Reviews

If you're a classic music lover, then I strongly recommend this drama. It is, as you may have figured, a musical drama. The facts, the phrases, the music... It's all real. I also really approve of the fact that they used real musicians in the orchestra (except from the obvious faking actors, of course). Big big thumbs up!



I have to say, the conductor really really impressed me. It's hard to copy the movements of a conductor, and he did a good job. He must have suffered a lot while learning, so kudos to him!



The acting is great and believable. The drama mainly focuses on character development, but it also has moments of relationships and drama as the "obvious couple" turns out to not being so obvious after all. Despite this, you still get your solid dose of music, which makes me a happy girl.



In writing moment, I have yet to finish this, but the 11 episodes I have watched were watched in 3 days. Not many dramas manage to capture my interest like this, and I am looking forward to watch more!



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I don't understand hockey at all but u don't have to understand it to love this drama. I was really supprized at how much I love this drama b/c of the sport that is involved. The story was really well developed. I loved the spacing of how the relationships came together and the conflict b/t the love interests. I really appreciate how it was not just about the main couple but the supporting couples as well. I am putting this 1 on my fave list & recommend that others watch it. I love that Queen is basically hockey music to me now. I will not be able to watch another hockey drama or movie w/o thinking about Queen. I think this was actually the 1st Japanese drama that I have watched that at least one male character did not dress up as a chick. I am happy to see the serious side of Japanese drama even though I laughed alot while watching the story play out.



There was only one problem that I had and that was finding links to actually watch the drama. One place I found the whole drama was www.watch-drama.com. This may help those that decide to watch. Enjoy!

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I found this movie to be alright. Maybe part of it was me being really tired while watching it, but I didn't get too into it. I thought the story itself wasn't bad, Kushimori's abusive stepfather comes back to live with his family and upsets the atmosphere, so he decides to find a way to get rid of him. The problem I had with the movie was how fast the events seemed took place. It says this movie is supposed to be a romance movie as well, but it's very little. The movie deals more with crime than anything else.



The acting was pretty good, though. Not the best but it wasn't bad. This was the first movie I've watched with Ninomiya Kazunari (from Arashi), and I think he portrayed his character well.



There isn't really any music that goes with this movie, aside from the song they play in the beginning and at the end. All other music isn't memorable.



I dunno if I'll watch this movie again, it's not something I really got into.



Overall, do I think it's worth taking time out to watch? I'd say if you have nothing else to watch, it's not a bad film to kill some time with. Maybe you'll get more into it than I did.

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The premises: this is a war movie through and through.
There are no romance, no cuteness, no funny moments to draw a breath. There are no gorgeous sceneries to admire, or beautiful faces to ogle.
This movie is a punch directed at your very stomach. And yet it's so full of heart and intensity it left an indelible trace in my memory.
It's the story of a handful of Japanese soldiers left on guard of the rocky, desolate, deserted but of outmost strategic importance island of Iwo Jima. They are basically left to rotten there and eventually being slaughtered, if not by the Americans, by the obtuseness of high rank Japanese officials.

It's based on a true story, so I have no fear to spoil the plot. Many of you may already know of Iwo Jima, if only for the über-famous picture of the American soldiers planting the stars and stripe flag on a little mountain of dirt. This movie tells the same story, but from the other side of the barricade, in the literal sense of the word.
Western films tend to depict Japanese soldiers during WWII like war machines, ready to die for their country no matter what, cold and determined. Here we see the human side of them, the ultimate meaning of the film being the universality of fear, loneliness, anguish and friendship.

Outstanding acting performances by all the cast, entirely Japanese and terrific direction by acclaimed Clint Eastwood.

This is the kind of film one re-watches sooner or later. A film-library movie. You have been warned as to its content, so I recommend it with a clear conscience.

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One of my all-time favourites. And the nth sign that Kimura Takuya is not the star he is for nothing.

I hate hockey, therefore I was very hesitant before starting it, a good two years ago. But I soon realized that this particular sport was a narrative necessity, being a rude, violent one, but played by people with a lot of heart.

Pride is a sweet love story, between a man whose name means Spring and a woman who's called Autumn. They are totally different in almost everything, to the point they become complementary and fit into each other's life like two pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. He has his way of pulling her out of her shell, and she has her own at showing real strength is not the physical one.
They are a pleasure to watch together. As I said before, Kimura does not disappoint, he's a great actor who knows how to charm the audience. I'm very partial to Yuko Takeuchi, I can't help being completely captured by her voice, her elegance and blend of ingenuity and wisdom.
Aki and Haru - Autumn and Spring - are one of my favourite drama couples, with tons of sparks crackling between them whenever they are on screen together.

The music doesn't need a review. The entire OST is by the Queen. Like them or not, they have been one of the greatest rock bands in history. And they fit the drama to a T.

I have already watched Pride twice and a third view is definitely in my plans, therefore I'm ready to give it a very high re-watch value and recommend this show to everyone.

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It was ok. In all honesty this drama has nothing to do with the original My Bratty Princess- with the exception that it follows a girl who was dressed as a boy because of some family secret. I really liked that this was a period drama and it had a lot of comedy in it. Theres a ton of cute guys going accross the screen and the fight scenes are cool so its not boring.

If you have already watched the first one, this one is a bit of a let down. The female lead is way weaker and more annoying, not to mention there was a really good reason to hide her identity in the first Bratty Princess, in this one the premise wasnt as good. In the first the development of side characters was stronger as well.

Beware, there are a lot of technical slip ups that you will catch throughout the series like the editing department must have fallen asleep. The voice overs are so unrealistic and annoying and at some point you will want to cuss the emperor for having no balls and the female lead for being annoying.

The end of the series seemed rushed and was slightly disappointing, but otherwise it is a watch-worthy drama if you like period dramas with comedy and not really intense drama.

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Alright...Let's break this bad boy down!

Story: What a story! The writer/s of this drama know how to write! This was action, adventure, revenge and romance done right. As you watch this drama, you notice it is almost like riding a ride. Some of the episodes are packed full of dramatic tension and zip by so fast that when the credits roll you sit there thinking "The hour is over already?" There is a depth and smartness to how the characters are written and for the most part, the pacing of the 20 episodes is framed very well. All good stories need moments of 'set-up' and because there are so many bad ass episodes when the action calms and there is a need for some exposition you don't mind...you understand that its necessary and it builds up the tension for the next stage of "The Plan". There are surprises around so many corners, moments where you suck in your breath. There are times when you want to pump your fist and times when you want to sob your heart out. There are well timed comedic moments that will have you laughing out loud. Pulling these physical and emotional reactions from the audience is the mark of great story telling. It's the best praise and prize a writer can get and the writers of City Hunter certainly got it from me.

Characters: Again, the characters are written so they are not dumbed down for the audience. They are fleshed out so well that you end up having sympathy for a character you know you ought to hate...who deserves your disdain and yet, you feel their pain. Or you may find yourself loving a character that is on a dogged search for and could just bring down your beloved hero. The character of Yoon Sung (City Hunter) is a flawed and fallible hero but he's smart and ultimately good and I found myself behind him and his cause. You get to see so many moments of kick-assery but you also get to see the price he pays; whether it is his body or his psyche. Also, those he's fighting aren't stupid either so he has got a fight on his hands. I like that the writers didn't make the antagonists stupid and they weren't always easy for City Hunter to catch. It made this show a delight to watch.

Romance: While I am all for some loving, hugging and kissing...I like that this drama knew when to quit. They didn't sacrifice the story to serve up the audience lots of drippy, gooey love. Yes, the love is there and the story shows the discovery and build up of that love but City Hunter has a mission. He's got stuff to do! We get to see how that love changes the City Hunter, puts the "true North" to his moral compass, gives him a reason to want to live beyond revenge and that is a beautiful thing. But thankfully, the writers weren't afraid to place that story on the back burner. Not only because it made sense in the framework of tale but also, they didn't pander to us mushy romantic types and force more into play.

Acting: I could go on and on (I know, I already have) but I'll just say t his. Lee Min Ho does a fantastic job. I was not a huge fan of his prior to this drama but now I am. And I would add that there isn't one actor in this whole drama that does a bad job. The main characters were cast well for their roles. There wasn't a time as I was watching this where I cringed or felt cheated that the actor wasn't serving the story or phoning in a performance. Lee Joon Hyuk (Prosecutor Young Joo) was amazing. Park Min Young (Kim NaNa) was often luminous and pretty bad ass in her right. Kim Sang Joon played (Jin Pyo) so well I hated him and had real moments of sympathy for him. Kim Sang Ho (Ahjussi) ~ I love you! I want to buy you an American Express Black card and let you home shop to your heart's content!

Season 2: When the 20 episodes are over...chances are, you are going to want one! Watch this if you are hesitating. There's a reason why there's about a thousand reviews of this Drama.

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The Hong sisters always make amazing dramas. This was the first asian drama I ever watched but I have watched 6 now and it is still my favorite. The only thing I didnt like was all of the action scenes during filming for Daewoong's movie. They became boring after a while. The sideplots in this drama were very funny. Daewoong's dog is so cute! All of the music in My Girlfriend is a Nine-Tailed Fox was excellent as well. They kept you as entertained as the main storyline. This drama was very depressing at times, especially near the end. However I was very happy with the ending.

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