PrettyCarEye

I just completed The Samurai I Love. A little disappointed with it. Given its title I thought the romance was bigger & more heartfelt, but it barely played a role in the plot. This week I'm probably gonna continue with a few of the series I started last week: Devil Beside You, It Started with a Kiss & Salaryman. I'm tempted to start Smile, You because I've heard it's so good, but I'm trying (somewhat unsuccessfully) to be disciplined & finish what I'm currently watching first. :)

I don't know if it'll give you any added insight beyond what I've already told you, but here's my review for Love & Honor: http://mydramalist.com/reviews/id/7624

See that is my point. I personally find it difficult to say with any authority that one is heavier than the other. They're equally heavy, but in entirely different ways. Both are very powerful films which delve into the deprivation of the human mind. Realms, however, is perhaps the more sexually explicit of the two. Maybe for some that would make it 'heavier' than Old Boy, but not in my opinion. For me what characterizes whether a movie is heavy or not are the themes explored & how it is directed.
I like Jason Stratham & usually see all his films, but I haven't gotten around to seeing Crank yet. Without spoiling, what made you dislike it so much?

Thx, sweee. Your description of DBM makes it that much easier to continue. What else are you watching now? Anything good?

Old Boy & Realms are in a category by themselves so you can't really compare them. They're both signatures of their respective directors. Arthouse films which explore their given themes with a ferocity I wish more films (including the ones I make) had, but that's about where all the comparisons end. I haven't seen Crank. Is that a Asian movie or Western?

As for your list I feel yah. I kinda have my own system going on too. I agree with this: 'Not on my list - Highest priority'. LOL! But to force myself to actually WATCH the films I put on my lists I've limited my PTW to 200 titles. I can't add another film unless the number stands at under 200. On hold is 50 & the same rule applies. Let's see how long the discipline lasts! :)

You flatter me, my dear Winne. :)

My pleasure, sir Knight.

What's up with your currently watching list, though? It's a monster. lol

Be sure to prioritize In the Realm of the Senses (did our Queen Winnie rec this to you? :) & One Fine Spring Day. Both are great films. But one thing I can say about Realms, be prepared for a mindf***. Literally. ;-)

Ok, I hear you. Then maybe you won't care for the others in the trilogy as they follow the same tone & mood. Of the 3 I liked Love & Honor the most & would recommend that you give it a chance (the films are independent of each other so you don't have to watch 1 to watch the other). It was a bit more fast-paced & entertaining than the other 2. The narrative was more straightforward and the stakes were higher. I felt a lot more emotionally invested in the characters & their trials. Also if you're a fan of KT then that might be an additional incentive to watch it. While I did enjoy The Hidden Blade & The Twilight Samurai I understand your feelings about them. I could've easily felt the same way, but I found enough fodder to keep me interested in spite of. Moreover, I'm in the mood for these sort of period films this weekend so I guess that gives me more patience to sit thru.

Thank you for a very detailed & well thought out answer. I'll respond to you shortly. You've certainly raised some intriguing points that I have to ponder a bit.

First, before I answer your question, can I ask you one of my own? Just work with me on this. There's a point to my question. I remember you telling me when we first 'met' that you didn't like The Twilight Samurai. Can you explain why?

Yes, I think so. In particular the 3rd installment, Love & Honor, which I personally felt was sweeter and more emotionally gripping than the other two. But overall I think they all were fairly good. My favs were 3, 1, 2 in that order. They are rather understated and simple stories of everyday life of low caste Samurais. Nothing sweeping, nothing epic. Not your typical Samurai films, but that's a part of their charm I think. You'll find similar tone, mood, and storyline of survival in all 3 movies.

Thx for the recs! I have The Princess' Man on the ptw list. I've wavered a bit in deciding to watch it because it seems like every other person you ask about it they say it's not worth its salt. What's your opinion? I haven't added Sungkunkwan Scandal because I'm not too fond of gender benders. I find they tend to drag out the big secret too long & I end up getting majorly frustrated. I've heard SS being compared to Coffee Prince almost to the point where it's a rip off. Not the story itself, but the circumstances surrounding the mistaken sexuality. Scenes addressing that being very similar & what have you. I liked Coffee Prince, but like I said I didn't care for the secret being milked for all it's worth. Would you agree that they are the same in this or any regard?

Sweee, noticed you just finished Devil Beside You & gave it a 9. Was it that good? I've added it to my currently watching list, but I'm still a bit skeptical of it. I don't normally like high school dramas. Can you say a little about why you loved it so much? Cheers! :-)

Hi. You seem to be somewhat of an authority on period dramas/movies & this weekend I seem to be in the mood for exactly these. Do you have any good recs for me? Preferably movies, but dramas are also welcome. And as always something romantic with happy ending is my genre of preference (although I'm open to more tragic endings in the long run, just not right now). Thx!

Edinaa, sorry for late reply.

Reply 1997 turned out to be a really cute, little drama. I didn't care for it much at first, but I grew to love it. If you haven't seen it I'd definitely recommend it. I love the guy who played the male lead. Soooo cute! :)

What are you watching these days? Anything good? This weekend I seem to be in the mood for period films, but I don't want the epic battles or tragedies. I want something romantic. I watched & enjoyed Yamada Yoji's Samurai trilogy, but the romance was a little bland. I want something more heartfelt. Do you have any good recs along these lines?

Glad you enjoyed it! :-)
LBH is a class act.
You should start writing reviews!

I did check your completed list, but I must have missed Happily Ever After. Anyway, yeah, Abe Hiroshi is lucky to have found such an understanding wife in Yukie because if it were me, I'd be flipping HIM over for flipping things over. LOL
I checked the films I haven't seen or heard of & they all look great. I've actually seen Finding Mr. Destiny & Midnight FM, but they're not on my completed list bcuz I feel I need to watch them again to really appreciate them. First time around I was a bit distracted & missed some crucial parts. Thx for the recs! Castaway sounds fun & quirky so I might watch that first. I'll add the others as I pare down my list. From your PTW list I've seen The Crucible, 6 Years in Love & Traces of Love. The Crucible is an amazing film, but quite dark. The other 2 are both watchable, but they're not films I'd readily rec, esp if you like happy endings.

Enjoy!

PS: Why do you put your posts as a spoiler, if they're not? Just curious.

This weekend I seem to be in the mood for period movies so I've been watching Yamada Yoji's Samurai trilogy: Love & Honor (with Kimura Takuya, yay!!!), The Hidden Blade, The Twilight Samurai ... in that order, although the order in which the films were released are the opposite. So far I've seen THB & L&H, both were good, but I enjoyed the story in Love & Honor a little better than The Hidden Blade. Plus watching my main squeeze Kimura Takuya do his thing is always a bonus. :-)

Drama wise, I'm trying to watch more Taiwanese dramas. I've started Devil Beside You and It Started with a Kiss. Generally I don't like high school dramas because I find them a bit childish & there's hardly ever any chance of a good kiss taking place ... haha. But I want to give these a fair chance before I drop them, if I do.

I hope you like Brother Beat. It suits your short attention span perfectly since the episodes fly by so quickly. Given that you're in the mood for movies how about the slightly quirky Happily Ever After? It doesn't show its characters in the best of circumstances, but it's an entertaining, thought-provoking film about life, love & the pursuit of happiness. I also just finished Love & Honor with the lovely Kimura Takuya. Really liked it. Both are good films with satisfying endings.

I look at my PWT list and wonder the same as you. Lately I've limited myself to 200 titles. I can't add another unless the list is under 200. I've limited my On Hold list to 50 titles. It stands at 51 now but I'm going to use the weekend to pick something off of it. Do you have any good recs of movies you've enjoyed?