Reviews

it's just okayy

It's a good movie, but it lacks some stuff.
First, it is unclear what kind of relationship boksoon and Min-hyuk have. We will never know who Jae-young’s father is. May be its Min-hyuk but at the end, sending that iPad isn't something a father does.

And boksoon sure loves her daughter, but when Jae-young reveal she is homosexual and tells her about issues, boksoon leaves her alone and doesn't pick up the phone at all. and before that, when boksoon went to kill that student Jae-young calls her saying she was sorry and her voice was shaking. If it were me, I would run to Jae-young thinking she was gonna do something like suicide assuming the issues she had been facing recently. and who wouldncall that much just to say her GF broke up with her. It just doesn't make sense. It's true she is facing some issues, but in my opinion, it doesn't make sense.

Despite flaws like this, and if you are looking for a good action movie the film is enjoyable to watch.

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It's exactly what it says on the box. If you like the packaging, the movie will satisfy.

The movie trailer for this pretty clearly implied what it was about. Basically, it's about a small faction of people working together trying to gain the advantage to win a war/battle for their side. So that's on point. This particular genre is not for everyone, you either like this kind of story or you don't, so my review will not focus on the genre of film.

THE GOOD:
- The acting of the cast is very suitable to the style of the film. For example, one of the first scenes in the beginning, in the restaurant, did a great job of immediately showing the viewer the desensitized nature of the two men when it comes to violence by way of the conversation they're having. It was a good way to set the tone for both of the characters going forward, considering their violent actions in the film thereafter.
- The cinematography is also good, there isn't an excess of music either and the director and actors did well using nuance of facial expressions, pauses, silences, looks and some props in the scenes to maintain the tense, somber aura of the film content. The wardrobe department also did well.
- The dialogue is minimal but fairly intense in most scenes and is delivered well, which again, suits the film style.
- The fight scenes were pretty well choreographed and the cinematography also did well to make it seem more intense. The second fight scene was probably the highest 'action' point in the movie. As someone who enjoys fight scenes (action content), I enjoyed it.

THE (not so) BAD:
- I'm not a fan of non-linear story lines in movies. So the back and forth, out of sync sequence of events wasn't great. I can understand sometimes jumping back to show events that were intentionally meant to be misinterpreted or happened at the same time as other important moments, but sometimes it's not necessary and it has never appealed to me. This movie unnecessarily used it in some places.
- The fight scenes had some exaggerated hitting and impact sounds, which is very on brand for a Chinese film I suppose. However, it unfortunately sounded a bit silly because fighting doesn't sound like that and it's 2023 and everyone knows that.
- The film was predictable. It became obvious quite quickly that the small main cast group were infiltrating an enemy camp undercover, and even toward the end, despite the fight scene with his 'colleague', WY's character was obviously a double agent.

THE (possibly) UGLY:
- I don't like how genuinely 'stray' the animals used in the film appeared, and I can't read Chinese so if there was some notice to say no animals were harmed in the making of the film in the credits (like in western films), someone let me know.

HIGHLIGHT:
- No over all highlight in this one for me. Although, perhaps the fact that the characters constantly had me wondering if they were going to start killing each other was a highlight to the acting, they all felt like they were on the verge of violence in some form or another in almost every scene.

PERSONAL HIGHLIGHT:
- As a fan of Wang Yibo, I think he acted well in this. It's not to be overstated, he's not breaking any moulds, but it's also not be understated, because he does very well in his physical scenes and he also manages to emote intimidation and anger really well. His 'reaction' scenes and his fight scenes were enjoyable and I would definitely prefer to see him in more films like this, where he does more acting, tests his range and where he wears less make up. And let him play a bad guy/villain ffs, he has the face and demeanor for it.

Not bad. If you like this genre, I'd say try it,

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Too soft and not enough romance!

Nothing special, missing this won't effect you. To be honest the series with the build up before they got together was better then when they were together, it was too soft and not enough romance! I almost see them as friends that are almost too close or that maybe have a crush on each other vs them actually dating. It's TOO soft, I actually want to whine *cries* you can do these things platonically what makes you guys be in a romantic relationship?? A relationship like theirs in real life would be amazing cause I love the simple things but that is different vibe to the series with its comedy and basis on intimacy, I guess I want more when it comes to watching a show or movie.

I wouldn't call this bad, I just didn't feel the chemistry or intimacy (at least attempts at it) that I felt in the series. I couldn't seem to be interested or care about the movie as it was basically us following Kurosawa and Adachi around as if it a slice-of-life anime. I'm all for baby steps and taking it slow, I even prefer it but the movie makes it almost unatural where is the tension or chemistry from the series??

This was such a comfort show for me, I'm glad I didn't wait and anticipate this movie cause I'd be even more disappointed. I think if it was its own season rather than a movie it maybe could have matched up to the series.

Don't let my review stop you cause we like different things, I love Cherry Magic because it hits all my soft and happy spots, its my comfort show though the movie is the same atleast similar vibe of the series I just didn't love it. If you're part of the fandom, I believe you'll enjoy this but if you love the series watch the movie anyways cause I believe a continuation of a show you love will never be a waste of time.

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Two girls on a date, but backwards

The story of a date, from the end to the beginning and then back to the end. This very short film is more reminiscent of a music video than an actual short film. Still it manages to a story through its images alone as the audio track is just an instrumental piece. It is so short that there is not much to say, except maybe that it makes you want to know more, to see more than just snippets of this date that brought the two girls all over the city.
The directing is trying something, the fact that the film is mainly told via rewind with the images going backwards and yet forwards at time. The editing is really nice too. The warm colours of the images add to the atmosphere. It is not quite a dream, not quite a memory. It feels warm and not just because of the country's heat.
In short, if you want to spend some nice 3 min, why not watch Swirl.

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sigh

this movie is interesting, but feels way too drawn out for what it is. it's long and soooo incredibly slow. near the end of the movie i found myself repeatedly checking how much longer i had left. for the first 1h 40m of the movie all it did was make me want to hug shuhei and fuyuka and beat up their mom. when we FINALLY got to the interesting bits, it was kind of anti climactic. the most thrilling scene of the film lasted maybe 3 minutes or less. and i don't know why shuhei keeps defending his mom. i know he doesn't have much, but he seems to be fine taking care of himself a lot of the time, without her help. she's really done nothing good for him to make her deserve his mercy other than i guess be a mom

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Something different, different

This was... ehem... what was this? It was a bunch of crackers (I thought one of them was a bunch of trash bags) singing they want to be eaten gently, lovingly and what not... I am not going to say this is good but it is definitely something different that I do believe people should watch for the WTF did I just watch effect that it has.

If you look for it you will find a whole lot of symbolism, if you do not look for it you will see what could be understood as both a love triangle and a poly relationship. Very short, very sweet , very different than anything I have ever seen before.
I enjoyed seeing a young Yoon Park. I am not really sure I actually enjoyed this but as I said it is just something different, and that is worth a lot!

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Slow paced

The drama has a potential to be a good melodrama but overall it became too slow paced and there were unnecessary fillers which felt draggy. The time skips were too fast and the story seems be lacking a solid chemistry between the two. Was excited to see the Main cast together after Goblin, but the excitement faded away 15min into the movie. This was a tough watch for me considering that i liked Jung Hae In's slice of life dramas like One spring night and Something in the rain.
what i liked about this drama: Cast !! That's all!!
what i didn't like: story which didn't connect the time skips, their lack of communication, gloomy music, side characters with no use to the story at all.
Wouldn't recommend who are not into slow paced or the fans of main cast!!

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why?

WTF was that ending. I don't go into romcom to have an unhappy ending where the guy dies just before he was about to reunite with our MC and she spends years not knowing about it and resenting him. The contrived misunderstandings with the bffs stopping them from being together were only bearable if it all led to a happy ending! The genre shift came so completely out of nowhere I was just baffled and ended up checked out. It reeks of the romcom that didn't want to be like the other romcoms and just failed at being anything satisfying. Way to ruin the outstanding performances of your amazing, charismatic, and personable cast!

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Lurking in the dark is but a story of LOVE and TRAGEDY

I don't really know where to start but let me start this review by saying, "this movie was beautifully and wonderfully sewed in the dark"

The beginning of the movie bears lots of promises. A promise of a wild yet perfect cinematography, a promise to touch your innocence with an invitation to enjoy the darkness and a promise of a BL story. Because for all I know if not all there's someone who decided to watch this movie because of the BL ingredient on it.

Anyways let's go down to the business...

MUSICALITY. Obviously as what the title implies this movie will surely involves singing or music in general. For those who enjoys rap, free speech composition with a raw touch of feeling and emotions surely this movie is for you. You'll come to appreciate the unbounded power of music but for those who are not into such kind of genre you'll surely find yourself trying to understand and enjoy it. For me, I'll give it a pass. I'm not so fond of rap but I love writing thus the compositions strike me the most in those scenes than the rap.

CINEMATOGRAPHY. The movie is more likely produced with an indie film touch on it which contains the raw beauty of reality. The color grading is true to its natural form. The settings, location are well thought of except the forest scene. That's the last place for me to do such act. 😉

CASTING. The main leads nailed it all. Their roles are really suitable to their visuals, get up and background. The main leads are drop dead gorgeous especially sensie. I would fall for him if I were there for sure. They're just too perfect.

STORY. This made the movie worth a penny. The storyline. The movie tackled issues that do not usually happen but do happen and how someone's life could change because of it. The story of survival, slavery - on a different level, story of motivations, inspirations and brotherhood. In all honesty I could say lots of good things about the movie when it comes to the story because for me this is the cream of the crop of this film.

BL? Uhmmm. It depends on how you see BL. If you see BL as a lovey dovey story of both men then this movie is not BL. If you see BL as love between both men regardless of how the story goes and ended well this could be BL. So it is really up to you.

NOT SO FAVOURITE PARTS. I don't like the scene before it ended. Don't really like such ending because the story started dark. I do understand that the story mirrors the cruel reality of our world but I'm this kind of person who see films, movies and dramas as an escape to what I am used to. Thus, I don't fantasized such direction for the finale other than that some parts are quite acceptable.


This is but a great movie. 🙂

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If there is one less wolf out there, does it really matter?

I am fully aware that i am a very cynical person, but my cynicism is not unwarranted in this regard as the world is an unkind place to the mute, the wordless. I started this with a wariness in my mind that this could turn out to be yet another insincere effort of a human glorifying their own deeds.

And I was very, very wrong. Every moment of this, from when Li Weiyi searches for and encounters the pup till the credits roll in, each moment is a testimony to a beautiful bond between them.

Save him first, Li Weiyi says to us. She does not have reasons to offer to support her decision for bringing a wild wolf into the city. All she knew was that she had to save this little life who lost every happiness because of humans. For a while things do go well as Green, the wolf, grows into a strong boy. But it is soon understood that his place is not in the city.

So where can he go? What place promises a safe sanctuary for a wolf in today's world, wonders Li Weiyi as she looks through the glass at a large alpha, the kids beside her banging their hands at the wall to provoke the captive wolf.

This is not so much a story of a wolf returning to the wild. It is about finding a safe abode for the wolf, for it is not the wild that Li Weiyi is afraid of.

In his short story No Room for a Leopard, Ruskin Bond asks, “But did the leopard, trusting one man, make the mistake of trusting others?"

Li Weiyi is afraid of the humans who encroach upon the wild with sinister intentions. As she runs her hands through a cloak made of wolf fur, she can only see the eyes of her own son. The wolf who having been brought up by humans, has forgotten the fear of humans that has been ingrained so deep in others of his species that even the pups stay away.

Return to the Wolves is a call for the establishment of China's first wolf sanctuary. It offers a tender look into the wildlife of the vast Zoige prairie, and the diverse beauty that co-exists there. When I look at places like this, i just hope that no human can ever find their way there. I loved how they showed Green in his wolfish wild nature; Li Weiyi tells us too look at the him and says we humans are more cruel than the wolf who hunts an animal in the wild.

This "review" hasn't been much of a review (in my opinion) as a statement of how touched I have been by this documentary. In terms of production values, it is a linear straightforward narration with the occassional voiceover to supplement the story at times. Li Weiyi and Yi Feng have an eye for scenic beauty, and they incorporated beautiful shots of the prairie and the mountains that was supposed to be the new home of their beloved child.

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I wish to narrate a rather personal experience of mine. It was in the monsoon. the flood season was almost upon us and with that, it was the season of dog mating. Pups were being born, each with a predetermined ill fate: they would either be washed away or they would get crushed by a car, and if they made it so far, they would die of hunger or live to suffer their whole life.

Six such pups, a litter, was born behind our house.

The rains came and my mother and I set up a small bamboo shelter for them. But as the rained poured harder, we knew they would die. Ours is a small household, we were two kids and our father was away. We already housed many cats. Despite this, my mother brought these pups into our basement. I tried to be a voice of reason, who would keep them in their adulthood? My mother calmly said, let them live first.

So when Li Weiyi says "it doesn't matter whether it's right or wrong if you save him. don't let him die." It reminds me of this moment. How many humans would rather turn a blind eye? And does it really matter if there is one less wolf out there?

If there is a god, they are there in humans like Li Weiyi, in people who through seemingly small and large acts of kindness and love, multiply the beauty in this world several folds. Maybe people don't care, and most people don't, but what is the meaning of humanity if we kill innocent lives for self-serving reasons or if we have never gone out of our way to be kind even once.

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Hidden Blade: A Visually Stunning Noir Masterpiece with Superb Acting and Direction

Director Cheng Er's Hidden Blade is a cinematic gem that captures the essence of Chinese noir cinema with remarkable precision. Set against the backdrop of a small Chinese town during the 1930s, the film tells the story of Mr. Ye (Wang Yibo), a skilled martial artist who finds himself caught in a web of political intrigue and personal turmoil.

One of the most striking aspects of this film is the visual style employed by Cheng Er. Every shot is composed with exquisite care and attention to detail, evoking the moody and melancholic atmosphere of classic film noir. The use of muted colors, soft lighting, and long takes all contribute to the film's overall aesthetic, creating a sense of timelessness that draws the viewer into the story.

The acting in Hidden Blade is equally impressive. Wang Yibo gives a standout performance as Mr. Ye, conveying both the character's physical prowess and emotional depth with remarkable skill. His interactions with the other characters are nuanced and complex, bringing a sense of authenticity to the film's intricate web of relationships.

The fight scenes in Hidden Blade are expertly choreographed and executed, with a realism and brutality that is both thrilling and visceral. The final confrontation between Mr. Ye and Watanabe (Mori Hiroyuki) is a masterclass in cinematic combat, showcasing the talents of both the actors and the fight choreographers.

While some viewers may find the film's non-linear timeline confusing, Cheng Er's direction is so deftly handled that the story flows seamlessly from one scene to the next. The film's pace is deliberate but never slow, building to a satisfying and emotionally resonant climax.

In the end, Hidden Blade is a film that demands to be savored and appreciated. It is a beautiful and haunting work of cinema that will stay with you long after the credits have rolled. If you are a fan of noir or historical films, this is a must-see movie that showcases the best of both genres.

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the best concept of time traveling

One heart warming movie about time traveling. For me this is the best concept of time traveling. You can only visit without doing much, everything happen is happen and you can't change it. What you can do, only know what's your mistake & correct it in your own timeline.

What I don't too like is actually the story of Tokita Kazu herself. Although a little bit make more sense, but I think they kinda stretch it to fit the story. But her story also really interesting, how they take the future to help with present time.... Haha...

Overall this heart warming story about how we should seize the time before we left with something to regret.....

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Really good background noise

I never condone cheating in any capacity but this movie really highlights how serious emotional infidelity can be. Once you check out of a relationship emotionally then no amount of physical presence can really bring you back. This movie is very realistic about how relationships are very fragile and can be broken by just about anything. I will say, I think her abortion really affected Da eun more than we see. Jang Hyuk's reaction to her news was probably everything she needed to realize he had checked out. Just saying.

I, unfortunately, saw the spoilers before I watched so it didn't surprise me but I enjoyed the movie still.

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"Unless you can fly, there's no way to escape!"

Ti Lung, David Chiang and director Chang Cheh made a number of films together, including one of their earliest, Have Sword Will Travel. Chang Cheh diverged from his usual Buckets 'O Blood format in this film, slowed down, and gave the story and characters time to grow. That doesn't mean there wasn't plenty of red dye #40 used, but he did wait until the last third of the film for the fighting to truly commence.

Siang, the dart master, played by Ti Lung and his lady love Piao Piao (the lovely Li Ching) are lounging in a flower covered meadow. It's a typical marriage proposal with Siang throwing a dart at the yellow flower in Piao Piao's hair and nailing it to the tree behind her all while fighting off a dozen bandits. They are on their way to the Invincible Village to help out Lord Yin who is responsible for escorting an imperial treasure of 200,000 silver pieces. Meanwhile, Lo Yi, a poor wandering swordsman is just seeking shelter for the night and stumbles upon a tower where a huge group of bandits called the Flying Tigers are holed up. They are led by none other than Ku Feng as Jiao Hung. Lo manages to avoid a fight and ends up in the Invincible Village. Siang is convinced he's a spy and wants to dispatch him, but his anger might have had more to do with Lo and Piao Piao making googly eyes at each other. Along with setting up the key players for the eventual all-out fight over the silver, the fight for the heart of Piao Piao has begun as well. Who will live, who will die, who will ride off into the sunset, and who will win fair maiden's heart?

The title is a play on the name of an American tv show, Have Gun Will Travel, starring Richard Boone from 1957-1963. Aside from David Chiang's wandering character and his friendship with his horse, the western references were few. This was largely a sword-fighting drama with quality fights for the era. The bad guys also employed chains with knives, bow and arrows, and what looked like metal boomerangs. Yuen Cheung Yan and Tang Chia choreographed the fights which were few early on, but made up for it in the finale. The body count was high by the ending credits. In true wuxia form there was an abundance of trampoline and wire work which for the time looked pretty good. The blood spurting was understated for a Chang Cheh movie, but if it's something you enjoy, there were several slow motion geyser scenes that should quench the most blood thirsty viewer.

A familiar tower which was used in other films and prescient of Bruce Lee's Game of Death idea, had the heroes fighting their way up the different levels manned with weapon wielding bad guys. As much fun as it was to watch the battles, it made little sense for the good guys to detour off the road with their precious cargo of silver to end up at the tower. The movie looked like Shaw Brothers sank more money into this one than many other of their films. The sets were a step up from their disposable sets built for rough and tumble bar fights. While the outdoor filming provided a scenic backdrop for the actors it could be unsettling when it bounced back and forth between nature and the sound stage in the same scene.

The three main actors had a nice chemistry and played off each other well. Ti Lung was confined to playing the man jealous of his rival's sword skills and how his girl gazed at Lo's narrow sword. David Chiang is not a favorite of mine, but he managed to let a few emotions crack through his closed off face. At one point when Lo had to sell his horse in order to eat, you could feel the sense of loss. Both Siang and Lo were unrelentingly proud which became tiresome after a while. Ku Feng really sank his teeth into the charismatic leader of the Flying Tigers. In one scene Ku slithered up to Lo like a snake in the garden and tempted the expert swordsman to join his gang.

The visual quality of Have Sword Will Travel was impressive compared to other martial arts films of the time. The vicious sword fights were well done and the story had real stakes for the fights. The love triangle added emotional depth so often missing in these movies. I was disappointed that we missed out on a friendship or mutual respect developing between the two rivals because that would have set this movie even further apart in quality from other cut and paste kung fu flicks. Instead, there were two prideful men, unwilling to accept help from each other even when it no longer made sense to push each other away. I kept hearing Mony Python's knight saying, "Tis but a flesh wound!" Regardless of this quibble, Have Sword Will Travel with the renowned trio of Chang Cheh, Ti Lung, and David Chiang is one for martial arts movie fans to seek out.

4/11/23

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