Reviews

Tactical and Stunning Movie

This movie did not have a dull moment in my opinion. Every scene, sequence was smooth and had meaning. What made the show really good was that this was a true historical story and a real character in Korean History. If you are Korean , or love Korean culture this is a must watch.

The main character and even the Japanese villain both had real passion that was felt behind the screen. This made the ending/climax 10x better. Really love it when brains and scenes in the movies have unexpected twists and plotting/thinking involved similar to psychological warfare.

Read More

Righteous Fighting Against the Unrighteous

I feel fortunate that I was able to watch it in theaters today. Initially, I watched it because of Ok Taec Yeon, but ultimately, I fell in love with it because of the visual effects, storytelling, acting, and music. When it comes out on DVD, I'll definitely buy it. I enjoy historical fiction, historical drama, and historical films, so if you're not a fan of them, I wouldn't recommend watching the film.

This film specifically focuses on Japan attacking Korea via the ocean. So it encompasses what happens when another country tries to fight back by using ships and what happens the war goes to land. The visual effects between the main actors (specifically the generals and admirals and the spies) are amazing going back and forth between the war in the ocean and the war on land. The director did an amazing job showcasing the tension between the two warring opponents. On top of that, the actors were fabulous, which added to the tension of the story. The music was incorporated beautifully into the film. The sounds of war, drums, horns, and ships crashing into each other and into rocks were just as amazing and it made me feel like I was there.

Overall, I think this film is a great addition to Director Kim's trilogy.

Read More

Idiot Who Wrote Synopsis Never Saw This Movie!

First of all, this is a classic, that will outlive all of the performers in the movie for generations!

ONE OF THE FEW MOVIE SITES TO GET THE SYNOPSIS RIGHT ON THIS MOVIE!
"Watch Beauty in Rope Hell (1983) Synopsis : During World War II, Kazu, a lifeless postman who lives alone, becomes obsessed with the beautiful Mitsuko, newly married to Ekichi. When Eikichi was summoned by the army, he saw his chance and abducted her. He bound her and tortured her in his attic where she became his sex toy."
18+ Beauty In Rope Hell (1983) - ดูหนัง2022 หนังHD ดูหนังออนไลน์ หนังเต็มเรื่อง หนังเต็มเรื่อง หนังใหม่

Mitsuko Hiyama (Takakura Miki) is betrothed to her lover and future husband, Eikichi (Nuibe Kenji); but hwo also receives his military draft notice on the day of his official engagement to Mitsuko. Needless to say, a short honeymoon!

While Mitsuko is missing her new husband, a postman Kazu (Yamaji Kazuhiro) who is physically challenged, prepares an upper room , NOT HIS BASEMENT, in order ot kidnap, torture and rape the new bride.

What is funny is the three twists in the end, which finally frees Mitsuko and punishes Kazu the way he should have been!

My Drama List will not allow me to upload screenshots which shows the room Kazu uses to illegally hold Mitsuko is an upoper room and not a basment! Watch the movie between time checks

The main cast were superb together, and the support cast did their job especially well, including Kaya [House madam] (played by Ito Maya) and Kazu's original girfriend!

I give it top scores in script written for a movie, editing, acting by both mani ans support cast, ,akeu[p, casting, direction, and backfround music!

Why so techinical you ask? This is also the favorite film of a local movie critic I am friends with; he has written and posted many articles on this movie and other movies by Dan Oniroku, one of his favorite writers as well!

A mailman becomes obsessed with a pretty, young wife. He captures the woman, tortures her and keeps her in his basement dungeon where she becomes his private sex toy.

Also Known As: Dan Oniroku: My Journey to the Future , Dan Oniroku: Bijo Nawa Jigoku
Screenwriter: Saeki Toshimichi
Director: Nakamura Genji
Genres: Romance, Drama, Mature
Tags: Prostitute, Pink Film, Stockholm Syndrome, Torture, Sexual Content, Erotic, Rape, Nudity, Kidnapping, BDSM

Read More

Angela Mao showed why she was one of the best when she fearlessly took on Sammo Hung and Hapkido Grandmaster Hwang In Shik without flinching in this action packed film. The story might have been short on plot but it was long on fight scenes and Angela is always a delight to watch fight.

When Taekwondo Strikes was set mostly in Korea around 1930 during the Japanese occupation. Jhoon Rhee (the Father of Taekwondo in America!) in his only lead acting role played the leader of the resistance. Hong Kong actor Carter Wong was the naïve, young pupil and follower. And Taiwanese actress Angela Mao was a transplanted Chinese woman living in Korea with her mother. To round out the international cast, Ann Winton, Rhee's real life American student also played a member of the resistance. Throw in Sammo Hung and Hwang In Shik as Japanese fighters and it was one exciting martial arts party!

Lee Chung Tung (Rhee) and Jin Zheng Zhi (Wong) were accosted by the Japanese in a Catholic church headed by an American priest. Jin had fled there thinking the Japanese wouldn't cause trouble in the foreigner's house of worship. He was wrong. The first of three fights took place there. Wan Ling Ching (Mao) had a marvelous fight in the church when she went looking for the priest after he was captured and a Japanese bad guy accosted her. Big mistake. She and Lee teamed up determined to get a Secret List out of Korea into Manchuria. Nothing ever goes easy in a martial arts movie and eventually there was a big thrown down in Manchuria over ownership of the Secret List.

The story was thin, but the fighting was magnificent. With Hapkido and Taekwondo being highlighted the high flying kicks kept rapidly being thrown. Angela's iconic fight in a restaurant against Sammo and his men is legendary. Jhoon Rhee and Hwang In Shik lent realism and credibility with their expert kicks. Some of Sammo's choreography could venture into what I call kung fu posing where arm movements are unrealistically held too long. The kicks tended to be faster and more creative. And in a fight in the church Angela used objects around her to create an epic beatdown on her Japanese opponent.

Due to a common history of Japanese occupation, this 1974 movie was very anti-Japanese. If you are sensitive to that you might want to avoid it.

The sets could be laughably bad. The same Korean downtown was used for Manchuria as well. There were a few more realistic settings but most were made to be breakaway so that people could be thrown through windows and walls.

Fun fact: Andre Morgan who played the beleaguered priest was an American who ultimately became CEO of Golden Harvest. He helped produce Bruce Lee's Enter the Dragon as well as producing this film.

When Taekwondo Strikes was a fun film to watch. Jhoon Rhee made a properly badass resistance leader. Angela Mao is one of my favorites and I could watch her glare her opponents into submission any day. She always seemed believable when taking on baddies and this movie was no exception. If you aren't looking for a complex plot and simply want to watch some of the best fighting each other this is a good movie to try.




7/30/22

Read More

Lighthearted slice of life romantic (sport) comedy movie

9.5/10 is my rating. This is a (2019) South Korean romantic comedy (sports) movie. The total run time is 1 hour and 40 minutes.

Hye Jin (Lee Elijah) is an archery athlete with an attitude. Life in a wheelchair has not slowed her down much and a dispute over a contest ends in her motorized wheelchair being damaged. When she leaves she discovers that her braking mechnism malfunctions. She crashes into a tent where a group of robotics engineering students are hosting a tent as part of a larger event Hwi so ((Ji II Joo) can fix almost anything electronic and fixes Hye Jin's wheelchair for her no problem. Grateful for his help, she wants to buy him a meal and this is the start of an unlikely friendship. These two young people and their group of fiends navigate the challenges of life and grow through it together. Will love develop between two seemingly oppositve people?

I highly recommend this cute drama. I think the title is a bit lost in translation because I think it just refers to how she is a bit of a forceful personality that doesn't always play well with others.
But that is really her charm. I enjoyed the main female character's feisty nature and the fact that she was an amazing archer. Hwi so had attributes that made me think high functioning autism. But it could have just been the genius mentality. He was sweet to the core and I thought it was great the way he fit her personality like missing puzzle pieces. Each contributed to the other what they needed. She had that "cool girl" vibe and he had the quiet, itroverted "nerd" like mentality. She liked to do fun/exciting things and he was the quite the genius. I could easily have seen this being a series as I liked the main couple and their friends and enjoyed watching what they could create. Spoiler** There were fun scenes like they all sit around and are drinking beer. One of the friends is like here drink up and he is like I am one of those people that lack the metabolite to break down alcohol (only in way more technical terms) and our "cool" female lead is basically like shut it and drink your beer. And he got quite drunk but had a lot of fun. She brings him home and is apologetic because I don't think she realized he would get as drunk as he did. But his mom actually thanks her for exposing him to life. Same when, later, she encourages him to drive but they get in an accident. Mom comes and she thinks she will be mad because she is the one that encouraged him to get his driver's license but she says no-one was hurt and it was basically good for him. I loved the mom. With only a little over an hour and a half it was well paced, believable and my main critique is it left you wanting more only because the characters were so enjoyable. They did not fully tell us what happened to put her in the wheel chair nor whether, or not, the main male lead had a psychological condition or was just severely socially inexperienced to the point it made him seem like he might have autism. It ended well/happy. Enjoyed this immensely and would encourage others to watch it.

Read More

A beautiful romantic movie with predictable storyline

I started to watch this movie because of all the hype around this series. Even though I generally love slower and calmer romantic series, this one was a little bit too slow for me. I did love all the acting, camera work, editing and music, but what didn’t work for me was the story. It was too simple and predictable for me. Everything that you thought would happen actually happened. I didn’t have any surprises or wow-moments. I won’t watch it again, but I recommend this to anyone who loves beautiful and simple love stories with very good cinematography.

As previously said, the story is very simple and quite often used in the romantic genre. The celebrity gets in trouble and ends up meeting a common person and of course they fall in love. Their personalities are often clashing with each other as one of them is a more blunt and open extrovert and another one is a more quiet and reserved introvert. Their love evolves quite naturally for this short series. The only problem I had with their story was Ji Woo’s harsh and homophobic language used in order to push other one away from him. I wished that Seo Joon would call him out on this, but it didn’t happen. Still Ji Woo's character was the most interesting one to me, but I would’ve loved to get to know him and his past more. I felt like there were some pieces missing in his story. As for Seo Joon, he seemed quite a stereotypical character. Maybe if we would’ve gotten more about his past, we would’ve seen him in a different light.

As for supporting characters they were okay and acting was good. I liked the reporter Yoon Seul the most. She seemed like an interesting character and she was the only one whose actions were a little bit unpredictable. I didn’t really get the manager Ho Min’s character and at times he seemed to not have any place in the story.

The strong suit of this movie is definitely cinematography. There were many beautiful scenes where I would admire the shooting location and camera work. One of my favorites were the park and basketball court scenes. But also the way they showed cooking and food was very good. As a former cook, I can say that the way they portrayed kitchen work was very realistic.

All in all, this movie was not for me story wise, but everything else was very well done. I wish they would’ve put more effort into the script to make it more original and fresh. It is definitely better than a lot of Asian series I have watched, but not a ten point show for me.

Read More

Save Yourself The Embarrassment, SERIOUSLY! T-T

I’m usually a fan of Filipino movies and I try to find positives when I write my reviews but if I’m being brutally honest, there’s literally NOTHING positive to find here, not even if you look using a microscope lol.

FL is essentially gutter dirt poor with very questionable hygiene, has no manners, talks with her mouth full, picks her bum and then makes ML smell it lol. I’m sorry but the bum picking was the last straw for me. She’s just disgusting! She did change later but the image of her character is forever a stain in my memory. There’s a ton of poop and puking jokes which are just not my type of comedy and the level of embarrassment I was feeling watching her character would be cause for writer to be imprisoned lol. Her acting was abysmal and excruciatingly over the top.

If you wanna check it out for even the plot, don’t. There is almost NO plot and I feel I wasted 1.5 hour on foolishness. Seriously save yourself from this garbage.

Oh wait, there is one positive thing….I liked when the ML and other staff were teaching her how to behave more lady like lol. That’s it, nothing else.

Feel free to give it a go as not everyone sees things the same way and it would be interesting to see if anybody has a different opinion to mine but you’ve been warned lol.

Read More

Passable Current Enchantress Sequel

I can see why most of the viewers are disappointed with this sequel's storyline, different than what it should be from the first trilogy series; but to me, it is (totally) make sense why this direction shall be done per se

We were introduced to the new 'witch' from a different place, yet familiar; but there is uniqueness within this heroine to make it, compared to the first heroine: pre-planned all of it from the start. She has this innocent childlike, seeking discovery while learning about the outside world from her continuous experimental lab sessions. And I can see why this has been delayed at all times: I believe this 2nd heroine should be done somewhere abroad; not within their birth country herself (Siberia or Turkey, mayhaps?), then the epidemic occurred; hence changing the settings on their own

Cinematography-wise, at first glance from the beginning of the story, is beyond wow-ed me; then to the falling action phase... it's a little cartoon-ish, but decent to watch (mayhaps due to budget stuff, so can't blame them tho, and understandable)

I forgot of its cons, apologize for that (editing): yes... English.... *sigh*... the English are corny yet cringy af, sometimes I just wanna flip the work table around for their terrible pronunciations. If I see *that foreigner* coming back again for the final one, I won't forgive them at all cost. I need anyone to save those scenes with at least decent English ones, please

Overall, it's not a major letdown for the viewers, it has those aspects from the first, just different character developments; personality-wise and story-wise for the 2nd heroine. Until the next, final installment for getting back to the origin on where will them be headed... have fun watching

Read More

Different kinds of love

I'm not sure if I can describe this as a romcom or comedy because there's not a lot of love here, but they are all in some kind of relationships.

The male lead is in a writing slump and meets a gay writer who is in love with him. The ML's second wife is abroad and he deals with his first wife regularly because their son is a trouble maker. The first wife is secretly dating the male lead's editor while the son strikes a friendship/falls in love with the neighbor lady who is married but husband is away.

It's too complicated and chaotic when the stories all come together. I didn't find the movie funny, except for the scene where the son finds his parents in bed together.

The other noteworthy thing is when the homophobic male lead ends up understanding and supporting the gay writer.

Rating: 8/10

Read More

All can be done if you try, none can be done if you don't

Set in a reform boarding school, Introspection Tower is the home to troubled children or children of troubled parents. Unlike many stories with communal living, there is no abuse in the story. The school is progressive and the teachers lead by example in regards to turning unacceptable behavior into acceptable, well mannered behavior.

The children live in communal housing with teachers in each house who are called "Mom" and "Dad". The children are encouraged to think of each other as brothers or sisters. Boys and girls are in charge of housekeeping and cooking taking turns with some of the chores. They also do ground maintenance and gardening. This is in addition to taking regular school classes and doing vocational work which benefits the school as customers order their handiwork. Parents are encouraged to visit and write often as the children are encouraged to write to the parents.

The stand out point in the film is when the problematic water well begins to run dry and water has to be diverted from a lake by digging a canal. Lacking the funds to have it done, the children and teachers work together to accomplish the colossal task.

Director Shimizu keeps the camera at a distance capturing the movement and energy of the children. There is no main character, though four children seem to be at the heart of most of the disturbances. Three teachers also feature into the stories. The stories were divided into vignettes as children behaved badly---stealing, lying, fighting, or attempting to run away and then confessing and apologizing. The teachers often felt as if they weren't making a significant difference in the children's lives. With the stories darting about erratically it could be hard to keep up with or care about the characters very deeply.

Despite the fact it was filmed during World War II, no mention is made of the global conflict. For me, it was hard to escape this particular shadowy specter in this place designed to enforce the idea of a hard working, well mannered communal society. Watching twelve-year-olds use pickaxes and shovels doing dangerous work was disconcerting as they dug the canal through treacherous terrain. While its purpose was to showcase how constructive work benefitted the group, these were children with no autonomy and no compensation essentially coerced into doing work for which they were not properly trained or equipped at the risk of their lives and health. This element felt more like propaganda than good storytelling.

Despite the quality camerawork and scenery, I found the narrative confusing and at times disturbing and the movie overlong. While I can appreciate the desire to have a more progressive look at the raising of children, especially in the stories of these complex children, the troubling parts of this movie weighed heavier than the lighthearted tones behind them for me.



7/29/22

Read More

Thought-provoking gay-themed short film

A gay-themed short film (not quite BL) that is quite worth watching. Just don't expect fluff and an escapist love story.

The short film touches on may gay-related issues, the first of which is the predicament of the less athletic, less conventionally masculine individual in a setting like an all-boys school (or simply any school). Jun Seok's reluctance to attend the PE class at the beginning of the film is obvious. (Maybe I'm projecting myself into him, but I think it's possible that he even deliberately turns up late, which will get him the punishment of running ten rounds, just so that he can avoid playing team sports with the other student for part of the lesson.)

Ironically, it is not Jun Seok but Jung-hyun who is clearly gay at first, as suggested by the way he glances as Jun Seok taking off his shirt and later by Jun Seok saying that he saw him looking at other guys. It's just Jung-hyun finds it easier to blend in with the crowd. This says a lot about inequality even amongst gay people as those happen to be more conventionally masculine tend to have a choice regarding how far they want to seem to blend in with the rest, and they might even end up ostracizing other gay people as a result.

What is surprising is that there isn't even a lot of overt homophobia featured in the film. Min Jae may appear to be the homophobic one who creates trouble for Jun Seok and Jun-hyun by spreading rumors about them. However, it is not entirely clear what his motivations are. Quite early on, we see Min Jae talking to his friends, mocking Jun Seok for being bad at dribbling the ball during PE. Interestingly, his mockery does not gain much traction, and his friends remind him that he sucks at it too. He then begins saying that Jun Seok is acting like a girl, but his friends do not seem to care either.

Eventually, it is Min Jae who finds out about Jun Seok and Jun-hyun's relationship when they have a date of sorts in a storeroom in school. (Has Min Jae been secretly following them around to confirm his suspicion about their relationship?) Min Jae then spreads rumors about Jun Seok and Jung-hyun--even though there is no indication that he has seen the two of them kissing or being. However, it is worth noting that he does not appear to be doing so to exact vengeance on Jung-hyun, who has earlier on told him off for mocking Jun Seok's poor dribbling skills during PE. On the contrary, he seems to be doing so to separate the couple and keep Jung-hyun firmly in his clique. Jung-hyun distances himself from Jun Seok after Min Jae tells him about the rumors (I assume he does not reveal that he is the one who spread the rumors to begin with)--and the purpose appears to be to separate the couple rather than to victimize them for being gay. Min Jae does not appear to want to harm Jung-hyun, after all.

I can only guess, then, that Min Jae's actions are possibly motivated by jealousy. (Remember the ironic similarity between him and Jun Seok? Maybe they are similar in more ways than one.) In an environment where people think that they are supposed to exhibit masculinity in a certain way, they may not even come to terms with their own sexual orientation. This is despite the relative nonchalance of the classmates. The classmates, both the guys in Min Jae's smokers' clique and the rest, may gossip, but the film doesn't show them bullying either Jun Seok or Jung-hyun. Yet, the pressure is always on the queer individuals, who do not know when the reactions of people around them can turn nasty. (This is quite realistic, from personal experience. Sometimes there is no overt bullying, but you may find it hard to belong even though people may not be deliberately doing nasty things to you either. Nonetheless, it still feels awful.)

In the end, while Jun Seok seems to be the most obvious victim in the film, Jung-hyun is also a tragic figure. As he himself seems to realize, he is, unlike Jun Seok, not used to being gossiped about. When he is the subject of gossip, he buckles under pressure. We might see that his privilege of being able to tell Min Jae off for mocking Jun Seok is predicated on how he is not perceived as being seen to be in the same league as Jun Seok. The moment he allows himself to be aligned with Jun Seok beyond being Jun Seok's friend, he will lose this privilege. Whatever he chooses, he has a high price to pay.

Read More

Love to Hate

«And I Hate You So» introduces the story of Luna Ng, who runs into a man whose first impression is the antithesis of her. Due to certain events, both of them are destined to see each other, confront each other and even love each other.

The movie was great for many reasons. Let's see the weakest point first: the plot. Nothing really special about the plot, it is just the story of two people who slowly fall in love. But I really love this kind of plot. It might be slow, and not memorable at all, and even cliché, but the execution of the romance and how hate becomes love in this movie is strikingly beautiful. You either get it or not, there is no secret to it. The OST/BGM was amazingly well used in this movie as well.

The cast and acting were outstanding. I do not think it is that easy to portray the braveness and nerve of a feminist as well as her vulnerability, but Kelly Chen did a really great job. Her character was one that reminded us we are all humans: we make mistakes, we contradict ourselves, we do not really know what we want; and yet, we have to present the opposite appearance of those traits in public, especially if you are someone with a reputation for being the scourge of sexism. Chung Yeung, portrayed by Aaron Kwok, says "Is it hard to be a feminist and admit you love a man?". This movie is filled with powerful lines, but that one struck me a lot. The movie might present an ordinary plot, but the characters were definitely a challenge, especially for Kelly Chen.

All in all, «And I Hate You So» will make you enjoy a "despicable" impossible transition from hate to love, portrayed by a strong female lead who is, in fact, just like any of us. What we say we want, what we force ourselves to believe we want, and what we really want, no matter whether is a contradiction of our ideal and people's opinions is depicted incomparably well in this movie.

Read More

I haven't cried this hard since... The Travelling Cat Chronicles with Fukushi Sota. Or maybe Fortuna's Eye with Kamiki Ryunosuke. And just like in the latter, it hits painfully hard when the POV is switched from "his" to "hers" and you see the story enfolding backwards...

I think it's better to watch this movie completely unspoiled, without knowing what's going on. Because that way, it's all the more painful - and all the more beautiful, Takatoshi & Emi's love story.

And what a love story this is! Fukushi Sota & Komatsu Nana make a beautiful couple in this movie, their chemistry is simply awesome. If nothing else then that makes it worth watching.

Truly, when I finished it, I immediately went back and re-watched some of the highlights, now knowing what's going on. And, wow, it was truly all there, the hints. And when you know and you go back and you watch it... it breaks your heart into itty bitty pieces!

Read More