3
1
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Amastris Dratwka
미국
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This story line never dragged for me. The flow and pacing was very nice. It had different stories within the main story that kept it from going off track too much and keeping it from getting boring. It stuck to a theme and I really liked that aspect. I loved the sismance in this one. The 2 female leads were paired well and their relationship to everyone else was pretty quality entertainment. It started off silly, got a bit serious in the middle without losing its humorous feel, and then ended with the same kind of silliness. Overall a really "feel good" series with just the right amount of angst to have a good story throughout 15 episodes. It didn't feel draggy, or rushed. It was just right.
ACTING:
Everyone acted superbly in this drama. I really did like everyone's character, even the villains. I do have to give special props to Roy's character and NOT merely because it's Roy or for fangirling or anything like that at all. His character was just like the most perfect imperfect male lead you could ever ask for in a drama. I like that he's not necessarily romantic and "for love" but learns through the process of falling in love, being let down by it, yet still never giving up on himself and being true to what he feels. It really was a quality love process... ...and it really helped that Alice and him play well off each other. They have really good chemistry, but I think I'd still like his character even if it was someone else. He's just a really, really likable guy.
MUSIC:
The music was pretty good quality. Not overpowering and interfering with the drama. Upbeat, sad, & sweet all placed at the right times.... and at least 3 songs [Linger on by Yoga Lin] [Lost Heartbeat (?????) by Power Station] [So Close (??) by Joanne Tseng] are worthy of downloading and playing on your mp3 player. ;)
REWATCH:
It's just such a feel good show with lots of great kiss scenes between Roy and Alice that after it sinks in you'll probably want to come back to see it again. There are those rare ones that are worth a rewatch. This is one of them.
OVERALL:
What can I say more than ^^^ this? I just really, really liked this drama.
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STORY: The era and plot of this movie is perfect. The idea and message that is conveyed through it is moving. There is a clear path and a clear point and it is made with dramatic scenery, wonderful cinematography, and excellent martial arts sequences. Frankly, the best part about this is the martial arts and the concept of killing versus not killing. However, if you're looking for a true romance movie, you're in the wrong place. If you're in it for great acting and romantic subtlety, you'll get it in spades. If you love subtlety, then you'll understand when I say that the ending was epic.
The fact that this was produced by Time-Warner is a plus. Not to be biased, just staying factual, unless a Japanese movie is being produced by the likes of Sony Corp, the production value tends to be a tier or 2 down from the Mega-Movie producers in the USA. Those places just have instilled longtime quality personnel, longtime experience, and lots of money to spare to put value into a movie they produce. This movie is no exception to that rule.
ACTING: Straight up, you couldn't have cast people better for each role. They all fit their characters well. I have to say that Sato Takeru absolutely nails his character. Sato has the most perfect stances for each scene that shows his expertise and understanding of various jutsu. I was enthralled by it and his moves are so seemless. I haven't seen a movie so good for swordfighting in so long, it was amazing to me. His ability to subtlely use his eyes and mouth to express emotions that delineate the distance or closeness to his relationships or deeper meaning is powerful. I was able to see how much he values the concept of innocence by his shy reaction to it when he comes across it and his desire to protect the concept. Just beautiful and moving. Even though Samurai X was produced in 2012, it brought back to me essences of Liar And His Lover [2013] in that first kiss scene when she says "why are you crying" when he isn't and then the tears flow easily. I see how he perfected that by watching this movie. He is definitely a talented actor and I'm fascinated by how good he is with his marital arts at such a young age. Just mesmerizing.
MUSIC: One OK Rock - The Beginning for the closing song! Enough said! But seriously, the music is very good. It's got a classical feel to it and reminds me of the soundtrack to the anime Sword Of The Stranger yet, nothing will ever quite compare to that epic anime. I say it "feels" like it but it's no where close to the downloadable quality. What I mean is that the music doesn't distract and is impactful and plays well with the scenes being portrayed.
REWATCH VALUE: This is one movie that I will come back to time and time again. The battles scenes are just so good that I don't think I'd ever get bored of watching them. Where do you find a scene with a samurai beating up a bunch of thugs and, if you watch closely, see him take the seconds to show his respect by taking off his shoes and bowing. It's just meaningful stuff like that which you may not catch the first go around that begs for this movie to be watched multiple times.
OVERALL: Just one of those lovely badass films that's worth sinking your teeth into time and time again.
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The way this show was edited also bothered me. It had way too much filler for me. At least 15 minutes of each episode has flashback filler of scenes we've already watched, and the same ones over and over again and this is just for the present scenes. Then there's the flashbacks of their youth that give you a scene then next episode replays that scene and adds an additional 3-4 minutes of extend the scene to give more information. I didn't really like this style. I thought the youth scenes could have been intertwined into the present more seemlessly.
Acting: There is nothing bad I can say about the acting. The actors are topnotch and even the new comers are great. This show introduced me to lil Kim Min Jae who I was not aware of until now. Realized that he could actually dance and his acting is good for a rookie. It's no wonder he got picked up for a new drama. All the side characters/students/old friends were really good and played their parts well. I enjoyed watching them even if I didn't really like the way the story was written and directed.
Music: The music wasn't too catchy for me. This is coming from someone who downloads OST for dramas and got into k-pop this way. One of my most disappointing scenes was her dance, which could have been handled so much better even if they need to get a body double, when they cut BTS Dope into a ballad. I was like: I'm just getting my groove on and expecting her to bust out and put the moves on and they slo-mo the hip-hop? WTF? lol....
Rewatch: Watching it once you get the story gist, no need to replay. If I'd rewatch anything it would be for cute scenes from the beginning episodes. Past that, there was so many flashback repeats I rewatch the drama already while watching it the first time.
Overall: It's entertaining. I'd watch it without expecting a loveline. Like even if the drama tries to throw that aspect at you, don't bite. Watch like a Slice Of Life show and enjoying getting to know the main character and her life. Don't expect too much from her, just watch her learn, and grow... and that's why I mentioned Misaeng... If you've watched that drama, this is a lesser version of someone learning and growing. The acting in itself is worth a watch even if the plot is bi-polar.
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I didn't particularly like the 1st segment with the teenagers. Ironically, having 2 teenage boys of my own, it doesn't matter what country you are from, when it comes to social media, it does have a lot of impact and consequences my generation never dealt with before and we're parents and just as new at as they are.... so it's like the blind leading the blind. You cannot give away something you don't have so, the kids nowadays probably do tend to get lost when parents are just as moronic with the media as the kids are at it. It's a topic worth bringing up.
The 2nd segment just has good actors that I like to watch. Standard lost romance stuff, but still nice story arc to it.
OVERALL: It's not too emotionally investing and it has some food for thought. Definitely a nice relaxing entertaining diversion. Worth 2 hours on a rainy day with a cup of chamomile tea. lol....
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