26/01/2024
In brief, it is more or less a story around a POW camp in Korea in 1950 and a black American soldier forming a tap dance team to perform.
Some parts are really cheesy whether trying to pull off humour or not. Also, some of the actors were like B or C grade so something about it was kind of a hit and miss because of these noticeable flaws yet the parts that were solid were really really solid.
The main Korean ML was totally awesome as was the character - M. Jackson. The tap dance team were quite cool too as individuals and as a team.
This could have been absolutely brilliant had the English speaking actors been better excluding the guy that acted as M Jackson, also, if it had been directed and produced a bit differently maybe.
Using David Bowie's Modern Love song for the time period wasn't probably the greatest call, but it was indeed a wonderful tribute to him and did go well with the dance scene for it.
This really could have been an A grade film!
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Do Kyung-soo (D.O.) excels as Ro Ki-soo, a North Korean soldier passionate about tap dancing. Known for his K-pop career, D.O. transitions seamlessly into this dramatic role, demonstrating impressive tap dance skills and emotional depth. Jared Grimes, a seasoned Broadway dancer, brings expertise and authenticity to his role as Jackson, the dance instructor, and his chemistry with D.O. enriches the film.
Park Hye-su portrays Yang Pan-rae with grace and strength, mastering tap dance and adding sincerity to her character. Oh Jung-se and Kim Min-ho also deliver heartfelt performances, balancing humor and poignancy, and contributing to the ensemble's dynamic.
The cast's commitment to learning tap dance showcases their hard work and dedication, making "Swing Kids" a captivating and authentic film.
while i was watching ,i felt connected to the characters and could feel the hardwork in their acting .it had my heart racing,my eyes to bawl tears out and to laugh like i never did.definitely reccomended..<33
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This review may contain spoilers
F**k ideology
It is said that no happiness thrives during war times. You either kill or get killed, it’s all about survival no matter who you are against to. And yet, movies and pieces of media like this teach us that modern times are worry free and meaningless in the face of true mid-war misery. Even so, we would like to imagine they still had at least one drop of happiness during these times, be it fictional of not.This movie not only portrays the fight for life that is war, but also sensitive topics that still apply to this day: ideology, power abuse by high ranked people, race discrimination, poverty instigated by war, domination and territory take over. All people are more or less equal and entitled for survival during war, even so, the best to deceive and take advantage is the one to win. Fool or be fooled kind of situation. Amidst all of this, five random people form a group to… dance? Who would have thought tap dance would be so entertaining to watch? I had a good feeling about this movie once I saw the poster and read the synopsis. I do not know much about tap dance or 50s American dance and culture, but I know for a fact that a bunch of bullied and discriminated people portrayed what freedom through dance means so damn well.
“A group made up of a Chinese prisoner who would’ve been a brilliant choreographer if it wasn’t for war, a bright confident strong-willed young woman who was forced to provide for her family after losing both her parents, a civilian who became a prisoner only because he was wrongfully accused of being the commies; a Communist dance who could’ve stood on the stage of the Carnegie Hall if it wasn’t for the political ideology and… a humble black man who has found his only friends in life in this four individuals. Ladies and gentlemen… we are… the SWING KIDS!”
And so they danced, they danced like they were free birds on their way to Broadway and the great great country of possibilities and freedom, America. Dance and music, these two fine arts have existed since the time of Gods and before that, but they are still the most expressive and fascinating universal language that breaks any kind of prejudice, barrier or fucking ideology and as far as it gets until the world will collapse on itself and there will be no music, no dancing and no laughter.
During the entire movie we see here and there tactical and war focused strategy and terminology, but the ending, I believe it’s a realistic one. No war causalities or compensation can cover the tragedy that happened during every kind of war, yet still, humanity will find another reason to dance and sing as if nothing happened.
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Newsies meets Life is Beautiful
Swing Kids is the best movie I've seen in years. EVERYONE should watch it. It was truly multicultural and showed how we are all human, no matter where we were born. The acting was superb and I felt all the emotions; it made me both laugh and cry. If I was some kind of film professor this would be in the rotation for required viewing.That's all I wanted to say, but it keeps telling me I need 500 characters to submit my review. I didn't sign up to write an essay haha. Just watch it!! Oh and the music was excellent, great jams from different genres and time periods, but they're all bangers.
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Stellar!
Honestly I heard about this movie from different variety shows so I decided to watch it...I was NOT disappointed!First of all, the cinematography was pretty cool...I loved the camera angle choices that were made in some shots, and the close ups weren't overly done.
Now the acting in this movie solidified D.O. as one of the best idols-turned-actors out there. I got to see a range of emotions in his scenes, particularly in the tragedy that happened in the end. It was so beautiful to watch!
The other casts involved also did very well in the movie but I think they were slightly overshadowed by D.O.
I will say though that it seemed like a lot was going on with the plot of the movie...I think it would have been a lot more brilliant the the synopsis was a lot more cohesive.
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intense ethnic barriers & commonalities is not for the faint hearted
D.O. is incredible & the whole movies is Brilliantly done; great dancing, well acted, But no happy ending. The fault is not in the movie, but in that it was not a movie for me. I am the wrong audience for this very serious story . The trauma that the characters faced will haunt me & perhaps it is meant to be that way, but I am unable to be pragmatic about such things. I would have passed on this important but searing raw portrayal of ethnic barriers & commonalities. I can only imagine how meaningful this is to Koreans, for whom this is recent past for . While I loved the dancing & grew fond of the characters, the intensity of the drama was too much for me....if I had known I would not have watched it because once seen, such things can not be forgotten.(will give me nightmares)Was this review helpful to you?
I started this movie without knowing much about it, i only knew it was about tap dancing and park hye soo was acting in it and that was enough for me. The first hour or so made me feel like i was flying on top of the clouds. The movie has a was of making you feel so good, it sets the atmosphere so beautifully that you forget the surroundings the movie is set in and everything that could go wrong, you only focus on dancing and these people who do it freakishly well.
Then came the second half of the movie, the part you should have known was coming but you still get caught off guard because the mood so far has been always so happy. The second part is painfull to watch, you find yourself straining yourself and squeezing you fists tighter and tighter. But through all that the movie still gives you a glimpse of hope, hope that even in the midst of chaos there is still something that they can hold onto, dancing. But of course nothing is ever that easy and the movie reminds that to you like a heavy stone has been put on your heart.
The dancing sequenceses in this movie were beyond amazing both in the dance itself and the scene and it's meaining. The acting and the soundtrack were amazing. The relationship formed by these five entirely different indivicuals is so heartwarming but also heart-wrecnhing. There are still so much to talk about the topics the movie nails touching upon such as racism, idoelogy and much more but i think those are subjects people should experience watching this movie. In conclusion i definitly recommend this movie with all my heart and i think it is a movie that everyone should watch.
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Laugh and cry with the swing kids
If you like comedies and tragedies, you will definitely love this movie. It has the best of both worlds. They manage to make you chuckle at unexpected times and make you forget how tragic the setting is.The cast is heavenly and the acting is top notch. None of the actors will let you down. I got attached to the Swing Kids more than i expected : they bonded in the most wonderful way, communicating through dancing, forgetting everything else.
Per usual, Do Kyung Soo and Oh Jung Se formed perfectly. I was veryyyy surprised by Park Hye Soo, i didn't see much of her works but i have to say that her acting as well as her dancing were just beautifully executed.
Those actors showed us unity in a way that made you wish for them to be happy and free like this forever. Them dancing so happily was contagious and warmed my tiny heart.
The movie director also played with lightings which i liked. The bright scenes were full of hope when the dark scenes showed how bittersweet and temporary all of those were.
Only down side for me was the brother... I won't say more, if you've seen the movie, you'd know !
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Overall, I really think it's a great movie, the writers thought it well, the actors were beyond a doubt able to portray their characters, and it changes from the romcoms I always watch. Thus, I highly recommend this movie to pretty much everyone with 2h30 hours to spare.
To end this review, I must write that despite how nice I now think tap dance can be, I still think they look really dumb without the special shoes on.
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