Reviews

Garbage trying to look pretty

I tried to watch this a few years ago, because someone recommended it, but it is pure crap!
Some actress goes to Germany - if memory serves correctly - to basically walk around, do nothing, tell her friend that she's been fucked by 200 men (well, okay, the exact number isn't given, but she implied she's a hoe) and to put some distance between herself and the married man she's currently getting shafted by.

Nothing happened for the longest of time and I ended up turning it off.
I'm only writing this review now because it popped up on one of my viewing lists and I recalled the absolute disdain I had for it.

Avoid.

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Some realities are black and white

Kalel, 15 is the story of a boy who looks in the mirror to assess his attributes. But unlike boys his age, he doesn't do it for vanity, but to survive. Surviving in a dysfunctional family, surviving with HIV, surviving others' judgement, surviving poverty, surviving being abandoned, surviving institutional indifference. Behind his impassive mask, Kalel's motto is to survive with dignity, the dignity he gives himself, not the dignity that results from others' endorsement.

His story is a sad one, but the way it is told doesn't want to bring tears to our eyes, we are here to contemplate someone else life w/o judgement. It's a life journey whose details I'll forget, but when I'll encounter a boy his age on the street with that same gaze, I'll wonder if all is well in his life.

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A great adaptation from anime

When watching the 3 movies of Fullmetal Alchemist, I didn’t know that they were live-action (adaption from anime) so I can’t tell how good they are as compared to the anime. However, in my point of view the 3 movies are the best Japanese live-action that I have ever seen. The cast not only portray their roles pretty well but also good looking. I was impressed with Yamada Ryosuke in the role of Edward the most. The plots are interesting and surprise me at some points. The CGI, costumes and styling are great and attractive. I enjoyed watching this live action and have re-watched it a few times.

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Meant for young teens, but an enjoyable watch regardless

Look, before I say anything else, know that this movie is very evidently for young audiences. It's a cute, simple, star-crossed fantasy film with eye-catching magic graphics. The acting is a bit poor. The plot is predictable. Nothing particularly high-emotion happens. (Also, on a side note: the movie poster is very misleading.) That's the nature of films with this age demographic.

That said, I greatly enjoyed this movie. The music was stunning - in the way that only wuxias can be. The magic looked gorgeous. I loved the reoccurring theme of yin and yang. And the fact that the true climax isn't the big showdown, but rather the events right after the showdown was a really interesting choice that I don't see often. I know that should this film have been around when I was younger, I would've had this on repeat so much that it would've made the list of films my parents had to hide from me.

But as an adult, the rewatch appeal is quite low because of all that I mentioned in the first paragraph of this review.

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"If you don't let what's in your heart out, you'll choke on it"

Kurosawa calls upon his characters to stand up for what's right even if the odds are against them in Scandal. Honor, weakness, redemption, and a rebel painter on a motorcycle all figure into this film.

A young, handsome Mifune Toshiro played the painter Aoye Ichiro who rebelliously road his motorcycle everywhere. When he offered a beautiful singer, Shirley Yamaguchi as Saijo, a ride back to her hotel in the mountains where he was also staying, the dominoes were stacked. The paparazzi had followed her to the hotel where she refused to have any pictures taken. In a genuinely chaste moment, the two were photographed together in what could have looked like an intimate scene. The tabloid wrote a salacious story about the two having a romantic getaway which went viral in a 1950's manner. When one of the photographers asked if it was okay to write a false story, the boss told him, "It doesn't matter if it's true. Once it's in print the public believes it." And therein lies one of Kurosawa's themes-the unscrupulous press who valued sales over truth and a gullible public who would believe it.

Ichiro decided to sue the magazine for the trouble brought down on himself and Saijo. Another theme-understanding the difference between right and wrong and standing up for what was right regardless of the consequences. In stumbled Hiruta Otokichi (Shimura Takashi) a lawyer begging for the job of representing him and the story became something else. Ichiro decided to hire Hiruta after meeting his tuberculosis bedridden daughter, a purity of love and light. The story now became focused on Hiruta's weakness. Weakness for money, betting, drinking, and in general doing all the things he considered loathsome...including selling out his client. Another theme-the disintegration of the ability to tell the difference between right and wrong in post war Japan. The film also began to center on Hiruta's weaknesses more than the court case and the gradual road to his redemption guided by his daughter and a motorcycle riding artist.

There were times in this film I thought I was watching a version of It's a Wonderful Life only with a down and dirty Clarence. It felt Capraesque in several places. For a Kurosawa film it was more sentimental and predictable than I would have thought. The shift from the story focusing on Mifune and Yamaguchi to Shimura's character was jarring. I normally enjoy Shimura's performances, but his hang dog, self-castigation went on too long for me. He would perfect this "poor me" performance for Ikiru. Fortunately, there were some lighter moments to break up all of his self-recriminations. As lovely as they were, Ichiro and Saijo came across rather one note and too perfect. Even with his habit of gunning his motorcycle and painting nudes, Ichiro practically squeaked when he walked, he was so clean and honorable.

The harsh commentary on the tabloids, moral disintegration, and the judicial system was not subtle. There was the obvious lament that while the fake news stories sold in the tens of thousands, Ichiro had trouble selling his actual works of art. Ultimately, the focus became about Hiruta's weaknesses without condemning them, simply exploring them and his reasons for them. Finally, watching as his lifeline was assembled, one that in the end might condemn him but set him free at the same time was worth rooting for. It takes a lot of courage to become a shining star reflected in a polluted pool of water.

I enjoyed this film, but not as much as I hoped I would. It was definitely worth watching for seeing Mifune Toshiro transporting a decorated Christmas tree on the back of his motorbike.


10/5/22

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It was based on a true story.

It was a really good storytelling of two people that struggled withe their own issues. The woman a very sensitive person, traumatized from a marriage that stripped her feelings down due to her intimation dysfunction. Hopeless (you can see her pain and desperation so clearly) she builds walls and her insecurity hits red! In my opinion the man also traumatized by family issues (the cook) really loved her, they made love not just sex but he couldn't give her what she needed at that time. They had to discover things for their selves separately. The movie was very good overall and the nudity was really acceptable for its kind of story.

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Wow.. finally a proper movie from China. The overall exceeds my expectation.

1. Acting [+]

My gosh... all the actors/actresses are so good here. High praise for ML & FL. Their acting are so authentic. It's so hard to find good acting from Chinese actors/actresses, but there's a bunch here. I truly dislike the mother and look down on that kind of teacher. It's ridiculous to have this kind of adults to be responsible for children. I don't know if this is a compliment, but the image they draw for adults in this movie makes me look down on the way Chinese society treats their young people and its educational attitude as a whole. They can really make me disgust how egoistic and problematic the adults are to the younger generation. The adults act like what they do are rightful in spite of the opposite. For the leads' part, they both are so young but can handle their roles real well. Wu Lei really nails it. His acting is detailed, which I think is also the result of having competent director that can guide the acting direction for his actors. The FL's role seems to be more level through the story, but her acting is much believable. Nothing looks awkward at all. I feel along with her all the way through, esp. in that scene on her birthday night - it was so embarrassing and I totally feel her. I'm 100% embarrassed together with her.

2. Story [+]

First, they have messages they want to communicate, which are strong and substantial. Second, the subplots are very well weaved into one story. They did so well with the peak, turns and twists, which means there're so many points in the story that provoke my perception no matter it's thoughts, surprise or new happening, and all of them are harmonious in the whole picture. Lastly, the script that is made up to be this film can really make me laugh out loud and scream (due to embarrassment, lol) - the emotions they want to convey have successfully conveyed in each scene.

Note:
I still deduct some points on the score as I think the extreme characters like the mother and teacher are designed to be surreal. I consider it as cheating for an easier way out by distorting the rule to their own benefit.

-------------------------------------------------------

P.S. While watching, I was thinking until the end that if the ML's ex-crush was a guy, his subplot would be perfect. Anyway, considering this film is from China where being gay is a taboo, I could foresee my wish/speculation wouldn't be portrayed :P

P.S.2 I just realized one day after watching that the FL here is the same one in Love Story In London. Wha... I gave 1 score for Love Story In London, so I'm glad to see she can actually make it far beyond that. It's great to see her true potential with a proper project that can let her properly challenge herself and shine. Her role in Love Story In London was uninteresting and had nothing to deliver at all.

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Jackie Chan & Yang Yang can’t go wrong

What I love:
The cast and their character portrayal
No mushy romance & love story
Action packed but not gruesome
Filmed in Middle East - remote locations in telling a story is always a plus for viewers
Story is pretty simple but the way action was executed, it made the story exciting.
Love they did alternatives in using animals in filming and made it obvious they are not real to avoid animal rights complaints. I rather they did it this way than go through all the trouble so No, this is seen by others as a negative But I see it as a plus. Entire filming were excellent that small flaw like this (which avoided any issue with activist so it served the production well) can be overshadowed by the action packed movie.

What I didn’t care for:
I think the international actors could have been chosen better. Mediocre in acting.
That’s it!
☺️
P.S. Yang Yang is so handsome in films like this and period drama. He can be the Asian James Bond♥️

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Underwhelming

Love and Leashes is not for everyone. It is not for me at least.

The premise is intriguing, but the execution is frustratingly underwhelming. This is one of those stories that spends a lot of time building momentum and then ends without having realized that momentum. While watching, I felt like something significant should happen any moment, but it never did.
Furthermore, the humor did not appeal to me – and you have to like the humor in a comedy to enjoy it.

The characters are likeable and easy to sympathize with. However, Lee Jun Young's acting is subpar, so I did not have fun watching him.

Overall, I consider this movie neither really bad, nor good. It is simply forgettable. If I were you, I would not waste my time on it, but who knows? You might enjoy it as the other reviewers did. To each his own.

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Custom that kills

From the synopsis provided in the description of this movie, that’s basically this movie is all about. If you plan to watch this movie, better not to read the description and just jump straight into the movie with a clean slate. In my opinion, it’s a pretty direct storylines, there’s no really a plot twist. It’s 2 hour long only because the sound effects or visual effects idk how to explain it. Reaching almost the end of this movie makes me dozed off and once I wake up, it’s still on that scene, that’s how slow the progress is.

Nevertheless, it’s an interesting movie maybe for that period of time. Right now, maybe our generation will find it hard to watch this kind of movie even more to understand it. It’s a movie that tells you about a Chinese custom, what women will experience if they married into a husband who practiced polygamy and those who practice this kind of custom where whenever a husband chose to sleep with his wife, the red lantern will be raised in front of that chosen wife’s house. So, in order to get into your husband’s arms and getting the red lantern to be light on your house area, you need to compete with another wives, the scheme, the betrayal, either will put you through or will make you fall into the madness. It’s a battle that will drenched you with loneliness and tears.

Song Lian starring Gong Li was so good for this role. This movie focusing on her role most of the time, I barely remember others roles except Meishan, the 3rd wives, and Zhouyun, the 2nd wives. This movie reminds me of Ruyi’s Royal Love in The Palace and Story of Yanxi Palace drama. Got the same vibes but Raise the Red lantern is the shorter version that made into a movie, also only differences is the status. While the two happened in the palace between the king and his concubines, the later one happened between the rich man and his four wives.

Overall, not gonna rewatch this again for sure. However, it’s a good movie that will teach you some of good lessons so please go ahead if you wanna give a try.

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I loved about 99% of it

This movie was so entertaining. There were a few moments that (in my opinion) were taken a bit too far.... but it was made light by the characters. I thought the music and casting was great. I loved it up until about 2 hours and 17 minutes.

Spoilers:

I loved that the main character was flawed. I love that she wanted her revenge and could be a total bitch but was able to grow and come around. It made her so much more human, somebody I can relate to a lot more than the average Asian drama female lead.
I was actually shocked when we found out the male lead had been there the whole time, and it was so adorable and made me fall in love with him. He also wasn't afraid to pull his punches with her and I think that's a good thing, especially in a budding relationship that has long term potential.

But c'mon, that ending? Where she tells all of the women they need a man to be happy? For a second when she ran back to the mic to "clarify" and said that men aren't important but love is I thought they were gonna save it.... but no. I'm super disappointed that after all of that positive "single woman" energy she just goes on to tell them to find mr. perfect, and of course all of the women in the crowd instantly pull out there phones. Up until that point I was ready to give the movie a 10.

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Simple but Poignant: A Tale of Unrequited Love

Krit's longtime crush on his questioning best friend has started to drive a rift between them. But in one last bid for time together, Krit invites Vin to join him on a journey in the wilderness to 9 Buddhist temples and the 7th tier of the neighboring waterfall. He had only planned for a journey filled with Vin's company, beautiful flowers to collect and press, and a wish to granted at the end of his quest. What he didn't anticipate was 2 other guests, as well as a journey that inspired feelings of nostalgia and lostness, before teaching him of peace and acceptance.

Despite a brief morbid moment and concerns over how the film would end, I found this to be a beautiful exploration of an unrequited first love. The backdrop of wilderness and Buddhist temples was well-chosen. And I'm not sure that this film would have had the same oddly comforting vibe had the music not been so well chosen (which, honestly, seems to be a trait of P'Nuchy's productions). And then there's our main character Krit: a young boy who sees beauty in everything and always wishes for happiness for everyone, and an eternal love for himself - wishes that Buddhism tells him is impossible. Wishes that society shuns. When he starts to feel lost, we can tell. There may not be explosive anger or giant tears, but we can tell.

It's simple. But it's poignant. The script, directing, and music left nothing to be desired for viewers. But the acting was a little stiff and I feel like Vin should have gotten more character development. I also think that there was a scene that was a bit too morbid, at least for my tastes anyway.

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Emotional and Graceful

At first I was a little distracted by the amateur filming style and quality, but the plot took me away from this distraction and blossomed into something that made me tear up.

In general I am a sucker for the idea of ¨is this really over?¨ ¨is everything we had really gone?¨ and this concept attached to the trope of childhood friends???????? Absolutely not, I was totally targetted and am now completely destroyed.

Fortunately, this is a quick and touching watch - it´s not sad like you might have misinterpreted from the statement I made above, but it is emotional.

Overall, this short film is super well done even if some of the shots were a little awkwardly shot or poorly lit because the story is awesome and the actors performed beautifully as well.

Highly suggested that you watch this - the link to it on YouTube can be found in my notes about this film.

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Two out of three ain't bad

Gamera 2 was my least favorite of this particular Gamera trilogy. With a larger budget than Gamera 1, the special effects were bigger and louder, but its heart wasn't.

In a world with Kaiju, a meteor headed toward the Earth is never just a meteor and this one was no exception. Before you knew it, Japan had a silicone-based infestation on its hands.

I didn't find Destoroyah, I mean Legion, particularly terrifying even with the blood spurting and city annihilations. Neither Legion's costume nor Gamera's were particularly inspired. I love guys in rubber suit Kaiju costume movies so that wasn't a problem for me. Most of the fight scenes were done in the blurry dark which obscured the suits even more. The immediacy and scale of these creatures compared to the populace and buildings was lacking. There weren't any real money shots of Gamera up close either. And I wasn't a fan of his new flying capability, I liked the retro spinning saucer style.

Gamera is a Kaiju if not for the people, at least for the Earth, and he's always on hand to dispense with whatever malevolent force comes along (look out humans, you may be on his list!). He usually has someone who has a personal connection with him and that was missing from this movie. While there was a group of children keeping watch over a possibly dead Gamera, that personal connection felt disconnected. None of the main characters ever felt like they were in imminent danger either further distancing them from the action.

The human cast was all fairly likeable and easy on the eyes, even if too much of the movie centered on them. At least they were able to take care of one problem with the Legion near the end of the movie instead of being completely reliant on Gamera.

For low budget 1996 special effects, Gamera 2 did an adequate job. The miniatures were excellent and were believably blown up and torn down. How they ever find someone to do tank duty when a Kaiju comes to town, I will never know! And in a world with Kaiju, if a giant extraterrestrial that is on a killing spree torches a building and lays a huge pod on it, I would get out of town---fast! See ya! Wouldn't want to be ya! But instead, people are still milling around the streets and have to be told to leave.

For me, this Gamera felt impersonal, and I never connected to the monster risking his own life and shell to protect Japan. There were still some entertaining scenes and the humans weren't annoying, a huge plus in this genre. If you are a fan of Gamera it is definitely one to try. It can stand on its own, but best to watch this trilogy in order to better experience it.


10/04/22

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