first of all, the story revolving around these five women and their growth was fantastic. they were so real. they weren't perfect and i fell in love with their flaws which are so relatable. not many dramas can bring such elements out
secondly, the simplicity. i love how simple it is yet so complicated.
thirdly, the everyday trouble they gets into. the success and the failures, the struggle of a being a middle class. the preference of a male child in backwarded family,
these five women and their friendship was the highlight of this drama. they weren't bad people, yet they were judgemental about each other, which exactly shows how human are. i could go on and on and on about this drama, so i will a stop here but i gotta say, fan jie/Xiao mei was my absolute favorite. she made me cry a whole bucket of tears. i would highly recommend this drama to those who are looking light hearted not very serious genres. plus there's wang kai, i love him ????????
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STORY
===================================================
It is actually more than an HIV story. It tackles not only the prevalence in the Philippines, but also other like it shows how normal having an extra-marital affair is, getting pregnant without being married, substance abused, making ends meet. And Kalel's father. These social issues are more rampant in the poorer sector of the country, but it ain't exclusive to the sector.
This film shows a slice of each to the social issues mentioned above. Raw, unadulterated, rustic way by the use of black and white color scheme will give you a sense of how grim, dark, challenging a person needs to go through every single day. It able to show and concentrate on Kalel, both the protagonist and antagonist, as he make his way through a teen life full of hardships and uncertainty. Why is he the antagonist? You can clearly see how conflicted he is, how inconsistent magnified by having the disease. Until in the end, he succumb what he needs to do to survive.
The film depicts from Kalel's point of view. No heartaches and heartbreaks. Just pure struggle. I heard and know similar stories, but with different circumstances, all with different outcomes.
Make no mistake, this ain't your HIV advocacy film per se. It shows one of the many faces of a Person Living with HIV (PLHIV) in the Philippines is like. The struggle, the stigma, having a sense of dignity, of what left of it, for having the disease. Raw, unadulterated, rustic.
ACTOR
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Elijah as KALEL - definitely hold his own here despite being supported by 2 of the most decorated and veteran in PH entertainment industry. He definitely deserved to win the Best Actor.
MUSIC
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Is there any? Or am I just focused on the story too much? I guess it doesn't need to as Kalel is not the music type of guy, it will be off to include one. There is no heartbreaking scene as well.
REWATCH VALUE
===================================================
I am the type of guy that rarely do a rewatch, not unless it am dying of boredom. Even I'm in that mood, this won't be the top of my list to rewatch.
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This review may contain spoilers
As you can see in the description, it was about spies and their counterspies (hunter) of the communist party in China. So do expect a TON lot of scenes were heavily focused in this spy/government/politic/action/prison business, with a sprinkle of romance and siblings rivalry here and there. Characters were well written, each and every single one had their own backstory and character depth. The story started out with the murder of a lady named Gui Wan. Her parents, believing it was a karma, sent her big brother Gui Yi, a successful, righteous general working for the (then) ruling government to look for his illegitimate little brother whose original name was Gui Wan in the capital city. (Initially his dad picked the name Gui Wan for his illegitimate son, but his noble, well known family refused to accept the bastard child and his mom and kicked them out, so afterward he gave that name to his legitimate daughter). After meeting with the said half brother, Gui Yi then unfolded a messy ball of thread involving his sister's death, his misterious half brother, and their involvement with the Communist Party (a forbidden issue back at that time, punishable by death to be involved with it).
Hu Hai Feng portrayal as Gui Yi, a righteous general with absolute belief and loyalty to its government, a loving and caring man to his family and fellow comrades was spot on. His anguish and dilemma after realizing that he never truly knew his beloved sister and that she actually was a spy for a forbidden organization he despised, was real and heartbreaking. The love and care he had for his closest ones are shown throughout the drama, especially his love for Nio nio (an orphaned girl he took in) whom at first he considered as a replacement of his late sister.
The rest of the cast did an equally amazing job portraying their role!
All in all, do try the first episodes. If you dont mind the political scenes (they played a big role explaining the whole story so i dont recommed skipping all of them), this drama provides a great story with well rounded cast.
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This review may contain spoilers
Eh
I think someone said it already, but yes, the highlight of this series was the height difference, and yes, I am that shallow. I'm not going to harp on this series too much because it obviously didn't have a big budget, nor did it have credible actors. But for what it's worth, I think it actually wasn't that bad for the budget it was given.Let's Dive In.
The premise of the show is decent. It's actually pretty well thought out and somewhat original. It takes itself off coarse many times due to the lack of a coherent script and actors who can dish it out. But again, for what it's worth, it's not that bad.
The romance is eh. Their height difference carried me to the end for sure. I did enjoy their little face-painting thing, and the interview at the end was cute. Outside of those moments, everything else was okay. Pete's acting is stale and Tonliew's is mediocre. They have zero connection, and only a pinch of chemistry at the end.
Ratings:
Story: 6/10 - Okay. Good in some parts and bad in others.
Acting: 7/10 - Eh. They were new actors so I'll give them some leeway, but I've seen better. Tonliew was probably their strongest actor.
Music: 5/10 - I don't remember.
Rewatch Value: 2/10 - Maybe any time Putter is looming over Yoshi like a tower. Other than that, probably not.
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"Your love has sustained me"
Long lasting love was explored in Netflix’s My Love: Six Stories of True Love. Couples from six different countries who had cohabitated from 40-60 years were shown going through their mundane days and facing challenges that arose in their lives. The couples were a mixed bag with something for everyone.1-USA. Ginger and David
“First time I saw her, I loved her.”
The focus of Ginger and David’s segment seemed to be on the financial aspects and paperwork for dealing with aging and dying. The large family gatherings and business on the farm were also highlighted. This segment wasn’t my favorite and some aspects felt staged.
2-Spain. Nati and Augusto
“You have to be strong at this age---like a warrior.”
I loved this couple, they were by far my favorite. They teased and goodheartedly bickered as they showed the importance of humor and companionship in a successful relationship.
3-Japan. Kinuko and Haruhei
“Alone it would be hard for you but together we can manage if we try.”
This couple faced a lifetime of discrimination because Haruhei had developed Hansen’s disease/Leprosy as child. For 15 years he’d been institutionalized even after he was cured. They showed how perseverance and hope sustained them as they faced negative attitudes, fought for justice, and dealt with a terminal illness.
4-Korea. Saeng Ja and Yeong Sam
“I still feel young at heart. But my body can’t keep up.”
Saeng Ja suffered debilitating back pain from decades of hard work and abalone farming. Yeong Sam scolded her whenever she did too much. Their surviving son didn’t want to take over the business and the two were left wondering if they had enough money to survive without the farm and boating business. The loss of a child, regrets, and physical ailments took a toll.
5-Brazil. Nicinha and Jurema
“Dreams are built, little by little.”
The two women had been together for 43 years and lived most of it with their children and grandchildren in a dilapidated house on the crowded hill of Rocinha with a view of the ocean. Three hours away in a quiet village they had bought a small plot of land where they were building a house little by little for retirement. Regardless of their poverty and age they had a determination to fulfill their dreams. An interesting couple that unlike the others were open about infidelity.
6-India. Satyabhama and Satva
“We are getting older but the work doesn’t cease.”
Satyabhama and Satva lost their millet and cotton crops during an unexpected deluge. Their grown children were forced to leave to work in the factories along with everyone else their age. Only the old and the very young remained. The couple were too old to handle the fields themselves leaving them in a precarious position. This segment focused on the “ceaseless cycle of migration.” This segment felt overproduced and the names of the couple weren’t authentic so I was left wondering how much of it was real.
Each story had a different director which showed in how the episodes were developed. At over an hour, some of the episodes were too long with not enough compelling material to fill them. Others went by quickly. The first and last episodes were the weakest for me as they both felt overly staged. Many of the couples faced a lack of financial resources as bodies aged and were unable to work like in their youth, illnesses, and their own mortality. Regardless of their circumstances all but one of the couples were still close and supportive of each other even after decades of dealing with life's challenges which was encouraging.
18 August 2024
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Highly Recommend it!
I just finished watching "Likit Haeng Jan" and here's why I recommend it. (Especially if you like "Ruk Laek Pop" because this is similar)It's a time travel lakorn about two girls (same actress) who have the same parents and look the same but live in two different era. The girl from the ancient era travels to the present and falls in love with the present girl's best friend. The present time girl travels to the past and falls in love with a guy who the parents of the ancient girl wanted her to marry.
The female lead in this lakorn has two different roles (present time girl/ancient time girl)
1. Present time female lead is smart, strong, bold, cute, flirty. She rarely ever loses in a fight, but when she does its because of her lust for the male lead (not kidding lmao), she makes him blush with her aggressive flirting. Ancient time girl is shy and weak but not stupid and still can think for herself.
2. Both male leads aren't arrogant and are funny, kind, and loyal. I thought I'll have the second-lead syndrome but its not possible in this drama since there's a happy ending for the two characters of the female lead, they each have their story.
3. I love time travel dramas (ancient time to present time or present time to ancient time). This lakorn did both with equal screen time. You can see the present time girl's experience in the ancient time, and the ancient girl's experience in the present time, as if I'm watching two different stories in one lakorn (but linked). I thought this since usually when there are twins or identity switch in dramas or lakorns, they always kill one of the look alike or not show one of them to us the entire time, but there's equal screen time for both here.
It was really funny and humurous even during serious times, they made me laugh. Just like every other historical drama, there are deaths but people aren't dying in a mass unreasonably like most kdramas, if someone dies then it has a good cause for the plot.
My rating is 8.5. I was going to rate it a 9 because nothing is perfect in this world, but rated it a 8.5
I tried not to spoil anything but I hope that you give this a try because its really good, I binged it in one day and not once did I feel bored. Can't believe I just stumbled upon this.
I liked this lakorn as much as I liked "Amaya" even though they're different
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Poong, the Joseon Psychiatrist Season 2
6 people found this review helpful
Light-hearted
You don't have to watch the first season as they do recap it in the first episode but it's better to watch it as you understand the background of how the male lead got his name 'Poong' and the situation of the female lead. Also the circumstances in which he started working in the clinic. Also the last episode will make more sense if you've seen the first season.The second season was quite enjoyable for me. There was more focus on psychiatry in the second season which was one of my biggest complaints with the first season. I personally enjoyed this season more. Though there was some good mystery in the previous season as well. Don't be turned off by the SFL as her part is not much. But the SML can be annoying. The thing that bothered me is why Man Bok's character was not properly used. It didn't make sense.
There is more romance in this season but don't expect too much. Most of the time it is just awkwardness and spending time with each other.
If not for the finale, I would rate it as 8.5 because I was entertained. The final episode was underwhelming. Missed opportunity of cashing in on the couple that everyone wanted to see more of. It was overall sweet. Just missing some bang or maybe that's how I usually expect finales to go.
I actually didn't think I would even watch the second season after the first but I'm glad I did.
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Won't lie, I went into Keiji Yugami because of my long lasting love for Tadanobu Asano and the fact that it has been quite some time since I watched a good mystery drama. The premise is pretty simple, an experienced out of the box old detective (Asano as Yugami)) gets paired with straight as arrow young blood (Kamiki as Hanyu) and they sets on solving cases. There's episodic cases with one case throughout the drama that gets solved. Average right? WRONG!
There's a twist in almost every cgaracter but most specifically Hanyu with his virginity fueled obsession with women and credit where it's due, Kamiki with this role just leaped a little far ahead of the rest of his generation in my eyes. Asano never dissapoints, subtle changes in his expresion changes the gear of the story. The rest of the cast especially their chief, badass Kanno, was also amazing and aptly written. The writing of the characters including the sides is pretty stable and consistant. Detailing of the each individual crimes and the overall plot on the other hand could use a little more finesse but I've seen so much worse.
The production is top notch. It looked like they have just the enough budget, a little more could've include badly incorporated fight scenes and a little less would've cost us the magnificent array of actors showed up each week. The setting in the husky sepia noir lighting with autumn is an immediate plus. Clap clap for the styling department, a lot can be said by the way a people dress and carry themselves, more so if it's a detective drama and they nailed it here eventhough it meant the character wearing same clothes througout the drama. See Kdramas, a very important lesson to learn here.
I've highlighted what I've felt like highlighting and the rest is up for you to decide. All I can say I've enjoyed this one and if ther's a sequel in the future, without a second doubt would watch.
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First let me tell you that this film is not for the faint of the heart, it is the criticism of Japanese militarism and propaganda and we all know that the Japanese did the worst war crimes during the World War II in Asia. They sent young men to the war and encouraged them to rape and torture and then they returned to their families like zombies and monsters, unable to differentiate between the war-zone and peacetime.
Yes, the graphic scenes are terrible, but what will hit you hard is the fact that all those things happened and there were many men like Kurokawa who were the product of their country's patriarchy and imperialism. We soon learn that Kyuzo is not a nice guy, before he went to war he had physically abused his wife on a daily basis for not being able to give him a son. In war, he raped and tortured people and then when he returned home as a war hero (but with horrible injuries) he was still an asshole - demanding of his wife to give him sex and her portions of food. However, he was still a victim - a brainwashed peasant
Shinobu Terajima's performance of a wife torn between her duty and disgust is magnificent. She is aware of the absurdity of her husband's state (he is reduced to a caterpillar metaphorically) but she can't just run away because everyone in the village expect her to play a dutiful wife even now. It is interesting to note how Kyuzo's father and sister were repulsed by him at the beginning of the movie and couldn't wait to leave so his wife could take care of him. All those gold medals Kyuzo received for his war "heroism" were basically nothing. Even he soon realizes that and starts refusing to look at them; a series of flashbacks from the time he raped and killed all those people drive him crazy which will lead to the tragic conclusion.
If you look past the graphic scenes you will understand the parallels between brainwashed youth and the reality of war. This film is after all the demystification of the glorification of war - there is no glory in killing, raping and torturing for your country. Everyone is a victim and the innocent civilians are the biggest victims of all.
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The Most Critical Series
First i started the series because of the male lead Kao, who i know from uwma series and i felt those times, he could not show himself as much as he could. so i was curious about is there any changes in express himself. The difference shocked me. For me, Kao Noppakao found himself in this series with Up who is the other lead. Up is also a wonderful actor and person. Altough there is some rumor about his relationship, he suits this series so much. The series critisize everything in this sector. The 'romantic' harrastment scenes, 'the bad guys' and 'inncocent other who fall in love with the bad guy and the other issue that we all know about. They handle it soooo good. They show the audience entertainment sector in both ways. From their side and fan's side. How they ruin everything and how worse that it could be. Seriously, watch the series and you will understand what i talking about.Was this review helpful to you?
I love watching dramas so even if you have more boring parts then fun parts I try to give you a chance. This drama is werid and very old.
The acting could be way better. The music was very different. I wouldnt watch this again ounce is plety. I like the main actors so I stay with it, I recommand you to watch it if you are bored or what somthing old and odd to watch.
This drama had its good parts but I think that up to you because where all different when it comes to drama. Well I hope this helped you enjoy.~Miya24
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The movie depicts the reason behind all the killing of a woman and it's all because of her painful revenge "Don't underestimate the love of a mother".. This made me going until the end makes you curious about everything.
The acting was splendid at first you will think the lead actress is crazy but then towards the story you will understand her reasons and pain.
Great movie--if the movie you are looking for is about revenged, killing, and love from a parent.. then this must be it.^^
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the miracle of Tofu, was itself more meaningful and significant to me than his ending.
This was not just another BL drama on the relationship of a gay couple nor simply a story about a teddy bear who turned into a human. It also touched on first love, Alzheimer’s disease, explored the relationship between parent and child, past love and in them, trust, delusion, acceptance, jealousy, understanding, an encompassment of many complex emotions.90 minutes each episode was, to be honest, hard to endure at first. Nevertheless, it started off interesting, apart from Nut’s mother getting delusional and Nut’s frequent outbursts of wrath. At episode 5-6, the story picked up and 90 minutes actually flew by with Tofu getting used to being human, Nut getting used to him in the house and gradually liking him. There were also sweet moments between Tofu and Nut and the talking objects and items in the house which only Tofu could communicate with were comical.
After 10 episodes or so, the drama started to feel ‘heavy’ when they explored Nut’s growing-up years with a soldier father who adamantly wanted him to be masculine and saw Nut’s homosexuality as fragile, while his mother seemed passive throughout, but was instead misunderstood as taking sides with his father in the eyes of Nut. This part also gave us flashbacks of Nut’s meeting with Tatarn (Nut’s first love) and them falling in love. It took empathy to understand the emotions of Nut and his mother, what they were going through and why they behaved the way they did. At that point in time, Tofu became a mediator between Nut’s mum and Nut.
At around episode 12 onwards, just after the mother and son saga died down, we were faced with another issue – the cause of Tatarn’s accident and the connection with Tofu’s turning into a human being.
The last 5 or 6 episodes, there were a lot of complex emotions involved and things were not said explicitly, I had to try to understand why the character behaved the way he/she did and I would say there was depth and substance in the entire story where social issues in Thailand were touched on and it was not just a mere fantasy story about a teddy bear who became alive.
However, for me, the execution in these last 5 or 6 episodes was excruciatingly slow. Every movement became slow, even the way the characters talked. There were lots of sitting down (on the bench) talking and the content of the conversations, as far as I saw, did not mean much and did not move the story forward much. I struggled to continue watching at this point in time, bearing in mind that it was 90 minutes per episode, and as I inched forward, I felt unbelievably glad that I was near the end.
One of the reasons I continued watching though was definitely because I was waiting for a revelation about why and how Tofu miraculously became human from a teddy bear and what would become of him in the end.
Not revealing any spoilers, the ending regarding Tofu might not have been the best, but I could accept it and I thought it was befitting of the drama title, ‘The miracle of teddy bear’ and miracle it was indeed.
Though I could not quite accept the ending regarding Nut and Tatarn, this was before I read the comment section of the drama in MDL, after reading comments posted by a viewer on what the scriptwriter or novel-writer said, I could appreciate a little of the ending of Nut and Tatarn better, because I saw Tatarn’s heartfelt intentions. This was also perhaps the best ending for Nut, considering Tofu’s ending. I also understood from the comment page that lots of editing were made to the last episode, so some explanations were never made clearly, but to me this was editing issue and nothing to do with the story, of course it did affect the flow and logic of the ending, but it did not take away the uniqueness of the story for me.
ACTING
Overall, teddy bear-turned-human, Tofu acted by In Sarin, was adorable and goofy. He was convincing enough to make us believe he was a teddy bear-turned-human: new to the human world, innocent and naïve. I personally liked his narration to the viewers as well. It definitely brought viewers closer to him as a result.
As for the other male lead, Nut (Tofu’s love interest and ‘owner’ when he was a teddy bear) acted by Job, I was a little disturbed by his behavior at first – constant shouting at his mother, always getting sensitive and agitated easily, but as I watched on, I began to understand the reasons behind his behavior, it was a realistic portrayal as a result of the trauma he had gone through during his youth, though to be honest, I still found his acting a little awkward at times, not sure if this was what his character required him to be or his acting was not natural enough, I needed to see more of him in other dramas before I could decide.
The chemistry between Tofu and Nut was well, not particularly exceptional and off the charts to me, but natural enough as both friends and lovers.
If I were to nitpick, I would say that I did find the acting of some (definitely not all, most of the support leads are good) of the support leads a little lacking or unnatural sometimes especially in their immediate reactions to something that happened and I was quite sure it had nothing to do with the Thai culture after watching quite a few Thai dramas.
OST
I liked the opening song of the drama. It was melodious, cheerful and bright. The ending song was just so-so, in fact it sounded quite similar to many BL OSTs. My all-time favourite, however, was the song played during the sad scenes, Tee Thanapon - Waiting For You.
MY VERDICT
Basically, my only gripe of this drama was the slow execution in the last 5 or 6 episodes. I personally found the story unique because I have never watched a drama in which a teddy bear could turn miraculously into such an absolutely lovable human and I really liked In Sarin’s portrayal of Tofu. It was very natural and believable.
Yes, the ending was not the most ideal, but I looked at it from a different perspective, considering the analogy, ‘the journey is as important if not more important than the destination itself’, the miracle of Tofu, the teddy bear-turned-human – the fact that he had once existed and the impact he made on the people around him - was itself more meaningful and significant to me than his ending.
I would recommend this drama if you are looking for something not just focused on BL, but also touched on family, relationships and a little on fantasy, but do take note that the ending may not be the most ideal for you.
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