Reviews

"Don't Even Fight With Women Anymore"

First of all, it only shows the back of a woman's body when it comes to nudity, so don't let this keep you from watching this great, spellbinding movie!

I was on the edge of my seat from about 10 minutes into the movie all the way to the end!

The director kept the pace quick with continuous changing twists in the movie, which also involved the couple's dog!

The husband disappears in about 10 or so minutes of the movie and only comes back for even less time, the male villain Sam Chu (Anthony Wong) and the blind wife Mrs. Ng (Veronica Yip) carry the rest of the movie with small appearances by support cast, but HOW they carry it!

Their performances opposite each other couldn't have been better!

Veronica Yip plays a 'kept' wife whose only decisions revolve around which clothes she wears each day; she at the beginning of the movie couldn't fight he way out of a paper bag! But the physical and psychological terror that she endures during the time of her temporary blindness gives her the backbone and tenacity to stand up for herself.

The cast all do a fantastic job in this movie, even if the support cats' scenes were brief! Great actors and actresses all around!

I like the fact that the wife finds the ingenuity to try to get help and also the fact that she developed the ability to defend herself against her intruder: I also love the ways she used what she had in the house to create chaos for the intruder.

The cinematography was great as well as the music!

I don' t know what else to say, except don't watch this unless you have the time to be completely entertained and mesmerized!

One comment about the support cast: The lone Hong Kong cop got what he deserved by not calling for backup.

RE-WATCH VALUE: Definitely!

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It's a "NO" from me, dawg.

Was very surprised that a Kpop Idol would accept this sort of role, but I guess she'd like to break barriers.

The trailer from the start was already cringe to me, but I decided to explore it anyways because I was curious about a Kpop Idol acting in a BDSM themed movie.

I honestly don't think she is a very good actress overall, I've only seen her other acting in Scarlet Heart Ryeo.

This whole movie was awkward and cringe. Maybe because I am so vanilla that I am not a fan of BDSM.

But the thing here we have to be aware about is that: any type of intimacy or sexual activity is uncomfortably cringe and everyone has their own fetishes.

I felt that this movie lack a lot of emotional depth between the main characters. It wasn't a deep enough romance in my opinion.

I just watched it to check out the hype.

I would not recommend it to others.

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One of My First Ever Favourite Entrepreneur Movies!

It's been 10 years since this movie came out and luckily I had watched since it first released. I've gotta say this one is TOTALLY WORTH watching again and again if you are looking for inspiration, motivation, patience, and faith in life.

The journey of Top was a rollercoaster of his hobbies, new ideas, challenges alongside, and success in his business. The script and director perfectly guided and especially the character himself is the role model for anyone and I can see a lot of relevance in his person compared to mine.

This is so far one my most favourite Thai movies since now and I am really looking forward to any movie can bring this breakthrough yet remaining the meaning spirit, regardless of entrepreneur topic!

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Dragnet Girl is a mostly bloodless noir film featuring a gangster and his moll who were not nearly as bad as they thought they were.

Joji is a washed-up boxer who turned to crime to make his living. Tokiko is his good time loving moll able to run scams on her own. Her target is the boss' son who keeps hitting on her at the office where she works her daytime job. Joji doesn't like the fact the boss is giving her jewelry, more importantly what she might be doing to earn the jewelry.

The characters come fast and furious, with almost no printed dialogue to help keep track. A young boxer, Hiroshi, tries to impress Joji at the boxing gym so that he can hire on with the stylish crook. So far life is good for Joji and Tokiko until he brings the kid aboard. Hiroshi's sister who works in a record store, complete with RCA's dog Victor cocking his head throughout the store, takes exception to her brother foregoing school to go down a dark path. Dressed in traditional garb she goes to Joji and begs him to turn her brother away. Joji takes an immediate liking to her, and it causes him to reflect on how he's living his life. Tokiko finds out about his desire for Kazuko and hunts the sister down with blood in her eye. Then as fate would have it, she too is charmed by Kazuko. And like Joji develops a sudden desire to go straight and live right. The last half of the film ramps up the tension and suspense in the storyline.

Director Ozu and cinematographer Shigehara Hideo made great use of light and shadow. Whether it was the shadows cast by the workers walking into the office, or faces and rooms half hid by shadow, they developed a proper noir film atmosphere. They highlighted everyday objects and architecture into beautiful composite frames. Outliers Joji and Tokiko were stylishly dressed in 1930's Western clothes. Sweet Kazuko, on the other hand, was always dressed and coifed traditionally. There was no music at all in the version I watched. Ozu did such fine work immersing the viewer into this world, that even though the film was silent you could almost hear the clacking of typewriter keys or a gun firing.

Oka Joji did a superb job showing Joji as dapper and invincible, then unravelling to a dejected and tormented man. Tanaka Kinuyo played the tough moll with a hidden heart of gold to perfection. Mizukubo Sumiko was given little to do as Kazuko except to float into and out of frame when needed and in brief moments, beg for her brother. Kazuko 's main role was to be the catalyst for Joji's and Tokiko's character development, with scant left over for the dutiful sister.

Dragnet Girl was an entertaining silent gangster film as it did not follow the mold of so many other crime movies. Ultimately, for me, it felt a little flat. The skill was there, the camera shots were lovely, and the actors did their jobs well. In the end, I remained unconvinced that quiet Kazuko could turn the two criminals lives upside-down like she did. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who enjoys old movies or old gangster movies as beauty is in the eye of the beholder when it comes to this genre of film.

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Great depiction of a typical scene during a wake and burial for Filipino people

This movie felt realistic and all the scenes are common scenario when someone died on a Filipino household. Usually it starts with how the relatives are informed and the various reactions they have. Most of the time, siblings will be reunited specially for families with more than 4 children. Then they'll start to catch up with their life, some might even fight or make up. And of course it won't be complete without the superstitions which actually act as a comedic relief for the heavy situation wherein their father died. I bet a lot of Filipinos can relate to this movies in a lot of ways.

The actors and actresses that are casted for the movie are also known personalities with years of experience on the industry so I love how they painted diversity among their characters. Despite the differences (and funny similarities) the characters showed off their great chemistry as siblings.

Overall, it has been a good watch. It's not an impressive movie per se however if you're someone who's interested about Filipino cultures and traditions specially the superstitions, this is a good place to start. It also involves unexpected stories and discoveries among the members of the families that they didn't know for years until their father died.

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choppy editing, too rushed

it started good actually, but after 10 mins, it becomes a mess. some of the characters just pass by here and there. no development whatsoever.
i wish this was a drama instead. because a lot of things need to be explained better.

i mean EX and JX grow up as siblings. but after years of separation they fall i love? that last twist of illness? who did EX got married to?

the music was good, but it wasn't anything memorable.

I watch this for ZLS and i don't regret it. she did great with her role. but i really don't like the storyline.

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Get you a girl who looks at you the way Miyuki looks at Ai.

Give the girls a gold medal for facial expressions. My god the way they look each other deserve a 10/10. I rarely ever see actors look at each other the way that they do especially Ai. Ai will switch between looking at Miyuki like “this girl is so pure and genuine” to “I’m not supposed to like this girl”. It’s great, sweet and also kinda funny because Ai’s subconscience and body were always at least 10 steps ahead of her realizing her own feelings.

With that said, I am dinging this 1.5 points. Cheating is so rampant in Asian GL dramas. I don’t know why that is, and I don’t think I will ever come to accept or understand it (sans only a few reasons) especially when the guy is nice and has done nothing to deserve it. If the guy was a girl, I don’t think anyone else in the GL crowd would either. But for some reason, when it’s a guy getting cheated on, that doesn’t seem to bother anyone.

1 point for the cheating and 0.5 points for intending to play with someone’s feelings, because they are dating your crush. I didn’t go off a full point and will attritube it to Ai still growing and maturing. Perhaps at her age, she’s still self-absorbed and not really thinking about others yet. But this is fiction, so I guess it makes for a good plot device and angle for character development? In real life, I hope no one justifies playing with other people’s feelings with age. Emotional scars, while unseen, can lasts a lifetime just like physical ones.

Big ups to Japan for coming back to the GL scene after so long. I wasn’t expecting much from Hiraite especially given the plot synopsis, but I’m pleasantly surprised. Wish they could have joined hands with Netflix or similar for more international exposure though. I’m sure many of us have been waiting for something like this from Japan for a while now. Almost on par with OG Transit Girls imho. They were really close. Looking forward to more from Japan.

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Condensed

❤️Pros: had good plot story, good fighting scenes, predictibile unpredictable, I liked how they wanted to portray the characters. ? Cons: it was too condensed, felt like I was watching match, after match. Game 1: 20 kills Game 2: 10 kills, 2 knocked out. Bc it was just a 2h movie, they tried incorporating lots of action stuff, but less time for character development and couldn't feel the emotions and care about the characters. This would've of been amazing if it was a short series, they had plenty of material to work with it. Overall it was good, if you are new to this type of plot, you'd enjoy it!

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Just stick to your smartphone...

It started off as a beautifully friendship... the type that goes beyond time and space... you know that type of friendship that may just change the future type of deal, bringing people back from the dead and all... Cute, sweet and all fluffy... with gummy bears, pastels as far as the eye can see .beautiful scenery and a dysfunctional family or two... if you overlook the locking people up and performing an exorcism or three...

Had it not been a horror movie one would almost think it was as cute as cute can be... However this is a Thriller, Mystery, Horror, Schi fi... and boy does it live up to its name with gore. blood, suspense teaching us all never ever to take a call from the past... heck just stay away from all forms of old communication.

Things that did bother me: the killer portrayed as mentally ill... other then that it was really well made and had a decent plot. And though there may not be an appa as far as the eyes can see this movie proves once and for all that you can enjoy Korean content without them.

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It is about the area of tension between longing, choices in life, accountability and responsibility.

"A Man and a Woman" is emotionally profound, yet subtly leading into intimate depths where it hurts, too. There are no pink ribbons. And the intimate encounter of two souls does not miraculously sort out the problems of the world in a groundbreaking way. Life is difficult. There are also unexpected beautiful moments. But life remains difficult. Is that why it's bad? Only bad? "A Man and a Woman" paints a portrait of two people who have careers of their choice and families - but life is still no lollipop. It is about having an affair. It is about wanting another life. It is about the area of tension between longing, choices in life, accountability and responsibility.

Highly valuable.

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"Il Mare" gently sprays its quiet magic as if through an atomizer.

"Il Mare" is the ´international´ title of this KMovie. However, the original title (rather being translated as "Across Time") does not refer to the place - a picturesque house by the sea - but to what actually happens there: a time-transcending correspondence. Strictly speaking, the letters are sent back and forth in a mailbox over the distance of 2 years. What an unprecendeted plot for a love story to be told in a truly unique way! This story became famous in America and Europe in the 2006 US film adaptation starring Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock.

Actually you shouldn't compare the two movies side by side, but most people do, so...
The South Korean original was made in 2000 and starred Lee Jung-jae, who was in high demand in South Korea at the time, and Jun Ji-hyun, who was just beginning her career. (Actually you can sense the difference in her acting back then and in her more recent productions. In the meantime she definitely has matured from a ´mere´ beauty into a spirited actress.) While the original shares the same plot as does the US remake later on, the South Korean version places more emphasis on the mood of the protagonists, stressed by using imagery, color and atmosphere. Accordingly, the South Korean original is characterized by less color saturation and less light than the US remake, as both protagonists - Eun-ju and Sung-hyun - are rather disappointed in life, taciturn, withdrawn. The loneliness and emptiness in the protagonists´ lifes is one aspect. The remote house by the sea something completely different. It might perfectly fit into the protagonists´ mood, but in addition it actually has quite some magic to offer: Besides framing and emphasizing the beauty of nature there is the dog as a harbinger of relationship and the mailbox as a bridge between hearts. Thus the overall sensitively told story slowly but surely fills with joy, smiles, laughter and increasingly radiating light.

The KMovie "Il Mare" gently sprays its quiet magic as if through an atomizer.

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An (erotic) melodrama whose melodramatics were brilliantly captured

"Obsessed" is an erotic movie about a passionate affair in South Korea around 1969. It is a melodrama whose melodramatics were brilliantly captured - with a Song Seung-heon, who absorbs the drama in his particular passionate manner. What is new in that context, is how he is allowed to act almost shamelessly here.

However, "Obsessed" is also an exciting KMovie as it touches on a not so well known chapter in recent South Korean history: the time of Vietnam War.


------------------------- SIDE NOTE: --- South Korea and the Vietnam War ---
It is always the USA that come to mind. But South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Thailand and the Philippines also fought in Vietnam. South Korea was the country most involved after the USA. Between 1964 and 1973, around 48.000 Korean soldiers were each year drafted into this war. They had all volunteered, not least because their monthly wages brought in almost twice as much as a normal annual salary would have at the time. However, the South Korean army has gained a dubious reputation with a few massacres (including among civilians) in this war - a chapter from the time of the military dictatorship that has not been fully processed by now. The KMovie gives at least some space/thinking to this aspect - in connection with the consequences of the post-traumatic disorders, including the protagonist.
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"Obsessed" conveys some impressions about those 1960s/70s. The already strictly authoritarian context of South Korean every day life becomes even more so during dictatorship at that time, let alone in military itself. Thus every spark of vitality is nipped in the bud by the stiff corset of an immaculate facade. With the affair, an erotic tension is built up that one is not used to from the KDrama orbit. For the protagonists, however, this tension opens up a forbidden, yet addictive space to breathe, love and feel alive - and this precious moment of feeling alive has more value for the distressed male protagonist than anything else - as he has already seen and brought way too much death into this world...

Provoking. Gloomy. Beautifully done.

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A man and his personal story of greed - leading into the repulsive quagmire of a corrupt network

In 2017, "The King" is among the top ten movies in South Korea. The story is a prototypical example for a few extremely powerful men(!) manipulating crime, business & politics within South Korean society. In an idiosyncratic style, the movie conveys an insight into an repulsive quagmire of corrupt networks that run through all social classes. It is about the particular imbalance in the realms of public prosecutors and judiciary, which in the 1990s and 2000s was still massively determined by bribery.

The protagonist tells his personal story of greed (it is always people behind a system...) This is about his climbing to the top and the correspondingly deep fall. He accompanies the events from the off while the story unfolds before the eyes of the viewer in trenchant, impressive scenes. At first, you have to get used to this particular style, but the acting, pace, rhythm and camera nimbly catch the audience by the hand and won't let go until the end.

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