Beautiful Life

Kyoko's, a wheelchair-bound librarian, first meeting with her hairdresser leads to more encounters as Kyoko starts to like him because he treats her normally despite her condition.

Beautiful Life (2000) is a Japanese television romantic drama created by Eriko Kitagawa for TBS. Its single season of eleven 51-minute episodes follows Kyoko Machida (Takako Tokiwa), a wheelchair-bound librarian whose life changes after a chance meeting with a hairdresser, Shuji Okishima (Takuya Kimura). Kyoko begins to warm to him because he treats her as an ordinary person rather than as someone to be handled with pity, and each encounter draws the two closer while her family, including her father Masao Machida (Atsuro Watabe), watches the relationship develop. The engine of the story is the slow, careful building of trust and affection between two people whose lives are shaped by her physical limits and by a shadow of serious illness that hangs over their future. Episodes unfold through everyday moments, shared meals, small defiances and quiet conversations, rather than through action or spectacle. The mood is tender, wistful and melancholic, with a steady undercurrent of grief that gives the warmth a bittersweet edge. Fans of Love Story and Hero will find resonance in its emotionally direct romance and its focus on a love that must make room for hardship. Set in contemporary Tokyo, it is a classic example of early two-thousands Japanese television drama built for viewers who want a story to cry over.

Reviewers found the drama emotionally affecting and sensitively handled, with strong lead chemistry, though it leans on familiar romance conventions.

• Love Story (1970)shared romantic drama tone, illness and love storyline, emotionally heavy prestige romance
• Hero (2001)shared japanese romantic drama with tragic undertone and disability theme
• Kimi ni Todokeshared tearful romance structure centered on a terminal or fragile partner

Created by

Eriko Kitagawa

Release Date

2000-01-16

Episode runtime

51 min

Rating

7.7 / 10 (14)

What is Beautiful Life about?

A wheelchair-using librarian grows close to the hairdresser who treats her as an ordinary person, and the romance unfolds under the weight of illness and loss.

What is Beautiful Life like to watch?

Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Beautiful Life as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as simple.

Is Beautiful Life violent?

No — Ember's analysis finds no violence in Beautiful Life.

What did critics think of Beautiful Life?

Reviewers found the drama emotionally affecting and sensitively handled, with strong lead chemistry, though it leans on familiar romance conventions.

Which shows are like Beautiful Life?

Shows with a similar feel include Love Story (1970), Hero (2001), and Kimi ni Todoke.

How long is Beautiful Life?

Beautiful Life: 1 season, 11 episodes.

Is Beautiful Life still running?

No, Beautiful Life has ended.

Where can I watch Beautiful Life?

In United States, Beautiful Life streams on Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads.