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Despite its undeniable qualities, story did not grab me mainly because of pacing and editing issues
This movie is about the encounter of two gays men: Kosuke, a fashion editor quite well-off and Ryuta, a younger guy that tries to make ends meet, doing a lot of side jobs...The movie takes its time exploring their budding relationship in the context of Japanese society where gay marriage is still forbiden and overall gay relationships remains marginalised.The premise of the film is interesting but unfortunately it did not manage to grab my attention as I would have wished to. I felt quite detached during most part of the movie and I blame foremost pacing issues about that. Indeed, the movie felt sluggish to me and I truly think it would have benefited from a sharper editing. Despite I truly found the characters and their dynamics super interesting, I also felt that the romance was a bit lacking. The scenario took its time to catch me and it mainly brought up some reflections and feelings to me in its last third.
The acting was very good, especially from Suzuki Ryohei. He was astounishing in his role: he managed to do a lot with just his eyes, making the emotions so real and raw with what his character was going through...Each one of his micro expression as he was suffering was truly gut wrenching and believable. I also felt under the charm of Miyazawa Hio, who makes his character very appealing as well as Agawa Sawako which was pretty good in her role.
There was an indie feeling to this movie with a lot of what felt as experimentative camera movements and angles, it made some shots very engaging but clearly, I wish the filmmaking would have helped the rythm of the plot. The camera work seemed sometimes to slow down a lot on details and I think it is too the detriment of the pace of the story.
I would recommend this movie to people looking for a realistic life BL. It dives into deep topics (much deeper than what the poster would have left presupposed) and it will for sure not leave the viewer indifferent. Despite its qualities, I cannot omit the fact that the watching experience for me was not the best, as I felt bored at various points and the movie catched my interest concretely almost at the end....Still, I think it is worth to give it a try.
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Dark mature BL with strong psychological elements, wish it was longer to even better explore those
This movie depicts certainly not a standard BL story. It is dark and gritty with some strong psychological elements. After watching it, I discovered that it is an adaptation of a manga of Setona Mizushiro that I loved to read. It does not fully adapt the whole story but it does a great job taking some of the most interesting elements and putting them together to form a cohesive and captivating story. I think the storytelling would have benefited of a bit more time for some of the developments but overall I was quite satisfied by what the movie achieved, especially in terms of character growth.I think the chemistry was pretty good between the two main actors. You can feel the intense obsession of one for the other as well as the indecisiveness of the other regarding his feeling for the former. There are numerous sex scenes which all have a purpose in terms of characterization and development of the relationship. Nothing feels gratuitous but it is instead meaningful in regards to the evolution of the protagonists. The actors really went for it and worked very well together, making those scenes raw and really believable.
The production value was good with a lot of little details in the filmmaking allowing the viewer to understand the evolution and change in the relationship, not only because of the script but also even visually through the sets and accessories and how they evolved within them. There was some moments were I felt the editing a bit abrupt, especially jumping between some scenes toward the end, but nothing too distracting for the understanding of the plot. The soundtrack was fitting the dark theme of the film without really being memorable.
I would recommend this to people looking for a mature BL story. It is a dark story involving a lot of heavy topics, toxic elements and it can be triggering in the way the relationship forms itself. If you enjoyed this movie, I would strongly advise to give a chance to the manga from which this movie is an adaptation.
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BL Movie with an interesting intention but too short to really captivate me
This very short film (only 28 minutes) is mostly a slice-of-life within a Taiwanese family with siblings who reunites for their mother's birthday. The story is centred around one main question: will the gay son comes clean to his mom ? Given the short duration, there is not a lot of content but the film does a good job setting up the stakes for the various characters.In terms of casting, I feel that the actress playing the mother did the best job in interpreting with nuances her role. You feel her stress and care for her family. I was slightly less convinced by the actor playing her son, I felt the chemistry was a bit lacking in his couple. Still, he manages to be very real in displaying the emotions and hesitations of his character.
The film felt very indie: there are clearly on a budget but the decors and filmmaking was totally suitable for a proper storytelling. The ending song was nice but not memorable.
I would recommend this to people looking for a short BL indie movie. The question approached by the story feel very real and the way it is discussed makes sense. I did not find it very captivating as it was too short to feel connected with the characters. It is of course a very personnal opinion as I think it could really touch the heart of some other viewer. As it is very short, give it a shot ! I enjoyed learning about what Komorebi means.
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Worth it for amazing Didi Yuan Zhi and high production value, not for the central romance
The series resolves around the encounter of nobleman Gong Zi Yu and spy Yun Wei Shan who is in an infiltration mission within the very powerful Gong family. The central romance felt very boring to me: the growth of the main male lead was not believable and not paced well enough, the main female lead felt too emotioneless (almost like a blank canvas) for me to want to root for her. Fortunately the stories from several other characters (cunning Shangguan Qian, Dark Gege Gong Shang Jue and feisty Didi Gong Yuan Zhi) kept me interested.The acting was pretty good overall with some really striking performances (namely the ones of Ryan Cheng, Lu Yu Xiao and Tian Jia Rui) compensating for more middle-of-the road / average performances. Zhang Ling He and Yu Shu Xin (aka Esther Yu) pairing did not work at all for me...I did not feel the chemistry between them, their acting felt very blank. They were not helped by the script but still, it was pretty plain and unconvincing. Ryan Cheng and Lu Yu Xiao had amazing chemistry together which made the main romance feal even weaker just by comparison.
Tian Jia Rui, the actor playing Didi Gong Yuan Zhi made the show for me. Each of his scenes was a delight to watch and truly impressive (especially knowing that this is his first acting job in a drama). He is credited as a support role but he had much more screen time than some of the main roles, which was the right directing choice because his performance shines through even in the background. He was from far my favorite part of the series and I will be looking forward his next drama (hopefully casted as main lead).
The filmmaking and production are really awesome. The accessories, the sets and decors, everything looks so pretty and rich...I liked it a lot. It is so so pretty, I took so many screenshots while watching the series to immortalize some of the scenes. The OST was nice as well, not too overly present but delicate and melodic.
I would recommend this to people looking for a martial arts historical drama with some fantasy elements, high production value and featuring an interesting family conflict mixed with internal politics. The central romance is not the best aspect of the show but there are some storylines around more "secondary" relationships that are really well done and keep the viewer invested. This series allowed me to discover newcomer Tian Jia Rui who amazed me with his strong screen presence in the role of Didi Gong Yuan Zhi. Just for him, I think it is a really worthwhile watch despite some flaws in the pacing and in the writing, as well as an ending that felt too rushed.
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BL addressing captivingly a difficult topic, very memorable moments but wish for different ending
This drama revolves around the relationship of Day who faces partial blindness and Mhok who is hired as his caregiver. This BL has a very interesting plotline which addresses in a gripping way the topic of disabilities. The subject is discussed in the series through several angles: the perspective of the person having the disability, the perspective of his entourage, the way the world see him and how he perceives the world...I liked a lot some of the parallelisms done in the story, in particular thanks to a very special book featured in the drama.The story is not without flaws but those are minors comparing to the overall quality and excitment the show provides. The pacing could have been a bit better as well as the treatment of some of the secondary characters. There was also a certain predictability to the overall scenario. I was expecting some scenes, it lacked a bit of surprises but was still very well done. I regret a bit a specific scenaristic choice made for the ending. I was expecting the series to take that road but still hoped the series would have gone into another direction as I think it could have been even more meaningful in that way.
The casting was generally good. Mark Pakin has a support role and is excellent (as usual) in it. I personally think that the overall series would have been less good without him to carry a storyline that could have felt flat and one note with a less talented actor. It is my first time watching the Jimmy X Sea pairing and they were very good together...Their chemistry was very convincing, it is not about lust but rather about love and care in each other...It was truly pure and enjoyable.
The OST was quite standard with one nice romantic song but I was bothered by some of the background music, the melodramatic music was sometimes overused and overwhelming..It was supposed to amps up the drama but it lacked subtlety and was a bit too much for my taste. In terms of production, there are some really memorable scenes with some good filmmaking and directing choice. The production value is quite in line with most of similar production but it is the way some scenes were filmed and some of the direction choices regarding for example the disability of the main character that are making the difference and elavating the series.
I would recommend this to people looking for a BL story quite deep and which is very healing while approaching a difficult topic. Its treatment of disability feels relatable and real. The acting was solid and despite some minor flaws in the writing and questionable scenaristic choice in the ending, it is very worth the time as it will leave on the viewer a lasting and resounding impression.
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BL Drama no Shuen ni Narimashita: Crank Up Hen
1 people found this review helpful
Meta and cute, wish they would have developped more the side story which really intrigued me
This special drama is made of three episodes of 45 minutes (which is quite a sizable duration for a Japanese BL). It is about the encounter of a very trendy actor at the peak of his hype and a former child actor not really known as much to the public. They are both hired to play a couple in the live-action adaptation of a popular BL manga.I love the premise of this story: it is super meta to have BL actors playing BL actors hired to play in a BL series. I really enjoyed the series but I wish they would have taken the concept even further. It stays very light and fluffy with a lot of comedy. Doing so, it feel a bit limitative in the emotions the main actors are portraying. They are doing a suitable job with the fun and goofy parts, as well as when they are playing characters but I wish I would have felt a bit more the attraction between them in their "real life" arc.
The secondary roles were very nice. There are no crazy woman part used to antagonize the main characters, which is always a good news. I found the two secondary female roles pretty good and wish I would have seen more of them. My biggest regret is coming from the fact that the most interesting relationship in the drama (the one between the two managers of the actors) was not developped enough. The scenario hinted a complicated romance with those two characters and I really would have loved if the show had elaborated much more on that.
The production value was standard for the genre and the songs were not memorable but suitable to the pop and manga atmosphere of the show.
I would recommend this to people looking for a fluffy, cute and fun BL with some interesting meta references and a cohabitation trope. I wish it would have been more angsty and complex but it was clearly not the objective of the story. I would have really loved for the series to develop much more some of the sides characters (especially the secondary romance) but it was still a very easy and pleasant watch pretty entertaining.
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Very good idea but unfortunately too short to fully capitalize on its potential
This very short BL movie (about 30 minutes) has a really interesting concept that would have benefited to be more developed (either as a full length movie, either even as a drama).It leans towards the horror genre but again, it could have been better if the production would have really been amplifying the horrific setting. Here, it is not really frightening despite the truly interesting fantastical elements. The idea of the curse and all its components linked is a very good one.
The relationships between the characters (the main ones but their friends as well) were full of clues about things being much more complicated than at first face value...With more time to fully fleshed all of those, it could have become a really great story. The cast did a suitable job and were pretty convincing in conveying the emotions (even the ambiguity) of some of the characters.
I would recommend this to people that are looking for a different kind of BL story. It is super short so you might feel that the story is not reaching its full potential but I still think that it is worth giving it a try given the originality of the concept.
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Despite flaws in writing / characterization, entertaining action movie with beautiful filmmaking
This action movie has a pretty simple and straightforward premise carried by some beautiful filmmaking and solid acting. It is pretty short but delivers efficiently and brutaly on the action side.The story is very predictable (even the endingwas super obvious while satisfying) but it is enteraining and well-paced. I wish the characters would have been more developped as well as their respective background but the writing did not really focus on building them. That's why the protagonists and antagonists seems pretty caricatural.
Fortunately, the acting convinced me much more than the writing of the characters. Jeon Jong Seo is quite good in the action sequences and Kim Ji Hoon is adequately playing this repugnant villain.
The biggest asset of the movie resides in its filmmaking, there are really a lot of beautifully filmed scenes and the saturated colors of the decors are working superbly bringing the story together. It gives an indie feel but with big budget at the same time, with some strong artistic choices. The music did not leave a strong impression on me but was okay overall.
I would recommend this movie to people looking for an action movie and who enjoy revenge trope. It could have been much better in terms of scenario and characterization but it has a nice pace and with very pleasant for the eyes filmmaking. Be mindful of the triggers as it is very violent and includes a lot of problematic and traumatic elements.
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Very short entertaining princess-guard romance with some flaws in the production and acting
This is my first time watching a short length series with episodes of 2 minutes and I quite enjoyed it despite the flaws that may be inherent to that kind of format.Obviously due to the short duration of the series, the story is not very deep but I still find it very entertaining. It is about the love story between a Princess and her guard which is clearly a trope that I appreciate. I found the fact that the heroine is the one in charge and more domineering in the relationship really endearing.
Acting-wise, it was more of a mixed bag. Chemistry between the male and the female leads was very present with some well done romantic moments. They did their best despite the scenario being rather minimal and formulaic. The remaining secondary casting was much less convincing with a lot of bad acting.
Production-wise, there was some real defaults with the connectivity between the episodes and scenes felt very choppy. It totally felt like a bunch of scenes put together without caring about the overall picture. This feeling of watching a collection of segments of story rather than a complete series did not bother me too much because it seems to be very much the point of that type of series. If the objective was to efficiently convey the scenario in the most cost efficient way and in very short sections, it was reached.
I would recommend this to people that are looking for a very short bodyguard romance with a vague historical vibe. If you want to see a series where the power lies more into the hand of the woman in the relationship than in the man's, and if you do not mind choppy editing, this drama will suit you.
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Thrilling dark BL with master - servant relationship: captivating, wish it was longer!
This BL movie is centered around the master-servant relationship of two guys, as they are intertwingled with each other while facing a dire criminal situation. I really enjoyed the story and I honestly wish the film would have been longer, especially to have more time in the last act of the script and with the conclusion.The chemistry between the two main leads was very strong and captivating. One of the character has a clear chokehold on the other one, the introduction and the set up allows the viewer to immediately grasp the toxicity of the link between the protagonists. I truly enjoyed the performance of the two main actors but I found the antagonists a bit too caricatural. I think the scenario is really carrying the performances of the cast, it really provided great acting opportunities for the two main males leads but was maybe not developed enough regarding the antagonists and the crime aspect of the film.
The filmmaking was good with an indie feel that I appreciated. I loved the reference to Plato’s "Other Half" speech, it was so adequate with the feelings of the main characters and truly added an additional layer of deepness to their relationship. The soundtrack was pretty gloomy and angsty, very fitting with the dark atmosphere of the movie.
I would recommend this to people looking for a captivating BL relationship with subservient/dominant tones. Given the context in which the characters are evolving, be aware that it is a pretty toxic, violent and triggering story. It is very thrilling and chocking at the same time, I wish it would have been more developed on some aspects (especially regarding the past of the two main characters) but it might be me being greedy.
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Entertained at first but in overall disappointed by the scenario and pace of the story
This series is a sequel to Cutie Pie, focusing on the couple Yi x Khondiao, several years after the end of Cutie Pie 2. I enjoyed the first half of the drama: it had an outlandish and very soap premise as well as a lot of funny forced cohabitation scenes...Unfortunately, my interest strongly decreased in the second half as the pace of the story was getting worse and the plot become more and more ridiculous. I think it would have been better if the story had been told in a much more concise way and with less episodes.The acting skills were kind of a mixed bag... I was happy to find back some of the actors and characters from the old series (mainly Nunew playing Kuea and Zee as Lian) and I really enjoyed the actor playing Yi's father, who was for me the MVP of the show. I also found the chemistry between the main leads Max and Nat very good and their hot scenes quite believable. Unfortunately they were less convincing to me in the more dramatic moments. I also found the main "villains" of the drama too caricatural and mediocre.
The production value was quite good with some questionable and over-the-top filmmaking choices. Some scenes are clearly filmed and edited to increase the dramatic / soap effect which make it quite entertaining and even goofy (which might not be the exact intended purpose). The moments with the dog were pretty cute and fun, while the CGI tiger made me cringe. The soundtrack did not leave a memorable impression on me and pale in comparison to Cutie Pie/Cutie Pie 2 ones.
I would not recommend this to people. It is a very over-the-top BL story with a cute dog, a questionable CGI tiger and wonky scenario: it is entertaining at times and quite ridiculous at some other times. If you are a fan of Cutie Pie / Cutie Pie 2 and/or of Domundi actors, you might still want to give it a shot for some of the couple pairings.
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Interesting for the various directing approaches but not riveting
This anthology series is made of 4 episodes of 20 minutes, each one can be seen as a short movie featuring IU as the main star. Despite it being very different from what I'm used to watch in terms of dramas as well as feeling a bit too short in the episodes' length to be really comparable to a movie, I found the concept quite interesting in itself.I was not as enticed by all the stories. My favourites are the 1st and the 2nd stories. Even for the stories that I enjoyed less, I still found the directing pretty great and eye-catching. It felt like an experimental project allowing the viewer to get into short snippets of the life of the characters with each time some very high quality production. Like the filmmaking which gave very different colours to each of the episode, I found the soundtrack for each of the story versatile and fitting well with each thematic.
I enjoyed the performance of IU in each of the episode, she plays very different characters and manages to convey a lot of emotions in a very short amount of time and has good chemistry with all the other actors and actresses.
I would recommend this to people looking for a different kind of storytelling, an hybrid piece between series and movies. It is a bit of an OVNI and difficult to really say at the end if I enjoyed it or not, but it is worth giving it a shot (especially if you like IU and given its shortness).
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Mostly dumb but overall entertaining slapstick police comedy
This movie has been a huge hit for the South Korean box office and is starring very well-known veterans actors. It is a police comedy with a lot of slapstick humour which works overall well but lack emotions.I was a bit disappointed by the story because the team of cops we follow are overly dumb and bad at their job. I know that it is the point of the film to have seemingly "good-for-nothing" police officers trying their best during their investigation and raising to the occasion, but it felt really too much here and I found myself not really invested in their successes.
Overall, characterization was lacking in the scenario. The protagonists are not that endearing to the viewer and seem written quite superficially in a caricatural way. There are very few female characters but I was happy to see that the couple of them more central to the plot were represented as bad-ass and strong women.
The cast did a good job however I think the script was a bit limiting for them, preventing them to express their full potential. It is especially the case for Ryu Seung Ryong and Shin Ha Kyun which are both delivering solid performances (but nothing compared to the outstanding roles they hold in others series I recently discovered them in).
Despite those defaults, I still had a good time watching the movie. I found the production value pretty high and I enjoyed the invigorating soundtrack as well. Overall, it is entertaining and well made.
I would recommend this to people looking for a blockbuster police comedy with a good ensemble cast. It is a fun ride which lack substance and characterization but does the job in term of entertaining value. And sometimes, that is enough for sure.
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Entertaining survival drama with a good cast but some defaults in the writing and production
I quite enjoyed this drama but was a bit disappointed by its ending and some storytelling elements. It makes sense that the show has an open ending given the fact that it is planned as a first season with a second season coming up end 2023 (as well as apparently already a third season scheduled for 2024). Nevertheless, I was a bit frustrated by the fact that overall this first season is only a big introduction which does not provide any answer to anything really.Given the low number of episodes and the numerous protagonists, I appreciated their characterization but I would have loved to see more development for most of them. Story-wise, I also found some of the choices made by a few of the characters lacking of logic and seemingly were there more for theatrical effect and impact rather than making sense from a survival point of view.
The casting and acting is the strongest point of the series in my opinion. It was my first time seeing Song Kang and I found him great and touching in his role. He had really a strong charisma who was necessary to carry a part that could otherwise been seen as quite bleak and not as interesting. Similarly Go Min Si is a great discovery for me: she made an impactful performance, making a character that could have been detestable, a relatable and endearing one. It was also a real pleasure to see Lee Do Hyun as well as Go Youn Jung among the cast members even though they were a bit overshadowed by other actors/actresses with more flamboyant roles.
Production-wise, the series is a mixed bag. Sometimes the horror is good with some effective jump scares but a lot of time as well it is kind of a miss. I enjoy the almost circus / freak elements of some of the monsters (it felt a bit like Beetlejuice / Tim Burton style in a way) but some of the monster design choices are so over-the-top with questionable CGI that it become therefore much less frightening and more comical than anything. The soundtrack was good with some deep beat that really brought a lot of atmosphere to the drama.
I would recommend this to people looking for an action survival series with some horrific elements. Despite the flaws in the writing as well as some misses in the making, it is an entertaining show, very binge worthy and carried by a good cast. If you enjoyed the manga Attack on Titan, the Kdrama Happiness or some of the seasons of American Horror Story, you will likely appreciate this as well. In terms of gore and horror, they could have gone further but it was still pretty strong, so be mindful if you have any trigger.
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Good thriller in a small town: amazing acting that transcended the material given
Solid thriller with an interesting murder inquiry around a cold case, as well as little town dark vibes. There are some good twists to the story, even though I guessed a lot of them...Some still managed to pick my interest up. The drama might have benefited from a tighter edit, especially in the beginning to make it better-paced but the series gets stronger and more captivating in its second half once the characters are more established. The strength of the story is really the evolution of the protagonists' relationships within the police force as well as with the citizens of the city where the crime took place.Regarding the acting, I expected range and good performances...and I was indeed not disappointed. All the ensemble cast is great (with maybe one or two minor exceptions). I particularly enjoyed the 2 main leads, they were really bouncing back effectively from each other and truly made the show compelling to watch. I remembered Yeo Jin Goo as a child actor who had truly great abilities, and I was really impressed by his evolution in this adult role. I will be looking more into his filmography for sure. Similarly, after watching this, I want to see more of Shin Ha Kyun. I understand his superstar status and I need to see him also in other roles after his robust performance here.
The production value was nice and relatively standard for the genre. There was quite a bit of impactful scenes but it was still 'cop / law" show coded. I wish they took an even darker / more frightening road to make it more oppressing...But it was still suitable for the investigation atmosphere. The OST was good with some BBC's Sherlock Holmes / theatre vibes. It lacked maybe of variety but brought up the feeling each time it was played.
I would recommend this to people looking for a dark police thriller carried by really good actors performances. If you enjoyed series such as Mare Of Easttown or police novels, you will enjoy this.
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