Reviews

must say left feeling flat - the acting was good, but the plot wasn't my cup of tea (& not talking about the same sex attraction issue) i don't come from a devote back ground, so seeing someone this addicted to religion is foreign to me.
& yet get that as Yoo Han was all alone / an orphaned, he turned to god for comfort, as he turned to the church & the community it gave him, to be a substituent for the family he didn't have.

Joo Won to me was the embodiment of the serpent in the garden of Eden, u never got who he was or what his ulterior motive was - u just got that there indeed was one (not to mention he was shady as f*ck IMHO). he was quick to pick-up on how he effected Yoo Han. he kept getting close to him without actually crossing any boundaries, cause he suspected Yoo Han would run for the hills the sec he did.
but he kept finding ways to be in his vicinity (tempting him), kissing that girl - maybe she was another soul he needed to corrupt - one that took a bite of the apple. same as Yoo Han eventually did. also the reason he disappeared afterwards without a word - his job was done

also the reason i thought of this was cause of the girl in the prayer meet & her weird / scary dream of a serpent swallowing Yoo Han whole - considering what happened it indeed did....

the reason am left "flat" after watching, is cause this was depressing to me, Yoo Han's brainwashed attitude with religion - his lack of life & being open & vulnerable to bad people leaves me feeling depressed. so well acted but a one off

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What did the college student end up choosing? I dare to say that the path, which is a dead end and at the same time, is most in line with the proclamation of the Chinese infallible party. It's a pity, but such a "solution" exists, even if it usually only brings misfortune and suffering. But otherwise, the movie was very nice, engaging, I watched in one breath...


Co si nakonec vybral student vysoké školy? Troufám si tvrdit, že tu cestu, která je slepou uličkou a zároveň je ale nejvíce v souladu s hlásáním čínské neomylné strany. Škoda, ale takovéto "řešení" existuje, i když většinou přinese jen neštěstí a trápení. Ale jinak to byl film velmi hezký, poutavý, sledoval jsem jedním dechem ...

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Although this film seems simple, it carries a very beautiful message of life itself. I'll use a quote from MDL: "It's a shame to say when you're an old gray-haired person that the one you loved from your youth still lies beside you". They are played by two nice, even beautiful young Chinese people, and it's a shame that LGBTQ+ topics are not allowed to be more promoted in this country, what would it be like with 1.4 billion people ... if only a "mini China" with this topic waves and makes the whole LGBTQ+ world happy (Taiwan, 26 million inhabitants). Communicated very nicely, gently and with insight. What meets only a few couples, like a pair of swans, is a beauty, a gift ...



Ač se zdá být tento film jednoduchý, tak nese moc krásné poselství života samého. Použiji citát uvedený na MDL: "Je stěstí říci, když jsi už starý šedovlasý člověk, že ten, koho miluješ od mládí, stále leží vedle tebe". Hrají dva sympatičtí, ba přímo krásní mladí Číňané, a škoda jen, že LGBTQ+ tématika nesmí být v této zemi více propagována, co by to s 1,4 miliardy lidí muselo být za studnici ... když jen "mini Čína" s touto tématikou mává a obšťastňuje celý LGBTQ+ svět (Taiwan, 26mil obyvatel). Sděleno moc hezky, jemně a s nadhledem. To, co potká jen nemnohé páry, jako párek labutí, je nádhera, dar ...

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Awarded many times at smaller and local festivals, the film is about Filipino-Chinese student Ken (played by Rowi Du), who discovers his true identity and confesses his love for his friend and childhood friend Mike (Raphael Cruz). A pleasant, deep, too long head shave for me, but I understand that this is how the author wanted to convey it and that it is the true essence of the film.



Na menších a lokálních festivalech mnohkrát oceněný film o filipínsko-čínském studentovi Kenovi (hraje Rowi Du), který objevuje svou pravou identitu a vyznává lásku svému kamarádovi a příteli z dětsví Mikovi (Raphael Cruz). Příjemné, hluboké, na mě až moc dlouhé holení hlavy, ale chápu, že to takto autor chtěl sdělit a že je to tou pravou podstatou filmu.

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Is there really a monster or is it just us?

Μonster is being advertised as a Hirokazu Koreeda film and indeed it is directed -splendidly as always- by him. However, the man behind the script is Sakamoto Yuji, the person that wrote Soredemo, Ikite Yuku (Still, Life Goes On) and if you have seen that series, then you know that Monster is not going to be just a good film, but it will stay with you for a while.

I don't think I can explain how good this movie is and honestly I don't want to try nor I should. If you are by chance reading this, let me tell you that it is better to watch this film, without knowing anything about it. Don't watch the trailers, don't read the synopsis, don't even read what kind of awards it earned.

As stated before, directing is magnificent, acting is great from all of the cast involved, with two astounding performances by the two younger actors, portraying Yori and Minato. The music, composed by Sakamoto Ryuichi is heartbreakingly beautiful and it feels so sad and hopeful at the same time.

The plot is magnificently written from beginning to end. Even if at first you may feel that some scenes last too long, they are not just there for the atmosphere. They are important and that is the beauty of the film. Nothing is there just to exist, just to lengthen the movie, just to make the audience feel melancholic, just to make it feel more cinematic. It needs to be there, because it wouldn't work otherwise.

Without giving away anything of importance, I will just say that every detail matters, every character is vital and realistically written. Everyone is so flawedly human, you can't really hate or love them. They are just important, they matter, because they exist. They are so real it kind of makes you ache for the beauty, complexity and ugliness of human nature.

It is a film that is character-driven, slow paced and it truly shows the power of perspective. It deals with so many subjects in a very delicate manner that doesn't feel forced nor preachy. I can't thank myself enough for watching this on the big screen.

I understood how truly beautiful this movie was, when I couldn't stop thinking about it hours after watching it and when I ended up crying with all the little details that have such a huge impact and importance.

Many times, with all these critically acclaimed films, I feel like I am getting forced to like them, to overanalyse them, to convince myself that they are something better than what they actually are -or maybe I don't have the ability to fully understand them-. This is not the case here, though. This is truly an exquisite film. It is better than I ever expected. It is one of those movies that you get to discover something new with every watch. It needs to be watched, because at the end of the day we are all humans and this is a film about us.

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Even though the film is short and doesn't speak much, the minimalistic story, it communicated what it had. A young man and his loneliness, he doesn't have a solid permanent relationship unlike China now in America, his mother is gone, the memories and although the form could have been better (the dancing in the bar could have been shorter), a pretty solid short for me


I když je film krátký a mluví se v něm málo, minimalistický příběh, sdělil, co měl. Mladík a jeho osamělost, pevný trvalý vztah na rozdíl od Číny nyní v Americe nemá, matka pryč, vzpomínky a i když ta forma mohla být lepší (to tancování v baru mohlo být kratší), pro mě docela solidní kraťas

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I THOUGHT THIS WAS A COMEDY??? WHY AM I CRYING???

Man this is false marketing, the trailer made it seem like a comedy and it is but it made me cry so much too. I didn't think I would like a "bro"mance series but I did. It was so good. It made me cry and laugh. I love the stupidness of this movie. It was so out of pocket most of the time. I was laughing my guts out and then it also made me cry my eyes out. I love the character development, from a stupid straight homophobic guy to a caring lovable ally. I truely loved the growth. I also loved the bad guy in this series, boy she was a bad bitch and it all ended on a good note. I really hope if he gets recarnated again they are actually a couple now. What a good movie.

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As Sequels Do Often

Foremost, I appreciate how the sequel picks up right at the ending of it predecessor. If you enjoyed the first movie, this one is definitely worth the watch as it covers a significant portion of the guardians' past lives. Unfortunately it lacks the same charisma (potentially due to losing Cha Tae Hyun as a main) and the characters all get a bit cornier. Outside of the guardians' backgrounds, the blanketing plot around the grandfather and kid is pretty dull and the lackluster acting for the roles enhance this. The actions scenes however have improved a tad and the animation work feels even better this time around.

Most sites I've used to stream the movie has the same horrible subtitles. It left me guessing incorrectly on what was going on and twenty minutes in, I would have unfairly given the movie a significantly lower rating. Make sure you find one with subtitles that actually make sense (personally went with Viki).

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This literally had no point...

Romance? Where?
Coming of age? Where?

See the cast and acting wasn't bad. The issue is this had no direction or point whatsoever.

1. This is advertised as a BL. It is not. They try to rope you in with some "steamy" scenes, but thankfully this is not very steamy. Chimon, who I did not even recognize until looking this movie up on MDL, was 16 when this came out (younger if they filmed any year beforehand). The sexualizing they did was bad enough so thank goodness they didn't have him in actual NC scenes. Yuck.

2. The main character's sexuality was not determined or pursued. So how is this a coming of age? He watched a guy get a blowie and was like hmmm that's hot. But he rejected the guy interested in him. He ended up befriending another guy, Toy, and falling for him, who rejected him. Toy's sexuality is presumed straight, despite everyone insisting he was in the closet, there is not enough context to confirm this. The two guys the lead encounters were blips on the radar. His mom also rejected the possibility of him being gay too. So it immediately got swept under the rug all together. Like they really said nevermind this is actually about him going to college. 🤦🏼‍♀️

3. He tried to unalive himself and his friends just popped up out of nowhere. The ending was so rushed and stupid. Then it just focused on him getting into college through a couple time jumps and then he and Toy become friends again.

Literally what was the point of this movie? Speedos. Underdeveloped plot masquerading as a romance as an excuse to get a bunch of speedos on screen. So unless I saw a different version than everyone else, that was it.

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One Time Watch

List of Trigger Warnings ⚠️ Below

PROS:
◇The whole cast very talented and well known Individuals.
◇Shin Hye-sun fighting scenes & her acting overall 👏🏽 👏🏽👏🏽
◇The message of Turning a blind is also being part of the problem.
◇The realtionship between Shin Hye-sun charcter and Cha Chung-hwa character. They had great chemistry and have worked in past projects together.
🚫Slight Spoilers🚫


The Justice in the end. 🙌🏽

CONS:
◇Fighting fire with fire 🔥
I understand it's a work of fiction but it still made a little uncomfy.

◇The ML didn't look like a teen but maybe because I know the actors real age.

Overall glad I watched it.
***PLEASE look at the Trigger Warnings before going into this one***

⚠️Trigger Warnings⚠️

◇Abuse (emotionally, physically and mentally)
◇Exterme bullying (Harrasment)
◇Public Humiliation
◇Violence
◇Abuse of power
◇Sexual Harrasment
◇Strong Language

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"One must earn like a dog and spend like a beast"

The Men of Plastic was a comedy about greedy men and women willing to scam patients and double-cross each other in order to get ahead. While the cast was strong, the storytelling was not.

Kang Dae Gook (Ma Dong Seok) is a hustler and facilitator in his neighborhood, closely affiliated with his old high school friend, gangster Cho Tae Chun. When he discovers Tae Chun meeting with an unlicensed plastic surgeon who does ghost surgeries, he takes the opportunity to make a business deal with Tae Chun and Park Ji Woo (Jung Kyung Ho), the surgeon. He enlists buddy Mi Jung (Oh Na Ra) and before long the crew is bringing in money hand over fist. In order to make some legal issues go away they end up approaching the sketchy Gyu Ok (Oh Yeon Seo) and doing business with her. It doesn’t take long for the scammers to get scammed.

I’m a big fan of Ma Dong Seok and enjoy watching Jung and Oh as well. Ma’s primary character trait was wearing loud shirts and mismatched hats and initially he sported a fiery pink-red hair dye. This was not one of Jung Kyung Ho’s stronger performances, largely due to his character’s cold, untrusting nature. A strong bromance would have helped this movie enormously but the two men never seemed to trust or like each other. Most of the characters were hard to feel anything sympathy for. The one bright spot was Oh Na Ra. She brought an effervescent energy badly needed when she was onscreen.

South Korea has the highest per capita amount of plastic surgery done in the world. Nearly 1 in 3 Koreans will have some work done on themselves often by the age of 21. The movie was set in 2007 and the team was encouraging medical tourism. As of July 2023 (post-pandemic lower numbers), around 82,000 foreigners visit Korea for various beauty treatments and surgeries. The fierce competition for clients was touched on with Ji Woo being the victim of a “surgical hit job”. There was no introspection or comedic rumination on why the waiting room was always filled with young women who felt the need to hand over large sums of money to improve their looks. This was strictly a by the book routine comedy.

Men of Plastic could well have described many of the characters as they were difficult to care about even when they were about to lose everything. At nearly 2 hours, this film dragged rather badly at times. If plastic surgery fascinates you or you are a fan of the cast you might want to check it out, but otherwise it’s one that can be skipped or as it will be soon in my case—forgotten.

11/18/23

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A Somewhat Faithful Adaptation

**Brief Synopsis**
B (Student): Sena
T (Actor): Ryo

This is a somewhat faithful adaptation of the original manga. B is the son of an extremely affluent show business family but he, unlike his siblings and parents, don’t want to become a part of that. Instead he wants to become a mangaka, even if he doesn’t have any talent.

WHAT I LIKED ABOUT IT:
- Sena is really cute. I really like how he looks and it makes me happy to see him on screen.
- I like how they changed the ad to become same sex marriage instead of having Sena cross dress again.
- I really like the ending where they tell the press they are dating.

WHAT I DON’T LIKE ABOUT IT
- Ryo looks like a creep most of the time. He’s really not that good looking, which doesn’t make sense because he is supposed to be some kind of big superstar.
- The non con part where Ryo forces Sena’s shirt off him to confirm he was really a boy. This part is extremely faithful to the manga, but I never liked it.
- The acting is horrible. The crew tried to add all the extra-ness seen in the manga here but it just doesn’t work. A lot of things work in the manga because it’s a manga, but when it translate to the screen, it’s just awkward and cringey.
- There is no build up to this relationship and the show gives no reason why we should root for this couple.

**Conclusion**
This is an adaptation we could do without.

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A Gift Given Through Time

Yeo Jin Goo (Hotel Del Luna) and Cho Yi Hyun (All of Us Are Dead)

In this Time Blend, two College students attend the same University and get to know each other, while using a Ham radio. One wants to interview the other, but the two can’t seem to quite meet up. It will be discovered later that the reason that they can’t meet up is that one is in 1995 and the other exists in 2021.

This is a charming Time Blend type of time travel drama. There is a definite mode for the time displacement (A Ham Radio), but there is no movement through time in the movie Ditto. Two times are blended or shared, as there is communication across time. There will be lots of head talk about the gift one person can gift to another across a time barriers. Ditto is worth the time commitment.

Talking across a divide of time.

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