etoks21

This massively inflated MDL rating is a mind-blower.
Anyone rating this above a 5/10 is fangirling.

One of the most incoherent, unnecesarily bizarre, full of BS storylines in BL history. I get to say this because I liked Season 1 a lot a rated it highly. Then they followed up with this trash. The plot holes, improbabilties, impossibilities, nonsensibilities and general stupidity is more than readily apparent, thus I will not bother to list them. That's why only a fangirl/boy would rate this thing above a 5/10 for the handsome/pretty men and the good acting from Ray Chang. The plot is so absurd I had to double-check to make sure this wasn't made in Thailand.

Absolutely, terrifyingly bad.

1/10

Meh...at 50 minutes, I've had it with waiting for ANY sort of coherent thru-line to hang onto through this thing but that's apparently not something that is going to be happening, so I'm out.
Don't appreciate the gay-tease BS that is obviously going nowhere either.
Sad waste of two very good actors in the lead roles.
I don't mind heavily symbolic/abstract films if I feel I'm being led toward something. I don't feel that here so dropping.

1/10

I'm liking this one a lot.
Great, fun, sexy, slightly-Japanese-twisted plot going on.
Exceptional sexual energy between the leads as well as them both being charismatic on their own.
They both look like Manga drawings come to life, one breathtakingly beautiful, the other sex on a stick.
The new weathergirl looks like a blow-up sex doll and I'm pretty sure that's not by accident either, nor is the fact that her boobs are pushed up to her chin. The management of the weather channel knows what it's doing too. :)
The post-masturbation/Manga-drawing scene was hilarious. "Masturbating while drawing gives the artist good inspiration..." hahaha All the sticky tissues laying around, empty beer cans, etc. Excellent set dressing! :D
The overall setup of the artist being in love with the guy he lives with, but unable to fully act or express it on his own is nothing new, but it is so well-presented and acted that it feels fresh.
I was a little surprised to see so much come out in the open in this second episode, since there are six more to go and I thought the build-up to today's scene would be longer. Kind of hoping Manga-Boy would go crazy with jealousy while Weatherboy was banging the sex doll on "cloudy days." lol

This show is a wonderful corrective to all the usual Thai garbage airing right now, which I watched one episode of each, then dropped. More REAL heat in this one episode of Taikan Yoho than the last 500 Thai abortions put together.

Bravo so far!

Random, lame.

Two main actors are cute/hot.

Worst job of poster-hanging ever seen.

2/10

I watched all of Zenra Meshi, as bad as it was. This guy played the veggie store owner, right? What are you referring to in that his chararcter "alludes to" something.
I think we just saw Wei go into the room and do what Shih had done a year before, so how would he be around as the same character in Zenra Meshi to allude to anything?

It's frustrating to have no idea why Shih did what he did in the first place. He didn't seem distraught at the film's beginning when we saw him calmly come home, sip some beer, then go into the bedroom carrying some...things. We were shown nothing to indicate discord between the two halves of the MC. It's also frustrating that it seems Wei's friends had allowed him to become very isolated, not that you can always do much if someone is determined to isolate themselves.

Figaro Tseng's acting here was quite good. The other guy too, for the bit we got to see him on screen.

The bit with the duct tape at the beginning and again at the end was quietly horrifying and sad.

That bastard landlord is going to have an EXTRA hell of a time selling the house now, eh?

Kim Hae Sook is spectacular as the ML's mother in this deeply moving film.
Son Ho Jun is just as good as the "diamond" his mother always knew him to be.

The Koreans almost always get this type of story right, and they did so again here. They seem to have a direct channel to the center of my heart.

Highly recommended.

9/10

What is it about MDL that draws prudes and sex-phobics out of the woodwork? Sex is a part of life, and therefore a part of film.

The sex was totally necessary to the story, and much of it was as beautiful and moving as many of the film's other scenes. MDL is a roiling nest of prudes.

GREAT movie! Wow.

Shin Ha Kyun moves higher up my list of best mainstream feature film actors with every additional movie of his I see. He absolutely owns this flick. There is nothing and no one the man cannot do or portray.

Kang Han Na is excellent as the wronged, lowly, peasant girl bent on revenge.

Every actor in this flick does a spectacular job. I was hooked from beginning to end. Haven't cried this hard at the end of a straight romance in a very long time.

Ignore the Puritans in comments pretending this is nothing but sex. Total BS. Yes, there is sex but it is NOT at all overwhelming in frequency or explicitness. There are simply a LOT of prudish MDLers with hangups about sex as a part of life, who clutch their pearls with desperate, pretended astonishment that men and women, women and women, and men and men, have, you know, sex.

I do believe it a mistake to give this film the English title "Empire of Lust," which sounds vaguely like a soft-core porn film. It is NOT that. It is a historical, romantic epic with lots of palace intrigue and stunning battle scenes, and excellent chemistry between the romantic leads.

BRAVO!

9.5/10

God, A Frozen Flower is epic. One of the first gay-themed, Asian films I watched about three years ago, after stumbling across the Asian cinema universe. I was practically blown out of my living room chair as I watched it on my laptop. Gasping, sobbing, the whole bit. Wow, what a film.

It's an oldie but very good. Joo Jin Mo, who I discovered first in "A Frozen Flower," is sensational in it. It's very daring for its time and helped set the stage for future gay films.

Anyone showing skin in a well-produced tv or film production is wearing makeup on that skin. If you disagree, I don't care.
Unless you have met Kiyoi/actor in person and fondled his abs how do you know whether or not they "need" makeup in a scene? If they were shown in a scene, they got makeup, or should have gotten makeup.

But anyway, whatever you say.

Excruciatingly boring and cringe.
Plot consists of BL tropes, one after the other.
Grandma still has seagull shit on her head.
Schoolboy couple is dull and unconvincing.
Too bad, the other two leads are cute and seem to be capable actors. But when you have a lousy script to work with...

I am not "arguing," Mom, Our definitions of "bodybuilder" differs. Deal with it.

I never said Yusei was "always skinny," did I? No, no I did not.
I already searched him and saw his abs.
You clearly know nothing about makeup for film and television. ALL skin exposed to the camera needs to be made up, even if it's only a base coat of powder or foundation to prevent glare off the skin. Doesn't matter if it's a face, a tummy or a butt. It gets makeup. Nude scenes? Yes, those naked people are covered in makeup.

He is the skinniest "bodybuilder" I have ever seen. The title he almost won is a "BestBodySuperModel" competition so perhaps its standards are different than that of your usual bodybuilding contest, in which the men are HUGE and look like all they eat is steroids.Yagi Yusei definitely has a body built for the fashion runway.

Either way, I have no doubt body makeup was used for his shirtless and open-shirted scenes. Any skin exposed to the camera needs proper attention with makeup or it will be washed out by the light. I've only looked at the camera-shoot scene once but it seemed when his shirt blew open the coloring looked odd. So maybe they didn't do a good job. Or maybe it's just me.

Caveats: I didn't mind the "side-plot" of the actress and the idol because to me, their characters were playing out a situation Kiyoi and Hira could easily find themselves in in the future, if Kiyoi becomes a star. Moreover, their situation, should it happen, would be far MORE intense than that of the actress/idol because of the GAY factor. Imagine big movie star Kiyoi being photographed sneaking out of a hotel with a "gasp!" MAN! So to me, the "side-story" wasn't really a side-story at all. It was a vision of a possible future challenge to Kiyoi and Hira's love and relationship.

Also, I perceived progress in Hira's growth. Yes, he is an obsessive, fixated, Asperger's Kiyoi fanboy first and foremost. I worry that Hira doesn't see himself as even EXISTING other than as Kiyoi's dutiful worshiper. And from Kiyoi's perspective, does one REALLY want a significant other who has no concept of self, other than through you? How interesting can a partner stay over time if all you see in their eyes is YOU reflected back at YOU?

So, I believe that in this film, which had a few lame bits, but which overall kept me hooked, we saw Hira changing and growing. He picked up the camera and took the pictures he claimed he couldn't take. And I believe his pictures of Kiyoi are a steppingstone to taking pictures of OTHER parts of the world Hira is interested in, even if he doesn't know it yet. He WILL put out a photo book and have an exhibition, even if all the photos are of Kiyoi in his first show. And I've no doubt he will win the award!

Do you see how Hira sees himself as the follower, but is in fact often the leader? Who initiates kisses and romantic sex? Who is the aggressor, always? That scene in the bathtub was beautiful and extremely hot. Kiyoi's sexual desire and need to be dominated was so perfectly reflected in the mirror and played by the actor. Who is the physically dominant protector and defender, willing to die for his partner? Who took the hand of the other, after that beautiful WEDDING scene in the classroom at the end, and pulled his partner along BEHIND him as they ran, determining the direction and speed every step of the way? The answer to all these questions and others like them is HIRA.

I feel like Hira made progress, in "Eternal," toward finding himself as an independent soul, which he already is. In that gorgeous, near-final scene, we also heard Hira agree, more than once, to stay BESIDE, not behind, Kiyoi forever.

I also believe this relationship has at least two or three possible sequels or series in it. Hira has to become an accomplished, recognized photographer. How will his newfound sense of independent existence change their relationship? Kiyoi will become a famous actor/idol, hounded by the press. What will that lead to and how will the two of them handle it? Will Kiyoi's agency insist on presenting him as straight and single when he is neither? How will Kiyoi react to that? Is he willing to give up his career to be openly with Hira? Or will the public accept the first openly gay idol/actor in a relationship with a man? Rich stuff here for more installments.

Interestingly, I saw the boys' faces as yes, more angular but also more filled-out, their bodies a little meatier. I noticed in the very first scene, under all that polyester chiffon, that Kiyoi has put on a few pounds, and it looks sensational on him. When he was open-shirted in the last photo-shoot with Hira, did you catch those slightly defined pecs and abs? Now, I suspect the makeup people helped those muscles find a little MORE definition than is actually there, but in the first two seasons there were no pecs or abs to define. Don't know about Hira, because even in the tub scene we saw nothing below his armpit level. But yes, both now look like MEN, not boys, though I'd STILL like to buy Kiyoi a few cheeseburgers and fries.

Rating: 8/10

What Maggi said! Along with a few thoughts of my own under the spoiler tag below:

Oh Namily...you're just like Family these days. 😁😁😁

Really, I had no idea there are bisexual people in the world. Silly me.

My point is, I don't believe Kazuma is one of those bisexual people. I see him as going through a stage in coming to terms with being gay that many, many of us gay men go through. Raised to believe being gay is the worst thing ever, we often begin our march out of the closet with a tentative tiptoe, testing the waters so to speak, seeing if the world will come to an end if we admit to being Bisexual as a first step.

"Oh, well, yeah, I'm hot for men now but I am still strongly attracted to women" is a lie millions of us have told ourselves and others along the way to freedom. Then, once we realize the universe has not imploded at that admission, we finally get to a point where we step ALL the way out into the sunshine and say "oh, alright, dammit, I'm f**king gay and hot for c**k and guy ass. There, I said it."

To me, that is where Kazuma is. Saying "I don't care about gender" is one of his tiptoe steps to "I am romantically attracted only to men." There is absolutely NOTHING in this series, other than his declaration of gender-free romantic inclinations, to indicate Kazuma is into women, emotionally or sexually. So I perceive him to be gay but with one foot still in the closet. I also perceive him to be a terrible actor, but that's another issue.

You are, of course, free to perceive whatever you see fit.

Multiple, fascinating possible story lines here, but they're all mushed up in and around and over each other until none of it makes sense.
Any movie requiring this much exposition while people stand around pointing guns at each other but yakking instead of shooting, is a dud.
Too bad for all of the above, because there are good actors and lots of good acting here; it's just that the story they're acting out is ridiculous.
Part of my inability to completely immerse myself in a plot like this, even if it DID makes sense, may be due to my Western-ness: This idea that children or relatives of someone who has done a terrible thing are somehow responsible for it or irrevocably tainted by it, which crops up in a lot of Asian cinema, is absurd to me.

The two actresses playing Jung Hyun as child and young adult, are exquisitely talented and beautiful; their true resemblance to each other gave the film a lot of extra angst.

Even more beautiful is the talented Son Ho Jun, who my favorite nose of all my favorite Korean actors.

The movie was almost made entirely worth the watch despite all the above, by the extraordinarily powerful and well-acted scene of forgiveness and kindness by the bereaved parents to the devastated fiance.

5/10