- Title: One Week Friend
- Also Known As: 一周的朋友, Yi Zhou De Peng You
- Director: Gavin Lin
- Screenwriter: Hermes Lu
- Genres: Psychological, Romance, Life, Youth
- Country: China
- Year: 2022
- Duration: 1 hr. 46 min.
- Where to watch: WeTV
- Rating: 8,2/10
- Tags: Zhao Jin Mai, Lin Yi, Shen Yue, Wang Jia Hui
- Adapted from the manga “One Week Friends” (一週間フレンズ。) by Matcha Hazuki
One Week Friend Synopsis
Xu You Shu, Song Xiao Nan, and Jiang Wu were three troublemakers in the class. They were the source of teachers’ headaches, especially Xu You Shu and Song Xiao Nan who often openly quarreled in class.
Xu You Shu’s day suddenly changed when he met Lin Xiang Zhi, the new student in their class. On the first day she came, he was awestruck. Song Xiao Nan and Jiang Wu saw their friend was smitten with the new girl, and tried to help him conveyed his feeling to Lin Xiang Zhi. But she was cold to them, especially toward Xu You Shu. Do they give up? Certainly not! They tried many ways to get close to her.
The next week, precisely on Monday, they met again at school. However, Lin Xiang Zhi strangely did not remember them all. It turned out that she suffered from PTSD because of an accident. Lin Xiang Zhi could not remember any of her friends for more than a week. Her memory seemed to erase everything, and she was left with a blank slate every Monday.
Xu You Shu, Song Xiao Nan, and Jiang Wu tried their best to help Lin Xiang Zhi remember each one of them every Monday with the help of a diary. Their friendship lasted for months until one day the diary was lost and become the trigger that threatened their love and friendship when a shocking secret was revealed.
One Week Friend Review
I’ve rarely watched a movie recently. Then I stumbled on One Week Friend. Just the right time when I needed some sweetness to color my day. Friendship alone was a common theme. But the friendship of youth hits me differently.
One Week Friend touched my heart. I thought this movie would be a simple, light romance that would remind me of how beautiful the youth was. However, the movie was heavier than I thought. It made me realize that youth was like a butterfly. It was beautiful yet delicate.
The Overall
This movie was an adaptation of a manga with the same title, written by Matcha Hazuki and it was also a remake of a Japanese version. I would not compare the live actions and the manga, since I have not watched the Japanese version or read the manga. But I had to admit that although I was somehow disappointed with the story, I did not regret spending some time watching this good movie.
The story was well written with a shocking plot twist. The writer really could play with others’ minds. The sweet light story that was offered at the beginning was abruptly changed into a dark, gloomy, and depressing story. I, who just wanted to watch some cute fluffy story, was left dumbstruck in the second half of the movie.
Gavin Lin, the director, and Hermes Lu, the screenwriter, did a good job in most parts of the movie. I was just disappointed because I wanted to see more stories about Song Xiao Nan and Jiang Wu. But that was the only dissatisfaction with me. The rest of the movie was absolutely entertaining.
The visual was pretty good. Although the gloomy undertone was making me depressed. In my opinion, youth was the most colorful age in human life. Childhood was a pastel color and adulthood was a solid one. Only youth has both colors. Teenagers’ stories should be related with a colorful tone, lively soundtrack, and music score. But of course, it was my opinion when I watched the first 40 minutes of the movie. After that, I took back my stupid opinion. It would be weird if they put colorful tones into a sad story…😅
The cinematography was excellent and the set was astounding. I was awed by the visuals. The most heart-wrenching scene was when Lin Xiang Zhi curled up on a boat that floated on dark water. She missed her best friend and the scene was able to convey the loneliness in her heart. The filming angles and lightning worked very well to drive my emotions.
I cried my eyes out when Lin Xiang Zhi was scolded at Xu Jie’s funeral and when Xu You Shu cried at the dining table. Those scenes touched my fragile heart.
And also the scene when Xu You Shu met Lin Xiang Zhi and Xu Jie at the school’s storeroom. The sunlight from the ceiling shone on Lin Xiang Zhi. It should be a clue for us that it was Lin Xiang Zhi that caught Xu You Shu’s attention.
Mr. Gavin Lin did a very good job in this movie. Plus, it was such a delight to see a glimpse of Zhang Chen Xiao, the cute Dongfang Xunfeng in Love Between Fairy and Devil, who acted as Xu Jie’s brother.
The Casts
The main reason I choose this movie was that I saw Zhao Jin Mai and Shen Yue in the poster. I was impressed by Zhao Jin Mai’s acting in Reset drama and I became more impressed by her in this movie. In Reset, she was a lively girl who was determined to change her fate, while in this movie she became a depressed and guilt-ridden girl. Her acting was great and I’m sure she would have a plentiful offer for dramas and movies.
Meanwhile, I also loved to see Shen Yue in Mr. Bad. And just like her character Nan Xing, in this movie, she was brimming with energy. A perfect character for her childish and cheerful face.
Meanwhile, I was not familiar with our two handsome male leads, Ling Yi and Wang Jia Hui. But I admired Lin Yi’s acting as Xu You Shu. It was too bad that the story was focused on Lin Xiang Zhi and Xu You Shu. I would love to see more stories about Song Xiao Nan and Jiang Wu. How their feeling grew and how they dealt with their relationship.
The Character
Lin Xiang Zhi
Lin Xiang Zhi used to be a lively girl. Just like an ordinary teenager, she loves to play with her friend, went shopping together, get an identical necklace with her best friend, or went on a picnic. But then an accident happened and changed her life. Lin Xiang Zhi who was once a lively girl became a depressed girl who seldom speaks. Her grades have plummeted. She barely survived the harsh situation by herself. And then her mother came with the last resort: move to another school.
Her life changed when she met the trio, Xu You Shu, Song Xiao Nan, and Jiang Wu. She told them about her illness. That she had PTSD syndrome and she suffered from some kind of amnesia. She only remembered her friends for a week. When Monday came, she forget everyone except her family. Xu You Shu, Song Xiao Nan, and Jiang Wu treated her nicely. They helped her overcome the amnesia.
Lin Xiang Zhi’s character went from a cheerful girl to depressed and guilt-ridden, and later she changed again to a mature version of herself. She was a loyal person who loved her friends very much to begin with. But when Lin Xiang Zhi met the trio, she wanted to be friends with them, but her guilty towards Xu You Shu prevented her from doing so. She always thought that for him, she should not be the one who lived because it was Xu Jie whom he loved the most.
Song Xiao Nan
If I saw Lin Xiang Zhi, she had this kinda gloomy aura around her. It feels like she was surrounded by grey clouds. While Song Xiao Nan was the sun that shone through the clouds. Song Xiao Nan’s cheerful character always livened up the atmosphere. She lived love to its fullest. Song Xiao Nan was cheeky, and shameless, but also kind, loyal, and honest. She fell in love with Jiang Wu, but the other party did not seem to reciprocate her feeling. Nevertheless, she never gave up.
Song Xiao Nan was adorable and I really like her interactions with Xu You Shu and Jiang Wu. This trio was hilarious. There was a moment when Jiang Wu lent Xu You Shu a youth romance DVD. Song Xiao Nan saw Xu You Shu with the DVD, she immediately scolded him. She said that they were in the middle of College Entrance Exam preparation, so how could he indulged himself in that romantic stuff?
But when Xu You Shu said that the DVD belonged to Jiang Wu, she immediately praised Jiang Wu and said that it was so sweet for him to watch that kind of movie. However, the study must be their foremost priority. The conversation ended up in a brawl because Song Xiao Nan called Xu You Shu an iron tree and he replied by calling her a dry tree without sprouts.
Tree in Chinese romance represented their love life. The iron tree and dry tree could be described as a nonexistent love life.
Xu You Shu
Xu You Shu was an ordinary teenager. His grade was mediocre, well… to be honest, he needed more tutoring if he wanted to pass the College Entrance Exams since he often sleeps in the class. But he was a lively boy who was kind but a little naughty, and a bit naïve.
Xu You Shu’s feelings for Lin Xiang Zhi were strong. Even after the trauma, he still fell in love with her at the first sight. Xu You Shu did everything to win Lin Xiang Zhi’s heart. He racked his brain to help her find a way to overcome her amnesia. Xu You Shu bought her the diary to write about his friend and was willing to introduce himself to Lin Xiang Zhi every Monday.
Just like Lin Xiang Zhi, Xu You Shu also felt guilty for the accident that happened to Xu Jie. When he finally remembered the accident and Xu Jie’s family was willing to forgive them, he matured in one night. Xu You Shu knew that the accident was a knot in their hearts, hence he was willing to back down and stay away from Lin Xiang Zhi to give her some space. Xu You Shu’s heart never wavered even if they were apart. His resoluteness should not be questioned.
Jiang Wu
Jiang Wu was the only character that I did not grasp wholly since he did not have much screen time. He was more mature than Xu You Shu. He was calm and composed, intelligent, and a bit slow in feelings. Probably his IQ way surpassed the EQ. 😂
Jiang Wu was Song Xiao Nan’s love interest. He probably realized and he did not mind her feelings. I could see it when Xu You Shu mentioned Song Xiao Nan’s feelings for him, he did not deny it although he seemed embarrassed. And when the security guard chased him and Song Xiao Nan to the library, he embraced Song Xiao Nan to protect her. After that, he was not in a hurry to find Xu You Shu and Lin Xiang Zhi.
He was willing to sit by Song Xiao Nan’s side in a dark library. He just realized his feelings for her when one of their friends confessed to Song Xiao Nan after the exam finished. And he did not wait for a long time to express his feelings to her. If he was not sure about the feeling, he would not immediately confess to her.
Well, we all know that sometimes we just need a little push to move forward. Good job Jiang Wu!!
The Families
There were not many family members that appeared in this movie. Lin Xiang Zhi still had a father and mother. However, when she moved to town, she lived in her aunt’s house. Her mother sent her to another school as a last resort because her condition was worsening.
Lin Xiang Zhi was bullied by her friends and it made her fall into depression. Her grade also plummeted and she could not pass the College Entrance Exam. However, when everything was revealed and the exam was over, she immediately returned to her hometown to live with her parents.
Xu You Shu lived with his mother. His father was nowhere to be seen. When he woke up from the comatose, his mother decided to move to another city. She was afraid that if Xu You Shu remembered the accident, it would affect him. Hence, she decided to cut her son’s life in their hometown and start anew.
But she never thought that even after they moved, Xu You Shu still met Lin Xiang Zhi and still fell in love with her. Therefore, once again she told Lin Xiang Zhi to leave Xu You Shu alone and Lin Xiang Zhi did it.
When I saw the scene, I was angry at first. But then I realized that Mrs. Xu only did what a mother would do. She chose to lie to her son and hurt others rather than see her son walk through the gate of hell. Mrs. Xu did not want her son to be hurt and guilt-ridden. She did not want to see his life stand still. Therefore, she had to save him for whatever it cost. It was natural for her because she was a mother.
I did not see any family members of Song Xiao Nan but Jiang Wu had a sister who waited for him after the exam finished.
The Ending
Lin Xiang Zhi told Song Xiao Nan and Jiang Wu about the real situation more than six months before the exam. Song Xiao Nan and Jiang Wu understood that she wanted the best for Xu You Shu. She wanted him to start a new life and focused on his future. But they also understood that the accident was not her fault. Song Xiao Nan told her that when she was comforting Lin Xiang Zhi when she cried after she told the whole story. But the knot on Ling Xiang Zhi was too big to be dismissed by her.
Song Xiao Nan and Jiang Wu helped Lin Xiang Zhi to stay away from Xu You Shu. They no longer supported his intention to pursue Lin Xiang Zhi because they realized that she purposely avoided him for his own good. The first day after she knew that she would be Xu You Shu’s classmate, Lin Xiang Zhi wanted to transfer to another school again and the way she ruthlessly tore his letter showed that she did it for him even though it hurt herself.
However, they did not realize that Xu You Shu’s feelings for Lin Xiang Zhi were strong. Several days after the exam, Xu You Shu told Jiang Wu that he planned to see Ling Xiang Zhi and asked her which college she would be enrolled in. He planned to find another college in the same city. Jiang Wu tried to stop him but it only made them fight. Xu You Shu fell into the pool and it triggered his long memories. Xu You Shu went to find Lin Xiang Zhi but he was late. She has already returned to her hometown.
It was Xu Jie’s father who finally untied the knot in their heart. He said to Xu You Shu that if his life was stuck because of Xu Jie’s death, it would only bring pain to him and Xu Jie’s family. He also said that he knew Lin Xiang Zhi had come several times but she could not muster the courage to enter the house. Xu Jie’s father continued that both of them must take care of themselves. Later, Xu You Shu left the house with a box of Xu Jie’s mementos.
Xu You Shu knew that Lin Xiang Zhi needed some time to heal their wound. So he let her be. But he wrote an everyday journal for her. He sent the journal along with Xu Jie’s necklace to Lin Xiang Zhi. He hoped that the journal would help him to untie the knot in her heart and clear out all misunderstandings between them.
It was Lin Xiang Zhi that Xu You Shu loved all the time, and not Xu Jie. But because of Xu Jie’s feelings for him, Lin Xiang Zhi thought that Xu You Shu also had a feeling for her friend and not herself. They reconciled the day when the planetarium was demolished. And the four of them got together again.
It still dawned on me that everything was resolved because it was Xu You Shu that came to Xu Jie’s house. Xu Jie’s family knew that their daughter loved Xu You Shu and the fact that he also got hurt during the accident. When it came to Lin Xiang Zhi, she was despised because she survived without any scratch. Xu You Shi saved Lin Xiang Zhi first because he loved her. But unfortunately, he failed to save Xu Jie.
It seemed that Xu Jie’s family refused to acknowledge that it was Xu Jie who caused the accident. Back then Xu Jie saw Xu You Shu holding something from the picnic basket and thought that it was her confession letter.
Xu Jie wanted to see more clearly so she stood on the boat and made it swayed unbalanced resulting in both of them falling into the lake. But I do understand Xu Jie’s family’s feelings. They were hurt because they lost a dear daughter and sister. Death was inevitable, and no matter how hard we tried to avoid it, it always comes in time.
The Conclusion
I thought this movie would make me cry with joy, instead, it made me cry with sorrow. It was heart-wrenching and I could not do anything to my swollen eyes.
Death was inevitable and hard to accept. but it should not be a reason to bully someone. Moreover, if you did not understand the situation. I really despised Lin Xiang Zhi’s classmates back in her hometown.
All in all…The movie was good and I would recommend this movie to those who love sad movies. Do not be fooled by the happy posters. It was only 40 minutes of happiness and the rest was sadness.
So pile up your tissue and drink. No need to bother with the snack. Well, a small amount would be okay, though. Watch this movie on Friday night. Therefore you still have Saturday and Sunday to be with your loved ones before back to the routines on Monday. Happy watching!
