PrettyCarEye

Happy Birthday, missus! :)
Hope you had a good one. Reminds me that I have one coming up soon. I keep telling myself getting old is a blessing! :)

Good luck with Sealed with a Kiss. It seems like makjang & melodrama galore! lol I stay away from those. :D

Thanks for the rec of Hidarime Tantei Eye. I had a look and saw that it's school related ...
How much so? And just out of curiosity ... is there any romance? :)

I'll let you know when I give it a watch. Thx for the rec!

Even if you're not big on sports I think you'll like Pride. The sports is not the main focus of the story, the characters are. I thought it was pretty well done. Great characterizations, esp the female lead (though many people were frustrated by her indecisiveness). Where I'm concerned I thought she acted normally given her circumstances. Anyway, watch & see! :)

Ingmar Bergmann is certainly one of this region's masters. Sadly I don't think he has much influence on latter day Scandinavian cinema. Why?

Because Scandinavians lack a certain wealth of human experience that is important for artistic mediums like cinema. In other words they have it too good. Life's too easy for them. They're so privileged that most films these days are banal treatises on the region's nouveau riche. I find their cinema promising, but myopic, without substance and hard to relate to (as someone who does not belong to that demographic).

Denmark is making headway with guys like von Trier and Winding Refn, Sweden too ... to a minor extent, but Norway is struggling. Cinematic quality is top notch, but story wise the films are as flat as ever, most of the times. Keep mind that I don't just see the international releases, but the whole plethora of films released in the region every year given that I work in the industry.

As for von Trier I have a love/hate relationship with the guy. I've enjoyed his filmography - I too am a fan of the Golden Heart trilogy with includes Breaking the Waves, & he's definitely reached a pinnacle in his career with his later works ... but gosh, the man himself. I'm not sure I like him. lol He's just the type of Scandinavian 'oh-I-think-I'm-so-cool' politically (non)savvy wannabe that I can't stand. And I've met him before so this is not just based on some far off bias.

Anyway, I like his films. Sometimes I'm even inspired by them. I'm looking forward to Nymphomaniac! :) Are you?

One day soon I'll start City Hunter.
Since Heirs doesn't seem to be working out I need some other drama to introduce me to Lee Min-ho. Although I still might try and watch Heirs out of loyalty to Kim Eun Sook. Without seeing it for myself I would never be able to believe she'd write such a crappy drama.

Right now I'm trying to pick up where I left off with Taiwanese drama Down with Love. But the vids are so noisy ... both Chinese & English subs plus a whole bunch of other text on the screen. Hella annoying. I'll also probably start that Jdrama we were supposed to watch together at one point. The one with the long ass name ... about the teacher who got involved with his student.

But like you said even with a variety in genre, the stories and characters are always the same.

The problem, as I see it, is the conservative, patriarchal nature of Asian societies. It kinda restricts artistic expression in that you can't explore beyond a certain archetype or scenario. Men are always the main protagonist, youth is treasured above all else so the entire human experience is never portrayed, women are sidelined to stereotypical roles that objectify them or nullify their contribution to society. My impression is that they believe one's life ends after marriage so the only kind of love story you see are the ones about the beginning of a love affair. After marriage the relationships are always contentious, bitter, calculating, wicked ...

So it seems to be a cultural thing. If they try to push the envelope and tell other stories, you run the risk of alienating your audience. The same is true for Hollywood too. Try making a movie with a completely sad ending in Hollywood ... it would never be greenlit because Westerners prefer optimistic endings. And even it was greenlighted, it could & probably will hurt your film's BO performance. I could give other examples, but I think you get my point.

Anyway, all of the above is true for Japan, Taiwan, China as it is for SK. None of them are really better than the other in this regard.

By the way, I did recommend one of the best SK dramas I've seen this year, Golden Empire. Still the same characters & story you've probably seen before, but done sooooooo much better than the majority. Give it a go & see what you think! :)

Sorry for the long posts! One of my many weak points ... difficulty being succinct! :)

South Korea is like the Hollywood of Asia, imo. It has a certain gloss that the other countries lack. In their society money, power and status are definitely far more appreciated than in Japan & Taiwan and this shows in their dramas and pictures. However, they do cater to a broader audience, much more so than the others. Whether you're the silly romantic, the gritty crime watcher, the historical lover, horror fanatic, sports obsessed, teeny bopper, erotica ogler and the list goes on ... you can find what you're looking for in SK. I can't say the same for Japan where more focus is placed on the psychological, the bizarre and sometimes the unfathomable.

Their cinema is dark and pessimistic almost all the time. You will struggle to find the kind of variety that is offered in SK. I think that's why Japan is one of the biggest consumers of SK entertainment, because Japanese cinema and TV are rather monotonous in genre. Having said that, Japan is certainly best (better than SK) at what they do focus on ... maybe because they've had good practice.

When it comes to Taiwan, I haven't watched much of the cinema so can't comment, but their dramas are a bit sub-par. On the other hand I, as someone who likes more realistic & adult portrayals of romance, enjoy their less conservative approach to intimacy.

So that's what I mean when I say every country brings something unique to the table. If you want variety in genre, sub-genres and themes, head to South Korea. If you want darker, more psychological, weird, thought-provoking fare Japan is the place for you & if you want lots of good skinskip check out Taiwan. That's how I see it, at least!

OutSider, I finished Birdcage Inn. Classic Kim Ki-duk. I ended up giving it a 8/10, instead of 7/10 as I expected. I loved the whore/madonna juxtaposition he had throughout the movie, but how in the end he shows us that the girls weren't that much different in their circumstances, dreams & aspirations.

I love your interpretation of Breath. I had feelings along the same line, but just felt like that movie was a bit too fractured in its premise. There was no dramaturgical cohesion. While the movie packs an emotional punch, it felt manipulated somehow because I got the impression Kim had no real grasp on the story. He wanted the audience to feel a certain way so he constructed superficial, unsubstantial situations to elicit said emotions rather than build on a solid premise. Anyway, I still enjoyed it for what it was.

#co-sign ... re Vanness Wu!

Acting is a skill that gets better with practice. Each new role an actor takes on contributes to him getting better & better. But of course there are always exceptions to this rule.

Also life experience adds more substance to how an actor interprets a role. This has never seemed more true than when I started watching Asian cinema full time. I theorize that this is because young Asians appear to grow up a lot less quicker than their Western counterparts. For eg at 20 Miley Cyrus (and how the media portrays her) seems to think she's at the pinnacle of womanhood whilst a 20 yr old in conservative Asia still acts like a 14 yr old high school kid. In dramaland at least. I have no idea if this is also true on the ground. But if it is true then it is no wonder why many younger actors always come across so flaky.

I saw Lee Junki in Virgin Snow recently & I wasn't too sold on his acting (though I thought he was super handsome!). Then I saw him in Time between Dog & Wolf and I noticed subtle changes in his acting. Though he still wasn't very convincing he seemed more comfortable in the skin of his character.

I've only seen Vanness Wu in Autumn's Concerto and if that's his best work, then I might as well drop his other dramas off my list because I wasn't too enamoured by him in AC. Not one bit.

Toru is neurotic & bipolar. A lot of time I wanted to bitch slap him for roughing up Makoto. He grew on me as the series progressed though so keep watching. And be sure to watch the special after the drama. He's the most human there, the crazy bastard.

There isn't a lot of envelope pushing in either of those films. 3 - iron is just an amazingly well written & well-directed drama about 2 lost souls trying to navigate a cruel world, yet it isn't as dark as Kim's other films. It's filled with hope & a subtle, but intense emotional depth that will move your soul. I have a review up if you want to check that out.

SSAW...aS is more of a spiritual journey, both for the protagonist and the audience. The film is rooted in Buddhism and presents a contemplative treatise on the human experience. It's just beautifully rendered all around, like a balm for the soul. Highly, highly recommend.

Earlier works of Kim's are controversial, mainly because his fascination with the darker elements of SK society - prostitution, DV, human trafficking - and the central, but often degrading role of women in his pictures have labeled him a misogynist. Bad Guy & the film I'm watching now, Birdcage Inn, would be examples of these.

Here are some movie recs for you, lil miss. If you decide to try them, let unnie know how you liked them. Enjoy! :)

Baby & I
Virgin Snow
Innocent Steps
Hyunhætan Marriage War (2 ep drama)

Coffee, I'm not sure if you're familiar with the director, but he's one of South Korea's best auteurs. Birdcage Inn is one of his earliest works and features many of the director's signatures. I'm not having a problem with it so far (you can add it), but it's not the best from him that I've seen. That would be 3-Iron and Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter ... and Spring.

I know, right? Can't stand 'em.

I don't know why but this comment of yours is weirdly hilarious in its sarcasm. Had me LMAO! :)

Ah, my mistake. The 4 ep drama is called Temptation of Eve, not Temptation of Wolves. I know of the movie called Temptation of Wolves, I haven't seen it yet. Temptation of Eve is a compilation of erotic suspense TV movies which deal with the theme of betrayal. Like I said before I only enjoyed the first movie. The others presented interesting scenarios, but did not manage to engage me as much as the first installment. Anyway, I don't think ToE is your cup of tea.

I have no preference in terms of where a drama comes from. I think each country brings something unique to the table and this variety only benefits us as viewers. You're not the only one to feel this way about South Korean TV. I understand the criticism because I have similar feelings, but at the same time I feel the charge is also a tad bit unfair since their offerings are so diverse (often times more so than say Japan or Taiwan). There are many solid, thought-provoking SK dramas (from this year Golden Empire is one of the best I've seen), they're normally just so underrated on this & other sites that you never hear of them.

I think Asian cinema & TV are very formulaic down to the most minute of detail. I have ambitions to do an article about this later, but with my schedule I can never find the time. Anyway, it gets tiresome to see all the same tropes over and over again, but this is hardly restricted to South Korea (as you've noticed). Depending on the genre I can usually tell with at least 90% accuracy how the story will pan out.

Haha, I see.
Well, I actually think most dramas are made for my age group, 24 - 40, than yours. :)
So perhaps instead of me being too old to watch dramas, you are too young to watch dramas? :)
Do you watch movies as well? I could give you some recs for a few cute movies. What genres do you like? Romance? Action? Horror?

Haha, no offense taken, but why do you think I'm too old to watch dramas? :)

No, I thought maybe you were in your late teens or early 20s.

Definitely yang, although I do have strong ying influences in me as well. I'm very much one of those contradictory personalities.

I liked Mao too, but I kinda figured out the pecking order pretty early on and knew he had to go, esp with the Russians and Yakuza on his ass. I really like this genre but it seems the heroes always end up dead in the end, a real sucker for me, so I was extra pleased that neither Soo Hyun nor Min Gi got whacked.

Anyway, overall I enjoyed this.

LOL, what made you think I was 19 or 20?
And no, not kidding. I'm actually not quite 31 yet, but I will be in about 4 weeks. I was surprised to hear you were only 12 as well.

I see. Were you surprised when you heard how old I am? Did you think I was 12 like you?