AMAZING ROMANCE MOVIE - RECOMMEND IF YOU LIKE FLUFFY, HEALING, ARRANGED MARRIAGE TROPES

THIS MOVIE WAS AMAZING!! I came for Imada Mio, Meme, and some fluffy romance tropes, and I walked away happy.

now look, the plot was extremely fast paced and rushed, which makes sense since they had to compress so much manga and light novels into one film. the lore and worldbuilding was all given over voiceover and I absorbed *none* of it. I had no idea what was going on in terms of the magic system wise throughout the movie but it didn't matter because....

I came for the romance and the romance delivered. Imada Mio and Meme were just so cute together, their chemistry was decent too. my fav trope is a couple healing each other and I was 100% left satisfied on that score. yeah, the FL cries and whimpers a lot and can be a damsel in distress but it makes sense bc of her awful childhood. it was heartwarming watching the ML build up her confidence and strength thru sheer kindness. and it was so touching to see her melt his heart. another fav trope - seemingly badass general is actually a shy, awkward softboi? check ✅. and Miyo turns out to be badass and not defenceless and worthless like everyone told her before her marriage... but I won't spoil it.

I loved seeing other actors I stan in this:
- Tao (she served so hard I didn't even mind all the flashbacks scenes with the admittedly gorgeous kimono)
- the Kanokari ML. no, idk his name. yes I appreciate him. yes we exist.
- the ML from Neko.
- my new crush, Takaishi Akari from JK to Haijin. even tho the latter was so evil in this. nice acting tho.

my only complaint would be that this movie needed more time with the couple instead of the fantasy/action elements. bc, let me be honest, I didn't come for that and neither I did the rest of audience I think.

otherwise I really loved this movie. as a romance movie, it was a solid 10/10, but I wish that was all it was. shoutout to the sound effects, visuals and gorgeous cinematography as well.

so, overall, i'd say this is a solid 8.7/10. def lived up to the hype.

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A surprisingly decent watch!

I won't lie, I wasn't planning on watching this movie; the whole step siblings' love thing seemed so weird... But I really like Mori Nana so I decided to give it a chance. And honestly, I kinda liked what I saw. I won't lie, the two step siblings falling in love was still weird but the movie was actually quite pleasant. The story, if not special, was fun and really fluffy. The romance between the two leads was really cute. There were quite a few comedic moments that I loved and Minato's narration was hilarious! I loved how supportive all the characters were! I would definitely recommend Liar x Liar if you want a relaxing and romantic movie to pass the time.

What I enjoyed the most was the acting because Mori Nana really carried this entire film. Her acting was so heartfelt and her expressions, body language and mannerisms were just so damn adorable & genuine. She deserves to be the romantic lead in more dramas and movies, and I hope she gets more roles like in this the future. I wasn't too impressed with the ML tbh. His acting seemed very wooden and he had little chemistry with the FL. I was more taken with Koseki Yuta - his acting was great and, as usual, he had amazing chemistry with Mori Nana and I honestly shipped them more than the main couple. He is another person who deserves more main roles. I also liked Mayu Hotta's scenes and I wish there was more of them!

Next, this movie is absolutely gorgeous to look at. The cinematography and lighting was very good, as can be expected from a Japanese film and I kept wanting to take screenshots every few seconds! The OST was also very pretty to listen - I particularly liked the rendition of Pachelbel's Canon in D, even if it is a bit cliche to use it in romantic content.

All in all, I would rate this movie around 8.0/10.

P.S. If I got a cent for every time I watched a movie or drama where two stepsiblings fell in love, I'd have $0.02. Which isn't a lot but it's weird that it happened twice.

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The Best Asian Sci-fi Drama I've seen so far

I don't usually write reviews since I'm not a good writer but seeing as no one else has written one, I'll give it a try. I guess this drama made that much of an impression on me!

Story - it begins with a former cop and his reporter friend getting on a train that has a potential suspect in the murder of the cop's wife, a researcher in AI, along with families and friends going on vacation. Suddenly, the train is diverted from its original destination and ends up in a mysterious, deserted city. There, as they face hunger, the undead, betrayal, and other dangers, the passengers struggle to survive and trust each other as they try to find the author of their misfortune...

Okay, it doesn't sound very original, does it? It sounds like a mish-mash of The Maze Runner, Lost, and The Walking Dead. I'd argue that's a good thing; while those are classics in their own right, the latter two ran of steam and turned into messes. In contrast, all 24 episodes of this drama were captivating and well-written. Usually, I don't like watching long dramas, which is why I don't watch a lot of Chinese dramas, but this one kept glued to my seat throughout. It's evident that a lot of thought and preparation went into the story. Themes of artificial intelligence, greed, redemption, loss, love were explored with a deft touch, with just the right amount of suspense and mystery to keep you guessing and pressing "the play next button."

Acting/Cast - honestly, the main leads (the cop and the AI scientist) didn't really stand out to me that much. They were the archetypical "good guys" who didn't have that many flaws and always did the right thing. Amelie Xue as the scientist with mommy issues was definitely good in this, as was the ML who played the guilt-ridden cop with lots of emotional baggage, and both of had serviceable chemistry with each other. However, it was characters like Chen Li, Mo Li, the mute guy, Dr. Qin, Nana who really stood out to me because they seemed the most like real people to me. The character development was off the charts! They make a lot of mistakes and a lot of ruthless decisions at the start and you initially hate these people for how selfish they are, how they're concerned only about their own survival or how much they value money over their fellow humans, etc. but as the drama goes along, their motivations are fully fleshed out and you really empathized with them. You see them grow as people and try their best to take care of each, fall in love or form stronger friendships. Amazing work from those actors, they really sold me on their roles.

Music - Nothing that stood out. The rock songs they played at the end of each episode were kinda generic and the sound effects were typical horror movie sounds.

Rewatch value - I'd say around 8.5 because on a watch you'll get a lot of the clues you missed the first time.

Overall/Conclusion:
Asian sci-fi movies and dramas like "Wandering Earth" are usually cringy and just bad or straight up amazing (Train, Train to Busan, Kingdom). This one falls closer to the latter end of the spectrum. The plot might not sound the most original but it's definitely well written and well-acted. I would definitely recommend if you are into mystery, suspense, survival, crime and light romance genres.


P.S. be sure to stay after the credits for stingers which help with your own theories about the drama's main mystery :)

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Japanese zombie drama with an intense, amazing first half.

This was one of my favourite dramas this season. I haven't seen an Asian zombie drama before and this delivered on my high expectations. The first episode or so didn't impress me but the following episodes got intense and extremely engaging. I looked forward to new episodes every week and waiting for them was a struggle! The writers were great in depicting the depths that humans fall into when trying to survive, the moral dilemmas, how people are valued differently in our society because of factors they can't control, and how large groups of people are easily manipulated. I'll be honest, the zombies weren't that frightening, the other survivors were the scariest part of the drama. At first, the drama never failed to deliver on the thrills and tensions and horror...

Sadly, these good qualities diminished in the second half and the drama became a little bit too melodramatic and focused too much on a romance that seemed really forced. Nevertheless, this drama was still entertaining to the very end and I would really recommend giving it a try. Don't expect Train to Busan level quality, but more along the lines of #Alive - a very fun zombie drama that has its flaws.

Takeuchi Ryoma and Takito Kenichi were amazing as always. They really sold us on the characters' inner turmoils and emotions. Takito Kenichi was especially noteworthy in his role of an evil scientist, a man on the very precipice of insanity. Ryoma was really good at portraying his tortured pysche as he desperately tried to keep his band of survivors alive while trying not to make dubious moral choices. Also a shoutout to Kim Jae-hyun, who was also memorable as Min-jun as was Marie Iitoyo as Kanae! Unfortunately, the rest of the cast didn't really make an impact on me and Nakajo Ayami's acting wasn't that impressive, despite being the FL XD.

Imo, other than the acting, the best part of this drama is the OST. Rei Yasuda's "Not the End" is an absolute banger; her voice is gorgeous and that song WILL get stuck in your hand for the next several day, it's so catchy and beautiful.

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Amazing Chinese crime drama

Much like "The Bad Kids", this is one of the best modern Chinese dramas I've watched. it started off a little bit slow and complicated but once the plot hit its stride from episode 2 onwards, it was such an addicting and enjoyable watch. The story is interesting, extremely well written and you never know what happens next, with little to no plot holes. The characters were brilliantly realized and acted - as a previous commenter noted, the chemistry between Gina Jin and Zhu Ya Wen was amazing; in all honesty, all the actors did their roles well. I would 100% recommend this drama if you're into crime, thriller, detective and whodunnit genres. There's a fair bit of romance too if you're interested in that sort of thing.

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A feel-good teen drama about loving yourself and being the best you can be

I'll be the first to admit that this is no masterpiece. But if you liked dramas like True Beauty, then you will definitely enjoy this one. The writing is full of cliches but enjoyably and the love triangle is quick and painless! The comedic scenes are hilarious and the chemistry between the different characters is amazing!

Also, like all of the cast look gorgeous? And the opening song and sequence is one of the best I've seen in dramas lol. We also got positive representation of a trans character!
This dramas also has a lot of heartwarming messages about loving yourself and having good self-esteem. The main message is that no matter how you look or what you think of yourself, you can change yourself for the better and find love, you just need to put in the hard work and have a positive outlook. I found it touching personally.

I would definitely definitely recommend this drama if you wanted something light and fluffy to watch! :)

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An amazing but simple movie that now lives in my head rent-free

This movie's summary sounded really bare but the trailer looked good and it was offered at a film festival so I decided to check it out. It was a damn good and I'm kind of obsessed with it right now! The story is about a high school student who witnesses a younger student being brutally bullied by her classmates and decides to step in, admittedly out of a hero complex. One of the most kindest MLs I've seen so far, he is so kind and sweet to her and they get closer... and then the story goes into some dark places but I won't spoil it, since it builds to a really romantic, heartwarming conclusion imo.

The story wasn't groundbreaking or special, I'll be first to admit, all the weird little quirkiness aside, but it was still engaging and resonated with me. It was quite deep and heartfelt - it showed how even in the darkness of this world and human behaviour, there are still good people out here who commit to being someone's light. The acting was top-notch, especially on Ishii Anna's part. I didn't really notice the music that much but it wasn't bad.

Overall, an enjoyable movie, perhaps even one of my favourite out of all the Japanese movies I seen so far and I'll probably rewatch it in the future whenever it is available.

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just give this a skip if you want an enjoyable romance drama

Pros:
- high production quality; seriously, this is some of the best cinematography and video quality I've seen in a jdrama. the budget must have been really high
- *extremely* attractive cast; every single actor and actress are absolutely beautiful. special shoutout to whoever played Morisaki and the king Teratani.
- story that you cannot stop watching, bc you need to know what happens next
- really good OST
Cons:
- the worst, most slow and frustrating romance in television history. so many needless misunderstandings, angst and fakeouts, it made me scream in anger.
- the most annoying main characters in drama history. the ml is a spineless, inconsiderate coward who can't even speak to girls but somehow still manages to treat them like garbage. the fl is a passive character who never fights for what she wants and does her best to misunderstand ml or give mixed signals and then get angry at him.
- this drama must be written and produced entirely by men because the amount of male gaze and fanservice is off the charts - I've never seen this much in a jdrama before and I don't want to. the characters are in school or college and they're played by really young actresses; the sheer amount that their bodies are sexualized and fetishized for the pleasure of the audience made even me, a man, feel uncomfortable.
- this ml is straight up garbage but even he doesn't deserve the fl. you can see that in the absolute dumpster fire of a finale. this man literally fought a psycho with a knife and ended up in a coma.... and she didn't even bother showing up to the hospital... and never once said thank you or I love you...
- so much unnecessary angst.
- literally every other love interest would have been better for the ML rather than the FL

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One of the best melodrama/romance dramas I have seen

Despite the lacklustre plot summary here, the story was surprisingly good!! I binged all 11 episodes in a couple of days, I was enjoying my selves so much. There were more twists and turns in the romance between the three couples than a wending mountain road - couples formed and broke apart in what felt like the blink of an eye - but it was so damn interesting to watch and so much fun. The plot is also quite deep, investigating what in means to love, living for yourself, the spirit of Tokyo, the modern woman, and as one reviewer pointed out, a deconstruction of a manic pixie dream girl.

Speaking of Tokyo, the cinematography and production was definitely WOWOW level, not your avg made for TV graphics you get in jdramas. I loved all the beautiful shots of the city, I wanted to take screenshots all the time. The acting was amazing. Ishibashi Shizuka's acting skills has to be seen to be believed - she embodied Rika so damn well, from the strong, independent assertiveness, fun-loving childishness to the surprising vulnerability and loneliness. This was my second drama with Ito Kentaro, who also did an amazing job and he looked so young and cute here - did he age backwards from Ashi Girl??

The only problems I had were with That Incident and Satomi's character. The latter could have been written much better and Ishii Anna felt wasted in her role, even though she did what she could. Her character seemed to revolve around being obsessed with the men in her life and being treated like absolute garbage by them, leading to nothing but bouts of sobbing and depression. She needed to be more fleshed and given more strength or assertiveness? Also, the Incident - I do not want to spoil too much but there was a scene of rape in one of the later episodes. It felt extremely gratuitous and the way it was handled almost made me stop watching - no one in the story takes a literal sexual crime too seriously except for the victim and the offender gets a happy ending and everything?? I felt like I was watching a show from the 1940s not 2020! Regardless, the drama was still good and the story was engaging so I gave it a try again. Regardless, I do not like that scene or the character at all and I hope we never see anything like that in dramaland again.

The music was also simply amazing? I was surprised to see a couple of English language songs but they were are so well sung and pretty to listen to! I have everything in the OST saved on Spotify XD

I would give this drama a solid 8.7/10 and would recommend to anyone who likes extremely emotional or angsty romantic dramas. Just be careful of the sexual assault scene in one of the later episodes.

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Don't waste your time on this drama!

I originally decided to watch this drama because it was short and I thought the plot sounded interesting. Now, I want the time I spent watching this drama back!!

It's a shame because the first few episodes were really good, or at least good enough for me to ignore the problems that were already noticeable. It started depicting a woman struggling with grief, a man trying to overcome his trauma... But starting with ep. 6, it all became a mess.

Like, the twist was ridiculous. And from the romance angle, the FL was a cruel jerk to the ML and was against being with him to the very end; I could understand her reasons, but it still didn't justify her behaviour. I honestly wanted ML to have stayed single or ended up with his hoobae (who just disappeared with no context lol).

The editing, the sound, and the acting was really bad too. Scenes continued well after actors had finished saying their dialogue so the camera was just focused on people looking awkwardly forward. You could barely hear what the dialogue was at times because the audio got loud or quietly randomly. The acting was so amateurish but I could have overlooked that if the story was good. Only the visual quality and cinematography was okay; otherwise, a couple of YouTubers with a $50 budget and a potato could be able to make a better end product.

I hope I'll see the cast in something that's actually good. 4.5/10 from me.

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a healing, sports romance worth watching

I can't really find the words to express why I love this drama so much so I'll try to do a very barebones pros and cons list instead:

Pros -
1) really great writing that will keep you engaged throughout
2) lots of satisfying character development
3) The ML - dude's a great actor playing a very morally grey and complicated person on a path to redemption
4) adorable FL, who goes on her journey of acceptance and healing
5) positive female representation, lots of good examples of female & male friendships
6) all the side characters are written to be very sympathetic, esp ppl like Areum and Ara; you empathize with and root for them
7) beautiful BGM and OST
8) heartwarming relationship between the leads, I shipped so hard

Cons:
1) villains are really evil & you'll grow to hate them, but they're not handled very well imo
2) age gap relationship, that's a bit rushed but YMMV
3) absolutely annoying SML who takes way too much screentime

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