Intense Drama
The film was very interesting in that this drama was about forbidden love and the stigma of LGBTQ relationships in Korea. I really enjoyed this drama. The storyline is similar to an anime that I've seen but it's different that there are so much unexpectedness and kind of edge of your seat feeling constantly. The acting was spectacular in that they acted a play within a movie. The main characters acted so well. I really enjoyed the plot and the climax with its twists but there were some plot holes and some things I didn't understand.Was this review helpful to you?
If you search for a romantic 'gay' movie, just don't watch it.
I personally love this, apart from its being 'not so romantic' according to some criticism. The reason is simply that it is not, and the focus of it is on the actor's psychological side while doing the method acting.The story was awesome, it has distinct characteristics, they build it so unclear but direct it to the way that people supposed to understand it. Simply, it would make us wonder what happened. The cast's acting, I don't really have a grudge towards it. As it supposed to be, the music is so helpful to construct the scene, I love it, but some of them weirded me out. it might be that I do not really know about musical drama music.
Am I going to rewatch it? yes, when I forgot about the story. But I think, this kinda movie is supposed to watch just once. After you understand the story, the second experience will never be the same.
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This review may contain spoilers
Well Balanced Love & Life story
As soon as I finished watching this movie, my first thought was it could have been better if they made this into a series. Only flaw I saw here is that it seemed rushed. It’s like “you are enjoying the story and the characters telling their story and then it ended.” …… you wanted more.All artists who worked on this film portrayed their role exceptionally well. The relationships (both male & lead male & his gf/wife) were told in a well balanced manner giving you a sense that this is not a clear BL film. To me it is more of a love & life story. It also gave viewers a suspense ride. I was hook towards the end holding my breath for a moment.
The ending leaves viewers to form their own interpretation as to how it may have gone after the play.
It is highly recommended. This is a great movie. It was done the way the writer wanted to tell the story. We may not agree that it doesn’t pattern after real life in some areas but we can’t fault a movie based on how we see real life. It is a movie done from a story written by the writer. It was well directed!
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This review may contain spoilers
This movie was pretty good although the ending was a little iffy because it was not what I personally wanted, it ended perfectly. The pace is fast and quick and gets right to the relationship immediately. I will say there are a few spicy scenes and it's not mature, but it definitely is more than I have seen in most k-dramas. If you are looking for sweet romance then this is NOT for you. Would definitely rewatch for the actors and their characters together.-- Spoilers Below --
Jae Ha is a seasoned actor who takes his job and craft seriously. He is a method actor and gets deep into his characters and who they are and literally becomes them. He is harsh and cold, openly showing his disdain towards Young Woo in the beginning of the play. Young Woo is a famous idol who is tired from his daily schedule and then adding the play on top of it. He starts out super childish and very obviously does not care about the play nor what any part of it. That all changes when he starts taking a liking to Jae Ha, wanting to be around him and wanting to take in and learn everything he can from him. Jae Ha pushes Young Woo to take the play seriously and while doing so, ends up falling for Young Woo himself.. getting caught into a whirlwind relationship between the two. It's hot and sneaky, and you can see them falling for each other more and more as they go deeper into their characters and play. Jae Ha becomes cold and angry towards his wife who begins to have doubts about Jae Ha and how he is dealing with his character Walter. She sneaks around to try to read his method acting journal, which she finds blank, and even tries to catch some practice scenes to which Jae Ha tells her to just stop. She eventually catches them kissing in the theater and stays quiet about it. After her catching them, she tries to initiate sex with Jae Ha but he refuses and shows no interest. My one downfall with the plot and storyline is, they run away and go on a day adventure out to a beach and Young Woo posts pictures to his Instagram. They find him and Young Woo cuddling together in a van sleeping and accuse him of kidnapping Young Woo. The rumors of the dynamic of their relationship and "supposed" kidnapping gets out to the news outlets and they become slightly distant. How exactly did he kidnap Young Woo if he went voluntarily with him and is an adult? - His wife finds him at the beach too and gets into an altercation with him alluding to that this isn't the first time that Jae Ha has gotten too deep into a role. Things start escalating as their home is broken into and things start getting darker between the 2. Young Woo wants to be in a relationship with Jae Ha and to be out and open with him, to tell the truth to the press and let it be known how they feel, but Jae Ha doesn't want to do that at all. He pushes his feelings for him down, so Young Woo does the same and puts on the "chains" of hiding his sexuality and never getting to be with the person he loves. During the play, Jae Ha shares a passionate kiss that wasn't in the script with Young Woo, and continues on. The play is dark, emotional, and heavy, but has a great reaction. After the play, Young Woo coldly says that he is the best Singer and Jae Ha is just Walter. It ends with him getting into his limo and driving off obviously saddened and still with his feelings for Jae Ha, while Jae Ha's wife shows up to the theater and they leave together hand in hand.
Most of the reviews I read before watching were mostly about how the ending could've been better and I want to agree because the few "love" scenes we did get between Jae Ha and Young Woo were passionate and left you yearning for more, but I can also see the realism in their love story in South Korea. Especially in the year this came out, LGBTQ+ is not totally accepted there and is looked down upon, and I can imagine that is even more-so true for idols and actors. They are left with their feelings that they both obviously fell for each other hard. The play is called unchained, which I feel hits the story in another way meaning their feelings, but in the end they are both still chained due to them.
Would 100% watch again, I loved all the actors and characters and just couldn't get enough of it in the hour that we did have.
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Intentional Nudge in the Right Direction
For all intensive purposes, I was rather impressed with this movie. It had been sitting in my To Watch list for at least 2-3 years. I might have watched the beginning of the movie in the past, but just never committed to finishing it. Finally sat down and watched the whole thing.It took a very poetic approach, which I wasn't expecting. Even though this is about a director that wrote a play about two men that have a romantic relationship with each other, the movie doesn't go in depth about it, but it should of, because the play talks about very important issues, like what its like being in a toxic relationship, and how the dynamic of the two actors shifts drastically because of the nature of the play. Its also about having such a strong hold on someone, like your chained to them, and you can't escape, and that is what made this movie so suspenseful to watch.
Something that also impressed me was how the older ML takes method acting very literally, and how that is reflected off stage. I could almost sense what Jae Ha was feeling in the moments when he was alone and there were no cameras, and in that way, this movie shed a light on societal pressures on how men are expected to behave and conduct themselves. A part of me wanted to believe that he wanted to be the person he was suppressing, but in a unique, unexpected way, he was just always in character.
If anything, I wish it could've been longer, and had more to say. It was a very light watch.
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Story-
The story is excellent. It gets more and more intense and intriguing as time goes by- the second half absorbs you into the story and you just can't stop watching. The things that happen in this movie reach from somewhat cute to almost disturbing. The realms of reality and method acting mix and at times you, as a watcher, and the characters themselves don't even know what is just staying in character and what is not.
Method is also filled with symbolism, it would take hours to unpack everything.
At the beginning i thought it was kind of rushed but i think it further strengthened the conclusion of the movie. And while we're at it- the ending of the movie was perfect, it fit the story to a T and i couldn't have imagined it ending any other way.
Acting/cast-
The characters in Method are all so very well constructed, written and developed, alot of care is put into them. They aren't really good people but their actions are still understandable.
As for the acting- it was amazing. Every actor excelled in their role, simply put.
Music-
It helped set the scene for the events of the story. I loved the score and i got chills sometimes. Method also makes perfect use of silence, sometimes it's just quiet but it fits perfectly into the atmosphere.
Rewatch Value-
Method has alot of rewatch value. As i mentioned earlier, the movie is filled with symbolism and on there are just a few things you miss and/or don't understand on the first watch.
Overall-
Method is a masterpiece, simply put. Everything about this film is excellent, i literally don't have anything negative to say. This movie is rather hard to recommend to everyone though, alot of people will not enjoy it. I would still say that you should watch it, even if you're not really a fan of bl.
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I quite liked the story of a more experienced actor supporting a newbie to the industry and yet the rehearsal is full of passion and love it becomes reality.
Their movie they created was the highlight as real issues came to play but no one realised so was an unique confrontation as the wife stated "you ruined your own life."
What I didn't enjoy was when the wife wad emasculated him all because of his actions that she saw, I felt she could've been more open and have an adult conversation about what they wanted.
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Good movie.
I enjoyed “Method”. It was complex, interesting, and heart-wrenching at times. I would have liked to see more intimacy between Jae Ha and Young Woo. The film seemed to end too quickly. It begs the question of who really was the perfect method actor? Were both their actions really done solely to get into their characters more subversively? Or was that line blurred, into actual feelings? The end didn’t really clear this up, and I suppose it’s up to the viewer to decide who was playing who. I got the impression that at least Young Woo got in a bit over his head, and really did feel something more for Jae Ha. Hee Won expressed that Jae Ha always behaved completely submersed in his characters when he acted, but I think maybe he felt more than he let on, too. It’s a good movie. I would definitely recommend.Was this review helpful to you?
Trippy, fascinating and could I say lazy?
I was hooked from the first moment. The story left enough mystery to keep me going. Unfortunately, this mystery, that drove the intrigue at the beginning, ended up being their cover for the lack of plot.At the beginning you felt everything developing naturally. Only the remnant glances were the clue that something more was happening.
But was it?
This movie was momentarily intense and punchy. You cannot take a breath, so you do not miss something. And then it dissipated. Strong climax was countered with bland descent. In the last quarter of the movie you constantly have a feeling of being rushed and missing important plot as if it happened behind the scenes.
I have questions -- what was the content of the play they were acting? I want to know in more detail because I want to discern what was the acting and what was reality. They purposely took that away, in a most obvious and sloppy manner -- chop the play so you get the viewer thinking. I know the creators were aiming at confusing the viewer, to make them doubt every scene. It did seem as they took a shortcut, and made the doubt obvious. Again, sloppy if you ask me, but perhaps a strategy on their part.
I have a lot of critiques for such high output. Yes, because I feel strongly about performances. Park Sung Woong as Jae Ha was phenomenal. I encountered him before but always as a supporting character, and his performance here as a lead showed that he is a veteran action, how in the play, so in real life. He was convincing in each of the scenes as a professional should be. Even though I assume playing this role and this character in Korean society in 2017 (even now) was a challenging undertaking.
Oh Seung Hoon as Young Woo unfortunately he did not shine brightly until the last quarter of the movie, where he was absolutely, insanely captivating. His character was fascinating in the way he subtly manipulated the couple. Innocent but cunning. I could see other more senior actors killing this role, but then Young Woo was decent and brilliant in some scenes.
An absolute recommend! No critique can make this compulsion of wanting to rewatch stop. I just want to check and check whether I missed something and find the answer to this damn question:
Was it method acting or not?
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This review may contain spoilers
Truly unhinged (in a positive way).
Well, when I first started the movie, I didn't had any kind of expectations, somehow waiting to see the typical Rivals to Lovers trope, or, don't know, a "Forbidden Love" kind of thing. However, the story has the perfect pace; unfolding in such a delicious and intense way that you can't help but watch everything till the end, without wanting to miss a single detail. It leaves you empty, even lost with such an ending, but it's really worth it.Story: The story begins in a slow motion, almost making you feel bored and annoyed for Youngwoo's attitude, but seeing little by little Jaeha's persistence, talking with (and by) his experiences, trying to make Youngwoo a better actor; letting him change the way he delivers his lines and portraits his emotions, it really makes you feel like you are right there, in the same moment and place as them. At some point things starts to get really dark and distorted with the development of their relationship, but it doesn't feel sudden, like, they're Singer and Walter after all, right? But, yeah. It engulfs you, like there is no other thing in this world except of them. It feels natural how everything happens, even the ending, as open as it was.
Acting: The acting of both leads was mesmerizing, but I definitely need to give my hat to Oh Seunghoon for delivering such a breathtaking, almost intoxicating portrayal of Singer, and, of course, Youngwoo himself. His character development is insane, and those last scenes where he actually tried to kill himself (and Jaeha) in front of the crowd... speechless. At the end, both actors knew what they needed to do, and it really shows.
Music: It's there, and you hear it, but doesn't have anything memorable about it, until it does. I think it's beautiful that just a slight change in the music, with the right lightning can immerse you even more. It's great till the end.
Rewatch value: I... would definitely think twice before doing it. It's a real rollercoaster of emotions, so, you need to prepare yourself before going in for a ride. But we as humans tend to like what's risky and exciting, so...
Overall: If you love morally gray movies and you're not picky about open endings (and a couple questions without answer), give this a shot. You're not going to find another like this in awhile.
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This review may contain spoilers
So this movie is out about a year and I watched him couple days ago, my heart really almost exploded and just by the fact that im in love in BL or M/M genre. The movie is good! and I love him. but first, not bad but not good either;
1. the movie was to short for me.
2. their relationship became so intense in a second, so many things were missing, moments, words and understanding between the two.
3. Missing details in script.
4. superficial character, we don’t see what is happening in the character life.
5. attempt to show cheap romance.
6. fast way for award/nominated movie using their gay story.
what i love the must;
1. Korean movie that are making a huge progress in the LGBT world.
2. they show a (REAL) kiss among men and was not ashamed of it.
3. very famous actor take part in this movie (park sung woong).
4. age gap.
5. oh seong hoon acting is everything.
6. movie inside movie type of thing.
7. the play itself, i love it and i would pay to watch it in real life.
8. special connection between the actors.
9. the kiss - i love it, it’s takes so much courage to play as a gay and that kiss was a total devotion, so passionate, i can’t imagine how hard it was for them to kiss like that.
10. a feeling of no judgment in the movie for their gay relationship.
11. and for the last, seunghoon again, he is so sweet and adorable, don’t understand how the hell he is not famous.
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Sad but Real
B (Actor): Young WooT (Actor): Jae Ha
"Method" unfolds the narrative of an actor and an idol engaging in a clandestine affair while collaborating on a play, reflecting a story that resonates with the often intricate reality of such relationships. True to life, the connection dissolves once the curtains fall on the play, mirroring the transient nature of these romances. The film, while okay in its portrayal, adeptly captures the emotional journey of the characters. Though the reasons behind their mutual attraction remain unclear, one certainty emerges—both characters undergo profound transformation. This isn't a tale of happiness but a raw depiction of real-life complexities. The film concludes fittingly, acknowledging the impermanence of such relationships in reality, unless one is prepared to sacrifice everything.
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