Currently Watching: Bubblegum
Sometimes there's nothing better than unwinding with a good movie over the weekend, but the process of finding that perfect movie can be really frustrating.
Here are a few movie suggestions to suit your mood.
Feel like a comedy?
Country: Korea Year: 2014 Genre: Comedy, Drama, Family, Fantasy, Music
Oh Mal Soon (played by Na Moon Hee) is a rough edged 74-year-old grandmother who had dreams of becoming a singer in her youth. She’s basically forced to move out of her son's home where she lives with his family. After she leaves, she stumbles upon a suspicious “Youth Photo Studio”. She gets her photo taken, and transforms back into her twenty year old self (played by Shim Eun Keong), but while still in the present day. What kind of mischief can a 74 year old grandma get into while in a 20 year old body?
Reasons to watch
Na Moon Hee is a fantastic actress. She plays a real spitfire. I think she’s hilarious and very skilled. It’s so much fun to see her character’s younger self as well. Shim Eun Keong plays a very convincing younger version of the role. There’s lots of laughs in this movie. It also has a very warm uplifting feel. It's a friendly reminder that no matter how old someone is, they may very well have a youthful spirit still inside them filled with youthful dreams and aspirations.
Want to drown yourself in a tear-jerking romance?
Koizora: The Movie (2007)
Sky of Love
Country: Japan Year: 2007 Genre: Drama, Romance, School, Tragedy
This story is based on Mika's real life experiences revolving around her first love. Mika (played by Aragaki Yui), is a High School student who meets and falls in love with Hiroki (played by Miura Haruma), an energetic bad boy. Many uncontrollable and unforeseeable events throw a wrench into this intense, sometimes erratic young love. What can love truly withstand and how deep is their love once tested?
I apologize; I couldn't find the trailer to Koizora with English subtitles, but I decided to still included the preview without the subs to give you a feel for the movie in case you are considering watching it.
Reasons to watch
So much happens in this movie. The movie brings you on an intense journey of craziness filled with the butterflies that you only get from your first love. But this is much more than just a story of innocent romance; it digs much deeper and demonstrates what we would do for that one person that we feel we cannot live without. What gives this story that much more impact, is knowing that it is apparently based on a woman's true life story. ...BUT.. be warned. This really is not a light and fluffy romance. It can be quite disturbing at times, and the character's actions can be questionable. Take it with a grain of salt. It's an intense watch, but one that I found to be a very rewarding one.
Need a guy-friendly action packed movie?
Rough Cut (2008)
Country: Korea Year: 2008 Genre: Action, Crime, Drama
Gang-Pae (played by So Ji-Sub) is a violent, often scary gangster who secretly has always wanted to be an actor. Su-Ta (played by Kang Ji-Hwan) is a well known bad boy actor who no one wants to work with because of his violent nature. Gang-Pae gets the opportunity to star in a movie alongside Su-Ta, but he will only agree to it if they do the fight scenes for real.
Reasons to watch
This was one of the best So Ji-Sub movies I’ve seen (and he has other really good movies as well). The action in this movie was fantastic, and I'm not normally much for action movies. I think the reason why I loved it so much, was because it's also quite humorous. Our two main leads played off of each other so well. Their acting was really top notch in this. I think I held my breath during a couple scenes. That's how engrossed in it I was.
Well, that brings us to the end of my weekend movie recommendations. I hope they were helpful. What are you planning on watching this weekend?
