Review | Words Bubble Up Like Soda Pop

Words Bubble Up Like Soda Pop is a wonderful story about two people having trouble communicating. It’s a celebration of love where poetry is all around.

Like many movies Words Bubble Up Like Soda Pop has faced some delays due to the COVID pandemic but it has finally been released on Netflix worldwide.

STORY

Words Bubble Up Like Soda Pop is a love story between two teenagers. Cherry is a boy who expresses his feelings through haikus. But when it comes to spoken words, he is shy and too afraid to say what he really thinks. Even when he has to read a haiku out loud, it’s really difficult for him. While Smile is a girl who does a lot of live work on social media. However, she wears a mask because she is ashamed of her “rabbit teeth.”

Both have problems with social interactions. And it’s these problems that prevent them to say how they feel to each other. Throughout the movie, you see them trying to find ways to say they love each other without really succeeding. Cherry does say it in a way through his haikus but he doesn’t say it in front of Smile. And she can’t accept how she looks so she also can’t accept love. All this happens as they are searching for a lost record in order to help one of the elderly people from work. They are also facing a deadline. That deadline is Cherry moving out at the end of Summer.

This is a story about trying to find the courage of expressing one’s love to another and accepting oneself. It’s beautifully anchored in lyricism. There’s poetry all around. Cherry’s haikus speak volumes with simplicity. It’s an ode to love and to life.

VISUALS

To help build this romance, the visuals play an essential role. It’s really bright. All these colors are evoking Summer and that favors love. The drawing style is simple in design but rich in meanings. A lot is told through the visuals. It’s also so beautiful seeing all of Cherry’s haikus written with kanjis all other the city.

SOUNDTRACK

The soundtrack is peaceful and like the story itself lyrical. It’s in perfect harmony with the visuals. The movie features two songs Words Bubble Up Like Soda Pop by Kensuka Ushio and Yamazakura by Taeko Onuki. The latter is the song from the lost record. And that song is a delightful slow dance song.

VERDICT

Words Bubble Up Like Soda Pop is a wonderful story about two people having trouble communicating. It’s a celebration of love where poetry is all around.

Words Bubble Up Like Soda Pop is streaming exclusively on Netflix now.