[✔]Movies watched in 2025

2 01
https://kisskh.at/profile/mengosteen/feeds/ozVQAs0

If I had a nickel for every "punk-turned-buddhist monk suffers from an identity crisis" film I've seen, I'd have two nickels. Isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice, eh?

Abraxas is a mix of heavy drama and existential comedy (is that even a genre?), a tale of finding and losing "self". It's also an epitome of a pretentious festival film xD

25 01
https://kisskh.at/profile/mengosteen/feeds/Lrq72u2

I watched it purely because of LIN (who also did 11Left) and at first was disappointed - it looked like yet another "trying to be profound" short film, but somewhere along the 10-minute mark everything changed :o LIN truly knows how to do storytelling.
Not quite as good and aesthetically pleasant as 11Left but decent enough, and it's probably one of the best short films I have seen recently (and I saw a fair share of them)
7.5+/10 and Meng's seal of approval

4 02
https://kisskh.at/profile/mengosteen/feeds/LrR5nU2
Wen Shi Pei, you wild thing, I love you.
Not as good as his debut (Are You Lonesome Tonight?) but thrice as trippy. Didn't know I needed Zhu Yi Long as Bruce Lee until now...

4 02

5 04
https://kisskh.at/profile/mengosteen/feeds/lzPQ1ue
It's certainly unique - even if not exactly good. To be fair I'm pretty sure I didn't understand Jude Chun's message - it's THE activist arthouse. I'm almost certain it mentions being environmentally friendly and not killing the animals a lot - but what else? I bet it actually meant to tell me something.
 It also is shot like a documentary with interviews where people talk about their alienation, feeling of belonging (or lack thereof) and their past/parallel lives. Talk about their dreams, their lives, their beliefs...
This film features a great soundtrack with great dance choreography - it sometimes feels like a musical; or some kind of commercial.
To be fair I'm not sure what to say, it's one of the arthousest films I've ever seen; it's like Koo Kyo Hwan and Hong Han Soo's productions had a baby.

Do I recommend? Yeah, if (AND ONLY IF) you like arthouse and want to see something (literally) out of this world or you like trying new things. Otherwise you'll just end up hating it, it's... an aquired taste.

12 04
https://kisskh.at/profile/mengosteen/feeds/lzZeKHe

Not quite Sonatine, but still very good and 100% Takeshi.
Come on, their little trip to the beach? Takeshi. His loyal sidekick that appears in every movie? Takeshi. That bloody damn ending? Takeshi