Reviews

Worst BL I've ever seen in my life

The text is horrible, full of flaws, completely implausible and childish.

Filling the episodes with slow motion scenes and the characters' internal whispers and giggles are very irritating.

Using people with disabilities (episodes 5 and 6) and trans people to make jokes is a terrible thing in 2023.

I feel sorry for Frank and Long Lee, good actors in a bad series.

I gave one star out of pity for both of them.

Frank's character spends the entire story obeying all of his bosses' absurd orders (like being naked in front of them) as if he were a slave for the simple reason that he finds Long Lee's character hot, which in my opinion goes beyond fiction .

He spends his time looking for a necklace because a fortune teller psychic advised him to do so, even giving up his own family to do so, which proves to be extremely implausible.

What's more, this fortune teller hasn't changed her appearance at all over the decades, being exactly the same when she attended to Frank's character's mother when he was a child and then when he was an adult.

A story that conveys zero emotions, I started watching it for Long Lee and Frank, but it's a total waste of time.

Read More

Good Drama but needs Trigger Warnings

Side note: Going into this drama, I didn’t expect how deep and dark this drama was meant to be. I think neither the poster nor the trailer did justice to how heavy the topics discussed in the drama were. I feel like some sort of trigger warning should’ve been put out prior to releasing the drama.

Pros: I honestly really liked the romance between the leads. The ML was very understanding and I thought his presence was a good diversion from the topics discussed. I also thought the cinematography (e.g. colorful psych ward, sunlight shining through, clouds when depressed, the FL house/neighborhood, etc.) was beautifully done.

Cons: I didn’t understand how the second romance plot line contributed to the whole picture about mental illness. It was interesting to watch the nurse gain her freedom and find herself by the end of the drama, but I feel like I would’ve liked more from their story line. Additionally, imo the story would’ve benefitted from 4 more episodes? More detailed discussions/examples of mental illnesses would have truly added to the emotional sensitivity and understanding the writer wanted to portray.

Overall: This was a beautifully done story with an emotional depth that would take a while to fully encode. I probably will not be rewatching this drama in the near future, if ever. At this point in time in my life, considering my mental health, I sought out for an escape, instead I was engulfed in a sensitive storyline requiring a lot of venerability.

Read More

A Romantic Tale That Gave Birth To A Masterpiece.

I have a lot of things that I want to say about this phenomenal show, but I’ll try my best to make it as concise and spoiler-free as possible.

The majestic cinematography is one of the strongest points in the series, be it in the modern day or the 1927 era. The filter or the soft bokeh effect that they put in the 1927 era gave the show an ethereal feel as if we were watching a movie set in a dreamworld, which in my opinion is a smart decision since it is told mostly from Jom’s perspective, cause literally, everyone in that time is already a ghost in the present day except Jom. It’s like putting the character’s lenses through our screen. This alone is already a brilliant way of visual storytelling!

The characters are all interesting and well-written. The acting? Outstanding! Nonkul and Bright did an astonishing job as Jom and Yai. In the first episode, we can already see Nonkul’s spectacular acting chops! His eyes alone speak of those devastating emotions that he is experiencing. In the succeeding episodes, you can feel those tantalizing romantic shivers that he feels every time Yai speaks poetry of his love to him. I would not be surprised if he wins an award for his performance as Jom. Bright’s big moments were in the later part of the story. But what amazes me is his versatility in portraying different versions of Yai. The non-verbal and verbal that he did is distinct from the other versions of the character. He did his homework excellently.

I also have to commend the supporting actors for a splendid performance! It’s great that the supporting cast had their own moments and was not left behind by the amazing leads. And did I mention that aside from the main gay couple, we also have a lesbian and straight couple? Yes, this series shows all kinds of love.

The series holds no bars in showing the ruthless treatment of the servants and women in that period. Its fearless portrayal of what happened in the past makes me realize that the series that I’m watching is a bold, unfiltered, and fiercely beautiful work of art. Despite that, it also shows that the abused and the oppressed CAN claim their power and stand up for themselves! Which makes it one of the most powerful scenes in the show.

The music and original soundtrack are magical. For some, it might not be radio-friendly, but the way the music was arranged fits the drama perfectly! Even the lyrics of the four songs featured in the show voiced the perspective and emotions of our main leads. Each note and instrument was meticulously placed to fit the scenes of the drama.

The show as a whole is heartfelt and hopeful. Especially the last few episodes which are excruciatingly beautiful, it made me dehydrated from wailing. Each second that goes by is a slow agony of the inevitable separation. The last scene makes some people confused, unless you read the novel, you will understand it. But I think it was left that way in the series to open the possibility of a 2nd Season, after all, there is so much more to tell.

The love story of Yai and Jom can be considered a one-of-a-kind timeless, classic, romantic tale that gave birth to a masterpiece.

Read More

A Romantic Tale That Gave Birth To A Masterpiece.

I have a lot of things that I want to say about this phenomenal show, but I’ll try my best to make it as concise and spoiler-free as possible.

The majestic cinematography is one of the strongest points in the series, be it in the modern day or the 1927 era. The filter or the soft bokeh effect that they put in the 1927 era gave the show an ethereal feel as if we were watching a movie set in a dreamworld, which in my opinion is a smart decision since it is told mostly from Jom’s perspective, cause literally, everyone in that time is already a ghost in the present day except Jom. It’s like putting the character’s lenses through our screen. This alone is already a brilliant way of visual storytelling!

The characters are all interesting and well-written. The acting? Outstanding! Nonkul and Bright did an astonishing job as Jom and Yai. In the first episode, we can already see Nonkul’s spectacular acting chops! His eyes alone speak of those devastating emotions that he is experiencing. In the succeeding episodes, you can feel those tantalizing romantic shivers that he feels every time Yai speaks poetry of his love to him. I would not be surprised if he wins an award for his performance as Jom. Bright’s big moments were in the later part of the story. But what amazes me is his versatility in portraying different versions of Yai. The non-verbal and verbal that he did is distinct from the other versions of the character. He did his homework excellently.

I also have to commend the supporting actors for a splendid performance! It’s great that the supporting cast had their own moments and was not left behind by the amazing leads. And did I mention that aside from the main gay couple, we also have a lesbian and straight couple? Yes, this series shows all kinds of love.

The series holds no bars in showing the ruthless treatment of the servants and women in that period. Its fearless portrayal of what happened in the past makes me realize that the series that I’m watching is a bold, unfiltered, and fiercely beautiful work of art. Despite that, it also shows that the abused and the oppressed CAN claim their power and stand up for themselves! Which makes it one of the most powerful scenes in the show.

The music and original soundtrack are magical. For some, it might not be radio-friendly, but the way the music was arranged fits the drama perfectly! Even the lyrics of the four songs featured in the show voiced the perspective and emotions of our main leads. Each note and instrument was meticulously placed to fit the scenes of the drama.

The show as a whole is heartfelt and hopeful. Especially the last few episodes which are excruciatingly beautiful, it made me dehydrated from wailing. Each second that goes by is a slow agony of the inevitable separation. The last scene makes some people confused, unless you read the novel, you will understand it. But I think it was left that way in the series to open the possibility of a 2nd Season, after all, there is so much more to tell.

The love story of Yai and Jom can be considered a one-of-a-kind timeless, classic, romantic tale that gave birth to a masterpiece.

Read More

Criminally underrated

Ok, I usually don't write reviews for anything but it just made my heart ache that this drama has such a low rating. I know it's not the typical romcom people are used to but it's much more realistic than most kdramas out there.

I think they managed to depict the raw type of human relationships in a very beautiful way. The main focus was on this on and off relationship between Na-bi and Jae-eon that could very easily be seen as toxic in real life. But let's talk about how amazing their interaction was. They didn't talk much but you could feel the sexual tension through the screen. I've watched over 50 dramas and none of them gave me that feeling. A very important factor here was the bgm. I absolutely loved each and every OST. I think they chose the perfect melody for every scene. It made me feel somehow cozy.

I know a lot of people said there was no character development or that the pace was too slow but the drama itself is short so just because the last 4 episodes were not as exciting doesn't make the drama bad. And again, Na-bi is a very normal average girl who is torned and confused and might need more time to make a decision but that doesn't make her dumb. I am actually happy she decided to give Jae-eon another chance because life can be like that sometimes. It illustrates the idea of living life without overthinking it.

Overall, I think it's a really beautiful drama but I also understand why some might find it difficult to watch without skipping through it. I would say, just give it a chance! It might surprise you~

Read More

Great graphics, great act, but unsatisfying end

We can see tremendous amount of money spent all over this drama. The visual effects and costumes were fabulous.

I was highly anticipated this drama because Luo Yunxi, Bai Lu, and the teaser looked promising. Sadly, i was a bit disappointed.

Both lead had great acting skill & top notch chemistry that we expected in a twisted couple.
I think of all the supporting roles, I would say Ye Bingchang delivered the best play.

Now, the bad part:
1. Story plot were "untidy".
I had to watched almost 4-5 episodes just for story gave explanation about things, which some of it could be done in a short time of one episode. So, the writing were ineffective.

2. To much complicated love story.
Yet the side love stories were not interesting enough to be watched. Waste of time.

3. Problems keep on coming.
Yet, the story was ended abruptly & unsatisfying. The final episode showed the lead had a daughter from her husband but that was that. How could a love story that ran through thousand of years ended so lightly that it felt abandoned by the writer?
It felt like this drama wanted to show that the good people do not deserve happiness in their lifetime. Seemed like the producer wanted to play God by making everyone miserable at first then in the end no one would get a really sweet & happy life.

I have a suggestion for producer like this: if you want to play God, don't make drama!
People already knew what real life is, so next time you really want to make a drama, give the suffering people a lot of happy moments too! That what drama is for, to entertain people hearts, not make them desperate!

4. The motion songs were not catchy enough by nowadays drama OST standard.
Sounds like song from old classic drama remade to modern song.
I thought Zhang Bichen & Liu Yuning were guaranteed for great motion songs, turned out it were not.

Read More

ITS A MUST WATCH!

This was my first mini series and I am quite impressed how it’s straight to the point and it’s not boring at all! This series was very enjoyable to watch with plenty of great laughs and most importantly I love the chemistry between the ML & FL. I love how they were not afraid to show affection - they know what they want and got it. The ML was definitely a strong ML he made me fall in love with him with his cute little gap between his teeth. The FL is just absolutely gorgeous! I kinda wish there would be a couple more episodes with them getting married it would’ve topped it all off for me.

Read More

Masterpiece cast in silky noir.

The ultra-violence of the revenge trilogy feels distant when the Korean visionary Park Chan Wook serves delicious romance of the absolute highest class.

The irresistible scent of classic noir hangs like a dense fog over Park Chan Wook's latest opus. Decision to Leave (2022) undeniably has films like Double Indemnity (1944) and Vertigo (1958) to thank, but at the same time, Park Chan Wook is refreshingly unique in his filmmaking and voice as usual. It is not long before what is initially very "Hitchcockian" and familiar is taken in completely unexpected directions.

The story begins in an accident investigation led by the chronically melancholic police officer Jang Hae Joon (Park Hae Il). A middle-aged climber appears to have fallen from the mountain he was climbing and died instantly when he hit the ground. Most of Hae Joon's colleagues shrug their shoulders and want to shrug it off as quickly as possible, while he himself begins to turn the magnifying glass on the deceased's mysterious widow, Chinese Song Seo Rae (Tang Wei). Her cold nonchalance about what happened and her murky background means that Hae Joon is no longer so sure that her fate was an accident. The instant chemistry that develops between the two further complicates the case.

So far it feels like movies I've seen before but every minute of playtime me further away from them. What could steer towards a conventional investigative thriller instead becomes something far more dreamy and sublime. What generally results in something cold and hard instead turns into something warm and silky. With each passing scene, it becomes increasingly clear that the murder mystery and its "whodunit" question is completely subordinate to the central relationship and that it is a love story unfolding on the big screen, albeit a strange one. The corpses that keep turning up are just icing on a cake of passion and longing. Park Chan Wook's transformation into bloody romantic (something already noticed in 2016's The Handmaiden) is total, and I love it.

Given that's the direction Park Chan Wook chooses, it's Tang Wei and Park Hae Il that everything hinges on, because if you don't buy their almost Phantom Thread twisted romance, everything else falls like a house of cards. Fortunately, there are sparks about them from the first frame they share and it is with ease that one capitulates to their restrained "courtship" of each other. Hae Il's portrayal of someone stuck on autopilot in career and marriage only to gently thaw back to life is utterly devastating, and Tang Wei's multi-layered, vulnerable and utterly unique femme fatale interpretation will carry with me for a long time.

As always with Park Chan Wook's filmmaking, he maximizes the visual potential of every frame. Here he is more playful than in his previous works and allows everything from smartphones to GPSs to merge with the visual language and the result feels as hypermodern as it does classic. Aesthetically, he continues on the trail he opened with 2018's The Little Drummer Girl, allowing both set design and costuming to rise far beyond realism. There are strong reds, strong blues and strong greens, almost to the point that Pedro Almodóvar feels like a possible source of inspiration. Few filmmakers can pull off a visual feast of this breathtaking caliber.

When the incredible finale (incidentally the obvious peak of a film that conquers the epithet masterpiece in every scene) is over and the credits roll, I can't help but think of Michael Gambon's narration in the Coen brothers' Hail, Caesar! (2016) and how he describes a film- "A potion of balm for the ache of a toiling mankind". That's exactly what Decision to Leave is, a soft and healing balm for the heart, brain and soul.

Read More

Beautiful vegetarian propaganda.

A grand fantasy adventure that is fantastically entertaining and beautiful. Okja is a charming, funny and thought-provoking family film which, however, is not directly suitable for the youngest, but will amuse many others.

The fact that the Netflix-produced film Okja competed in Cannes raised a few eyebrows among the traditionalists. However, you have to think outside the box when you turn 70, and that's what the festival did in 2017.

The South Korean Bong Joon Ho, the man behind films like The Host and Snowpiercer, has written and directed this cute and visually spectacular fairy tale, with very dark tones between the lines.
The film is not easy to categorize as within its framework there is about as much comedy and farce as deep-seated drama and action. It is precisely this that gives the film extra points for innovative thinking, but at the same time risks making it somewhat difficult to grasp for parts of the audience, and above all it becomes difficult to say who its intended target group actually is.

The film is a kind of platonic love story between a girl and her pet.
Okja is one of all genetically engineered superpigs larger than a hippopotamus and has grown up with Mija, a little girl who lives up in the Korean mountains with her grandfather. Mija and Okja are best friends and really stick together through thick and thin. One day, however, everything changes when the Mirando Corporation, which once created Okja to become cheap food for the people, comes to bring her "home". But Mija is not one to give up on her friend so easily and encouraged by an animal rights group, she travels to the other side of the globe to save her life partner.

Essentially, then, the film is about unlikely but oh-so-strong friendship and takes place with the corrupt and sleazy (on more than one level) meat industry as a background. At the same time, the film conveys important messages about how the resources on earth should be distributed and urges us consumers to think. This is unusual in a film for younger people but all the more important for us all to take part.

A pale and easygoing Tilda Swinton plays the cool and calculating Lucy Mirando who is the CEO of the heartless company intent on mass producing cheap meat. And of course she is perfect in the role. Her colleague, the eccentric zoologist Dr. Johnny Wilcox is played by an energetic Jake Gyllenhaal who is quite funny, although perhaps not as convincing. Admittedly, it's a lot of fun to see him doing slapstick and rampaging around like I've never seen him do before, but it's grossly overplayed and not always justified. To some extent, it is certainly forgivable to stretch the expressions, as both his and Tilda Swinton's characters are caricatures, although it feels like Jake Gyllenhaal is sometimes almost having a little too much fun himself, at the expense of a lot of credibility.
Other roles include the always-watchable Paul Dano, Steven Yeun and Lily Collins. Young talent Ahn Seo-Hyun plays Mija and succeeds in an unexpectedly convincing way in creating a relationship with a giant animal that is mostly computer-animated.

Okja is a different and very nice film that absolutely deserves its audience. It's a bit uneven between turns and I sometimes feel that the humor should have been turned up a bit, only to suddenly feel that it could have been toned down. This ambivalence is a little disruptive to the overall experience and I would have liked Bong Joon Ho to decide to take it either way.

In the end, despite some flaws, this is a very lovely and heartwarming film that I undoubtedly enjoy very much.

Read More

Best BL ever!

I Feel You Linger in the Air is the best bl I've ever watched. Everything from the plot to acting to music is A++. The lanthom ost always makes me cry and the jomkwan ost is so sweet.
I think this show has the best acting I've seen in a BL. I knew Nonkul was good actor already but was skeptical about Bright. Now Bright Rapheephong has become one of my all time favs. His microexpressions are so good and so believable as a 20 year old boy living in the 1920s.
I feel like this show would get more popular if it aired at a different time. Most people were too invested in only friends and dangerous romance airing around the same time. Could also be because of Youku being the streaming platform. For interfans (other than the US) the series is available for free on youtube - Uncut and TV version. Please go make this series more popular so that we can get a season 2 TT

Read More

Police & Corruption

I am getting to be more and more severe when rating dramas I watch because I keep seeing same plots repeatedly, over and over again.

This one is just the same: a lone cynical policeman waiting for his retirement fights against corrupted organisation that employs him. This is the skeleton of the plot and then they added some substance on it: the cop is been blackmailed by the murderer who eventually turns out to be a Friend.

Even though I'd seen this plot so many times and even though I am so fed up with eternal corrupted and rotten policemen, politicians and chaebols, I keep watching because when they do it well, it is extraordinary.

The acting was top notch, the plot was seamless and tight, no loose ends, the atmosphere was dark and ominous. We do not know anything about any of the characters with the exception of two main ones. The rest are there, just like shadows used to populate the main pair's background. And their relationship goes on a rollercoaster ride in these 8 episodes! That is actually the most interesting part of the drama: the older policeman recognizes himself in the younger one.

The drama ended on a cliffhanger since there is a second part: which means a 16 ep drama had been split into two parts. What are those americans doing to k dramas?

Read More

Best Time-Travel show????

This may be the best time travel series to exist, everything is AMAZING.

Cast? AMAZING
Music? AMAZING
Plot? AMAZING

This whole show was a rollercoaster of emotions and I enjoyed every bit. The show really brought up the issues of the past and it really showed the love between Yai and Jom. I loved the whole drawing idea and that the last drawing was drawn by Yai and the whole letter he wrote, IT BROKE ME IN THE BEST WAYS POSSIBLE. It’s definitely worth rewatching, the amount of time and effort that went into this show is crazy and it definitely paid off.

The casting is prefect, each actor played their role well while not over doing emotions to the point it’s awkward, the scenes were so beautifully done that it almost felt wrong to watch such an intimate time between the lovers and that moment should only be for them and no one else. The NC scenes were amazing as-well and rlly showed their love and emotion especially the one before Jom faded away, the amount of emotion, it was truly amazing.

WHEN I TELL U I CRIEDDDDD omg my heart, to see them get reunited in the future at the same house. “Same place, different times”, every time i think of that saying i think of this show because it portrayed everything so well to the way women were treated and how Queer people was treated as well. I really hope for a second season to explain the very ending of ep 12 where he goes back into time again and meets the “ancient” Yai.

The plot was confusing at first for me but everything was explained later on, I believe that the reason that box with the ring wasn’t there when they dug under the tree was because it hadn’t been planted yet because Jom hadn’t gone back in time for the second time for the box to be there. Kinda like how he had the dreams of Yai before he went back in time and acc met him, now he’s having dreams of ancient Yai before he acc meets him.

buttttt I don’t know, it rlly makes you think which i love but poor Jom needs a break 😭 all this heartbreak and time traveling. I would rlly like a second season but with Yai and Jom’s relationship in 2023 and how they grow together, if not, a special episode so we can see how they are doing after their reunion.

i LOVE LOVE LOVE this show and I hope you guys do as well. ❤️❤️ “You are my missing puzzle piece, my love” (I want love like that) 😭😭

Read More

Though the world may crumble the bond of family will never........or will it?

Family: The Unbreakable Bond was a series I happened to stumble across and boy am I glad I chose to watch it. The story like the title suggests challenges the bond of family when the dangerous world of government agents and rouge assassins come face to face with the daily life of a family. Kwon Do Hoon the father of Minseo and the husband of Yura has to balance his responsibilities as a father and husband while keeping his identity as a government Agent a secret from his family. While following a case his investigation leads to a significant discovery that he could have never predicted. As a result, his two lives collided with one another and began to place pressure on the safety of his family. What will happen next only time will tell.

This series has a perfect balance of thriller and comedy that enables the tension built up from the plot to be released each time a comedy relief is applied. Though this style may not be for everyone I thoroughly enjoyed each comedic scene as it displayed different sides to each character making them more likable/relatable. The OST though a short list was placed into each scene perfectly so as to not seem overused and repeated, this enabled certain scenes to have a greater impact than others allowing them to be more memorable. The actions/Fighting scenes in the series were amazing and it is here where I can understand why many may have wanted the series to lean heavily towards Thriller rather than evenly balancing it with comedy. However, each fighting scene left no room for disappointment as each character displayed amazing fighting skills. I praise the acting skills of each cast member as they portrayed their characters well which made each scene enjoyable to watch. Overall this series was such a joy to watch and I can already tell will probably be a comfort show for me.

Some of you may be curious is it worth the watch?

Simply put 'Don't let your fear of wasting your time on a series you may not enjoy chain you from finding those hidden gems in underrated series' We all have different tastes so how will you know if you like this series unless you take that first 'BITE'

PEACE

Read More