I got so sick of that mother that I felt zero sympathy for her. I have felt more so for serial killers in Korean thrillers than for this pos person with no redeeming qualities. Worst of all, as I mentioned above, this got b-o-r-i-n-g.
omg, now I remember why I dumped it when I tried to give this a watch 3 or 4 years ago. Lots of male nudity does not make up for horrendously bad directing/acting/story.
Give NF a shot sometime, and let me know your thoughts, ok? I have a weakness for high school bullying/gay/coming of age plots. That's what made me an easy mark for BL when I stumbled across it nearly seven years ago.
I admit to having a chip on my shoulder regarding Chinese content, especially shows claiming to be "gay," but that are actually deeply repressed, gay-censored bromances you have to watch with an eagle eye for every longing glance and winking eye. I feel like the audience is being asked to fill in all the blank spaces the authoritarian, homophobic Chinese government won't allow the producers/director/actors to fill.
The experience of watching such things is painful for me. It feels shame-based and homophobic. I spent way too much of my life digging myself out from under that stuff to want to spend my time watching shows that glorify it. "Untamed," beloved by Western fujoshis and repressed Chinese girls alike, is the epitome, of what I can't stand. I tried to watch it and tapped out after the first episode. I found it entirely absurd.
There are a few, mostly goofy Chinese BLs that came out before the PRC's gay ban that I enjoyed.
Don't be sorry! I love your observations, insight, and the way you express them. I feel I can go into HR with a reasoned, calm perspective, further restrained by what you've said here. The way you describe the show summarizes the idea of it formed in my head after weeks of breathless headlines and articles about the show online. I've only read maybe three, because I didn't want to overreact to the hype.
Oh, poor, sweet Lan Yu...you're right, given the circumstances of his untimely demise, my "ton of bricks" metaphor comes off a pinch crude. :D
You're also right that the final scene, with his BF at the morgue, was beautifully acted and 100% obliterating. I sobbed.
Your comments have me wanting to watch both LY and No Regret again. I believe I've seen NR four times. And yes, THAT ending...so surprising and entirely original. The Koreans do that kind of thing best. They humanize even the most fucked-up characters, which brings so much more depth to a story.
I've been holding off on Heated Rivalry until all its episodes are available to binge. I'm excited to see it, and pleased at its success, given that its a rare, big-budget production that centers a gay romance. Also primed to see some skin. :)
That said, I'm primed to be disappointed, as well, given all the hype. So, I'll go in with expectations under restraint, which is a good way to approach any work. I'm a tad suspicious it might be a bit cheesy, given what I've read of its huge female fan base and the way it is swarming anyone who respond with even the slightest negative critique. I'm wondering if it is aimed more at women than gay men, which often leads to problems in the storytelling, which is often the case with BL.
I have watched LY twice. After the first watch it was in my top 7 or 8, but after the second, I dropped it a few spaces, and as I added and removed films to the list, LY kept dropping. Its gut-stomping ending out of the blue strikes me now as having that "all gays must be miserable, suffer, and die, even if we have to kill a main character off at the last second for no reason having anything to do with the plot to this point" vibe about it.
But still, overall, I think it's a great movie. It has been a couple years; it's due another watch.
As you see from the top half of my list, I adore pain, suffering, angst, murder, betrayal, infidelity, all those wonderful sort of plot-drivers in my films, but the madness needs to come organically out of the story, not just drop like a ton of bricks from nowhere at the last possible moment.
I will have to give that some thought, W. My first feeling is that there haven't been many good BLs this past year, but perhaps when I review what I saw, I'll surprise myself. Thanks for asking. I'm interested to know the answer, too. :)
Regarding MDL ratings: I don't know if you pay much attention, but few MDLers are willing to rate anything below a 6/10. For reasons beyond my comprehension, the numbers 1-5 do not exist for them. "Average" seems to lurk somewhere around 6.5-7.5, and decimals within that narrow range hold great importance to these folks. Countless times, I've come upon a show rated, say, 7.2, but sure enough, within comments, someone will exclaim how LOW the thing is rated. lol
I've given up trying to understand and just go with the flow here. My own ratings have evolved to some combination of the MDL madness and the way I rate things on IMDB, where all ten points actually count for something. :)
I agree with the positives you saw in the film, but feel they are outweighed by the negative storytelling issues, which should be the core of any movie. I have and do love many low-budget films/shorts/series that overcame their practical limitations with excellent direction and actors fully committed to their roles.
The fact that 10dance was technically beautiful made me all the more pissed off about its lack of heart.
1 
1 
Consider raising your standards.
Fail for the execution.
I blame the director, not the actors, who clearly were committed and willing to do whatever.
5/10
I got so sick of that mother that I felt zero sympathy for her.
I have felt more so for serial killers in Korean thrillers than for this pos person with no redeeming qualities.
Worst of all, as I mentioned above, this got b-o-r-i-n-g.
Lots of male nudity does not make up for horrendously bad directing/acting/story.
Embarrassingly bad.
Two stars for butts. 2/10
I have a weakness for high school bullying/gay/coming of age plots.
That's what made me an easy mark for BL when I stumbled across it nearly seven years ago.
I admit to having a chip on my shoulder regarding Chinese content, especially shows claiming to be "gay," but that are actually deeply repressed, gay-censored bromances you have to watch with an eagle eye for every longing glance and winking eye. I feel like the audience is being asked to fill in all the blank spaces the authoritarian, homophobic Chinese government won't allow the producers/director/actors to fill.
The experience of watching such things is painful for me. It feels shame-based and homophobic. I spent way too much of my life digging myself out from under that stuff to want to spend my time watching shows that glorify it. "Untamed," beloved by Western fujoshis and repressed Chinese girls alike, is the epitome, of what I can't stand. I tried to watch it and tapped out after the first episode. I found it entirely absurd.
There are a few, mostly goofy Chinese BLs that came out before the PRC's gay ban that I enjoyed.
I love your observations, insight, and the way you express them.
I feel I can go into HR with a reasoned, calm perspective, further restrained by what you've said here. The way you describe the show summarizes the idea of it formed in my head after weeks of breathless headlines and articles about the show online. I've only read maybe three, because I didn't want to overreact to the hype.
Have you seen the German, M/M soccer flick, "Mario?"
I strongly recommend it.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6999052/
You're also right that the final scene, with his BF at the morgue, was beautifully acted and 100% obliterating. I sobbed.
Your comments have me wanting to watch both LY and No Regret again. I believe I've seen NR four times. And yes, THAT ending...so surprising and entirely original. The Koreans do that kind of thing best. They humanize even the most fucked-up characters, which brings so much more depth to a story.
Have you seen "Night Flight?"
That said, I'm primed to be disappointed, as well, given all the hype. So, I'll go in with expectations under restraint, which is a good way to approach any work. I'm a tad suspicious it might be a bit cheesy, given what I've read of its huge female fan base and the way it is swarming anyone who respond with even the slightest negative critique. I'm wondering if it is aimed more at women than gay men, which often leads to problems in the storytelling, which is often the case with BL.
Bravo.
I have watched LY twice. After the first watch it was in my top 7 or 8, but after the second, I dropped it a few spaces, and as I added and removed films to the list, LY kept dropping. Its gut-stomping ending out of the blue strikes me now as having that "all gays must be miserable, suffer, and die, even if we have to kill a main character off at the last second for no reason having anything to do with the plot to this point" vibe about it.
But still, overall, I think it's a great movie. It has been a couple years; it's due another watch.
As you see from the top half of my list, I adore pain, suffering, angst, murder, betrayal, infidelity, all those wonderful sort of plot-drivers in my films, but the madness needs to come organically out of the story, not just drop like a ton of bricks from nowhere at the last possible moment.
My first feeling is that there haven't been many good BLs this past year, but perhaps when I review what I saw, I'll surprise myself.
Thanks for asking. I'm interested to know the answer, too. :)
I've given up trying to understand and just go with the flow here. My own ratings have evolved to some combination of the MDL madness and the way I rate things on IMDB, where all ten points actually count for something. :)
I agree with the positives you saw in the film, but feel they are outweighed by the negative storytelling issues, which should be the core of any movie. I have and do love many low-budget films/shorts/series that overcame their practical limitations with excellent direction and actors fully committed to their roles.
The fact that 10dance was technically beautiful made me all the more pissed off about its lack of heart.