Cherry and Virgin, 2026.
Directed by Masanao Kawajiri.
Starring Takashi Okado, Yaeko Kiyose.
SYNOPSIS:
The 32-year-old erotic manga artist Ryo and 28-year-old BL-lover Ami work past their helplessness with the opposite sex and fall in love.
Inexperience, especially when it comes to love and intimacy, is something that many people experience, regardless of gender. The toxic, verging-on-manosphere traits that can emerge from this inexperience have exploded into pop culture through works such as Adolescence and Louis Theroux: Inside the Manosphere. We rarely see how people overcome these traits or learn to navigate their inexperience. The anime film Cherry and Virgin, directed by Masanao Kawajiri, explores these issues through the story of an eromanga (erotic manga) artist searching for love. The result is a funny and beautiful romantic comedy that stands as one of the best animated films of the year.
The film implements rotoscoping, a breathtaking technique in which artists draw over live-action footage. Several anime have utilised this, whether it be 100 Meters and Ghost Cat Anzu; however, none have used it to such breathtaking effect as Cherry and Virgin. Each character is rendered in a distinct art style. When we see events through Ryo’s (Takashi Okado) point of view, the visuals resemble the eromanga he creates: black-and-white drawings composed of rough, pencil-like lines. This contrasts with the film’s love interest, Ami (Yaeko Kiyose), whose bright, colourful backgrounds and polished character design evoke the BL (boys’ love) manga she adores.
It is when these styles interact and merge that the film becomes truly breathtaking. The first date between Ryo and Ami is honestly one of the most striking moments of animation this year. As they sit beside one another, we see half the screen rendered in black and white, while the other half bursts with vibrant colour. As Ryo gradually becomes immersed in the date, his surroundings are slowly flooded with colour, reflecting both his emotional investment in the experience and the joy that Ami brings into his life. This visual motif continues throughout, producing effective and purposeful results. The film is a true marvel of animation, using its visuals not only to captivate but also to add nuance and emotional weight to the narrative.
That narrative is equally meaningful, with Ryo emerging as one of the most interesting male leads in a romance film that I have seen in a long time. Given that he is an ero-mangaka (erotic manga author), you would expect him to be experienced with women and dating, considering that he draws them for a living. Yet all he has ever known about love and intimacy is based on assumptions which are reflected in his work. These are based on his assumptions about women rather than who they really are. This is why, when working on his latest eromanga, he struggles to write a poignant line for his female character, as he simply does not understand how women experience or view love.
Ami finds herself in a similar situation, being equally inexperienced when it comes to men. When is the right time to make love and take the relationship to the next level? If you wait too long, will it negatively affect the relationship? The maturity on display in its exploration of love and intimacy is unparalleled. While I understand that animation can be more than a kids’ movie, I often feel a disconnect when watching an animated love story, as we are not seeing actual people fall in love or come to terms with their emotions. Even then, any depiction of intimacy is illustrated rather than experienced through real performers. Yet the film overcomes these barriers, feeling like a genuinely mature piece of storytelling regardless of its animated form.
This is added by Okado and Kiyose’s truly wonderful performances as Ryo and Ami, respectively. We believe these are real people struggling to find a relationship in a world that feels like it is taken apart from you. They bring utter humanity to these people who, even in their late 20s and early 30s, are learning new things about love and intimacy that only come from experience that they never grew up with, which is all perfectly conveyed in their performance. Their performances also allow for the 86-minute runtime to fly by like no time had passed at all.
Masanao Kawajiri has directed a film that is nothing short of masterful. Cherry and Virgin is one of the finest animated films of the year, utilising rotoscoped animation to extraordinary effect in crafting a romantic comedy for the ages. Everything about this film feels remarkable, from its breathtaking visuals to its mature and heartfelt exploration of love and intimacy. I cannot help but fall in love with everything the film has to offer.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Robert Ewing
