Yes, No, or Maybe?

Masahiro Takata's 2020 Japanese animation adapts a comic and is about a relationship between two men. Kunieda is a respected newsreader who looks flawless on screen; off camera he is short-tempered, impatient and wants to deal with nobody. One night he runs into Ushio, an illustrator who sees him in that state without recognising who he is. Rather than correct the misunderstanding, Kunieda chooses to sustain it, and the relationship is built on that lie. The film centres the weight of carrying a public identity and the fear of being seen as you actually are. It belongs to the Japanese queer romance tradition and follows that form's conventions. The animation is modest and plain, with the weight in the dialogue. Who it's for: viewers who like Japanese queer romantic animation. Who it's not for: anyone unfamiliar with the genre's conventions, or uncomfortable with a relationship founded on a lie.