K-Drama 
This review may contain spoilers
“i felt like crying when i saw her delight. I, who coldly watched animals die?”
Imagine if Kick-Ass was set in Japan in 2004 with alternative fashion girls who don't kill yet it still packs all the humor and the single best message about female friendships.
I know I might be in the minority on this, but I genuinely believe this movie is queer coded just not in the way most people think. I believe Momoko is aromantic, and Ichigo is her soulmate in the most healthy toxic queer way possible. When Ichigo says, “Giving you my coat means my life is in your hands,” you can feel the level of emotional connection on a spiritual plane. That spiritual weight is why I think the Buddha statue motif is used so heavily throughout the fight scene. We get to see all those base layers Momoko uses to protect herself peeled back when she’s literally covered in blood and dropped into water, as if she is being reborn.
This film does an amazing job of capturing what it means to be an alternative woman in the most beautiful way, while remaining completely hilarious. The comedic beats crack you up like when Ichigo is fucking Momoko up, I literally laughed my ass off. I really enjoyed how music and silence are used throughout the scene. We don't get many scenes packed with crowds, which allows the two of them to truly occupy the space as who they are: Ichigo, who defies typical expectations of womanhood, and Momoko, who confines herself to hyper femininity and isolates herself as an outsider. Watching Momoko open her closed off world and genuinely begin to care about someone is so rewarding to see.
I love the juxtaposition of their vibes versus their outward appearances, and how their personalities are so distinct yet fundamentally similar. I love seeing alternative subcultures represented in different ways, and the color grading of this movie is unmatched.
While I wasn't entirely feeling the first few minutes of the film, it sneaks up on you. The scene right after Momoko gives her the cabbage literally looks like she’s running into the light. As the movie continues, the light is always centered on Momoko while everyone else remains in darkness, or she walks into the light alone. By the end, the light shines on her alongside everyone else because she is human just like them.
We constantly see the lighting shift again within the last thirty minutes of the movie, especially when the light is fresh in the morning and she is showing the dress and herself centered in that early morning fog. But when she almost dies, she is being reborn in the darkness of her mother's womb. During the final fight scene, we watch her transform into a new woman as her polished white layers get covered in blood and dirty water.
Key Highlights & Symbolic Themes:
The Craft & Dedication: I love how Momoko claims “labor isn’t suited for me,” yet she works tirelessly to embroider those life changing words onto the jacket. She spends days ensuring every stitch is perfect, completely ignoring her basic needs like eating, sleeping, or school because nothing else matters.
Vulnerability: When Ichigo says “I know I said women shouldn’t cry in public and Momoko says to her "but out here, it’s just us.” We see Ichigo finally let go and be sad when she is with Momoko. These words are something Momoko would have never said before because she truly never cared to get to know Ichigo even when we get Ichigo backstory its all through Momoko summary bc she couldn't be bothered. We see Momoko ask Ichigo whats wrong and actively showing that she is Ichigo friend even before she realized.
Unconditional Loyalty: Momoko risks everything she built for herself for her friend, because Ichigo was the person who helped build her up. She started to truly recognize how much her and Ichigo are connected and know that if Momoko was in danger she would go through hell and earth to find and protect her. Ichigo literally says: "Next to her, you sheep are worth nothing."
I know I might be in the minority on this, but I genuinely believe this movie is queer coded just not in the way most people think. I believe Momoko is aromantic, and Ichigo is her soulmate in the most healthy toxic queer way possible. When Ichigo says, “Giving you my coat means my life is in your hands,” you can feel the level of emotional connection on a spiritual plane. That spiritual weight is why I think the Buddha statue motif is used so heavily throughout the fight scene. We get to see all those base layers Momoko uses to protect herself peeled back when she’s literally covered in blood and dropped into water, as if she is being reborn.
This film does an amazing job of capturing what it means to be an alternative woman in the most beautiful way, while remaining completely hilarious. The comedic beats crack you up like when Ichigo is fucking Momoko up, I literally laughed my ass off. I really enjoyed how music and silence are used throughout the scene. We don't get many scenes packed with crowds, which allows the two of them to truly occupy the space as who they are: Ichigo, who defies typical expectations of womanhood, and Momoko, who confines herself to hyper femininity and isolates herself as an outsider. Watching Momoko open her closed off world and genuinely begin to care about someone is so rewarding to see.
I love the juxtaposition of their vibes versus their outward appearances, and how their personalities are so distinct yet fundamentally similar. I love seeing alternative subcultures represented in different ways, and the color grading of this movie is unmatched.
While I wasn't entirely feeling the first few minutes of the film, it sneaks up on you. The scene right after Momoko gives her the cabbage literally looks like she’s running into the light. As the movie continues, the light is always centered on Momoko while everyone else remains in darkness, or she walks into the light alone. By the end, the light shines on her alongside everyone else because she is human just like them.
We constantly see the lighting shift again within the last thirty minutes of the movie, especially when the light is fresh in the morning and she is showing the dress and herself centered in that early morning fog. But when she almost dies, she is being reborn in the darkness of her mother's womb. During the final fight scene, we watch her transform into a new woman as her polished white layers get covered in blood and dirty water.
Key Highlights & Symbolic Themes:
The Craft & Dedication: I love how Momoko claims “labor isn’t suited for me,” yet she works tirelessly to embroider those life changing words onto the jacket. She spends days ensuring every stitch is perfect, completely ignoring her basic needs like eating, sleeping, or school because nothing else matters.
Vulnerability: When Ichigo says “I know I said women shouldn’t cry in public and Momoko says to her "but out here, it’s just us.” We see Ichigo finally let go and be sad when she is with Momoko. These words are something Momoko would have never said before because she truly never cared to get to know Ichigo even when we get Ichigo backstory its all through Momoko summary bc she couldn't be bothered. We see Momoko ask Ichigo whats wrong and actively showing that she is Ichigo friend even before she realized.
Unconditional Loyalty: Momoko risks everything she built for herself for her friend, because Ichigo was the person who helped build her up. She started to truly recognize how much her and Ichigo are connected and know that if Momoko was in danger she would go through hell and earth to find and protect her. Ichigo literally says: "Next to her, you sheep are worth nothing."
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