Isn't what life is all about? Dealing with decisions made without regret? I don't know about others, but I find this completely refreshing and utterly different from all Western takes on Lesbianism.

There isn't one villain in the entire story, all conflicts and all problems are internal, making it completely realistic and real. No one is there to 'seperate' them, but they have to deal with the consequences of leading a gay life.

I am Asian, and can completely understand the perils of coming out and frowns of society in Asia.

About the story. This is an adaptation from a manga of the same title, Love My Life. It stars Yoshii Rei as Ichiko and Asami Imajuku as Eriko, who are two university students deeply in love. Ichiko decides to come out to her father, and finds out that her parents were both gay, and got married to start a family. This serves as the first consequence of the decision she made.

Like in the film, Ichiko narrates that "When you make a decision, you have to deal with the consequence, and it would be like dominoes falling, a chain reaction that seems never ending". She meets her deceased mother's lover, meets her father's lover, meet with the disapproval of Eriko's father and on top of it all, has to deal with school and her job.

The cinematographer seems very interested in the voyeuristic aspect of life, as if the audience are a fly on the wall in the everyday lives of Ichiko and Eriko. With this in mind, it doesn't really matter if the lighting is a little off sometimes, or that there are parts that are blown out. Or even if the edits are not too perfect... These are not important stuff. These are minor... The story is the gem...

Speaking of story, Manga, though branded a lot of times as juvenile and childish, sometimes has the best stories, they don't have to keep up with pretenses, they tell a story the best way they know how, and this is reflected in this film.

Nice, fluffy, realistic, romantic. It doesn't have the melodrama of Western films, doesn't have the angst and problems of other gay (western) films... it has a sincerity that is very rarely reflected even in other Japanese film.

I think it is great, and probably if you are not too concerned about it resembling anything like Hollywood or American Independent movies, you will understand the Gem that is hidden away in Little Japan.

I give it an excellent grade. And will now go hunt for the manga.

I'm a straight guy who co-exists with a lot of gay friends, co-workers, and an ex-gf who's now happy with another woman. Anytime something like Love My Life comes along that helps reinforce my belief that 'love is all there is' I'm all for it and will highly recommend it to anyone and everyone.

To be redundant, I highly recommend this film to whoever's reading. What makes this an especially great movie is that while the characters are gay - a touchy subject for many - it's a realistic story told in a smooth, comfortable, safe and palatable way that makes it easy to start watching, and there's nothing particularly shocking throughout. Artfully (aka tastefully) done and probably the best manga-to-film translation besides Nana (unrelated movie but recommended also). Love My Life is a very good primer for people who might be a little 'homophobic' or who don't have much experience with gay people in their daily lives and were curious to see how a gay person's normal routine compares to that of a straight person.

A nice love story no matter how you slice it!

Following on the heels of a number of recent Lesbian themed movies such as "Notes on a Scandal", "Maple Palm", "Loving Annabelle" and "Saving Face" comes Kawano Koji's much talked about Lesbian love story "Love My Life".

Adapted from the manga of the same name by popular female writer Yamaji Ebine, "Love My Life" stars Yoshii Rei (Yokai Dai Sensou) and Imajuku Asami (Tomie:The Beginning, Colors) as two attractive college students who also happen to be lovers and whose almost perfect relationship runs into some trouble.

Those expecting (or hoping for) a salacious, bawdy and sensationalistic film (like "Bound" or "Manji") will probably be disappointed as "Love My Life" does not have gratuitous scenes of the girls kissing and having sex. Rather, it plays very much like a conventional "J-Dorama" love story complete with the obligatory melodramatic plot lines, cute actresses and accompanying alternative "J-Rock" soundtrack.

Being a fan of Showtime's sometimes controversial "The L Word" drama series, I was pleasantly surprised at how similarly "Love My Life" focused on the relationship between the two girls. We get to know a lot about the characters and their lives...Izumi Ichiko (Yoshii) is the Literary Arts major who works part-time at a local CD music store and also does English to Japanese translation work on the side. Her father (played by Ishida Ira) has himself recently "come out" and is dating a very much younger man much to Ichiko's shock. Her brooding partner Eri, comes from a conservative family and has ambitions about pursuing law. While she has had many relationships in the past (both male and female) she feels that her relationship with Ichiko is different and wants very much to keep it strong.

As with "The L Word", the girls also have to deal with a number of common relationship issues as well as some specific to their sexual preference (past lovers, commitment, intimacy, prejudice, career goals, breakups).

It is to Kawano's credit that the story is told in an almost matter-of-fact and candid manner and without being relegated into a "soft porn" skin flick. The girls do share some moments of intimacy but it is done in a very brief, tasteful and touching manner (contrary to the somewhat erotic poster art).

Credit should also go to screenwriter Kanasugi Hiroko who successfully captured the tone and mood of Yamaji's manga work.

As noted the rock soundtrack is very good compliments of singer/songwriter Yoko whose upbeat songs match well with the film.

Some may find the film be a bit sappy and "too cute" at points but it is refreshing to see a good romance story where the characters seem like real people and not movie creations.

"Love My Life" is a bit of an oddity among Japanese movies but is a definite good movie which focuses on an alternate lifestyle, done in a way that doesn't make the Lesbian relationship out to be as lurid as has been portrayed in past films.