A tomboy in 1918 Japan decides her own life before the world decides it for her, and the movie refuses to let you catch your breath while she's doing it. Comedy that commits to its own chaos, romance that earns its punch through sheer momentum rather than lingering drama, period details that feel lived-in instead of decorative. By the time you realize what the film is actually about, it's already made you care about whether this girl gets to stay wild.

Benio Hanamura refuses to play the role her family expects. It's 1918, the Taisho era, and this spirited seventeen-year-old climbs trees, practices kendo, and tears through life with her best friends Tamaki and Ranmaru. She's loud, quarrelsome, and happy to defy tradition. Benio is set on finding love on her own terms, but her family has different ideas. What follows tests her sense of love, independence, and friendship against the backdrop of wartime. The first of two films adapting Haikara-san ga Tooru, it mixes comedy, drama, and romance.