Will these words even be enough?

What collection of carefully-picked written words do I need to use to justify the profound soul-wrenching beauty of this film? Will words even be enough?

A Sun is one of those films where a mere retell of its plot would simply not be enough to capture its profound and soul-wrenching story. It’s one of those films that you have to witness and experience to fully appreciate and understand the story it is trying to tell its audience.

There are only a few films that rendered me at a loss for words after watching them and this is certainly one of those films. Honestly, I’m afraid of writing a review for this film because I do know that this time my written words would not be able to give the justice this film certainly deserves.

In simple words, this film is an intimate story about a family in the aftermath of a tragedy after a previous misfortune. If you read that simple summary, you will probably think this is one of those ordinary tales about families and tragedies. In a way, you’re right-- it is indeed ordinary, but also in a number of other ways, you’re greatly mistaken to assume that this is just another ordinary tale of a family.

What is so remarkable about this film is its ability to tell a multitude of things in too little of everything. The relationship between the two brothers was shown in just two separate brief scenes, one of which is just a narrated story of the elder brother’s visit to the youngest. Yet despite their little interactions in this film, both scenes already provided enough to paint a picture in your head of what could have been the dynamics between the two brothers.

On the other hand, the relationship between the husband and wife was marked with only dialogues about their sons and very little of what could have hinted their relationship was like outside of being parents to their children. The gap between them created by the lack of any details about their personal relationship was remedied by the actors' stellar portrayal of their characters. It was their silent moments, the quiet comfort between them, and their distant yet intimate connection with each other that bridge this gap.

Overall, A Sun is a painful, yet beautiful and still hopeful story of an ordinary family with very complex characters that you would end up caring for as you go along with the film. All the actors nailed their respective roles. They were simply perfect. The original score is perfect too. It was deeply moving and impactful without being too overpowering. It was simply a great mix of everything.

Watch it, it’s totally worth your time. Your 2 and a half hours will surely not be put to waste.

[SPOILER AHEAD! Do not read after this if you don’t want to be spoiled. Take my word, if ever you plan to watch this movie, stop reading at this point because you will appreciate the story more without knowing what is written below.]

I have read a number of people asking why the elder brother did what he did and how they could not simply understand his reasons. This questioning alone is a good example of how often signs and causes of depression are often missed by even the closest person to the one depressed. It tells how a person’s facade is not everything and how one carry oneself in front of the others can be very deceiving and is not in any way a good indicator of what lies beneath one’s exterior.

I was also very shocked with what happened to A-Hao. It was only after what he did that I was able to fully understand his story of the kids playing hide-and-seek.

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The story is not meant to be scary, per se, but to be disturbing.

Staying true to J-Horror style, Ju-On: Origins exhibits its mastery of subtle approach at telling a gripping tale about the beginning of a series of different events.

The story is not meant to be scary, per se, but to be disturbing. I guess most of the confusion and disappointment about this series are because some audience expected it to be something that would definitely "scare" them in a conventional way. However, a deeper understanding of Japanese horror style or Asian horror, in general, would definitely help in having more appropriate expectations for this series. Unlike the usual western horror style, J-horror/Asian horror tends to be more psychologically disturbing rather than conventionally scary.

Ju-On: Origins is told in a nonlinear narrative, which for others can create some confusion, but upon deeper inspection and analysis this nonlinear narrative is very effective in setting the psychologically disturbing atmosphere that it aims to give to the audience.

As someone who is an avid fan of the horror genre, I would definitely recommend and give a thumbs up to this series.

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Do you remember what kind of things you were so busy about at 17?

Yu Gwan Sun, at age 17, was busy taking part in the liberation of her country. At 18, she died fighting for her country and its freedom. A Resistance tells her inspiring, yet tragic, story.

As a nation with same colonized past, we share the same scars and celebrate the often UNSUNG martyrs and heroes that bravely fought for the freedom we have today. Stories like these should be retold from time to time, passed down from one generation to another --- never letting time fade away the stories of battles the one before us had endured and won. We should NEVER forget.

Go Ah Sung delivered an excellent portrayal of her character. You cannot question the talent in her, she obviously knows what she's doing and how to do it. Her performance alone single-handedly compensated for the weaknesses in narrative this film had. Go Ah Sung would simply take your breath away.

Overall, this film has very good actors, a very solid material (the real-life story of Gwan Sun alone is a very good and powerful plot) but weak writing. It's good, but could have been better. It's not perfect but still very worth your time to watch.

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When romcom met slice of life...

For lovers of both romcom and slice of life genres, this is something for you. This show mixes the two genres perfectly and masterfully with the help of the irresistibly charming cells. I think it would not be a stretch to say that this is challenging the standard Kdrama romcom format and would probably alter or influence the romcom game in the long run.

First off, I have read the Webtoon and I loved it completely. Now, having read the original also means having a billion of expectations and worries about the drama adaptation. I loved the original enough to worry if they would be giving this brilliant work of author Lee Donggeon the justice it truly deserves. Well, I think there were enough reasons why do one needed to worry about Kdrama adaptions of webtoon originals given the track record of the Kdrama adaptations so far. But this one is definitely not a disappointment. Yumi's cells drama version certainly delivered what the original was able to provide its readers --- the fun, warm, and sometimes painful feeling of joining Yumi's journey, and growing and learning along with her in the process. It was like a warm hug or a cozy blanket -- it has that kind of comforting feeling.

The story is simple and yet very endearing. In fact, it uses some basic and well-worn narratives of romcom and yet it felt so new and different. I'm crediting the bulk of this creative story to Lee Donggeon as it should be, but it is also very impressive how the screenwriters weaved through and navigated this story with ease and so much respect to the original. They stayed true to the original, most of the time, with only some little addition of few things here and there that I found questionable at first but quite reasonable upon realizing the bigger picture they were trying to paint. This story might look simple but I know full well that in the hands of less capable screenwriters and director this creative and brilliant world that Lee Donggeon had created would easily crumble into an unsalvageable mess. Thankfully, this one delivered excellently in execution.

The characters are ordinary. They're far from the usual larger-than-life characters of romcom Kdramas ---no chaebols, no CEOs, no heroes trying to save whatever or whoever needs the saving, and etc. Its strength lies in the mundane and ordinariness of its characters. They all felt like ordinary people that you could encounter in your daily commute, could be a neighbor, even an old friend. They're all flawed and that what makes them feel so real and relatable. You won't love the characters all the time. You'd be irritated, annoyed, or even mad at them sometimes but at the end of the day you'd realize you actually care about them.

Kim Go Eun is simply Kim Yumi! She ate and digested this role completely. I think she didn't just bring Yumi to life, she made Yumi her own by giving her own exquisite touches to her own Yumi. You see in adaptations it is so easy for actors to just match and copy the appearance and habits of the characters they're playing, but to make the character your very own and making your audience think that no one else could play the character better than you is a true mark of being an exceptional actor. KGE deserves all the recognition she could get from this. Ahn Bo Hyun, too, is a revelation here. Actually, the cast here were all brilliant in their own roles. And who would have thought that KGE and ABH pairing would be this explosive on- and off-screen? These two together were simply amazing and definitely a tough act to follow (looking at you both Babi and Soonrok).

Overall, what I am really thankful about this drama adaptation is how it was able to preserve that fun and heartwarming feeling of the original. It was really impressive how they have managed to bring out from me the same emotional investment I have felt while reading the original. Reading how other people have related and felt comfort from this is also how I know that this drama had successfully brought Yumi's Cells to life.

Hats off to all the people involved in this drama. You've all done an exceptional job at this. See you all again in season 2. To Kim Yumi, I'm riding this journey again with you and thank you for letting me tagged along with you on this first chapter.

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This film reminds me what a really good film is all about. It is about GOOD storytelling...

Little Forest reminds me what a really good film is all about; it isn’t about the best CGI, the highest budget, and not even about how the different cinematic techniques are applied. It is about GOOD storytelling, after all a film at its core is a form of storytelling.

In an industry saturated with big-budgeted, adrenaline-fueled stories, the calm and no-plot Little Forest shined steadily and confidently. It’s one of those films that would leave you with a warm feeling and would stay in your mind long after the suspense, wonder, and amazement of the other stories you’ve been told left your consciousness. The characters stay with you as if you’ve been friendly neighbors and watched each other for a long time, sometimes you even see yourself in them. That’s the beauty of a good storytelling — it lingers long.

The thing with this kind of film is that it wouldn’t work well if the actors aren’t good in their character portrayal. Kim Tae Ri, Ryu Jun Yeol, and Jin Ki Joo are all exceptional in this film too. Ryu Jun Yeol is such a gem and the way he always owns this kind of characters is simply amazing.

It always amazes me that when a character is portrayed so well, even the smallest and most common of gestures can mean a dozen of things. At the near end of the film, Ryu Jun Yeol's wave of goodbye done while his back is turned from Hae Won could be interpreted in so many ways. I remember pausing the play button after that scene and I just smiled and basked in the rush of emotions that scene evoked in me. It’s one of those moments, the little details of a well-told story that stays with you.

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