Reviews

A highly entertaining movie with action, suspense, politics and comedy

The story is clever and well written. The cinematography is beautiful. The cast is great in their respective roles. CGI is pretty decent. It draws its premise from the annals of the Joseon Dynasty. The movie takes inspiration from the legendary creature called "haetae" from Chinese and Korean mythology. If you look a bit deeper into the plot you will find that the movie is also a commentary on politics, powerplay and manipulation. The story keeps you engaged and guessing. I found myself genuinely rooting for the leads and the people on their side. Would be a loss to miss, especially if you like this genre. The chemistry between the cast is enjoyable and doesn't feel forced. The father-daughter relationship between Yun Kyum and Myung is portrayed beautifully. Overall the movie is a highly entertaining watch.

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So much potential

DAMN!! This had so much potential but alas it did not live up to it.

The premise is excellent, the cast is great and the setting perfect, so why was this movie so meh??

The first 40 minutes of the movie were hands down some of the best tension setting I have ever watched but it all went downhill after that. The movie is meh b/c of the stupid actions by the police, the victim, the brother of one of the victims and random people on the street.

The best thing about this movie was the actors. Wi Ha Joon is excellent as the serial killer. I had only seen him in Squid Game and I liked him there but he played the psychotic murderer very well. I only wish we knew what his motivations were. I guess we get a glimpse of it when the old drunk at the police station questions his upbringing but I needed a little more information. The lead actress, Jin Ki Joo and the actress playing her mother were really good too. I haven't seen the FL in anything else either but I look forward too seeing something else.

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Amazing

This is one of my favorite movies ever. I’ve never been a fan of war/battle movies so I came into it not really knowing much but the raw feeling and emotion I felt when watching this shook me. I only really watched it because Megan Fox is involved and I wanted to see how they would play out American characters in a Korean movie but it honestly changed my view on life and how much you should value it. I had never cried this hard before, even after the end, the thought of this movie would water my eyes. I would def recommend this drama but be warned its absolutely heartbreaking.

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A Wonderful Tale of A Mother's Love

At first glance, I had absolutely no idea what this movie is about. I started watching thinking that it was just a normal story about a young girl trying to achieve her dreams of being a pianist.

How mistaken I was. Beneath the surface lies a wonderful tale of the depth of a mother's love for her child.

To be frank it's hard to write this review without giving out spoilers because even going a bit further into the film will pretty much end up spoiling it.

To some, this may be a simple run of the mill sob story but if you actually look at the relationship of the leads, you will understand why the twist towards the end of the film is actually much more touching and memorable than a generic sob story.

I've known of Ishihara satomi's popularity but I've only really watched a single drama of hers. She's really beautiful but her acting here made me understand why she's one of the most popular actresses in Japan.

Nagano Mei is a very talented up-and-coming actress and again, you can see why she's highly regarded thanks to her good acting here.

Kurumi Inagaki who plays little Miitan will be a star actress in the future (I hope). Her acting here is absolutely top-notch for a child actress.

Prepare some tissues. Perhaps at the end of the film you may want to give your Mum a big hug.

PS: my rating of 9 for rewatch value is mainly for those scenes of Miitan and her Mum (both child and adult Miitan).

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This is a story of a young girl out for reveneg for the deaths of her family due to ruthless gangsters.

The martial arts in this film were not so great, but I did really like the Lily Li the female lead. I loved the white outfit she rocked. I also liked that it was more realistic with the fights back in the day. When she got hit she would get bruised and injured. In todays movies she would be super human. I also liked the different fighting styles. One Foot Crane, Mantis Fist and Shaking Eagle.

I enjoyed overall. I however, did not like that one of the minor characaters dies at the end for no good reason and that pissed me

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Better movie than I anticipated!

"In Japan, during the reign of Shogun Yoshimune, it is the era of the samurai and the ninja. Many villages are outwardly peaceful, but a twisted sexual underbelly exists that affects more than just the criminals. Kaede and her sister are unfortunately victims of this when the elder is raped and commits suicide shortly thereafter. Kaede seeks vengeance, and a lady ninja nun who hears of the events aids her in the search. There is more to the story behind the rape, however, and the lies and secrets are slowly revealed behind a trail of clothing, sweat, and blood"

I don't know who wrote this main detaisl, but they never watched the movie!

This is the true outline for the movie:

"In Japan, during the reign of Shogun Yoshimune, it is the era of the samurai and the ninja.

Many villages are outwardly peaceful, but a twisted sexual underbelly exists that affects more than just the criminals. Kaede and her sister are unfortunately victims of this when the eldest sister is raped and commits suicide shortly thereafter.

Kaede seeks vengeance, and a lady ninja nun who hears of the events aids her in the search. There is more to the story behind the rape, however, and the lies and secrets are slowly revealed behind a trail of clothing, sweat, and blood"

This was a neat little movie, with just enough swordplay, suspence and action for the person who wants this out of a movie, while it also has some titillating parts for those who crave more!

There are also several twists in the movie as it progresses, with the actual rapost being taken out in a most 'unique' way!

There is comedy, satire, action, drama and plot twists here!

Luna Akatsuki aka Runa Akatsuki
as Lady Kaede

Kôji Fujiyoshi

Kazu Itsuki

Hideo Kato

Mankichi Maeda

Yuka Sakagami

Masato Takaoka

Shin Takayuki

Kagawa Tateo

Hideki Yokohori

Wakabayashi Yoshio

Director
Takayuki Kagawa

No one besides Runa appears in the MDL list of cast; and I don't have the time to try and find each and every other cast members as well.

There is a second movie, which I will add and rate as I have the time.

There was little music, but the cinematography was great, and main and support cast were well-matched and kept the story going well.

My only complaint was the death of the elder sister's boyfriend, who was assisting his beau's sister until his demise.

RE-WATCH VALUE: Yes!

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this was amazingly bad

i cannot believe how horrible this was.

there is no plot. at least not a very good one. it's full of holes and nothing really makes sense, like they meet briefly for 10 seconds and then the main dude is obsessed with him and goes out of his way to become friends with him..? and then they fall asleep together and then they break up and then they kiss/?? LMFAOO????? like this was actually so bad i can't believe i watched the whole thing. there was no development or anything you would expect in a romance film it felt like it was written by a 10 year old on wattpad with bad grammar and poor punctuation

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So trippy yet everything makes sense!

At first everything was confusing but when you watch and analyze everything it's so satisfying to the feels. Geumja may seem insane for what she's imagining and planning or even saying but I bet you she's one of the coolest and wisest characters I've seen. And her love for Jenny is the best thing ever, personally my most favourite scene was the translating part from Geumja to Mr. Baek. ATONEMENT, DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS?

Although how they punished Mr. Baek wasn't so satisfying and brutal unlike in Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, I guess he's better of dead.

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Most detailed movie ever

Ok first of all how did they even filmed this? it's a masterpiece. I just couldn't feel Lee Byunghun's emotion and anger that much because he didn't showed it like how Choi Minsik did, but they both did great. Lee Byunghun's action of revenge made me feel and it showed me how great this movie is! it's shocking, everything is shocking. But the chitchatting parts with the detectives are quite boring yknow, but the action scenes and the production of this movie carried everything! and though I never expected a film would be this detailed and gory ... I loved everything! and not to mention every scene is fucking cool and iconic I swear, from the green house fight to the clinic scene LMFAO.

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Sad reality of surviving

This movie is more of like a heartbreaking reality of life because sometimes things you expect wouldn't always turn out as good as you imagined. I was heartbroken when Taeshik fought with his son Seojin in the streets because of how he was blaming himself because he saw himself as the poor worthless dumb father. I was so heartbroken because he was TRYING, gets beaten up every day just for 10k won and in the end everything won't be worth it because it gave him serious damage. Sadly things like these do happen in real life, I love how everything here shows the genuine side of every people. From happiness, struggles and success. And about the ending, they both deserved to win but we know there is always a winner and a loser.

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wtf even is this?

two bestfriends simping on the same girl. one dude got touched by the girl he likes accidentally while cutting his hair and he opened up about his bff and they both started simping. they went on a boring ass quadruple date and the other one got depressed because the girl liked his friend instead of him. he started inhaling shit tons of cigarettes in no time due to depression and jealousy and the scene changes, seriously it's so random and the new character pov is a manic pervert who lives off just to fuck random girls. weird. fucking weird. please don't buy this shit on youtube this isn't even worth 1000 korean won.

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This documentary is a true gem. As a Toma Ikuta fan, it is a delight to watch it on Netflix with subs. Something I never even imagined could ever happen. As a foreign fan, I finally felt seen.
In this documentary, Toma shares his passion, love and respect for kabuki and his acting profession. We get to see him talk about his work, and his motivation but also doubts while being supported by his close friends and colleagues. Once again, it made me realise how much love Toma puts into his work and also into his relationships with others. And much more love is given to him back. During watching it I felt delighted for Toma, that his hard work paid off and his dream came true.
The documentary also provided interesting information and insight into the mysterious world of kabuki actors. As a theatre lover, I really enjoyed all the information provided. Behind the scenes from the practice realistically introduced all the hardships that kabuki actors have to face before getting on the stage. One could feel their love and pride for tradition and Japanese culture. They all put their hearts and souls into their work.
Finally, as a Toma fan, I am so proud to see him getting such an honour to be part of this stage play.
Anyone who is interested to know more about kabuki or Toma, please support this documentary on Netflix. ♥

PS: I am not the type of person who rewatches films/dramas even if I like them. Also, there was not much music to rate. And I tend to rate things quite strictly and according to whether the work has features of the particular genre.

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BL stage play, a musical

Yes, this is a recording of a production of a live stage performance of this musical. It's done well, and professionally. I've been to plays, musicals, and opera, but I much prefer them live amd in person than watching a recording on TV. Just don't go into this thinking it will turn into a regular drama at some point. It is a musical stage performance with a live audience.

STORY: A standard BL story though it had an interesting sub plot about an older generation couple worrying about what the newer generation BL couples must suffer. I really felt for them amd what they went through, more than the young couple.

ACTING: All were good stage actors. I hope they have long and vibrant careers. Sam is HOT.

MUSIC: This is a musical, after all. I thought it was good. Some songs were hits and some were misses. It's a Tiawanese production in Mandarin, so thankful for the subtitles.

REWATCH VALUE: I gave it a go, but the format isn't my cup of tea.

OVERALL: It's much different than a regular BL. Maybe you'll dig it, maybe not. The older BL couple's storyline was more interesting than the younger. Tip: if you made it through part 1, the payoff in part 2 is worth it.

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Ninjas and cowboys and clowns, oh my! The Warrior’s Way is a comic book colored Western Wuxia mash up.

Jang Dong Gun is the mysterious man in black, the world’s best swordsman. After wiping out a rival clan he spares the last member, a baby girl. His clan declares him a traitor and starts hunting him down. He travels to America and settles into the nearly ghost town of Lode, a town being reclaimed day by day to the endless desert. The town is populated with an assortment of outcasts including a carnival troupe. A young woman with a past played by Kate Bosworth helps him to learn how to live an ordinary life while she has him teach her how to use a sword. She is seeking revenge against the dastardly ex-confederate colonel who killed her family.

Of course, peace doesn’t last long and eventually it’s a three-way fight between assassins, the Colonel’s gang, and the townspeople.

The movie is heavily stylized to the point it often looks artificial. The color saturation, slow-mo, and green screen effects work at times and not so much in others. You’re always aware it’s on a studio lot.

The music ranges from the Sailor’s Hornpipe ( how did they not have a Pop-Eye cameo!) to spaghetti Western inspired music to opera.

Jang had enough presence to pull off the almost silent assassin learning to acclimate to his new life. Bosworth’s Annie Get Your Gun, er, Sword felt over the top in some scenes. Geoffrey Rush as the town drunk with a secret was almost unrecognizable for much of the movie. There wasn’t much scenery left after Danny Huston finished chewing on it as the Big Bad. Old school Hong Kong kung fu star Ti Lung lent some cool cred as the head of Jang’s clan.

The action scenes were all fast and bloody. The three way fight pulled out all the stops to render a high body count. For those who are squeamish there was spurting blood and a few dismemberments.

The story is what let me down. The focus of the degenerate colonel seeking out women to rape is a trope I wish would crawl into a corner to die. Aside from that the second act felt plodding, even clumsy at times. The good hearted carnival folk with life lessons to share trope felt stale as well. The storyline was disjointed, never truly unifying into a smoothly told tale.

The Warrior’s Way was limited but entertaining. This colorful movie with stylish sword fights led by the man with “a warrior’s body and the heart of a priest” was a perfectly fine afternoon watch. But like a carnival ride it could give you whiplash as it jolted you from comedy to violent cowboy wuxia to heart warming redemption story and back again.

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i’m so impressed

i loved it. the first murder scene was perfect, the music made it so memorable and as it was the first one it had to be memorable and the producing team really did that well! the actors also did an unbelievable job, fukase satoshi in the role of morozumi shuichi was spectacular. he portrayed the character so well i was in awe. i love these types of movies, violent but realistic and a serious tone, and this one was so good. i was invested the whole way through the movie, beginning to end, as the plot kept me intrested with twists and development. i saw someone on here saying the pacing of the movie was too slow in the middle and too fast at the end but i thought it was perfect! and it left us with an ending that gives us closure and also gets us wanting more. my favourite scene was the last murder (attempt) scene, i guess i found it quite beautiful, i’m not sure why, maybe it was the change in dynamics, or how it was so realistic in that the main character was finally feeling some relief from fighting morozumi, after he had been the biggest thing in his life since the first murder. and morozumi also got to see that maybe yamashiro does enjoy killing just as he does, even if it wasn’t a family of four you could see the content-ness on morosumi’s face after seeing that he was right. i really hope there is a second part. i’m desperate to see more of how similar morozumi and yamashiro are.

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