Reviews

Portrait of a first love

This film that is grounded, if a bit somber, realistic lens into a lgbtq experience of girls that have always been in a religious single sex school and social environment their whole childhood where there aren't a lot of choices for romantic interests. The only choices they have are the school staff and each other. Thank goodness the teacher handles the situation responsibly. The small bit of bittersweet comic relief comes from the first time the couple was busted from a teacher witnessing them kissing as their bus passed bit and their parents were called in for a parent teacher conference. Both their dads are amiable with one another, both agreeing it's no big deal for the girls to be messing around as there would be no pregnancy and laughing that they're only like this because they never been with boys before. Wing Lam's mom is upset at her husband because their daughter takes after him, liking women. Sam Yut who is the sole provider for Sam Yut tells her he doesn't mind that she likes being with girls, so does he, but he has an honest conversation about their family's dire monetary situation and reminds her that she needs to keep her scholarship. Both dads offer and share their kid's snacks and sweets to comfort them. Their economic class difference shapes and diverge their paths. Wing Lam's family has both parents and is middle class, being able to afford a cell phone to sneak into their daughter's backpack though it is banned at school. Sam Yut makes it to University as a film major, but has to drop out to take care of her siblings once her father passes away and she refuses her derelict, estranged mother's offer to take them to the US. It's possible that Sam Yu is bisexual, having married a man before they have to act on their promise to marry each other if they are still single by 30. It's also possible she chooses the safer path of convention. In the end they were an important chapter in each other's lives as they move on in their respective directions.

Read More

A promising story that falls short of Its emotional depth

I was really hyped for this film because it stars JM de Guzman, whom I truly admired in *That Thing Called Tadhana*. However, after watching *Lasting Moments*, I felt that his performance here was a bit of a downgrade. The drama was present, but for me, it just wasn’t giving. The chemistry between the leads didn’t feel natural, which made some emotional scenes fall flat.

It was my first time seeing Sue Ramirez in a movie, but I feel that this particular role wasn’t the best fit for her. While she tried to deliver, the character didn’t seem to match her usual charm and energy.

As for the story, the plot twist was quite predictable, which took away some of the excitement. Overall, *Lasting Moments* had potential, but it didn’t quite reach the emotional depth I was expecting.

Read More

Amazing bromance, and a great blend of comedy, action and serious crime

I enjoyed this movie from the beginning til the end. It’s a great blend of comedy, action and serious crime. Park Seo Joon and Kang Ha Neul nailed their roles as 2 police students as well as close friends. They are a perfectly balanced duo, one is reckless but physically strong while the other is smart but weaker. Although this is the typical type of duo in every cop movie, it still felt very refreshing with Park Seo Joon and Kang Ha Neul’s great performances. The two’s bromance chemistry felt so natural that it didn’t feel like they were acting at all.

The only issue I had with this movie was the Korean useless and weak police system being portrayed. How come they had to follow so many protocols in order to start catching criminals for a serious issue like human trafficking? Also, as police students, our duo should have been praised and rewarded as excellent individuals in front of the whole school and nation for their bravery, instead of being punished and threatened to get kicked out. What’s going on with this world? Those poor girls would have been killed with their organs being taken and sold by those criminals already, if our duo Ki Joon and Hee Yeol ignored them for fear of being kicked out of the school, just because those so-called ‘professional policemen’ didn’t take action immediately. If I were Ki Joon or Hee Yeol, I would definitely drop out of school right after rescuing the girls, after learning how f**ked up the police system is. Who would want to become a police in that corrupt system? The school didn’t even need to kick me out or punish me if I were them.

That was my only issue with this movie. Everything else was enjoyable.

Read More

Really?

Major spoilers here...
Proceed only if you're cool with it.












It starts off well as a fluffy story with two best friends who are super loyal to each other and would risk it all. Initially it felt like like their crush on the same person due to a huge misunderstanding would ruin it. Surprisingly that part barely last a few seconds and it got sorted. Now one might think, cool, the friendship is intact, the girl has supportive parents and would never object to her relationship, the boy doesn't seem to have any major problems either. He goes abroad for a short while with a promise to go to the same uni as her, they communicate via mails ( as the name suggests, it is set in the 20th century, where phones were not a thing yet).
So what could possibly go wrong right? Well well well, the girl suddenly stops getting any replies from the boy and was never able to move on because she always expected him to return. After 15 years she gets to know that the boy had passed away in a road accident.
Was it really necessary?
I already read spoilers and knew that it would end this way but only when I watched it I realised how sudden it was. I agree that life is like that and such things happen without any warning but if you look at the beginning, there is nothing serious. The girl does everything which most of us would never dare to do. They could have just kept it that way throughout.

Read More

A well-done co-production.

(Love Song) is a film that took a pretty big risk, simply by being a co-production. With only two cast members that speak both Thai and Japanese with some fluency, putting this film together and it being good it quite the feat. With a Thai director, the Japanese cast members also found themselves bewildered by some cultural differences in the directing, which I saw them talking about in a special cinema-live broadcast interview before watching the film in the cinema.

However, all that aside, this film works. There aren’t any characters who suddenly understand a language they shouldn’t, and there were also smart decisions made with which lines of Thai dialogue got subtitles and which ones didn’t. That is, that in scenes with an interpreter present, you don’t get the subtitles, you get to wait and listen to what the interpreter says, which I quite like personally as an immersive experience.

Now, looking past my initial wonder about how they made the film work linguistically, there is a story of unrequited love, difficulty in expressing emotion, and a solid dose of humour to go with it. The humour also was a good blend of Japanese and Thai-style humour. The comedic relief from the emotional main storyline was also well used. I will admit, I teared up at a couple points in the film, and considering how much laughter I also had to hold in, that is a feat. I spent a good portion of the film grinning, one way or another.

The song was great and the story, while relatively simple, had emotional depth to be appreciated. The film really succeeded by not trying to do too much, and by doing that, it a stand-out in the otherwise mixed world of international co-productions, which often struggle to impress.

I recommend this film to any and all who are interested! As for the cast, they suggested it could be enjoyed alone, with close friends, or even with family (albeit it may be a bit embarrassing).

Read More

Warm hearted movie that leaves you wanting more

Before all, I have to comment on the ending cause it deserves it's own applause !! The whole room went silent when the revelation was made. Even an old woman in front of me just shouted from the shock as it was sooo unexpected !
The storytelling is beautifully made. Even so that it truthfully depicts complex characters in a complex world where asian traditions and modern habits tend to confront everyday in our society. The relationship between the characters seem quite usual at first nothing out of the ordinary with a conflicted relationship btw a mother who seems to have lost all of her marks and her first daugther + a typical sister relationship.
But once you know how it ends, every little scenes take suddenly more importance !! That's when you realize how smart the storytelling was !
It's a 10 out 10 experience that you have to truly live and feel and will surely make you want to rewatch it again and again !

Read More

Not sure what the director was trying to achieve here

To be fair, I did only see the second half of The Last Emperor. I was flicking around for something to watch at 1am and this was playing on SBS World Movies. For those of you familiar with SBS, you would know that this is the only true way to properly experience SBS movies.

Admittedly, I initially thought Joan Chen's Empress was the protagonist. Partially, because she was the feature of the scene I came in halfway through, but also because she had the strongest presence on screen. Honestly, what a diva. Recognised her immediately due to having watched Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace so many times.

Otherwise, this film just gave weird old-school Hollywood vibes (yes, yes, I know he's Italian, whatever...). First of all, did this seriously need to be almost entirely in English?? Like I get that Western audiences are racist, but if they've chosen to watch a movie about the last emperor of China, I feel like they can handle some Mandarin, y'know? Plus, you have the lethargic orchestral score, and then the weird flattening of Evil Japanese and then Evil Maoists...well, it all left a bland taste in the mouth.

Needless to say, I'm really not inspired to go back and watch the first half. Cheers.

Read More

The Scariest Sound Is the Silence: An Infectious Cycle of Madness Masquerading as a Noise Complaint.

"The Noise" is a masterful, suffocating piece of atmospheric horror, rightfully earning a 9/10 rating. It brilliantly exploits the confined apartment setting, generating profound psychological dread and paranoia. The central concept—noise complaints—is far more than a simple plot device; it functions as a powerful social metaphor for community apathy and the tragic silence surrounding genuine mental distress. The film makes a stark commentary: people react with anger to sound rather than compassion. The narrative excels by establishing that the 'paranormal' element is not a typical haunting but a cyclical, highly contagious transfer of severe mental trauma and psychosis. The truly devastating power of the film lies in its conclusion: the heroine does not defeat the evil, but tragically internalizes the madness, ensuring the despairing cycle persists

Read More

Silent Sparks

I can't even begin to express how much I adored this! It was the perfect mix of adorable and painfully relatable for anyone who's ever been an introvert with a crush. The slow burn of the whole thing had me gripping my pillow with all the tension, and yet, it was so charming I couldn’t help but smile through the awkwardness. Cologne guy, he knew exactly what was going on! 😂 The inner monologues? Chef’s kiss. I just wish it was longer, or even a full-length movie, because I honestly would've watched hours of that shy, cute energy. Being an introvert can be tough, especially when you like someone, and this nailed that feeling so perfectly. A solid 10 from me, without a doubt! 🥰

Read More