3
5
jpny01
I wanted to love this and did my best
I didn't hate this. But it's not good.
There is no story, or at least not anything coherent enough to really merit the word "plot".
The "story" revolves around a failure of communication so utterly preposterous that it never really recovers from it and meanders all over the place, including a huge amount of time being wasted on an irrelevant corporate espionage subplot obviously written by someone who's never had a corporate job and who's knowledge of technology is minimal, and spends no time at all on one of the romantic pairings - I didn't even know they were a pair until the last scene.
I think the writing trapped itself with the famous preview where Shu Yi strides in to a corporate office and slaps Shi De. They really didn't know where to go from there, so intead an incredibly convoluted and tedious backstory was cobbled together to explain it.
If they wanted to have this start out with them as enemies, there are so many better routes this could have taken. Imagine this: they are comically horrible to each other, but the smouldering chemistry is still there. They end up having hate sex, after which Shu Yi tells Shi De "I hate you. I never want to see you again. Starting one hour from right now." Hate isn't the opposite of love, indifference is. It would have been funny and hot if they'd end up having crazed hate sex every time they were alone beacause they couldn't control it, until they hated each other back into love.
The acting is very good, the costume & production design are stunning, the cinematography was beautiful... there were so many first-rate ingredients - it's just the chef had no idea what to do with them.
There is only one scene I will ever rewatch, and those of you that have seen it can probably guess which one - I don't think I will ever tire of it. Well, maybe two. There's also a gratuitous scene where Shi De takes off his shirt for no apparent reason and stares out the window for a couple of minutes. Pointless, but not unwelcome.
If you want to watch a bunch of unusualy attractive men on your screen for a few hours doing incomprehensible things, you might like this. If you're expecting anything connected to the charming story of S1, you may be disappointed.
There is no story, or at least not anything coherent enough to really merit the word "plot".
The "story" revolves around a failure of communication so utterly preposterous that it never really recovers from it and meanders all over the place, including a huge amount of time being wasted on an irrelevant corporate espionage subplot obviously written by someone who's never had a corporate job and who's knowledge of technology is minimal, and spends no time at all on one of the romantic pairings - I didn't even know they were a pair until the last scene.
I think the writing trapped itself with the famous preview where Shu Yi strides in to a corporate office and slaps Shi De. They really didn't know where to go from there, so intead an incredibly convoluted and tedious backstory was cobbled together to explain it.
If they wanted to have this start out with them as enemies, there are so many better routes this could have taken. Imagine this: they are comically horrible to each other, but the smouldering chemistry is still there. They end up having hate sex, after which Shu Yi tells Shi De "I hate you. I never want to see you again. Starting one hour from right now." Hate isn't the opposite of love, indifference is. It would have been funny and hot if they'd end up having crazed hate sex every time they were alone beacause they couldn't control it, until they hated each other back into love.
The acting is very good, the costume & production design are stunning, the cinematography was beautiful... there were so many first-rate ingredients - it's just the chef had no idea what to do with them.
There is only one scene I will ever rewatch, and those of you that have seen it can probably guess which one - I don't think I will ever tire of it. Well, maybe two. There's also a gratuitous scene where Shi De takes off his shirt for no apparent reason and stares out the window for a couple of minutes. Pointless, but not unwelcome.
If you want to watch a bunch of unusualy attractive men on your screen for a few hours doing incomprehensible things, you might like this. If you're expecting anything connected to the charming story of S1, you may be disappointed.
Was this review helpful to you?
