1This review may contain spoilers
Important Representation
I'm not gonna lie this is mainly going to be me giving opinions about the asexual rep found in this movie, since I'm an asexual myself. I'm going to try not to spoil things, but if you want to go in blind stop reading here, just go watch it becuse tl;dr this movie is good and the ace + poly rep is A+.What makes me super happy about this movie is that beyond just being excited to see myself on screen, my identity was talked about in a caring, knowledgeable manner. I was worried going into this that they'd present the "solution" to the problem in their throuple as Minho just having sex with them regardless. Thankfully that wasn't the case, and we got good discussions about his boundaries, and what he was curious about/the things he wanted to try with them and what things were most likely off the table. The power was always in Minho's hands.
Side note, the first scene where we see he likes to take pictures of his partners was actually a really nice detail! The indication that he had aesthetic attraction towards them and expressed this through photography was something I appreciated. Some people who are trying to give asexual representation sometimes don't acknowledge the split attraction model, so seeing this director understand that he can still have aesthetic attraction was really nice.
Honestly, Minho is probably one of the best aces i've seen portrayed, because while he shone a light on the asexual experience, it never felt like an "Asexual 101" that some characters devolve into. He wasn't a vague ace, but he also wasn't a "teaching prop" ace. You could see him as a proper, fleshed out person. We saw him talk about his boundaries, we saw him express his love in other ways, he talked about his curiosity, and even the moments where he hated himself rang painfully true.
To talk about his partners, there's one whose name I didn't catch but don't have much to say on. He was the calm, caring one who was attuned to the feelings of both of his partners, and was definitely the glue. As for Seongjin, his behaviour at the beginning initially bothered me, because his frustration came out in the form of slight aphobia. Not in a strong sense, he knew what asexuality was and acknowledged that was part of who Minho was and he loved him, but he was was often frustrated that there were so many things Minho didn't like him doing and verbalized it and that made Minho sad which made the other partner upset as well. The more I watched though, I could see that it was because Seongjin's love language was physical contact, and so was at a loss of how to express his love towards Minho when kissing and sex were taken off the table. That wasn't put forward like an excuse, but I did understand the reasons behind his behaviour better. This died down later anyways as they all began to strike a balance, discovering the other ways they can all express their love for one another.
Is it odd to say the ending made me tear up a bit? I just really liked the fact that Minho wanted to try something, and felt safe to ask his partners to help him explore this. It was a great moment full of so much love..
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Poly & Ace Representation!
Overall: Though there are areas they could improve on, I'm giving this a 9 because it has poly and ace representation which is rare. I really wish this was a whole series and we were able to see how their relationship started and what happens after this short film because 18 minutes was definitely not long enough. Also, the filmmaker received $638 USD to make this film as part of a Matchbox competition and I'm extra impressed with that budget. Purchased for $3.88 USD and watched on Vimeo.Content Warnings: none
What I Liked:
- they did give some information about asexuality, especially Minho's conversation with his friend (though the acting seemed a bit wooden there)
- I liked the times that they had good communication*
- the reference to Long Time No See (it was the movie that they were watching, I've watched it so many times I recognized it just by the sound lol)
- production value is good considering they had almost no budget
Room For Improvement:
- I didn't really like that quote at the beginning which makes it seem that polyamory is almost here. It's here and it's been here since the dawn of time.
- it was an odd way to start. I don't like when people take pictures of sleeping people and I wasn't sure how the two knew each other.
- *on the couch at the beginning, do the other two not know what Minho likes/dislikes/boundaries??? Why haven't they had conversations about this? Also, that conversation in the bar seemed odd. Wouldn't the two of them discussed it beforehand? (though I did like the follow up conversation they had later).
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I'm Literally Begging For More (Please!)
This right here was the explicit ace and poly representation that we deserve! Asexuality, libido, polyamory, jealousy and more relevant topics and terms were explicitly brought up and discussed - but in an organic, conversational way that we've all actually done irl. And the fact that we didn't just have the one token asexual, but also had his close friend and her off-screen fiance both as asexuals too! It made me so happy. It was also discussed about how asexuals differ in their acceptance of sexual activities, and that the lack of attraction was not the only reason for our main character's reluctance.The film didn't end with Minho getting "fixed." And despite initial tension and lack of understanding about asexuality, we did see why Minho is in love with both of his partners and saw them both willing to take things at Minho's pace and keep him involved in other ways. We also saw the different dynamics, contributions, and interests between all members of the throuple and how they have effective verbal and silent communication between all of them.
Also, I'm in love with Minho's smile. It's so contagious. All the actors did a great job portraying their characters. However, there was a lack of chemistry in my opinion (but that might simply be because of the short length of the film). I would love to see these topics and their relationship development hashed out in a larger project. I actually low-key need it.
I didn't really notice the music much, so I can't really speak to that.
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This review may contain spoilers
Poly? ACE?
Disclaimer: Please do not come down on me like a ton of bricks! Be kind to me! I am just ignorant and trying to educate myself!If you are not familiar with the terminology or the very notion of polyamourous relationship and the meaning of ACE, you'd better do some research before watching this otherwise you'll find it incomprehensible!
There has been a huge development in sexual orientation terminology within the general population and, I hate to admit it,I did not keep up to date! Recently, there was a thread in the feeds dealing with it, but to be honest, my english being far from fluent, I did not understand much! The same is with this movie!
This short movie came highly recommended so I thought I might write a sentence or two about it since I spent some money on vimeo to watch it!
So from what I saw, please be indulgent of my ignorance, this is a story of three men in love and who live together: two engage in sexual activity and the third one, being repulsed by the notion of anyone touching him, just watches the other two and takes pictures (he's a photographer!). The end!
The actors have really good chemistry and their characteristics come out through just a few phrases. The cinematography is a bit on the dark and colourless side. The music...was there any? Can't remember! Rewatch value is high: first because you paid for it so you rewatch it often(LOL!) and second, in order to see tiny details which help understand the story better.
I would have liked the movie to be longer, to get some back story about the characters. Nothing there unfortunately! This is just a moment in time, when they decide to live together! A short movie which has the privilege, it seems to me, to be the first along with Koisenu Futari, to speak openly about ACE individuals. And as such, it is a unavoidable watch! It doesn't hurt it, either, to be excellent for those 18min and making everybody who's seen it want more!
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Hodně si cením, že se Korejci pustili do tak opomíjeného tématu, a navíc ještě ve spojitosti s gay vztahem. Tím se ze snímku stává alespoň pro mě malý vytříbený klenot podtržený jemností, citlivostí, respektem i něhou. Vlastně herci zase až tak supr top nebyli, ale vlastně byli, neboť tvůrcům se podařilo celé "to něco" uzavřít a podat to jako jeden komlexní balíček. Pěkné ...
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This review may contain spoilers
Educational
First and foremost this is an educational movie. The characters spend valuable time explaining the meaning of polyamory, ACE , libido and the doubts stemming from them!A gay couple is in love with MinHo, who is ACE in spite of a sex drive because he has phobia of all body fluids. As I understood it here, one is ACE because of a psychological problem? SeongJin, though considered dumb, asks valid questions everyone wonders about! Some time is spent on a girl, who found a way to deal with her ACE issues. MinHo is afraid, has doubts and every time he is with the men he loves, he puts a physical barrier between himself and them be it a pillow or a photo camera!
Cinematography in this movie is stunning and the overall vibe is giving me a 70s' movie feeling:peace and love and freedom (in a nutshell!). The movie is too short for us to know more about the characters apart from their sexuality!
This should be a really watched for its educational value! And can and should be watched and rewatched....
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