This is a very charming film that is very hard to describe in any detail. It essence is that a group of girls at a high school (which is surprisingly shabby and nondescript and clearly off in some non-Tokyo part of Japan) get together to form a band (regular old bass, drums, guitar, vocal) to perform a song at the end of term "culture festival." And, indeed, the climax of the movie is them playing it (as well as a couple of others, including one called "My Right Hand"). The song is "Linda Linda," an actual (great) song by (apparently) legendary Japanese punk band The Blue Hearts. But what the film really is is a slice of teenage life, with ennui, moments of inexplicable joy, falling in, if not love, then mild crush, and generally wondering about one's place in the world.
The band (whose name is Paranmaum, although that's not really important) has a bit of a history: it was formed by two very headstrong girls, Kei, a girl with a mid-length bob and a perpetual frown, and Rinko, a tall, improbably thin girl with an equally stern expression. However, before the events of the film, the two girls have had an epic falling-out, which seemed to involve the hand-injury (in PE) of the band's guitarist, the diminutive Moe (who returns at the end of the film in a different role). This left the band in shambles, although the drummer (Kyoko, round-faced, usually very cheerful, the only one of the band who seems to want to be with boys, or at least a boy (who is, as all boys in Miyazaki films are portrayed, tongue-tied and gormless)) the bassist (Nozomi, quiet, thoughtful, shy but clearly very committed to the band) are left. Because of The Event, they have to make a decision whether or not to continue and retain their slot in the concert. They do, but this means Kei has to essentially teach herself guitar, and as she's not reconciling with Rinko, they need a vocalist. They recruit, essentially at random - they're sitting on a wall
looking across the street at the archway leading into what looks like an apartment complex courtyard and Kei says they'll pick the first person they see, a decision she revises when it's a middle-aged man. But then a tall, perpetually pop-eyed gangly girl appears, who is Song, a Korean exchange student, and she is asked to be in the band. This is essentially the first sign of acceptance she has apparently had (her Japanese is definitely a work in progress), and she blossoms throughout the film as a result (to the extent that a boy has a crush on her, but Song would much rather be with the girls). Song is really the star of the film, in part because the actress, Bae Doona - a favorite of Bong Joon Ho, is so appealing. Her expressions are a constant delight and her rubbery physicality just make the character very engaging. Improbably, the Ramones feature briefly in the film and it occurred to me that Song is very Joey-esque: tall and awkward, but comes alive at the microphone. (She also catches the other girls off-guard with her blunt questions and observations - apparently a Korean trait, or at least according to the Japanese.)
Anyway, the rest of the movie is essentially a series of vignettes, presented very dispassionately, with no attempt at exploring the girls' backstories or their families. For example, at one point near the end we see Song playing with a little girl, whom we've never seen before, when Kei shows up. "Who's she?" asks the little girl, who is then happy to find that Song has made a friend. Clearly Kei is thinking the same thing about the girl, as are we. Is Song staying with a host family? Is this their child? No explanation is offered.
There's also Kei's "ex-boyfriend," who is a loser who sleeps in his car, but is undeniably cool, and who gets them a place to practice when they need it (road trip!),
and who fascinates Song, but about whom Kei does not like to talk. (Although a dream sequence near the end reveals she still thinks of him.)
As a boy's band also needs the school equipment, the girls decide to practice at night, something that is discovered by a rather milquetoast teacher (his sentences tend to tail off) who apparently sleeps on the school premises, but he never intrudes, and is happy to hear them practicing. This leads to the one piece of real tension in the film (Jami could hardly bear it) which is that they fall asleep on the day of the concert out of sheer exhaustion and it looks like they'll miss their gig. Will they? Watch it and see. For my money, I'd re-watch this before I re-watch the similar (although less innocent) Dazed and Confused.
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