Reviews

"Let love be your guide!"

I was in the mood for a heartwarming story and the synopsis for Little Q drew me in. That and a beautiful Labrador retriever on the poster was all I needed to watch this film. While it portrayed the value of the guide dog program, it also failed rather spectacularly as well.

Temperamental pastry chef and general all around jerk, Li Bao Ting, is losing his sight which makes him even crankier with everyone around him. At the same time, a family agrees to foster a lab puppy, Little Q, for a or the Hong Kong Seeing Eye Dog Organization. Despite the rules, the little girl largely attempts to undo Little Q’s training so that she will fail the stringent training and Chan Tsz Kiu/Chan Yu Qiao will be allowed to keep her. Q prevails and is paired with Li who wants nothing to do with the dog. When not sitting at home drinking he’s berating his apprentices at his pastry shop. He repeatedly tries to rid himself of the dog until he realizes Q’s value and attempts to get his life back on track.

So far, this general synopsis of the first part of the film plays out like many other redemption stories. The only problem is, Q would never have been given to Li in real life. There are far more people in need of guide dogs than there are guide dogs. Even if he had received one due to his family connections, the minute they discovered his mistreatment of the loyal pup, Q would have gone to a deserving person. For the first 49 minutes of this film, I have never hated a movie character more. Li’s 180 in outlook was enough to give him and me whiplash. There was no gradual buildup, just an unearned personality change. And in the final quarter another action happened that had me spitting nails I was so angry**.

I had a friend in college with a guide dog. Dennis was a beautiful black lab that was all business when my friend and I walked about campus as we shared several classes. But when he was off duty, I was able to pet him and give him treats and play with him. In the film there seemed to be a real concern that guide dogs lead a too serious life. When Dennis wasn’t working, he played with his golden retriever sibling and his human parents just like any other dog. The thought of someone treating one of these highly trained dogs so cavalierly was infuriating, even if it was just a film. Especially with a need greater than a supply of these loyal friends.

Yes, there was a nice little middle with happy, bonding moments with Q, but they were bookended by actions that were reprehensible. I appreciated that the film gave a shout out to the importance of guide dogs as it appeared to be a fairly recent program. Yet I was also appalled that Q was left with someone completely unqualified for receiving such a gift despite movie magic turning him into a loving caring person in a matter of minutes.

As a work of art, the writers worked hard to manipulate the viewer into feeling sorry for the little girl and eventually the owner. Due to the callousness and utter stupidity of the humans, my only concern was for the ever faithful yellow lab. If ever there was a film that showed we don’t deserve dogs, Little Q was it.

10 November 2025

**Spoiler comments below! **











When Li prepares to go to the US, he takes Q off the leash and throws the ball down a city sidewalk for Q to chase to distract her. What? He can’t see where he’s throwing putting Q at risk in an urban environment. Then Q chases his van down the road. The driver and Li’s sister see Q but do NOT stop the car and get Q out of harms way. Only when Q was physically blocked from following did she finally give up. Who would let a dog run down the middle of the street in a city?

Another problem was when Li decided to walk into traffic to commit suicide. He caused a multi-car accident which might have injured drivers and passengers as well as the financial cost. If he had succeeded, a driver would have been traumatized for causing a pedestrian’s death. Somehow, right afterwards he was able to smile-about everything. I’m guessing all those people in the cars weren’t smiling much.

I'm not sure what else they could do to try and gain sympathy for Q as they put her through numerous physical ailments. I love organic moments that create sympathy and even sorrow for characters both two-legged and four-legged alike, but the writers used a sledge hammer with little nuance to try and create emotions.

And the less said about the Dog Meat Festival the better.

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it's getting more crazy

I went in not knowing a thing about this so it was a steady stream of surprises and quite engaging. Some good use of music and shadows in the cinematography as well.

Only my second 1950s Thai film so it was also interesting to learn a bit more about the history of Thai movie-making, like how many elements I'm familiar with from the last 25 years of Thai films were already there in 1957 and that an exaggerated kRap isn't a modern affectation from cheeky young men.

It's fun, it moves, there's a sense of freedom to it despite the single set, and in the end, the story it eventually finds its way into was good too.

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Inspiring Turnaround

I am always looking for inspirational movies. And this one did not disappoint. And I love stories of mentor-mentee, teacher-student as I am also a teacher of some sort. Here we see not just a passing of knowledge, but rather a teacher investing his life for someone who has a potential to be great and get out of the wrong path.

The actors - Lee Je Hoon and Han Seok Kyu did a wonderful job, had shown a wide scale of emotions throughout the story. Their characters may have resisted at first, but eventually something click within themselves. It may be a hope for a dream to come true, a hope to get out of the wrong path, the joy to invest on someone's life. Though I may not agree with the way the teacher treated his student, it was his tough love that set him straight. And the last song showed how much the student loved his teacher as well.

The timeline when he was in school to get the break may be too short, was he lucky? However, this goes to show that we all desire dreams fulfilled and celebrate success of someone in one way or another been part of that journey. I just wonder, who is the singing voice of Je Hoon?

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the most confused i've ever felt during a film and the most moved i have ever felt afterwards

this movie is such an incredible experience that its honestly hard to sum up in words. during my first watch i was completely lost. i had no idea what was going on when there was the random cut to the okinawa trip, and the random forum intercuts that happened throughout. i was the most lost with the apple stabbing thing, but after a second watch and also a crap ton of note taking it all made sense. this movie is a nonlinear narrative, which means the events do not happen in chronological order. though confusing at first, i feel like this was the right choice for this story. honestly this movie is a very uncomfortable watch, i mean we literally are just watching a poor middle school boy get completely tormented both online and in real life by this boy who was once his close friend. thats literal nightmare fuel but it was so well done. i loved the side character of the girl, and when she ended up killing herself i genuinely cried so hard i had to pause the movie. the aesthetics of this movie feel like at time capsule of a long gone time period, i feel like im in a time machine while watching it. the cinematography is off the charts as well. the whole movie is absolutely ethereal and breathtaking. overall, this film is so much more than just an old movie made in japan, its a movie that encapsulates an era of japan that is now long gone, and now we get to see a glimpse of the lives of those who lived in it.

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"A woman's grudge is not something that easily goes away"

A woman exacting revenge on those who have wronged her may now be seen as a cliché. However, this film from the 1960s is an early contributor to the "Wonhon" motif (the Korean version of this concept).

A Devilish Murder subverts the expected revenge narrative and creates an interesting juxtaposition between the duality of women. Placing a spotlight on the relationships between the characters and their expected roles within the family, and society itself, provides an insightful reflection of the time period in which it was produced.

The premise is interesting and the use of music greatly contributes to the eerie atmosphere already established by the uncomfortable relationship dynamics and unsettling visuals. However, a lack of exposition makes the dated plot confusing and ultimately less enjoyable to follow.

Overall: 2.5/5
Quality: 3/5
Enjoyability: 2.5/5

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Red Flag Trope Cram session

Lemme save your brain from needing a good mental
bleaching.
1) Student/ Teacher
2) Child/ Adult
3) Half-Brothers
4) Rape and NonConsentual: Multiple times (A different couple)
5) You see all the human anatomy. All of it.
6) They hide the truth of their relationship until the very end. Which is the ONLY reason why I finished it. If I had known the truth, I would have never even attempted it. You THINK you’re watching a super artsy movie with a message waiting for you at the end… and then they smack you in the face with the truth and you want to take acid to your retinas because of the regret you feel from watching the depiction of so much wrongness. I feel lied to.
7) NO. Don’t do it. Just… No.
8) How did this get published for public viewing?
9) Did I mention it was awful? It’s awful.
10) The ACTORS do their job. They were great. Still… don’t do it. K? K. You’re Welcome.

Now go watch something lovely and fluffy. Like Moonlight Chicken or Reset or Your Sky.

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DONT waste 2hrs of your life on this

This movie is very boring, slow and doesn’t make sense.the plot was starting to form in the first 20 mins and got abandoned right after.the audience never got their answers about certain things the characters had mentioned which is very frustrating.

The whole movie just consist with:
-sex
-violence
-sexual abuse/harassment/violence
-screaming
-unanswered questions
-spiting
-way 2 long scenes

Some scenes didn’t have to be almost 10 minutes long..for example some talking scenes. due the scenes being so damn long i just started to lose my focus and couldn’t concentrate at all.
The sex scenes were sometimes out of place which made me confused and wondering “is it really necessary?”
I understand this is a pink film but some pink films still put there sex scenes at times THAT MAKES SENSE.

The characters introduction was very weird and how some characters just appeared randomly and how gold boy just disappeared after 2 NC scenes and 1 talking scene.
Gun’s character (James) was something really awkward to look at bc Gun acting looked a bit awkward while playing this character and the spiting was so unnecessary which made it just funny each time Gun spat.

The acting overall was the best part due the actors doing justice for their characters and doing a good job at expressing.
The soundtrack with the weird drums was NAWT it but the punk one was a good one.

Overall dont waste your time for this unless you really wanna see gun or you’re into BDSM stuff.

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Great storyline with amazing acting

The film was immediately captivating right from the start. The storyline is brilliant, anchored by truly phenomenal acting.
​What makes it even more terrifying is the fact that the case is based on actual true events (the Hwaseong serial murders). The movie brilliantly captured the atmosphere of the 1980s, particularly highlighting the enormous difficulties the police faced compared to modern-day investigations with advanced technology.
​On the darker side, it also serves as a stark commentary on the era, where the authorities felt entitled to use brutal methods—even beating suspects—to force a confession.
​The final scene is masterful and gave me genuine chills. I immediately had to look up what eventually happened with the real killer—a testament to how deeply the film hooks you into the investigation's failure and enduring mystery.

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Fun story that doesn't reinvent the wheel but has a great kick to it

I also had a chance to watch this in theaters in Korea (like the other reviewer up now). Contrary to that reviewer, I did see what was coming pretty steadily. Some of the details of how were less clear, but the core emotional issue that is brought up later in the film was pretty clear to me within about 15-20 minutes.

THAT SAID, a great film doesn't have to be shocking or surprising constantly, and that's how I felt about this. The acting and cinematography were solid, and even with my very lacking Korean skills and no subtitles, I found it funny and the characters highly relatable, if a bit cartoonish (that seemed to be the point, though, so it's not a knock).

It made me want to watch other things by this writer/director, and turns out I've seen Homme Fatale, too, which I also really enjoyed!

Mildly spoilery take below:





((And, honestly, I think you can guess that "core emotional issue" just based on reading the synopsis and looking at the casting, particularly the ages.))

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Political satire - that's how it's done!

This was a well-written and well-acted movie. It's been a long time since I've watched a K-drama with the comedy tag that was actually laugh out loud funny. The storyline is very confusing, but that's to be expected with the multiple countries represented. I also like how they actually kept the factual details.

The only reason I couldn't rate it higher was because of the language. The cursing was jarring and constant. If I was able to understand Korean better, if I'd watched it without subtitles, that would have been better. I would still know that the cursing was going on, but, since they talk so fast, it wouldn't have been an issue. Seeing it typed on the screen just took me out of the enjoyment of the movie. Seriously, has anyone ever watched something and said, "I wish there was MORE cursing." It's just unnecessary.

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There are too many politicians in this country, not enough public servants.

After the heroic stories with themes of war from Heneral Luna and Goyo, this film depicts the game of politics of an era which is not too far from the current state of the government of the Philippines.

As someone who had learned the history which depicts most of these historical figures as heroes who fight independence, I have learn that this film, although mixed with fiction, showed people are people; politicians are politicians. Tarrog again showed how these figures could be petty, have inflated egos and would do dirty tricks for the sake of their glory. He never fails to stir my nationalism which makes me extra dubious of the intentions especially of politicians who would speak flowery words especially on elections, who would give false promises to the people would like to hear and when elected, would appease the people but would refuse to speak the truth. It is less entertaining than Heneral Luna to be honest but it has a place in my nationalist heart. I am looking forward to a Magsaysay film, as teased before the credits.

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