoyed how the film never depicts the other kids at school as mocking of their efforts. Instead, the boys around them – two of them clearly lovestruck, with differing levels of awkwardness – are supportive, a very cool classmate who is an accomplished musician herself compliments them on their choice and enthusiastically supports them, and at their final grand performance at the cultural festival, the crowd goes wild for them as all the pieces fit together perfectly in the moment. 

2005, directed by Nobuhiro Yamashita, starring Bae Doona, Aki Maeda, Yû Kashii, Shiori Sekine, Takayo Mimura.