Wotaku ni koi wa muzukashii

Narumi (Mitsuki Takahata) is determined at her new job to not be known as an "otaku," because she lost her last job when that became known. It turns out that Hirotaka (Kento Yamakazi), both a childhood friend and a fellow otaku, works at the same company she's landed in, and she is worried that he might out her there. But he's not that type of person, and instead they both start re-imagining their childhood friendship into something new, and maybe lasting. In the meantime, the best way that these young people have to express their longings and fears is....by song! With choruses and dancers, lots of dancers! But will they find their different ways too much to agree upon, on the sometimes stormy path to love?

I know literally nothing about anime beyond the word, I've never heard of "otaku" but I *think* (from this movie only) that it's sort of a video-gamer variation of anime. I read that this story is well-known in that world, and I (sadly) saw some reviews of this movie that hated it a lot, presumably by fans disappointed in this real-people version (looks like there's an animation version from a couple of years ago too). But I loved it! I love musicals - that completely ridiculous breaking into song (and with huge dance choreography) at the drop of a hat! And I love a basic love story, where the principal characters first clash, then find their footing together. And I loved that Narumi, especially, is way more than a "chore girl" in the company, she's an accomplished anime author and cos-player in her own right; not just a girl looking for love. People who know more than me about this world seem to dislike this move; for people like me who know nothing of that world (or don't care), this is quite a treat. Made me happy, anyway, and what more can anyone demand of entertainment in these Covid days?