Reviews

DEF worth the watch!! the plotwist GOT ME GRIPPIN MY SEAT

bro this movie was like so slow at the beginning, and i was so fooled cuz i was like lol this sucks. I was also comparing it to better days so i was like damn this shit bad. BUT THEN IT ALL LIKE STARTED MAKING SENSE AND I WAS LIKE OOOOOO OKOK AND BRUH. The acting is FIRE, but i personally don't think the main couple had much chemistry but it was bareable cus hs romance is usually not super like intense ykwim. I could really feel the emotion through their acting and honestly had to tear up. The story is kinda slow and doesn't make much sense at the beginning which makes it kinda cringey to watch but later on it progresses and ur able to assemble the pieces together in ur head. Also, im like not even gonna lie, the romance was not the star of the show, but rather the friendship. However, the movie focused so heavily on the romance that it did not live up to its potential. THE CINEMATICS ON THE OTHER HAND, OMFG THEY WERE BEAUTIUFL. I felt like each second of the movie could be paused and would be so beautiful and perfect that it could be like my computer wallpaper. It really helped immerse the audience in the young and youthful typa vibe. But overall, I would say its a great experience and def worth the watch if ur into coming of age films.

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Heartbreaking

It was heartbreaking to see the relationship between Chen Qiuyiu and Biyun torn apart. I found it confusing at times because of the flipping of time zones of past and present events. What perplexed me is why Qiuyiu did not search for Biyun in his home region when before they separated he asked her to care for his mother, and if only Biyun had left an engraved message at Qiuyiu's mother's home as to where he could find Biyun. Sadly, Qiuyiu had changed his name making it near impossible for him to be found.
The acting by the main leads was spectacular and as usual Chen Kun does not disappoint, and the supporting cast was also good. The film lighting was rather dark that sometimes figures were obscure and I am not clear whether it was intended for effects or was merely the poor quality of filming equipment during that time.

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Life is a path of suffering that leads to death

The old phrase, “If it weren’t for bad luck, I’d have no luck at all,” applied perfectly for poor abandoned and abused Sumiko. Sumiko was thrown from one bad situation to another and another throughout the length of the film.

Described as a masterpiece of the proletarian film genre, What Made Her Do It could be a difficult watch. The film was thought completely lost after WWII. A large segment of it was found in The Russian National Film Library during the 1990’s. The first section and last section are lost to the ages, replaced by descriptive title cards.

Young Sumiko was sent to her no good uncle when her father could not find employment and committed suicide unbeknownst to her. Her uncle stole her money and sold her to a circus. She made friends with Shintaro at the circus and they later escaped only to be separated. She ended up in a string of bad situations: a work house, evil employer, work house, evil employer, and ultimately a church home for wayward women which was as bad or worse than any prison.

Every single situation she ended up in was dreadful except for a brief happy one and even it ended in disaster. Exploited, starved, and upbraided, slowly she began to lose her ability to hold in her anger and resentment. When family, the government, and even religion failed her miserably she snapped and the answer came in a blaze of glory when the audience finds out what she did in What Made Her Do It.

What made her do it? The utter failing of society and its brutal treatment of people considered less than. Some may have blamed capitalist society or religion but more often than not, the dark side of human nature for any economic or social level during times of financial collapse or upheaval preys on those considered weaker. In this film, without family or friends, Sumiko had no safety net, no safe shelter from the storm, but she still had enough dignity and fire left to finally take a stand.

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Atypical, yet worthwhile thriller, driven by a unique variety & sensitive quality of women´s power

"The Day I Died: Unclosed Case" is a thriller. However, the KMovie takes its time. It is atmospherically embedded in the slowed down everyday life on an island. The focus is on emotionally approaching the protagonists. In this case, the key characters are all women, who are surrounded by other women. Men are only indirectly involved in the background of the story - among other things as those who stand for the painful wounds in the women's lifes.

So you might think: a movie about women's power? As a matter of fact, that's true. However the actual power of women is not men´s power in women's clothes. In this movie, women´s power symbolizes in an idiosyncratic way how the usually devalued "weak" in the 'female' becomes "powerful" and effectively plays out its transforming and liberating quality, yet in a rather calm, descreet variety: silent, subtle, empathetic, unobtrusive.

The story is quite exciting, profound and complex. In the course of the investigation, the detective - strong, competent and at the same time hurt and vulnerable - is increasingly confronted with open questions in her own life. She slowly builds an emotional connection with the missing victim. Although the case seems clear and simple to everyone else, she cannot let it go. She is driven to shed light on injustice of some sort. Is she fighting for the missing victim? Is she fighting for herself? Either way, she finds the answers she's looking for.

In a touching way the strong presence of the two veterans Kim Hye-soo and Lee Jung-eun rounds an exciting story off. Script and direction are also in women's hands here. "The Day I Died: Unclosed Case" is not a classic crime thriller, but definitely worth seeing - with a unique variety and sensitive quality of women´s power.

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Foreplay, mostly.

Plot: A competent office lady accidentally discovered a BDSM item of her new officemate. It revolves around the introduction of BDSM and the new guy's life.

Acting: Passable acting from all the cast.

Music: Nothing exactly memorable but appropriate for the movie/scenes.

Re-watch Value: Will not re-watch this one but it's a nice movie to watch on a super boring day.

Overall: I felt like the entire movie was a foreplay before the good stuff happened. It was fast paced with a few chuckles injected. Light movie with a brief information on how BDSM works for newbies or interested with erotica. 6.5 - 7 stars

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Call your grandparents!

This was a heartwarming comedy-drama that looks will make you think about your grandparents / elderly relatives.

Cast and Acting: Spear-headed by veteran actor Park Geun Hyung and Oscar winner Youn Yuh-Jung, everyone pulls their weight in this film with the material they're given. Jo Jin Woong deserves a lot of credit here too. K-Drama fans will recognize many familiar faces and cameo appearances. Occasional loud antics on the side from the supporting characters, but these are typical and work well in showing how the connections we build with our neighbors could be stronger than we perceive.

Story: I won't spoil anything, but with the best Korean movies, the story unravels into something you may not expect. The ending is bittersweet and will not please some people, but it ties the plot together in possibly the most realistic way. Again, you might want to give the older people in your family a call once the credits roll, or think of your own situation once you reach that age.

Music: Appropriate for the scenes, but it never overpowered the action.

Overall, you can tell they put a lot of care into the production. Rewatch value may be low for some, including myself. 9/10

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Just forget this and watch the tv show instead

I don't really know what to think about it.

On one side, I guess it's not that horrible, might have something to do with us getting a full-blown series, and it's only 10 minutes.

On the other hand, it's not really that good, either. It looks fairly cheap and amateurish. It's incoherent. It bears some resemblance to the tv show, which I attribute to the novel (for example, the food scene). But it's not really adding anything of worth (maybe the stethoscope scene?).

Overall, I don't recommend anyone to watch this, except hardcore TaeTee fans. In no way does it enhances the tv show experience. So if you've stumbled here from the show, you can safely turn right back. I mean, it won't hurt you if you watch it either way. But in my opinion, there's no need. For anyone not familiar with Triage adaptations, watch the series instead.

And if you just have 10 minutes you don't know what to do with, may I interest you in "The Right One" instead? It has Tae in it, too! And much more ?

[https://mydramalist.com/27402-the-right-one]

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Wrongly Titled, should be: Lesson in Sex

LIKES:
Good lighting and production.
Believable sex scenes.
The FL was very pretty with a nice body.
They didn’t make the younger ML a high school student.
The ML was shown to be a good sketch artist.
The ending.

DISLIKES:
There was actually very little story and script.
Pacing of their first physical encounter was done too quick, so it was less impactful than they wanted it to be.
This was more soft-core porn, than love or romance. Too much of seeing breasts, not much shown from him (abs, chest, etc.). They could’ve done this a little more tastefully (and no pun intended).
The music sucked, especially the parts where she ‘wrote the song’. To show that the young college student (nude models are not in high school art class) was her muse, they could’ve made her a painter or sculpture, gaining inspiration from their encounters. That would’ve made more sense.

OVERALL:
Wont watch it again. Only recommend it to someone looking for soft-core porn.

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Didn't expect to watch Armageddon's Korean sequel

I feel like I'm on a streak of posting 8-8.5's and this was all set to be another 8* option, but... in the end had too many weak points to give it that (it's still fine for single-viewing mindless entertainment, just not exactly for grading it from a story and casting POV or my own preference since I'm not really a mindless watch stuff get blown up sort of viewer-I do generally prefer my brain to need to at least be alert-here, it's like I could put it in hibernate and recreate the whole thing-it's just a bit too basic, too common and overdone a storyline, and predictable overall).

This one is a bit hard to rate because the acting and production are totally A-grade and I appreciate that they don't have the actors in the "control towers" (military commanders, the President and his staff, etc) being over the top-everyone was precise and acted their parts out quite well... but for a script that is totally average. This is a bit like Armageddon, South Korea style, but not so cringe-inducing, not trying to drag tears out of you by punching you repeatedly with saccharin blech (there's a very very short bit of it, though it's forgivable, I guess), this had, for me, what would make a really weird high/low points graph. It starts off kind of mediocre which honestly almost made me click out, but it got much better and better... only to have an ending that felt like dozens of other action movies and brought back to mind Armageddon references when I never in my whole life want to remember that film with... isn't it Steven Tyler singing its anthem? Yeah, pretty sure... that song still feels like a trauma in my life somehow.

At least this lacks an OST to speak of-it's too busy with immense sound effects. THAT is a definite strength, but it's Dexter Studios (Dexter the Eye etc) with CJ Group-of course the visuals and sound engineering will be solid. The ACTING is also solid. This is Lee Byung Hun's perfect sort of role IMO. I don't like him in anything where he's supposed to be "sexy" or in any romances except only-half-romance historical Mr. Sunshine, but this... yes, this is the right role for him... tough, sly, a bit hard to put up with, cocky, all the things his face exudes if I'm honest. Physiognomy isn't my jam, but maybe all those face reading sageuks made me see his face and project... or the Marlboro Man vibe just feels off-putting... okay, and Mr. Sunshine aside, I'll never root for his romance bc he took Ji Sung's woman in 2003. Yup. Bitterness eternal here.

This is, overall, kinda, hmm... entertaining because the acting is slick and some dialogue is, while not too unique, really well-delivered (and thank goodness their American cast members were actually good speakers, whew... SO often their "Americans" end up just absolutely sucking!)... Ma Dong Seok was playing a super smart Princeton professor, a geologist of sorts who had predicted the mountain explosions that are the basis of this and gets involved, and his big ol' teddy bear personality was on screen as authentic as imaginable here. He's so dang endearing.

Now for a gripe, though: Suzy's role was small and honestly forgettable and seemed pretty out of place (she looks 20 years younger than her "husband" Ha Jung Woo plays here, like 40 vs 20 even if they're supposed to be 30... mismatched for me and they ARE 17 yeara apart). While she's great in her role, Jeon Hye Jin, actually a couple years older than him, easily passes for child-bearing age in this movie, so she would've paired better, as would have Ok Ja Yeon who's 10 years younger. Either of those would've made Ha Jung Woo seem younger than his 44 years, but Suzy's SO far off age and appearance-wise it makes him look like his character would have friends whose children were in her class. Oh well... not that important, just not loved by me and a bit annoying in the very few moments they were in the same scene... it's super weird to see Ma Dong Seok look like a better spouse for Suzy than the one assigned! He cleans up nicely here, though. :P

Anyway, it's not amazing stuff, no, but for a couple of hours of explosions and action and me wishing more about the science would've been explored and worked through on-screen (and even the political end since it was just thrown on screen in an "everyone knows this bit" way that made it lack longevity for sure), it was entertaining. Not a screenwriter I'll be desperate to seek everything out from, though. To go to Armageddon's awful theme song to close this out, I WON'T miss a thing... about this movie, Ma Dong Seok the expert Princeton scientist with his ever-golden care bear heart aside.

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Refreshingly adult comedy with sex

Take two beautiful female leads combine them in a sex toy business and get set for a hilarious movie. I loved their friendship and how they both powered off each other to turn the ailing business into a thriving. award winning success.
Cho Yeo Jung captures the business entrepreneur persona and is fearless in her exploration of her new found erogenous zones.
Clara Lee oozes sexual confidence in a wholesome way and is the expert in sexual toys.
The explicit antics are hilarious with some very laugh out loud moments. It is raunchy yet the director manages to inject an innocence into the scenes. I loved seeing Ra Mi Ran as the housekeeper and Bo Hee's mother (Kim Bo Yun) is terrific for normalising what most daughters can't handle - their parents sexual activities.
All the women are the star players including the world weary young daughter and the men have various levels of supporting roles. Go Kyung Pyo as the laughing policeman attempting to be a robot is excellent.
I think the atmosphere on set must have been a hoot and how they kept straight faces during the shooting the scenes is another story - a blooper reel would be a treat.
Thoroughly enjoyed it.

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Well produced Nogizaka46 documentary, but little diversity in the cast

Like the previous Nogizaka46 documentary, "Kanashimi no Wasurekata: Documentary of Nogizaka46," this one is also heavily focused on just a few of the most popular members of the idol group, while most of the members are either not shown at all or hardly get a total of 1 second of screen time during the entire 2 hours.

We are shown some nice behind-the-scenes material that helps us appreciate the group and their solidarity. It is nice to see the human elements of such a large production and it is somewhat heartwarming to see the kindness the members display to each other as they all work towards their goals.

There is decent production value in this documentary, but I wish there was a bit more substance instead of just discussing feelings; it felt a bit slow-moving at times.

If you are a Nogizaka46 fan and would like to learn a bit more about them, I would recommend watching this.

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I absolutely loved this movie.

This movie was a ride for sure. During this whole movie, it explores the struggles that the ML goes through, and what leads to the motives for the FL and their friends to be able to change his future and not let their regrets get to them; to save him.

I absolutely loved the strong friendship that has been expressed and their understanding, to be able to show their love and look out for each other. Although, I have some disappointment that the chemistry between the ML and FL were not explored some more. I wish that their romance was more flowed to bloom my expectations for them to eventually get together.

Though, I have not read the manga for “Orange,” I feel that this movie sent me to tears as the ML struggles with depression. This movie explores his struggles and impacts that he faces, which leads for a letter sent to his friends of regrets that they have. The ending had made me feel emotional.

The cast did such a great job in playing out their roles, they play out such healthy friendships and the chemistry with each other. There were a lot of emotions that you will feel when watching this movie. For me personally, I strongly relate with the movie.

I also feel that rewatching this movie wouldn’t let me feel the emotions that I felt when watching it for the first time. To me, blindly watching a series/movie for the first time with unexpected emotions or anything without much spoiler drives me to feel the emotion physically and emotionally if you push yourself to watch it from start to end.

Overall, I give this movie a 8/10 as there was some things that had disappointed me. But at the same time, this movie is amazing and gives representation to the struggles that the ML struggles with. Also, Dori; Tao; and Kento were in this movie so it gave me a strong motivation to watch this movie.

If you are looking for something that will send you into an emotional ride, the exploration of a friendship and to look out for each other then I strongly recommend this.

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