I have low hopes for any Thai BL frankly, and this looks like a gimmick. I'm pro-sensuality (which is sexier than, well, sex usually), but we're getting a real Madonna/Whore complex in BL which is tired before it begins. Happy to be proven wrong if this proves more fun or interesting than most every other Thai BL lately.
This series went so much deeper than expected. Beautiful, even existential, direction. Truly didn't see so much coming, and really worth your time if the first few minutes don't get you. Watch it all. Really.
You get to a certain point in life where films like this are what give you the vision to find beauty in love and loss and keep going. Really wonderful. Not fluff, so steer clear if that's your thing (or maybe give it a chance anyway).
After watching "Let Me Hear it Barefoot," which was excellent, I just can't take any more of this cookie-cutter fare. It's not good or well-shot or interesting. What can I say? Sad but true.
I think I'm losing my tolerance for formulaic BL. Higher production quality and good chemistry don't change how conservative, predictable, and lazy the writing is. I'm going to watch a documentary or something.
Oh Joo-seok is cute as Won-kyung so far, but not sure if I'll care about the main couple. He and Tae-hyun's initial mischievous dynamic is more interesting to me.
This series is so refreshing. There is still the kinky power dynamic, the self-doubt, and the misunderstandings but now with this humanizing, equalizing love and honesty that helps the characters through it all. Love the offbeat tone and tenderness so far.
To clarify, it's more accurate to describe Hira and Kiyoi as "family names" because these names actually come…
If you follow other Asian media, it's worth noting too that Chinese-language names usually follow the original name order (this is because Japan has longer history of contact with West). So Taiwanese and Chinese names are usually family name-personal name. For instance, Mao Zedong is original name order: Mao is the family name. There are exceptions, but a good rule of thumb for these: usually Chinese-language personal names are two syllables and family names are one. Happy viewing!
So is Hira and Kiyoi their first names or last names?
To clarify, it's more accurate to describe Hira and Kiyoi as "family names" because these names actually come first in Japanese (English translations reverse them, as part of a longstanding custom that's now being challenged). But, except for very intimate relations, most casual friends and classmates will use each other's family names. To call someone by their personal name indicates a very close relationship.
Rule of thumb: In English, Japanese names are written in Western order, so Yukio Mishima means Mishima is the family name (actually a pen name, but whatever). But Japanese people will say "Mishima Yukio" if you actually listen.
Sad cos I just finished it and I wondered why I watched it in the first place
Because many people, including me, like films that deal realistically with how complicated LGBTQ people and feelings can be. The film made me reflect, and I felt like it’s nice to not feel the burden of being a “good gay” or a saint but an actual human being with flaws.
Rule of thumb: In English, Japanese names are written in Western order, so Yukio Mishima means Mishima is the family name (actually a pen name, but whatever). But Japanese people will say "Mishima Yukio" if you actually listen.