Reviews

Intense build-up, decent wrap-up

The first half of this movie was absolutely flawless — I was terrified (in a good way) by all the jumpscares, the mystery was extremely intriguing and I was trying desperately to figure it out myself, and the soundtrack and interactions between the characters all added to the dark vibe of the movie.

I still think the second half, after everything was revealed, was a decent watch, but I did think that it took away a lot of the things that I loved in the first half. Of course, a mystery can't go on forever, but I definitely felt like the story didn't feel as dark as it did before and there was no more anxiety-inducing tension, more just running around and fights. Those were still fun and exciting and I really enjoyed how the story was revealed, intertwining different characters, but the first half still felt more captivating to me.

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Cute, short, on point in under 12 minutes

This was a real surprise.
Normally I don't like to watch short films. The most aren't satisfying in their storytelling. I hate when the story is unsolved or cut off.
So this is a cute, little story, without long dialogues and much words.
Everything I wanted to know, I got it. Introduction, climax, conclusion, everything in just under 12 minutes
The pure setting and acting transports the story clear and direct to the viewer.
It has embarrassing moments, awkward situation, steamy scene and a heartwarming deep moment.

Watch this!!! Really, it's no waste of time imho.

(The only thing I wanted to have clarified, what about the ice cream? *lol*)


available on GagaOOlala

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A slice of a slice of life.

Try to see the whole picture from just a few puzzle pieces. That’s the essence of the movie. Figuring out the relationships and backgrounds of the characters from their short, taken out of their lives' context conversations. Why they are? Why they met? What will happen after they leave the table?

Have to say, not all the stories were equally interesting and enjoyable. Without giving any spoilers about the characters background, I’ll try to describe why they resonated with me or not.

Yoo Jin’s story - one that evokes the most emotions in me, and by emotions I mean anger and frustration. While at first I was unsure where it leads, with each new line I could sense the probable direction.

Kyung Jin’s story - the most chill and down to earth, the only one that put a smile on my face. The easiest to understand from the start too, you kind of know what you will get right away.

Eun Hui’s story - serving some unexpected twist as the conversation progressed. To some extent moving, if we try to understand the characters a little bit.

Hye Kyung’s story - the one I did not vibe with at all. Not only I couldn’t resonate with Hye Kyung, I also strongly believe Yeon Woo Jin is incapable of having chemistry with any of his female co-stars.

Overall, for a short movie like that, which tries to present 4 completely unrelated stories, it did a fairly good job. The acting was truly good, but then the characters and scenes were not exactly complex and well-developed to serve as an acting challenge. As I mentioned at the beginning, the entertainment comes from trying to understand who the characters are, even though nothing is set nor explained by narration or exposition. You are thrown into a random moment in their lives.

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A bit confusing characterization.

omeone who has not seen the original movie, nor was aware of the full story presented there, while the plot of this short gender swap version was easy to follow, the motivations of the characters were either confusing or shallow in presentation.

Instant love that seemed fabricated from the start, lady general who does not connect the facts and male lead who for some strange reasons trusts a demon? My brain hurts.

That said, for a movie that is basically shot in one location, it was visually quite well made. They truly used the limited space they had, so the plot never felt small nor insignificant.

The performance was good. He Chang Xi delivered the best in terms of conveying emotions, especially in the second half, while Ding Cheng Xin was able to combine the delicacy and destruction in his presentation of Xiao Wei.

If you want to watch it based on your good opinion about Wuliang and the Censored Romance tag, you might want to reconsider your motivation. Production and directing wise it’s not as strong as Wuliang (though still quite a good short movie), and the tag is at best baiting. It serves a vague ending that brings more questions than answers, and for me, who likes to overanalyze scenes and lines, even more confusion.

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Rather thrilling and gripping, yet quite predictable movie. I don’t think they served even one plot line that was not obvious. Even with that, I still enjoyed it quite a lot.

I think the best part of the movie is the lack of realism and sanity? These characters had issues, and I mean serious ones. The whole setup made little sense. They were committing crimes in daylight, often showing their faces, yet no one knew who they were. Sure. Suspension of belief is required to enjoy it.

Another aspect that I greatly enjoyed was the performance. Yeo Jin Goo as Hwa Yi was one of his strongest performances. The amazing on screen transformation that teen went through was just an interesting tale, with quite a satisfying conclusion.

Kim Yoon Seok as Yoon Seok Tae could be described as a cold, tamed madness - rather terrifying character. At the same time, the more I saw of him, the more pathetic he seemed. That said, I am thankful all the bad characters were truly awful, so I could watch without any sense of empathy towards them.

The movie had some unnecessary elements. While I understand why Yoo Kyung was an important person for Hwa Yi’s journey, I believe keeping her more as a symbol of normal life compared to actually getting her to interact with him would be better.

The emotional aspects of the movie depended on the well built relationship between Hwa Yi and the gang members, yet I barely felt anything. There were a few moments that showed him and Yoon Seok Tae have quite a deep, but also complicated bond, but I needed more than two or three scenes of it. Not to mention how all the rest of the characters were painfully one-dimensional.

The visuals were nice. They dive a bit into those gruesome scenes, not shying away from violence. The most powerful scenes though were the few emotional bits delivered by Yeo Jin Goo.

Overall, I would recommend watching for the performances. The cat and mouse chase between Hwa Yi and Yoon Seok Tae was exciting, and the emotional games and manipulation thrilling.

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A sad but touching story

I wanted to watch this movie because I’m into forbidden love tropes and the setting seemed quite original. However, more than a love story, this is a short movie depicting a man’s lifelong journey dealing with the grief of losing the love of his life and the guilt he feels about it, which leads him to make a trip to “The tunnel of love” hoping to see her again (in this life or the other from what I understood). The ending is kinda open and the movie itself is a bit trippy, so it’s hard to tell what’s happening in real life and what might be in the ML’s head.

Overall I enjoyed it, the cast did a good job portraying the characters’ emotions and I liked the forest setting (not sure if they really filmed this in Ukraine, but the place does exist). I’d recommend it for one of those days you just wanna watch a slow-paced emotional kind of story that only the Japanese know how to do :,)

(Thanks again to rjgman56 for subbing this!)

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Ice Bar delivers a nostalgic, joyful story that goes down like a soothing ice bar on a hot summer day.

Enthusiastic ten-year-old Young Rae and his single mother struggle to make ends meet in 1960's Korea. His mother sells smuggled cosmetics and gets into fights using most of her money on fines and not on Young Rae's tuition. Young Rae is often the target of harassment because he's a fatherless "brat" though he can give as good as gets. His best friend, Dong Su, is an orphan who hustles to make money anyway he can, and during the summer it's selling ice bars. The summer starts off with a bang when Young Rae hears his mom's drunk best friend tell him that his father is not dead, but alive and well in Seoul. His mother denies it, but Young Rae determines to make enough money to take the train to Seoul. Dong Su hooks him up with a job selling ice bars through his shady boss at the factory and that's when the fun begins. Young Rae struggles with ice bar turf wars and bullies and written and unwritten rules about where he can and can't sell. Finally, with some help from Dong Su and a young man, In Bak, the son of a "commie", who works at the factory he starts to figure out how to successfully sell the frozen treats.

The boys get into and out trouble, with no severe consequences for the most part. The biggest hurdle for Young Rae aside from earning the money is his mother who is firmly against him finding his father for fear he will take her son away from her.

Ice Bar is a lighthearted comedy that occasionally dips its toe into melodrama only to rise to a bubbly surface once again.
Park Ji Bin's bright performance as the young entrepreneur was the heart and soul of this film. His laughter and tears were infectious and touching. Future ahjumma Shin Ae Ra as his mother managed to turn what could have been a shrewish role into a sympathetic one, never letting you doubt her love and devotion for her son.

The pace of the story kept the events moving forward, tying together small side stories in aid of Young Rae's goal. Much of the action was child high, taking us on their adventures running through the streets and down to the train station. There was a real feeling of community among the regulars in the scenes as they interacted with the boys. Certain sets could feel artificial, but the characters' interactions made up for the almost play like settings.

Though a largely child friendly film, told through Young Rae's eyes, it does have the typical bullying and hitting so many older Korean movies and dramas have. There is also a disturbing incident in the last quarter of the film. Despite those detriments, Ice Bar is a feel-good movie with an effervescent score and delightful performances. Though narrow in scope, it's big in heart.
If the ending felt a bit contrived, that's okay, ice bars during childhood summers are meant to be enjoyed and not suffered through.

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Your knowledge is thin like a piece of paper...

Avalanche does not involve snow and ice, but it does signify the disaster one arrogant man brings down upon himself.

Goro is the spoiled child of a rich family, self-centered, entitled, and thinks he is much smarter than he is. He's been married for a year to sweet, obedient, traditional Fukiko and he is already bored. Goro is in love with Yayoi and wants to divorce Fukiko to marry her. His father puts his foot down and tells him he has responsibilities as a married man to his wife and society. Yayoi, the object of his affection, wants to be with Goro yet also feels guilty. Goro has no such compassion for his wife or feelings of guilt. Like a petulant child Goro wants what he wants now without caring how his actions will affect others. Father and son continually argue about duty and desire.

Avalanche can be a difficult film to watch, regardless of how you feel about infidelity. Goro is a selfish protagonist with no redeeming qualities. Even if you start to feel sorry for his situation, by the end of the film, he will have wiped it all away in a particularly dark moment.

I've been conflicted on how to rate this film. It is well made. The scenes flow easily into one another. Unlike some older movies where the action takes place within a couple of sets and the characters are static, Avalanche's scenes are fluid. The characters hold conversations while walking in a forest, in town or naturally in the home. Conversations involving the father tend to be smart and on point more often than not as the father realizes how vacuously empty his son is of any morals. It is obvious the director is contrasting the old and the new as well. The house is Western in design and furnishings. Fukiko dresses as a traditional Japanese married woman, whereas the men and Yayoi are in Western clothes at all times. Father and son eat in a Western style restaurant. Two generations and two different cultural attitudes clash at every moment.

The problem I have with the movie if I try to view it as a character study is that none of the characters grows or have much depth to them. Fukiko is devoid of personality and obedient unto death. Goro thinks only of himself. The trigger for a disastrous emotional release occurs when his father tries to reign him in with the threat of being disowned. As Goro's father tells him, he wouldn't go down this path if he didn't have the cushion of a wealthy family to land and rely on. Yayoi is caught up in Goro's avalanche, unable to extricate herself even though she is aware the price to be paid in society for their actions. Yet even she begins to believe Goro that to be happy one has to ignore the pain it causes others. Before the film ends, Goro steps beyond being merely disdainful and pitiless, to evil. At that point the film falters as it does not bring about a satisfactory or even comprehensible ending. With all the dialogue and inner thoughts this film encompassed, it lacked the few sentences which might have made the last actions understandable to the character and the audience.

The father compared Goro's thoughts to being as thin as paper. Too often the characters came across thinly drawn as well. In the end, it was hard to care about any of the main players. Whether motivated by love or desire, their actions or inactions brought down an avalanche upon them, leaving none of them unscathed or particularly sympathetic. In the end, Avalanche plummeted into a crevice with me, offering neither character development nor emotional release.

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even the most optimistic ones can lose their senses

Aghh, I love this movie so much.

It reminds me a bit of the American movie, Five Feet Apart, in regard to the romantic aspect of the series and dealing with serious illness. This movie is much more nuanced, much more impactful IMO than the more commercialized and melodramatic Five Feet Apart. Still, I found myself making a few comparisons. Like Stella, Ma Xiao Yuan is bubbly, persistent, and charismatic. She seems unwavering and diligent in her pursuit of life and happiness over her sickness and she makes it her mission to spread this sunshine to our little dark cloud, Wei Yi Hang (Jackson Yee), who's all but given up on living and just exists to exist. Her persistence in shedding the melancholia from his shoulders gravitates the two together, and we're given a glimpse of their budding, youthful romance amidst such a serious and bleak undertow.

Their chemistry is cute and youthful, I adore Jackson Yee and just came off of his brilliant (and not to ever be understated) performance in Better Days, and he's just as captivating in this; albeit a little dorky with that haircut. I hope he never does a series or movie with a voice dub-over because I truly love his voice and its slight guttery rasp. It's also really nice to see Jackon Yee's bright smile - the roles I've seen him in most recently (Better Days and The Longest Day in Chang'an) were both roles he had to play with relative stoicism or street grit, so the smiles were few and far between, and never full.
Liu Hao Cun plays her role wonderfully, and I find her efforts as Xiao Yuan to make Yi Hang smile adorable and creative. I had the biggest grin on my face throughout her "world tour guide" scene where she created "different places" from around the world with the help of her friends for him to experience since he can't travel.

"Dancing in the crowd, I felt the joy of being normal for the first time. Growing old like everyone else no longer seems a distant dream."

Watching Yi Hang's family endure his illness deeply affected me. My family went through a similar situation when my older sister was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer when she was only 28 years old. The juxtaposition is shown well here; between the internal agony we felt in waiting for results and waiting for symptoms to worsen or get better; and the feral need to lighten the mood and smile like we could rise above the pain if we laughed hard enough. It was our own personal hell. A purgatory of waiting, uncertainty, unbridled love for her, and unhinged agony of invasive thoughts about her not getting better. Yi Hang's family is barely holding on and they're spread thin to keep the ground from falling beneath them, while also trying to maintain smiles on their faces for their son they love more than anything. It's such a hard balance to teeter, and this movie handles it eloquently. I feel so deeply for his parent's pain, and I also empathize with Yi Hang's grief and anger in feeling like a burden to his family.

"[...], the guy who's always joking around, who's always acting like a child, seems to have turned into a tortured father overnight."

This movie was cathartic, and moving, and left me with a feeling of appreciation for what I have and what I've lost.

"Everyone in life experiences losses, which we're all afraid of. Yet, when it happens, the most powerful weapon against it is to live each moment to the fullest."

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"You Have The Right To Remain Silent...But If You Do, You're A Dead Man."

Part of the "My Sassy Girl Trilogy" by Kwak Jae Yong

This is the second movie of the "My Sassy Girl Trilogy" by director/screenwriter Kwak Jae Young.

The first movie is My Sassy Girl (2001).

The second movie is the film Windstruck (2004).

The third movie is Cyborg She (2008), a Japanese movie.

They are unrelated except for having a 'sassy girl' theme

Kwak Jae Yong served as screenwriter & director for all three above films.

The main male lead for My Sassy Girl, Cha Tae Hyun, appears in a bit part in this movie.

"Windstruck is a comedy/romance/drama/fairy tale/

I had White Valentine (1999) recommended to me: my late fiance was into Asian movies and knew that White Valentine was available online with English subtitles (She introduced me to My Little Bride (Moon Geun Young) and saw all the movies she had with English subtitles. After that list dried up, my fiance started me on White Valentine, with Jun Ji Hyun, a great little sleeper so I started on her list of movies then.


Movies do not have to be "real", as in everything in a scene being scientifically possible or probable! They are made, and should be viewed, with your imagination and mind being allowed to wander. That is why this review is longer than my normal movie review.

There has been so much written about how you cannot ride a large balloon through the sky without being killed; this is a 'fairy tale' about the love of two people: a 'sassy' girl and a physics teacher. It is not supposed to be 'real' in its being told! No police officer in real life would do, or even TRY TO DO what Officer Yeo Kyung Jin did in this movie: they would be kicked off the police force if they did survive the gun battles portrayed in this movie!

When "My Sassy Girl" came out, every high school and college girl "wanted" to be "The Girl"; but being "The Girl' would turn many guys off, especially wearing a female's high heels shoes! Like "Windstruck" it made females believe in themselves and it drew woman back, year after year, watching a 'sassy' girl in control of her life!

It is a feel-good movie which people watch over, and over, and over and ....well, you get the picture!Women, and even men, go from laughing until they cry, then crying in the next part and wanting to enter the movie and change the story!

This is one of the cutest movies from Korea! I saw it about ten years ago for the first time, as I was going up the movies list of Jun Ji Hyun, starting with a chance reference to her "White Valentine."

The first part is very comical and you will be sh*tting in your pants and rolling on the floor from the hijinx of Police Officer Yeo Kyung Jin (Jun Ji Hyun) who accidentally "bumps" into all-girl school physics teacher Myung Woo (Jang Hyuk), who is doing his 'Boy Scout' duty by trying to catch a purse thief (Kim Young Joo) running ahead of him.

Yeo Kyung Jin, as it turns out later, bumbles this case as she does most other cases she is involved in during the first half of this romantic-comedy movie; but she finds a 'boyfriend' this time out of her 'bumbling'!

That is in line with the "sassy girl' motif that My Sassy Girl, Windstruck and Cyborg She have in common! This is a movie, not a documentary of hos police are 'supposed' to run things when they are on the beat... it is 'make-believe" so quit comparing "Officer" Yeo Kyung Jin with a REAL police officer! It is a comedy like the Mr Bean character from England.

The second half leads into a more drama-comedy, as a major mishap ends her romantic relationship she just found; she spends months in grief and second-guessing herself, until a miracle happens to reconnect her with her Significant Other.

Coming from a Religious Studies and former EMT (ambulance) background, many have said that Yeo Kyung Jin "cried too much" when Myung Woo dies: Russell Friedman and John W. James of The Grief Recovery Institute will tell you that whether you’ve known your partner a few months or been married for 50 years, when your significant other dies, it may feel like part of you is gone too. It can have severe psychological and/or physical attributes on a person.

The death of a loved one can lead to a stroke, heart attack or even death (without using a weapon!).

The director does not say how long that the new couple were together before Myung Woo died; In the first of the trilogy (MSG), it was at least 4-5 years between the time the two main cast members did not see each other after planting the letters under the tree.

"Death" affects each person in different ways, so I personally saw no problem with Yeo Kyung Jin's crying as much as she did!

Also, too many people keep talking about this movie being a 'prequel' to MSG: it is not! Quit thinking that way.

Kwak Jae Yong in this movie used flashbacks, story and scene repetitions from MSG to elicit an emotional response to the movie; he also used scene repetitions (first and last commentary) to link the beginning and the end of the movie together, and he did it brilliantly! I loved it so much..a stroke of genius on his part!

If you have never seen MSG, you can enjoy this movie and all of its ups and downs and its emotional roller-coaster ride without ever have seen MSG before.

There is talk online about 'Windstruck' being 'two different movies edited together': that also is false!

The first part is about the meeting and pairing of the two love birds; the second is the death of one and the recovery of the other; EVERYONE has lost a significant other and gone through the agony of recovery, one way or the other. If and when one of your loved ones die, you too can have your world tuned upside down in an instant!

Plot Twists...You will enjoy the movie more if you pay attention to:

Officer Yeo Kyung Jin as she is waking up and stretching the morning after (still) being handcuffed to Myung Woo...

Officer Yeo Kyung Jin having a man "get down" and squat so she can go over the wall in one of the chases...

Watch for the parts of [Assistant Inspector] Kim Yeong Ho (Kim Jeong Tae) in this movie: he has a major contribution to the story.

The main male/female characters are really great here: they interact like they were a real couple!

The support cast also did an excellent job at making the main and side story believable, supporting the main cast and the story excellently.

This movie, alth9ught many do not see it as that good, does what any GREAT movie does: it makes people laugh, cry, wince, say "WTF" to something that happens out of the ordinary! That why I was so surprised at all the negative reviews on MDL.

There are several copies pf "Windstruck" online, and each one has counted MILIIONS of views: that in itself should tel you what great of a movie this is!

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Dark mood

I've just spent 1h30 imagining myself killing people left and right...
Now it's over, and i'm in a crazy fool mood,
Here's the kind of story this is.
If you enjoy bisounours and wanna have faith in the goodness of the human race, never watch this.

Now for my review...

The music, sound effects, work for me.
It's dark, it suits the movie's story.

The visuals are very good, the red dress kicking ass FL thematic is super effective.
The action scenes are very well done.

The acting is excellent(special mention for Park Se Wan).

The story works as intended. You will support the lead, hate the vilains, and wish for a good ending.
But the FL finds her targets so easily sometimes that it's not always credible.
Some parts of the movie are a bit weird or rush, exemple: the link between the neighbors and the last villain.

Overall, i will give this movie a very good rating, yet there will be no rewatch.
It will take me some time to digest it.

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