PHope

Drowning Love is an okay movie, with an intense love story which was ruined by the odd directing techniques. First of all, the story was confusing a bit, though you get the main idea in the end and you can follow it for a while, so the messed up story line wasn't my main problem. The thing that ruined the movie for me was the way it was directed. Sequences were cut off (especially one that had a loud, happy music and then, suddenly, it was cut off), the camera was either too far away, either too close, in some scenes you could hear the actors talking but you could only see the waves, in others you had only Nana just laying down (maybe the director was in love with her...) like it was a photo shoot or something etc etc. Anyway, the main idea was that the director was all over the place, especially with holding long scenes for too long and with other scenes where you could only hear the actors breathing. Finally, the constant running around, chasing each other, was a bit odd, but you can overlook that compared to the bad directing. Thankfully, the performances were outstanding, and the love story had something in it to make you continue watching this film, probably because the couple had chemistry. So, 4 out of 10.

Read More

Not Good Enough

The second season of the Korean Drama " Love Alarm " takes things from where the first season left off, years after the events that lead to the main couple splitting up. This season doesn't have the advantage of the school genre that always adds some innocence and freshness to the plot. It actually doesn't have a plot, as the story focuses on JoJo and her struggle to accept herself and her feelings. The whole drama about her art, her past life, and the shield was sloppily handled and the family drama was overlooked. The side characters were also boring.

One thing that this drama had going for it, at least, was the strong performances from the cast, especially from the leading lady. The twist with the romance was original too. However, the whole drama feels strange compared to the first season, like it's not its sequel. Rather, it's boring and rushed.


So, overall, 4 out of 10.

Read More

Not Good Enough

The Korean Remake of the Chinese hit drama " A Love So Beautiful " fails to deliver, as it was too short and too cheesy.

The story centers around high schoolers who are feeling the first specs of love. The first part of the drama is actually dedicated to their youthful years and, failing, however, to pass down a nostalgic feeling that most of the school dramas do, especially when they are placed in the past. The second part of the drama focuses, on the other hand, on their adult lives and that's when the drama starts, with the main relationship being tested and sometimes skips that weren't handled smoothly.

I guess the main problem that this drama faces is its short episodes. They try to have small cases per episodes, but the actual story can't be developed properly due to that. Another minus that appeared was the cliche of many situations that arose. From the old camera work to the cheesy romantic gestures, but, especially, to the female lead's reactions to everything that were beyond childish and ended up being annoying, the drama is just too predictable and not because its a remake. Come to think about it, the original was closer to the melodrama premises, with a focus on their adult life, family problems and more grown up drama. On the contrary, this one is more immature and gets boring easily.

At least the side characters were interesting and added some entertainment here and there when it was needed. The performances were pretty good from everyone in the cast as well.

So, overall, 3.5 out of 10.

Read More

" My sassy classmate season 1 ", even though the description says that it will be more of a romance, it was not. But, for a comedy about youngsters that deal with school problems and the angst of growing up and becoming an adult, the drama was good enough.

The first episodes had some random editing, which almost ruined the drama for me, but, after those disastrous episodes, you get to know the characters and love them. They start bonding as well and becoming friends, which was pretty touching. However, some episodes were boring and some of them had over the top events taking place. But, the overall feel of the drama was fun and fresh.

So, overall, five out of ten for the first season.

Read More

" 4-gatsu no Kimi, Spica " was a really good rom com.

As a shoujo manga adaption, 4-gatsu no Kimi, Spica was really good. The romance was nice and over the top adorable, with sweet moments and a nice love triangle. Even the twist towards the end, though cheesy, it was nice. The friendship of the two boys were really good too. The characters' chemistry was pretty intense too. So, yes, the story is predictable, but it is cute, sweet, enjoyable and entertaining. The performances were really good too from all actors and actresses.

So, overall, eight out of ten for this manga adaption.

Read More

" Graceful Family " was enjoyable.
The family drama was solid and there were enough twists and intrigues to keep things interesting. The performances were pretty decent too. Probably the best part of the drama was the characters. Sure, some of them were cliche evil characters (see the stepmother) but overall the main ones were strong. The clash of the two main ladies was well orchestrated too. However, the male lead was overshadowed and his story had only some screen time towards the end of the drama. Also, the romance, although subtle, it was not necessary as it didn't really have time to progress. Finally, the ending was pretty good.
So, overall, seven out of ten.

Read More

This drama started okay, though you do not expect those scenes in a k
drama (not that I minded, but it was a surprise). The story is okay,
kind of interesting, especially when it came to the little boy's real
family (the boy was adorable by the way!!). But then, from episode 10
till the end (thank the production that made it only 13 episodes long,
there would have been zero point in dragging the plot for another 3
episodes), the episodes were a few new scenes and everything a repeated
parade of flash backs, from everyone's point of view. That was my main
problem with this drama. Actually, the performances weren't bad, and
the love triangle had it's moments. So, 4 out of 10.

Read More

Probably the only thing I enjoed about this drama was the character changing his personality. So, I guess the performances from both male leads. That said, the female lead's performances wasn't that bad either, as some may point out. I wasn't really annoyed by her and for me, she added something interesting to the plot. Now, the plot. It was okay at first. However, the big mystery was not strong enough to hold the interest high throughout the drama. Which is unfortunate because otherwise it was okay. So, because it really got boring after episode 16, 3 out of 10.

Read More

Good Enough

Japanese Drama '' Eye Love You '' is a fantasy-office romance with a cute couple, but a messy fantasy story.

First of all, the love story was enjoyable. The couple had chemistry, which aided the drama a lot, and the comical misunderstandings were cute. The second couple was entertaining as well.

The office drama was also nice and the relationship between father and daughter was so sweet!

However, the fantasy element was all over the place. The drama seemed to forget about it for most of the series' length, and then, they tried to add some melodrama to it towards the ending, but they only ended up mishandling the whole affair.

Finally, the performances were great by everyone in the cast.

So, overall, six out of ten.

Read More

Samurai Marathon is apparently based on a true story, or, at least, on true events. That is why the movie was just a bit ... I wouldn't say boring but it lacked intensity. Usually, with samurai movies you expect action scenes that can take your breath away, wonderful speeches about greatness and deep emotions. Here, you get nice characters, but a flat story.

The action scenes were okay, but just a bit boring. The characters, moreover, were interesting, but they were too many to follow and that's why the movie couldn't handle them and they ended up falling through the cracks and disappearing.

The performances, as expected, were brilliant. The movie was packed with Japan's big names (I mean Sato Takeru was one of the leads and that is enough reason to watch this one).

So, overall, six out of ten.

Read More

Major warning: Do not take the tragedy element too lightly. This story is so strong, packed with emotions and dancing, relaying the message of freedom and breaking down the barriers that are set for you by society. Each character of the swing team was unique, fighting their own demons and trying to survive through impossible situations. The plot was original, yet it followed lightly the pattern of a war drama movie, with the ending devestating, breaking down the "the hero's passion can do anything" protocol that other war movies follow. The performances were splending as well. The actors and actresses displayed great emotions and painted the drama beautifully. Another note is that their dancing skills were realistic, as they didn't display extrordinary, out of the blue, talent. Rather, they seemed to enjoy themselves and improve their skills under the circumstances that they were under. Also, the soundtrack was to the point! My only concern about this movie was the presentation of the events when it came to the pace. Other than that, this one is a really powerfull movie.

Read More

What's Wrong with Secretary Kim is just an okay drama. It has a cute approach to the story, that also involves some mystery about a kidnapping and a chilhood drama, but they kind of overeploit that theme and it got tiring towards the end. The romance, for me, it was so so. There was chemistry and everything, but the script didn't help to create the right mood. In the end, the romance scenes seemed forced to be funny when they weren't. The performances, in addition, were nice and enjoyable at least. The side stories interesting as well. Overall, the drama is just a cute romance drama and it doesn't really have any originality in it to make it the great drama that most viewers claim it to be.

Read More