Reviews

The beauty of pain is virtuous

Love, longing, pain and virtue.

The story of a blind boy Po Xiao who has the boundless heart sutra tattooed on his body and a guard Feng Ren tasked to protect him. The setting of this short film is beautiful and exquisite but the most important thing is the way it portrays emotions. Two forlorn boys alone in this world find comfort in each other.

I adore the melancholic theme of this film, it tugs on your heartstring perfectly. The amount of plot twists this film managed to fit into just 37 minutes is beyond me. The story surprisingly does not feel rushed, instead it has a well written ending.

A bit about the actor Ding Chengxin. He is apparently a singer and not a professional actor. But his acting is impeccable, he plays the role of being blind to such perfection you feel worried for him. The emotions portrayed seem genuine and heartfelt. And he is really good looking. This young actor has a very rare face. I seldom see someone so beautiful as if their features were drawn with a brush. Upturned eyebrows and peach blossom eyes, he indeed fits the description of the most beautiful men in Xianxia novels. I really want to see him in more xianxia/historical dramas or films.

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Will Bawl Out Your Eyes

This is it!

Watched it. Loved it. Cried for it.

SJK's acting as a werewolf was fabulous. He portrayed the animalistic actions very precisely. Like how an animal in human form would act- eating like an animal, behaviours etc.

The FL was a calm and smart character. She knew how to make a human out of an animal.

The whole movie made my heart flutter until the end. The end was BEAUTIFUL. Just BEAUTIFUL.

How the Story started was great as well. Nostalgic 1900s feeling. Felt like going back to nature.

Well I have a lot to say but cannot come up with it.

So, JUST WATCH IT if you haven't yet. And REWATCH IT if you already have.

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Amazing short film

People make mistakes in life. Some mistakes completely changing the course of their and their family's life. What happens when someone in your family commits a sin so grand that it ruins your life? That is what we see here with this film. But more than that this film also shows the unconditional love that brothers have for one another. The acting, the directing and everything is done so well in just a span of 20 minutes. That's what makes this film special. It does everything it needs to do in such a short amount of time. (Made me almost cry). But also if you are an older brother or have an older brother this film might hit you harder. Give it a watch.

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"Without a dictionary, how will you be the king of children?'

King of the Children was a heartwarming slice of life film set in rural China during the Cultural Revolution. The story rolled along languidly with gentle humor as Lao Gan learned he had been assigned to be a teacher to a small poverty-stricken middle school. Without preaching, the film addressed some of the problems the school and children faced during the chaotic political time.

Lao Gan who had not trained to be a teacher found out one day that he would take over a middle school class in a rural district. The children's poverty largely reflected his own. He was flummoxed that he had the only government approved manual and the children had no books. The principal had stacks of old teaching material in his building saying they were best used as toilet paper at the present time. The students had learned in the past by the teacher writing from the manual on the roughly hewn board in chalk. Poor Lao Gan was covered in chalk dust by the end of the day using this method. He also discovered that most of the children failed to recognize Chinese characters that they should have learned in elementary school. Top student Wang Fu called Lao Gan out saying he had no idea what he was doing but the effervescent teacher was quick to learn on the job. Realizing he needed to find a way to engage the children better, Lao stopped using the manual and started using personal essays to teach the children how to better comprehend the words they were learning in class. The teacher in the next hut complained that the students must not be learning because they laughed too much. It wasn't long before the principal knew he was not sticking to the manual, a problem regardless of the positive results. The Cultural Revolution was not open to a teacher who rocked the boat so Lao Gan's teaching career was short lived.

Xie Yuan was the heart and soul of this film with his genuine smile and wild, unruly hair. Lao Gan courageously and joyfully broke the rules in his attempt to open the children's minds to better understanding of what they were learning. Rote memorization and the copying of texts had not yielded successful results. By making the lessons personal, the students began to grasp the meanings and importance of the words and characters they were studying. But as many authoritarian leaders know, words and books have power which is why they try to control them.

The cinematography and scenery were gorgeous. Though the subject matter was realistic, the color filters were not, lending an almost fairytale ambiance to the poverty-stricken community and the special teacher who brought learning magic to the children. Red, blue and yellow filters, along with dense fog often conveyed mood better than words.

The film didn't directly confront the Down to the Countryside Movement. The children never spoke of being transferred from urban areas to the countryside to learn farming and animal husbandry instead of taking paths to higher education. Burned out tree stumps and a cleansing fire at the end of the film might have alluded to the 17 million youth of the Lost Generation. The words from the song in the background did give voice to it---

"I came from the eastern mountains
They don't let me go back
I came from the East
I want to go back."

I was a little surprised this movie was allowed to be made with its not-so-subtle criticism of the Cultural Revolution and perspective on poverty, but I'm glad it was. Lao Gan with his compassionate heart and riotous hair brought joy to the students and to this viewer. If you enjoy gentle slice of life stories about teachers attempting to break the education mold for the benefit of children, this might be one to try.

8/22/23

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If it was not love, what was it?

I ended up not knowing what was real or fake.

If it was not love, what was it?

Sometimes we must agree that they are awful people; they will hunt you until it is over for them or you.

What a nice movie! I started this movie without expectations. I had to recognize that I watched it for Jang Hyuk, who never disappoints and is gifted. Every single time that I have watched his work, if he cried, so did I.

This movie showed us how easily we can manipulate a teenager's mind and how wounded some of them are.

Overall, I enjoyed this movie; all the actors did an excellent job, and I ended up empathizing with all of them (most of the characters took awful decisions, but they were under pressure, so).

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A love story with a twist

Wow, just wow! This movie has been on my list forever and I only got around to it today. Why did I wait so long?

I want to talk about the movie but I am afraid I am going to spoil too much. So I'm going to go just with a few remarks.

The plot: a love story between two piano prodigies Jay and Rain, in a special music class. But the girl misunderstands an event and disappears instead of talking. Then she goes on to confide in a teacher who spills the beans to her classmates who ostracize her afterwards. Good teaching? I don't think so! And of course, who does demolition work in the middle of the night? Still, it did wonders for suspense and the scene was well choreographed: a dance between a piano and a wrecking ball! Still the plot was tightly woven and there were no holes so well done writers!

The music: classical and original piano music, variations on classical themes. Those actors are real musicians and Jay Chou is fabulously talented pianist, composer and actor. Piano battle scene is legendary.

The poster is perfect: the shadow a colonnade in school makes looks like piano keys.

Cinematography is top notch: everything was filmed in warm tones of brown, almost sepia, and combined with the music, leaving you feeling like wrapped in a soft cozy cocoon.

Acting: excellent. They have decent chemistry.

In short, a beautiful movie.

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WELL THIS WAS CHILLING

Spoilers ahead !!!
I just finished watching it and omg wowwww
What a literal rollocoaster of emotions.
The movie starts off pretty chill and then gets more and more intense.
Nothing felt rushed. I think the movie was well paced.
The story does a good job showing how even an innocent looking boy could be a serial killer which no one could ever know from a norm perspective.
The fact that now in modern days we as people really live on our phones 24/7 and save all our private information that can actually be hacked with software. This does happen alot irl. Honestly watching the show gave me the chills throughout. It was so creepy how nami was being stalked especially thru her phone cameras etc. Ot makes me feel weirs using my phone right now after watching the show 🤣 I will never install any sus apps after this.
The acting of nami was a 10/10. You could really feel her emotions especially at the ending with her dad.
The plot twist was crazy, I was a lol confused but after reading some explanations now I really understand the who the stalker really is
Some parts are a bit plain like the role of the detectives but ig this movie was soley based on the predator and preys pov.
Nevertheless it was a good watch.

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Funny in its own way

I started this because of some clips that went viral on TikTok. Tendo was so cute and funny that i just NEEDED to watch this.

It had good humor and good action scenes, the scene with a zombie shark surprised me but it was such a good fighting scene. I’m really happy they didn’t unnecessarily kill important characters like Kencho for example.

Throughout the movie I thought they would sacrifice him for shock value like they usually do in zombie movies but i’m really happy none of that happened.

I’m also really happy that they remained as a trio together. Such a cute friendship between each of them!!! And i’m glad Tendo got to have his dream job in the end hehe

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Great storyline and mesmerizing acting with a NOTE. Laogong!

Stumbled this bcs I got hooked with the trailer and how the stories goes. Heres what I get.

(Pro) : -This has to be the best storyplot in taiwanese bromance/bl genre. The story is well cooked.
- Wu Minghan(Greg) really carried the from the beginning into the end with his acting
- The comedy is really well done :))))))))
- Did I cry ? Yes !

(Cons) : - Great Story line but I wish execution was better. Bcs theres so many stories in here that make you bawl your eyes out.
- Missed opportunity in some scene, theres a scene that actually can make you cried but they keep changing and jumping in the other words it actully has fast-deliver story execution. I just wish it was slower so I can enjoy some part like the part under the bridge it was missed opportunity and also the bar scene it was a good opportunity but again they ruined it !
-The Unnecesary Nudity, theres a lot of nudity in this movie that really seems often appeared. They dont really have to show it anyway since they have a strong storyline tho.
-CGI, Its not bad it just I dont really care bcs i came for the story not for anything else so yeah :)))))))))))))))

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It's pretty much Gonjiam. The only likeable character was Jaemin (I think that was his name. The actual ghost hunter with brains)
I still don't understand why they all came together? They seemed to not actually know each other but did? It's all a bit weird and up in the air for me.

While I did like the movie, them fighting at at each other's throats CONSTANTLY took so much away from the movie for me.. I would under if that happened out of fear but even from the beginning the main dude was a asshole and annoying as hell.

I don't understand the reasoning behind letting him outside to see the headstone and show no bars on the door either. That confused me..

I felt more sympathy towards all the trapped ghost. I really wonder if it would have made a difference if they attempted to unlock doors/cages. Cuz can you imagine having ghosts back you up against the main thing keeping you all there? Lol but I get it. It's just a movie and I'm looking waaayyyy to much into it. But still.

With Halloween coming up, this would be a great movie to add to your list.

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"We know it's wrong, but preaching won't help"

Women of the Night was a brutal look at women without a support system who were left to fend for themselves on the streets during post WWII Japan. Sisters Fusako and Natsuko took different roads, but both ended up at the same destination—prostituting themselves to survive. Once again, Mizoguchi showed the devastating affects of war and poverty on women, this time taking on topics that were often taboo.

Mizoguchi spared no one in this melodramatic look at the plight of women in the chaotic years after the war. A husband died, two children died, parents died, dying of malnutrition was a real fear, two sisters slept with the same man, opium was on the scene, STDs were dealt with, two characters were raped, gangs preyed on the weak, abortion was discussed, and pregnancy affected a main character. While life on the streets could be rough and deadly, Mizoguchi veered from informative into an area that felt exploitive.

Aside from desperation, the film was filled with anger, deep seething anger. Rage-filled Fusako hoped to infect as many men as she could. Natsuko only saw men as a way to make money, even willing to betray her sister to find a patron. The prostitution gangs fiercely guarded their territory, viciously attacking any woman who wandered their way or sought to turn straight. Men patrolled the streets looking for easy marks to rob and rape, further exasperating the predicament of young women on their own. Once "defiled" the girls often felt they had nowhere to turn but to prostitution.

Fusako had resisted turning to prostitution until the betrayal, which felt like an insincere reason for abandoning hope, and immediately diving into the world of street walking. By the end of the film, she made a 180 in the shadow of the Madonna in a bombed-out church that looked like a cemetery. It brought to mind the old Madonna (virgin) or whore definitions for women. She decided that she would work on behalf of all women for a world where their virtue could be protected. After being shown the dire straits women without family or fortune faced it felt insincere and an excuse for a hopeful ending. When the Purity Association had preached chastity at a women's clinic, the prostitutes jeered that they weren't turning tricks for fun and who would feed them if they quit? Would jobs suddenly be available and polite society accept them? Would men no longer take advantage of them? At one point there were 70,000 officially recognized prostitutes, not counting those who worked the streets. Mizoguchi repeatedly heaped humiliating trials and tribulations upon the female characters in this film and seemed to leave them with the false hope that simply walking away would provide them with food and shelter and a society that might come to accept them and be a safe place for women. After all the fury, degradation, and sorrow, the film's ending felt trite and unearned.


8/21/23

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no sad ending

beautifully the story has started ,childhood friend met when they had grown up . Recognised eachother and fall in love ,they were sharing so beautiful moments with each other then suddenly an incident occur which completely shaken the male lead . He tried his level best to make the things right but everytime he failed . Then he kept his life on stake and he succeeded but then he was no more to see the things which had been proper then she did her level best to bring him back in her life but .... i don't want to be spoiler so if you like love story and have strength to bear the sad moments then watch it .
At last ,the story has happy ending but not completely.

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Ending Spoiler!!

This was an amazing movie. It had a great story, wonderful acting, and the production was amazing.

I had heard alot about this movie being great but never took the time to watch it. I finally had to search for it when this movie was brought up in a tv show I was watching. I’m disappointed I hadn’t watched it sooner! It was a fantastic movie! Definitely something you don’t want to miss if you enjoy this genre.

Although I did highly enjoy watching this movie I am just a little bit disappointed with the ending. The ending of this movie was much more sad than I expected. Out of all of the characters that you are introduced to throughout the movie only two survive the whole thing. There’s a moment towards the very end where it seems as if those last two may also be killed off and in my opinion it would have made a better movie if they had been. Although it would have been heart breaking to see them go, it would have made for a much more interesting ending because I’ve never seen a movie where no one survived in the end.


Despite this, as I had stated in the beginning, this is an amazing movie. Great actors, great story, and great production. It’s definitely on my rewatch list

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