Dear Friends

Rina is a high-school student who has developed a troubling view of friendship, believing that friends aren’t truly necessary and can only be used in moments of need. This outlook colors her relationships with classmates and even her own family. Her father, Rina’s Father, is distant and seemingly unconcerned with the family’s well-being, while her mother, Rina’s Mother, remains intensely protective in a way that often feels restricting to Rina. Despite the friction at home, she spends a lot of time at a nightclub in Shibuya, where she becomes part of a small circle that includes the disc jockey Yousuke and friends Hiroko and Emi. In the opening moment, a reckless choice ripples through this bond when she borrows Hiroko’s boyfriend for a sexual encounter, infuriating Hiroko and setting a volatile dynamic in motion.

Yousuke is drawn to the enigmatic [Rina], but her feral edge keeps him unsure about their closeness. Their relationship inches toward intimacy, but the couple never quite crosses the line into sex, and his feelings for her grow even as her attitude remains hard to read. Their scenes together at the club are punctuated by the carefree yet reckless atmosphere of late-night life, where money and status mingle with temptation and risk.

A pivotal turn arrives when Rina fabricates a pregnancy to pressure a man into paying for an abortion she herself initiates, spending the money on luxury and spectacle—like spraying Dom Pérignon over the club. The moment of excess culminates in a collapse on the dance floor, and she is rushed into medical care where a shocking diagnosis emerges: she has non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Her hospitalization marks a shift in tone and tempo, as the bustling club world gives way to sterile corridors and quiet, fraught rooms.

In the hospital, Maki—a classmate who claims they were friends in primary school—visits and reconnects, even though Rina does not remember her at first. Maki’s presence introduces a new thread of companionship that gradually unthreads Rina’s stubborn belief that friendship is unnecessary. A younger patient, Kanae, also on a neighboring ward, reaches out with warmth and persistence, bidding for a friendship that seems almost out of reach to Rina as she battles illness and fatigue. Through these hospital days, Rina’s body weakens—hair falls out, her skin grows pale, and the cancer gnaws at her sense of self-identity. The narrative quietly reveals that Kanae, too, faced leukemia and died after a bone marrow transplant failed, underscoring the fragility of life.

The medical revelations intensify when Rina confronts a mastectomy prompted by cancer spreading to the left breast. In a moment of despair, she contemplates ending her life by jumping from the hospital rooftop. Before she can take that final step, Maki makes a drastic, self-sacrificial choice by stabbing herself in the chest to share the pain and prove she will not abandon her friend. Maki’s act of solidarity awakens a glimmer of hope for Rina, even as she remains physically fragile and emotionally torn. The two form a fragile bond, with Maki serving as a reminder that friendship can give life renewed purpose, even if the two are not always able to connect in the days that follow.

The hospital world expands as Hiroko and Emi visit with complicated revelations: Hiroko discards a love letter meant for Rina from Yousuke and claims that she and Emi had a sexual encounter with him, a claim Emi awkwardly acknowledges. In the wake of this news, Hiroko’s behavior hints at deeper turmoil, and Emi’s subdued admission adds to the sense of a friendship network strained by secrets and the pressures of youth. After the medical storms, Rina is discharged and attempts to resume life beyond the hospital walls, returning to the club scene with trepidation.

Yet the old rhythms do not return easily. A cautious Rina seeks a semblance of normalcy, trying to rejoin the party life, but the scars—both physical and emotional—mark her. The moment she tries to engage sexually with Yousuke again, he recoils, unsettled by the visible reminders of her cancer and mastectomy. This disheartening reminder pushes her back toward the hospital’s rooftop, where she once stood on the brink. A nurse interrupts, reminding her that Maki wanted her to live, and a sense of guilt and longing for friendship pushes Rina toward reconsidering her path.

In a striking, almost surreal turn, a nurse brings in a wheelchair-bound Maki, whose condition is terminal—an unspecified neurodegenerative disease that dwarfs the earlier cancer struggle. Maki’s message is stark but uplifting: she has chosen to stay alive in order to meet and share moments with friends like Rina. This encounter crystallizes Rina’s resolve. She rediscovers a sense of purpose, enrolls in nursing studies, and dedicates herself to caring for Maki in her final days. The story closes on a quiet, poignant note: after three months, Maki passes away, but the bond that formed in the hospital leaves a lasting imprint on Rina’s life—enough to steer her toward a path of compassion, service, and steadfast friendship.

Throughout this journey, the film threads together themes of vulnerability, resilience, and the evolving meaning of friendship. The cast’s intertwined lives—Rina, Yousuke, Maki, Kanae, Hiroko, Emi, and the protective, sometimes stifling parental figures Rina’s Father and Rina’s Mother—create a layered tapestry. The narrative never shies away from difficult choices, painful losses, or the surprising ways in which friendship can become a lifeline, transforming a life on the verge of despair into one that seeks healing, purpose, and connection.

Last Updated: October 09, 2025 at 15:11