Reviews

Tofu and Money

What a nice movie! House of the Seasons is a slow-paced meditation on a Korean family, portraying one year (from spring to winter) and four generations of family members living together. What we see here is the bond within the family—both in good times and in bad—and the movie also gives us foreigners a glimpse into the traditional Korean way of life. It is mesmerizing to observe and reflect on the traditional rituals and the dynamics between generations. There is a lot of dialogue in the movie, but the best moments for me were the silent portraits of people and nature, filled with gentle music. The changing of the seasons corresponds to the rhythm of family life (spring brings new life and opportunities, while winter points to death and loss). But life is bigger than one year and one generation, and after winter a new spring will come.

I would say that the director did a great job making this movie. It is not for everyone, but it has the potential to become a classic for future generations. The movie isn’t so much plot-driven as it is character-immersive, and the director uses the symbol of tofu to represent the building of a family. In contrast to tofu, there is also the symbol of money, which may divide the family.

I want to eat some tofu now and pray for my family.

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Interesting movie!! 6.83/10

I first saw this movie on an instagram reel, and I am quite a fan of spy themed movies so i started it. The major thing I can takeaway from this movie is how perspective can really change your outlook on life, and how the fl's ordinary life can actually feel exciting even while doing the same things. However the movies ending was a little too underwhelming after some great buildup of suspense, and I was a little disappointed with it. But I think its part of the charm in this movie as it shows that not everything in life goes how we would want it to, but there is a special uniqueness in continuing every boring life. The reason why I give it a 7 is becaues I think its quite relaxing and gives you a break from the current high dopamine fast paced structure of social media, allowing your brain to slow down while being fairly interesting. Yet its not as life changing and value altering as some other dramas, so it will lose a few points. I am a bigger fan of deeper emotional tv shows but I do think this movie achieves its purpose as a mildly funny and ordinary movie.

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Satirical comedy relevant to the times

I thoroughly enjoyed this satirical comedy and its take on the morally questionable use of media in achieving somewhat beneficial political outcomes (if you see the big picture). It explores how carefully scripted narratives are fed to the public, and how the public consumes and proliferates this manufactured reality such that it becomes truth and conviction.

Wonderful comedic timing, well-written script (with dialogues in Korean, Japanese and English, so if you understand all 3 languages it makes this movie even more enjoyable as you are able to pick up the nuances), great acting and great cinematography. My 2 favourite moments were when the South Korean and North Korean air controllers had a stand-off and it switched between a cowboy scene and the control room, and the the poignant moment the South Korean controller received his 'reward'.

This was a good satirical movie relevant for the times where so often we are 'truths' that we can't confidently trust as truths, where madness blends into reality and where we ask ourselves if the truth is worth sacrificing for the greater good.

Recommend this to anyone who enjoys a good satire that tickles the funny bone and has an open view on politics.

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More like ways to ruin a masterpiece

I was lowkey excited at first when the announcement came out but when they first announced the cast i knew it was goin to be a disaster, almost all of the main cast doesn't fit the original character and a LOT of the parts of the story got change, not just it being shorter, they also added lots of unnecessary changes that effects the story like sword to guns?! , bihyung's appearance?, and why does jihye looks old like she's supposed to be 17 and wields a sword not a gun, i mean her constellation is supposed to be a HISTORICAL figure who literally wields a SWORD ,and the title? Bro kim dokja aint a prophet,with what the title is the mc should've been anna croft lmao, so to all the people who doesn't read the manhwa nor the novel who says that the hate is over or unfair and says that its cuz the movies too short to have all of the details , just be silent, i mean if the movie is too short to hv all of the detail then why do they decide to compress all of the information into a 3 hour movie instead making it into a series? And its clear that they didn't put much effort into it and is probably just hoping to ride on to the fame of the actors they casted without considering the fan of the original work , kim dokja would have exploded from madness if he knew that this thing existed.

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Dangerous is correct - read the content warnings before watching

First thing anyone thinking of watching this needs to know is that this is basically 90 mins of P*** with plot!

Without giving spoilers this movie is in no way meant to be a depiction of anything nearing healthy so keep that in mind while watching it. All of the scenes the whole way through have you engage yet always slightly uncomfortable the whole way through - not in an uncanny valley type way but just in a 'this feels illegal to be watching this' kind of way which important because we are in no way meant to be sympathising with the abuser here regardless of his reasons.
I think the story in it was kind of interesting but let's all be real on why we actually finished the movie.

If you're looking for something toxic that is actually entertaining then this is for you but proceed with caution.

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A film of risk, parental love, and found family.

Night Flower is a well done film with a couple of flaws, yet to what extent they are truly flaws is up for debate.

The initial quarter of the film is slow, almost in a reluctant way. I was surprised by how much introduction and groundwork was laid before the leads initially met. As a strength, it sets up character depth, motivations, and context, but some may find this time to be a bit too long.

Following this, there is a steady build of tension through the film, highlighted by some fleeting ‘calm before the storm’ moments, although the incoming storm, so to speak, was in some ways anticlimactic and defied expectation. To some again, this may not be an appealing factor. However, I would counter this with the deliberateness of the storytelling, it felt very intentional, serving as a highlight to the proximity to disaster, but not yet completely lost amid the storm.

This film is full of moments of familial warmth, contrasted starkly by the bitter and cruel world of the people around them. Tamae’s new connection with Natsuki and her family becomes that of found family, and while there may be some sapphic undertones, there is no romance in this film as the focus is more on familial love, which was one major question I had had from initially seeing the poster and trailer months ago.

The acting was solid, without any over or under acting issues in key scenes. The soundtrack emphasised classical music fittingly as it is not without its place in the narrative. The narrative was at times unexpected, but in ways that lead to the film feeling deeply rooted in reality in a way that is very much true to Japanese storytelling.

Lastly, one small detail I might mention is that there were two foreign characters with bit parts, and I very much appreciated that they were not treated any differently to anyone else. The one who spoke, didn’t have a foreign accent and wasn’t treated any differently to if she had been Japanese, which I think is a nice detail, considering representation of foreigners like this in Japanese film and drama is not so common.

As for the ending, without any spoilers, I would say it is strange, unexpected, and somewhat sudden. I am very much fine with open endings, but this story left me wanting to see a continuation, yet I equally doubt there are plans for a sequel.

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Wait for it

Most of the comments talk about the female leads voice ,but imo that adds to her character of being "bitchy" the whole movie centers around a drug smuggling gang vsthe cool cop and a nosy reporter .

The cool /good cop and nosy reporter duo is a tale as old as time and I AM EATING IT UP . its one of those tropes that works every time and can be listed as a "Classic" cuz it just works everytime.

The story starts highly comedic which i do like and gets serious and takes a really dark turn when the main couple get together to make a show about police work as the cop nearly loses everything and everyone except for the reporter who tries to change for the better and takes his side(which eventually leads to the romance subplot) i get it ,eventhought the movie is called as "The perfect couple" Romance is a subplot and super limited .

I honestly think its a good view on romance though( it sounds contradictory) but romance was shown as a more of a "Having each other's back through thick and thin" , instead of the usual they date ,kiss and get married trope which honestly was refreshing.

overall a 9.5 or 10

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All of Tokyo

It's not just about girls going around in Tokyo. As a Hinatazaka fan, the movie was fun and delight to watch. Yoko Shogenji did an excellent job as the main character in the story, being a typical high school student with admiration and passion for Tokyo. As she was tasked to plan a day trip in Tokyo and lead a group of school classmates, she packed the trip with Tokyo attractions hoping to explore 'all of Tokyo'. However, as the story progress and through her interaction with other classmates, she realized that it was not because of the attractions, but her company of friends that made her experienced Tokyo.

The movie did a great job in providing character development and backdrop, despite having the cast the entire Hinatazaka 4th gen with Kosaka Nao. It was also filmed in all the popular tourist attraction spot in Tokyo (Shibuya, Akihabara, Asakusa), which made it even more impressive. The music was also well timed at the start of the movie to give an impactful start. I fully recommend this movie if you are Hinatazaka fan, or just someone looking for slice-of-life type movie to watch.

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Classic

This is the kind of movie that feels....just right. Not over the top with jumpscares or not underwhelming and cheap , but one of those rare movies that i consider near perfect. For anyone that wants to know this story is roughly based on the original korean urban legend Janghwa hongreon .

This movie deserves to be labelled as a Classic
i watched this movie for the first time about 2 years ago and loved it,but didnt write a review since i didnt appreciate it as much at the time it was the second and third time that i watched it that really brought out how much of a masterpiece this movie is ,

The storytelling,cinematography ,ATMOSPHERE(emphasis on atmosphere) cuz its something no movie or show could replicate.

It really is a One of a kind movie
The acting was pretty good too specially from the neglectful dad ,touch starved step mother that lashed out on the kids , a protective and possibly schizo older sister and an innocent(possibly dead) younger sister

Disclaimer : everytime you watch the movie it gets better and better , theres more to the story than meets the eye , and there are these tiny details that are super subtle that can be noticed.
Its like a work of art ( left to the viewer's interpretation and carries incredible weight in terms of storytelling)

Imo the dinner scene was one of my favorites , naturally awkward and super uncomfortable to watch.

I reccomend everyone watch this movie .

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It has a beautiful soundtrack but the story is forgettable

I’ve been listening to its soundtrack song Endless Love for a decade and now finally I’ve watched the whole movie. I can’t say I enjoyed it. I love Kim Hee Seon, and she was so beautiful in this movie. Jackie Chan’s fight scenes were also great. Obviously, he’s Jackie Chan after all. And those were the only three things I liked in this movie. The storyline was poorly written and so was the love story. I couldn’t feel any chemistry between Jackie Chan and Kim Hee Seon either.

Plus, there were scenes that I guess were created for humor, but all I could feel was how disrespectful they were towards archaeology and some cultures.

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I'd say real story of gays

Every single thing about this film is beautiful. It’s heartbreaking and I think there’s a few films that just stay with me. it speaks to how well written and how powerfully acted it is because the storyline is not complicated. But you feel every emotion of the characters.

the lines from this movie are gut wrenching. when jia hang said "so you can like girls but I can't like boys, is your love bigger than the love I gave?" after that i started thinking about my life and yeah obviously we gay can relate w him.
The phone box scene is just awful. When one of them says “how was I to know what the world would be like” it just hurt my heart. I love this film and it broke my heart but still I rewatch it over and over

I'm glad to see people are still finding this movie.
FUN FACT : this film based on the true story and real-life experiences of its director, Patrick Liu, particularly his first love at a Catholic boarding school in Taiwan during the late 1980s.

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Easy watch

If you have low expectations you might be into that kind of movies.
It could had have some potential but they missed the mark. Surface-leveled movie without gravitas. So many things are missing. That movie lacks skills in script-writing, directing, acting…even the set design has nothing remarkable.
The acting sorry is merely there so poor…women and men equally. The story might have been written by 2 left feet. Nothing is deep enough to make it special, nothing is witted enough to make it fun. Did Sung Hoon lost himself ? because I cannot remember any good from him lately.
To wrap it up, if you have 2 hours to spend when you have an hungover on a rainy Sunday afternoon you can watch this.
If you are missing the late and beautiful Jeon Mi-seon it can be another reason to watch this one…but she has no lines

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