Reviews

difficult to watch but Fluke delivers the performance of his lifetime!

I think we can all agree that this film is unsettling (to watch) and messed up in so many ways.
Whether you will like it or not, depends on your taste.

It is a vampire story that avoids all the clichees and has an interesting ending.

What I really would like to highlight is Fluke's performance. In many ways, he reminded me of Anthony Perkins in Psycho. Both have seemingly an innocent aura to them, but are deranged and killers underneath. It's just that Wine in this film is looking for love and will do anything - and I mean ANYTHING - to keep this love.

Fluke, who mainly played cute, sweet and innocent characters so far, takes his image, plays with it and in the end completely destroys it. His acting is FANTASTIC to the point that it makes you uncomfortable, in the best way. And to imagine how young he was in this one, he is a really talented actor!

Because of this and some interesting ideas, I give this film a 6/10. I had to switch it off at some point because I really would like to keep Fluke in my imagination as sweet and innocent. Also, it is not really well filmed and by that, I mean the lighting and some really awkward and uncomfortable sex scenes (but I guess, that was intended).

(I posted this review on IMDb, too, so no, it is not copied.)

Read More

Overall: there were some good plot points in this, but they were obscured by several things. Watched on GagaOOLala.

Content Warnings: death off screen, dub/non con sex (leaning towards non con based on how she addresses him towards the end), fight/slap, past suicide attempt, alcoholism, mental health struggles, defamation?, manipulation

What I Liked
- this does address several realistic issues/struggles that were relevant when this movie was made and are still relevant today (including judgy doctors/people about a woman's past reproductive choices)

Room For Improvement
- it felt that Asako was having a midlife crisis which is a terrible reason to have a child. I didn't like that she didn't just have a one night stand or use a sperm bank. She does explain/show that she wants the feeling of family which she wouldn't get if she did the other options (but this makes me see her character as selfish, not someone I want to route for). I think they could have altered Asako and the plot a bit where I would be happy with their decision (so if the guys had wanted it to start with)
- that part before the final scene came out of nowhere and was so bizarre, I don't understand the reason for it, to show that you should appreciate every moment?
- unlikable characters (and too many), they could have easily cut out some characters especially that female co-worker, it added nothing to the story
- too long, it dragged and cutting out some side characters would have helped move things along

Read More

Dark heartwarming comedy drama - mix I never thought could work.

Korea back at it again - making completely unrelatable scenarios feel relatable. The emotions were raw, the characters complex and the story both warm and heartbreaking.

It was unexpectedly funny. Yes, I know it was tagged with the comedy genre, but honestly speaking, many drama comedies have more bitter sweet takes on what’s supposed to be funny. Here, I actually smiled and laughed quite a few times. The story was dark and yet they managed to create some funny moments even from quite gore and violence driven situations.

The best part of the movie was for sure the (in my eyes) one sided connection between Tae In and Cho Hee. The way Yoo Ah In presented the character of Kim Tae In was both beautiful and painful. A character that seemed to give up on everything, just following whatever others told and not presenting even a slight of active behavior. The gradual and minimal and yet impactful change we see after he had to take care of Cho Hee was amazing to watch.

That said, I think it’s a movie you have to read the synopsis for. I honestly don’t think it would be obvious and easy to understand Cho Hee’s character if it was not for what I read about the plot. She is the center of the plot and one of the main characters, so the vague understanding of who she is that we get from the movie itself, could have been improved.

Acting wise - perfection. Yoo Ah In did not say one word during the whole movie, and yet I perfectly understood what he wanted to convey during his scenes. Moon Seung Ah did a phenomenal job with her portrayal of Cho Hee - a character so complex I am amazed a child was able to deliver a believable performance.

On the production side, I don’t think any compliments can truly express how beautiful the movie was. The wide shots gave such a warm and, strangely slice of life feeling, that grounded the movie in reality, even with the not so mundane plot.

Overall, a great movie with great performances and amazing visuals. One that I could easily recommend to anyone.

Read More

Overall, a cute film about first loves with angst, drama and a few twists and turns thrown in.

Just finished this and true to form… the ending sucked 😂😂. I don’t know what it is about Korean films and dramas but they are so good… they just keep sucking you in until you get to the end and then 85-90% of the time, they just miss the mark. I mean like nose dive off a cliff miss. Not to mention the fact that I thought this was a drama and only realized it was a film when some one mentioned it and asked didn’t I wonder why I had been watching it so long.. I did not and after watching a certain scene, I was left wondering how the show would move forward for 9 more episodes😂😂 Good thing it was a film because I would have been pissed having watched 10 episodes of a drama only for it to end the way it did… 😡
The characters were likeable for the most part and a few got on my nerves at times but overall I enjoyed them and they played their roles perfectly. The story line was pretty good as well… made me reminisce on my first love and kept me interested.. until that nose dive of an ending. Overall it was a cute film about first loves with angst, drama anda few twists and turns thrown in.

Read More

Madness that does magic

This is that kind of movie where the characters make all the dumb decisions and started the worst situation you could ever imagine, ironically it is exactly the madness that does magic in a sense of who can be the smartest out of all in this mind bending strategy war. What happens afterwards in the movie is pure magnificence, the legal indictment of its murder investigation is extremely detailed and the plot twist within it will ultimately blow your mind away not only once but multiple times. The acting performance is so intense it will pull you into a great deal of attention to determine the truth behind it, the amount of emotion and thrill it carries is unprecedented.

Read More

Atmosphere that carried a vague plot.

Something we often get from Japanese horror - vague plot with good atmosphere, great music and sound effects and still images inducing panic response. That’s also what we’ve got from Pulse.

By the end of the movie we are offered little to no real explanations, and most are left to the viewers interpretation. Is this a commentary about the dangers of the internet? Is this a commentary about the human need for interactions and the terrifying portrayal of loneliness? It’s up to the viewer to decide.

The characters were rather bland. I kind of stopped paying attention to who is who at some point, and it did not really take away from the watching experience. I honestly believe them as individuals was not that important plot wise.

The thing I loved about Pulse was the atmosphere and built up tension. There are no cheap jump scares and all the horror is based on the fear of the unknown, perfect choice of music and the prolonged shots of uncanny shots.

Overall, I would recommend it if you are in for a rather calm, but tense horror.

Read More

DON'T MISS THIS IF U R A BL/BROMANCE & WUXIA FAN

VISUALS, CINEMATOGRAPHY, CAST, PLOT, ACTIONS... everything was on point. Specially the BL VIBES. Most people are saying it's bromance but it's definitely screaming out loud that it's a censored BL. It's gives off the soul-mates vibe similar to the ones we got in Word of Honor, Killer & Healer, etc. I personally never felt like it was a brotherly bond. It was more of an enemies to lovers trope. And damn! The graphics are just soooo beautiful! The Chinese city shown is one of the best and most beautiful city I've seen to date. The plot was interesting. The villian was hot! And the MLs are top notch actors. Overall, it's a must watch. Don't miss it.

Read More

Shock. Tension. Laughter. Repeat

The words above are the phases I've went through in every scene in this movie. The soldiers are doing all sorts of crazy stuff and I'm quite worried that they might get caught. And when they're caught off guard, everything becomes hilarious. Then I'd burst out laughing. Sure enough, this is the comedy film I've been looking for ages.

However, I would like to give a disclaimer to the international viewers who are interested to watch this film. This might affect their viewing experience but I hope it won't affect tho. They might find some statements and gestures they (even I) don't understand. These are nuances that are uniquely Korean which also vary from the North and the South. In order to address this, I merely focused on their delivery to enjoy my viewing experience.

Overall, it was an enjoyable experience to watch this film. Might watch it again when I feel sad lmao

Read More

Tried too hard to be deep and complex and made a garbage movie

So I started the movie, really enjoying the ambiance and how it was filmed. But as I get further into the movie, I was confused about if the guy's ra**** is supposed to be the movie's love interest. But then I found out that Kai wasn't his ra****, but still, the things he said to him and how he treated him were not okay. That made the movie unnecessarily triggering. Including all the police scenes. And the dynamic between them was strange and so that was bad.
Also, it's like the movie refuses to see him as an actual victim. Like I can understand if they did that in a satirical way like that's how society actually treats men who have experienced s3xual abuse, but no; the tone conveys that he isn't one and shouldn't feel or be treated as such, and the real victim is Kai. (Kai is a victim but MC was one aswell.)
Also the rap is such a random and unnecessary element of the movie. It's so weird that rap is an integral part of the story. The rapping isn't even that bad, but it just comes across as cringe.
Overall the movie was bad and unnecessarily messy. I wasn't looking for a happy ending because someone who goes through that kind of trauma isn't gonna be all rainbows and sunshine in the end, but still, his death was dumb. The movie was just bad okay!
If you rated this movie high, something is wrong with you. It's like the aesthetic of the movie won you over and how it talks about serious issues, but the truth of the matter is: the movie was poorly written and thought out

Read More

Loved Hawaii Pistol

Assassination (2015)

It was Jun Jihyun's birthday a few days ago so I thought of watching this old movie of hers.

The story is about a secret mission to assassinate 2 important people who favored the Japanese. And several factions try to outmaneuver each other to either prevent or succeed in the mission.

The movie is quite long at more than 2 hours but I wasn't bored!! The story is a little complicated because there were too many characters so I had to slowly watch to understand what was going on. It had lots of action, and double crossing, and deaths, and even managed to put in a little romance. The meet-cute at Hotel Mirabeau between Okyun and Hawaii Pistol is 😍

The main lead is Jun Jihyun and the men were great support, esp Ha Jung Woo who sometimes stole the scenes. And I finally watched JJ's famous court scene that is always reenacted in shows.

Rating: 9/10

Read More

Sometimes Blood Isn't Thicker than Water

Chronicle of A Blood Merchant (2015)

Review:
I didn't read the synopsis, I always thought this was a comedy, but it was so much more. This was adapted from a Chinese novel by Yuhua and changed to Korean setting. Ha Jung Woo is the director and the star of the movie. It's about a guy, Sam Kwan, who sold blood to earn money to marry the prettiest girl in town, Okran. 11 years later with 3 kids, there are rumors that the eldest son is not Sam Gwan's biological son but is from Okran's ex-boyfriend. The movie shows the love between father and son. Even though they were not blood related, Ilrak basically grew up with the family and have always known Sam Kwan as his dad and vice versa.

The first half was light comedy but in the middle, when Sam Kwan found out Ilrak, who is his favorite child, was not actually his, he stopped showing him fatherly affection. It was heartbreaking to see Ilrak look so confused from suddenly being the favorite eldest son to a shunned illegitimate child, whose fathers (real and step) refuse to acknowledge him.

Four major scenes (and SPOILERS so don't read if you want to watch) that made me cry were when Sam Kwan told Ilrak to go away and not join the family's dumpling dinner and Ilrak went to his real father's house, asking for dumpling but he got rejected. Eventually Sam Kwan couldn't resist and found Ilrak crying and hiding in the alleys and brought him home. Another was when the real father was dying and Ilrak was being forced to say "Father come back, don't leave me" as part of a ritual, but then he sees Sam Kwan watching from a window and Ilrak starts begging for Sam Gwan to come back and take him home. Sam Kwan interrupts the ritual and takes Ilrak home. Then Ilrak falls ill with the same illness as his real father, and Sam Kwan almost died going town to town selling blood to earn money for his surgery. They finally meet in Seoul and their reunion was so touching.

I can't believe Nam Dareum was so young in this drama!! So cute and great acting, from him. He had great chemistry with Ha Jung Woo. And now in 2022, he's grown up and serving the army.

Rating: 9/10

Read More

"The Shadow of a man can never stand up and walk on its own"

Kurosawa Akira had long dreamed of making Kagemusha. When Toho finally agreed to fund it, they were unable to finish financing it. In stepped George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola along with 20th Century Fox and Suntory Whisky to see that the movie was completed.

The story was based on real people and events leading up to the 1575 Battle of Nagashino. The warlord Shingen Takeda had longed used a double to protect himself during the tumultuous time. When his current double tired of the role, they found a thief ready to be executed who was his spitting image. When Shingen is killed the shadow has to take his place, convincing friends, family, and enemies that he is the real deal. Only a handful of advisors and guards know the truth. History would lead to a tragic end for the clan and the shadow.

This was not one of my favorite Kurosawa films. There were very few closeups and with a huge cast made it very difficult to identify people and their particular contingencies. Nakadai Tatsuya made a great foil for Mifune Toshiro in earlier films, but I found him lacking in this role. He didn’t have enough charisma and intensity to win me over. Despite the three-hour running time, little of it was spent on character development. Many pivotal scenes took place off camera. I had difficulty connecting with any of the characters and didn’t feel invested with any of them. They felt like distant obscure images.

The long still pauses Kurosawa used to great effect in his older movies became one long film this time. You have to be very patient to watch three hours of slow, quiet interactions from dozens of characters. If they had spent some of that time delving into the imposter’s feelings and life, giving me a better sense of who he was, I would have enjoyed it more.

Most of the battle scenes were underwhelming, often filmed in the dark. Two battle scenes used red lights in the background to simulate a castle burning, much as if it were a play on a small stage. Instead of seeing the action, a character was shown hearing the battle sounds. Even the final climactic battle left much of it unseen, mostly shown through the imposter’s reactions. I did find the final scenes of stunned, wounded horses attempting to rise to their feet deeply disturbing as the human carnage lay around them.

By all accounts, Kurosawa took liberties with the final battle. A ridiculously large rainbow over the ocean, while beautiful and unrealistic, was some distance from where the army would have traveled, but it did make for a nice shot. Kurosawa wanted to show the destruction of the Takeda by its enemies’ fire power even if some aspects of the battle went differently in real life.

In the end, as a body drifts past the clan’s flag, we’re shown that the currents of time are sweeping away not just the Takeda but a way of life as well. I learned several things from this film. There is a price to be paid for an unbridled ego. Blind loyalty leads people blindly to their doom at times. And never bring a sword to a gun fight.

Kagemusha didn’t have enough character development to make it a good character study and not enough quality battle scenes to make it a good war movie. In the end, I found it to be an impersonal, dryly told story at a glacial pace. Perhaps Mifune could have elevated it as he did other Kurosawa films, but that’s only wishful thinking.

12/2/22

Read More