Reviews

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.

Read More

"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less light than the US remake, as both protagonists - Eun-ju and Sung-hyun - are rather disappointed in life, taciturn, withdrawn.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.

Read More

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.
-----------------------------------------


"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.

Read More

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.

Read More

It is heavy opera. Nothing light-weight about it. And a rather outrageous (national) affront, too

"The Last Princess" is about Princess Deokhye, the youngest daughter of the 26th and last King Gojong of the Joseon Dynasty. The (sad) story is told in haunting images.


----------------------- SIDE NOTE: --- Historical context of Princess Deokhye ---
Under pressure from Japan, in 1907 the King had to abdicate in favor of prince Sunjong. Princess Deokhye herself wasn´t born at that time, but five years later, in 1912. The former king was then already 60-year-old. Being the daughter of his concubine, Deokhye initially received no official status as a princess. Yet she was very much loved by her father. However, the still young princess had to leave her parents and country at the age of 13 and grew up as a hostage in Japanese exile...
---------------------------------------


In taking on the princess´ story, the KMovie is simultaneously portraing a truly gloomy chapter in Korean history. Thus the movie itself makes you feel not only sad but even angry at times. One could say, the plot is about ´makjang´, written by history itself.

Although the historical facts are mixed up with a bit of poetic freedom, this (in my opinion) doesn't detract from the authentic circumstances of the Korean people being oppressed by the Japanese at that time. The producers of the KMovie have been accused of portraying the princess (despite her mental instability) in an overly sympathetic attitude towards the Resistance. Additionally her supposed engagement obviously was fictionally romanticized and falsified for the smoothness of the plot - on the other hand historiography doesn't know everything and why not fill the gaps with life by your own imagination und thus get a lively look&feel of almost forgotten times...

In any case, via the horrified eyes of the princess you will experience what colonialization might have felt like. There is plenty of heart and soul, as Son Ye-jin splendidly brings the tragedy of the princess back to life - with all her traumatization by the numerous personal blows of fate and forced by the historical circumstances of her time. Eventually, the movie brings this traumatic past vividly back to memory for those who experienced it themselves, and closer into the consciousness of today's society as well.

In short: It is heavy opera. Nothing light-weight about it. Nowhere. It is confronting the audience with a rather outrageous national affront. The movie want´s you to make a stand. And it actually succeeds in emotionally catching your compassion.

Read More

Beautiful tearjerker

Oh jeez. I really liked this. I don’t even have anything to say, it was just really good. I loved the cast, and I thought the story was very well done. I knew what was coming and I still couldn’t stop myself from wanting the leads to be together so freaking bad. I loved his pure and unending love for her, and the drama was portrayed with so much joy and so much sadness at the same time. Overall, a very beautiful movie. I truly have nothing negative to say about this movie besides the fact that they could’ve made the time jumps slightly less confusing, but that’s just about it. The ending was beautiful and somewhat happy even, because Seung Hee is getting married to a man she (hopefully) loves and both of them can look back at their times together and appreciate just how much they both grew as people because they had one another. It’s a beautiful ending and a more realistic one. Don’t get me wrong, my poor little hopeless romantic heart is weeping. Definitely a tearjerker type movie.

Read More

Poor, at best

TL;DR - If you're looking for fluff and healthy relationships, avoid this one. Likewise if you're easily upset or triggered by depictions of mental health issues and self-injury.

I really, really wanted to rate this higher. I really wanted this to be better than it was. As a wlw myself, God knows we need more representation in the media, and I'll take any crumbs I can get. But after sitting through the whole thing, all I can really say to sing its praises is, well, the girls were cute and the cinematography was beautiful. Bonus points for the ending not being tragic, I guess?

The acting is very awkward, but not unbearably so. Costuming was questionable (heavily creased dresses, long sleeves suddenly being non-existent, etc.). Storywise, this movie seemed promising, but it just didn't deliver. The plot is so paper-thin it's almost translucent, and it jumps around so often it's jarring. The pacing is painfully slow for the first half and confusingly rushed at the end. There is an abundance of unnecessary drawn-out solo shower scenes and sparsely-dialogued hanging out with the gang like all teens do scenes that lead to nothing plot-relevant, while conflicts that almost break down a relationship are solved so quickly that if you blink, you might miss it. The soundtrack, mainly made up of little piano tunes, was unremarkable. And the relationship between the two leads? Well, it's not the healthiest, for reasons I'll get into below.

The biggest issue I find with the mains' relationship is the use of self-harm as a romantic gesture. Self-harm is a big theme in this movie, though we're never given a proper explanation as to what drives the characters to do it. The scars disappearing and reappearing at random is off-putting, to say the least, given that such a discrepancy could've easily been avoided by having the actress wear long sleeves for once (which, IIRC, she never does). Anyhow, once one female lead finds out about the other self-harming, she counts up the cuts on each arm and determines that "if you cut three more times on this arm, you'll have an equal number on both arms, so stop after three". She then watches her cut more than three times and says "if you do it, I'll do it too" before proceeding to slice open her own stomach with a pair of scissors. Cue ill-placed intimate scene with cut-licking. Yikes. Smells like guilt-tripping to me. Not to mention the same female lead forcing the other to face a phobia when she's not ready to "help her get over it". Double yikes.

All in all, while I can recognise that there are some redeeming moments in this film, they are so far and few between that it was extremely difficult to enjoy. I suppose that if you go into this with no expectations, at least you won't be let down.

Read More

The ending made me felt like I wasted my time watching it

The jumps between the time lines through out the movie was horrible ,,made me confused at first ,, thought the story would go somewhere unpredictable but it's worse ,, it was actually as it showed
It was a Bromance between the police officer and the gangster but I didn't like the ending at all
the male lead was used from every side and he became the thing he was hunting at the first place
the movie is ok but not perfect
the acting of the leads was the best
Im Siwan is my favorite young actor in this genera but they didn't use all his potential too

Read More

This was one of the best Korean movies I have watched so far, and currently my favorite movie. It started of nice and slow, but build up in such a way that it would keep me on the edge of my seat.

I loved the two main charecters and their chemistry, especially the quirky bits from Jo Jung Suk. He really deliverd his character well and gave the stroy a bit of comic relief.

About the stroy, would I call it a thriller? No. It was more of a comedic action movie with thirlling scences. Also there were a few holes in the plot. The stroy sometimes skipped forward a bit, which is understandeble, but this left some questions as to how they got there as in the scene beforehand it seemed as it it was impossible for them to make that jump or continue on that path. Also at the beginning they introduce Jo Jung Suk's character as someone who's girlfriend died, but it does not add anything to the story and it is not eleborated any further so this was just an odd remark. But luckely, for me this did not take away from the enjoyment of watching the movie as these were not massive things and the story even with the holes made sense as a whole. The story builds the suspense really well. Throught the story there are multiple points where you are wondering if they are going to survive.

In short I would definetly watch the movie if you are looking for a disaster movie without all the cliches

Read More

I thought I liked it, and I don't hate it, but like what did I just witness?

First of all, this movie had me experiencing whiplash at least 2 to 3 different times. It strangely feels like I went through some type of trauma even watching the movie in its entirety. And yet it really was nearly perfect.

I think the only thing I would have to reprimand it for is the fact it probably did not need to be almost 2 and a half hours. Just when you thought everything was over and wrapped up, they really said but wait there's more.

I would say if you're curious about this movie, know that it is dark (trigger warnings for attempted rape and extreme violence), it is gritty, and you might be confused for at least part of it. However, everything slowly starts making sense and you'll be able to get a better grasp on what's happening from there.

As for the ending, regarding the grandfather, uncle.. whoever the fuck he was...I did not expect him to be that much of a psychopath. It really took me aback. And as for what's his name, even with him being an attempted rapist, a liar, a con artist, and a weirdo, I still thought his ending was a bit extreme. But to each his or her own.

Read More

I watched this movie for Park Jin Young who played a supporting part in this movie - and who was as awesome as always, of course. And to watch him kick butt and be all ruthless and smart and cunning was a pleasure, too, of course.

I loved the action and Yaksha's core team, their loyalty to him - but I simply couldn't stand Prosecutor Han aka Nike. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't because of his need to uphold the law, not at all. But I hated that he behaved like a bull in a china shop once he joined the team in the field, getting them almost killed time and time again. When I'm dropped into a situation I don't know anything about, I don't behave like an arrogant power hungry know-it-all. I keep my trap shut and follow the lead of those who actually do know what's going on. He irked me so badly!

But I did love the ending, the scenes while the credits were rolling. That was awesome. And if there's a sequel - which is quite uncertain now, considering Netflix's current money trouble - I will watch it because I want to see Yaksha's team again!

Read More

"They may act kind but will kick us into a ditch"

The Masseurs and a Woman is a gentle slice of life "seen" through the experiences of two blind masseurs. A scenic mountain getaway reveals deep loneliness and even desperation among the guests who visit the inns.

Fuku and Toku walk along the mountain road to the mountain inns for the spring season after spending the winter working at the beach. The blind masseurs relish in counting the people they pass along the way. Both use their sense of smell to help them, with Toku seemingly more aware of his surroundings. At one point when a carriage passes, he can smell "a woman of Tokyo" as one of the passengers, a woman he is soon to become entangled with.

The setting for the inns is idyllic nestled in the mountains with waterfalls and a stream nearby. Students hiking in the mountains visit and are attended to by the masseurs. Fuku takes good care of the female students who bouncingly approach the road the next morning. Toku is less gentle with a rude group of male students who can barely walk by the next morning after his treatment. Toku is willing to get physical with those who carelessly run into him.

The film shows the audience that there is more than one way to experience life through our senses. Aside from smell, the sense of touch is also shown when Toku massages the Tokyo woman's shoulders and can tell she has worries. At one point, she tells him he sees too well into her. This woman with a mysterious past and haunting expression evades him as he sees too clearly.

Aside from the Tokyo woman an uncle and his nephew have come to visit his parents' graves. The boy is particularly precocious but takes a liking to the Tokyo woman. He has to stand in line because his uncle is also attracted to her as well as Toku, against his better judgement. The child's parents had recently died, and his uncle also seems melancholy.

All is not well at the inns when a string of thefts occurs. Thefts Toku fears the Tokyo woman is committing. A sense of sorrow and desperation hang over the people in the beautiful, quiet setting.

Filmed during the second Sino-Japanese War, the only comment that might refer to this time of Japan's invasions would be when one of the men comments how more women are working. I wasn't aware that at the time, masseur jobs were reserved for the blind so that they would have a way to provide income for themselves. Something that caught on in Taiwan and Korea after the invasions there.

The Masseurs and a Woman glided over the loneliness and sadness in the people at the inns without delving deeply enough for me to feel emotionally connected to them. Stories ended abruptly; secrets were revealed abruptly without the time and room for me to process them internally and unable to have the emotional reaction the music seemed to be cueing me to have. Even with that, this film is worth checking out if you are a fan of older films or of the director Shimizu Hiroshi. The scenery and themes of love, loneliness, and the need for human connection made up for some of its shortcomings.

Read More