Reviews

Better Than I Expected

First of all I have to praise Zhou Ye, I recently watched her drama Back from the Brink and loved her performance so watched this film. From this two her film and drama, I see her solving the last problem and she tried hard to save the ml and she succeeds. Both are similar in this regard but her acting was better. I saw her playing a very serious role in this film & this is my first Chen Feiyu film. He acted appropriately! There is nothing wrong with the performance of both of them. I just think the script is short.How time traveled with candle is not explained easily, you have to think well to understand.Chen Feiyu can kiss very well even in this film I saw but the kissing scene was only 1/2.
New variations in time-travel drama! Fate can change

Read More

Bulling is very common in our age and has been for a very long period of time. This movie was one of the many examples of what can happen to someone because of it. The movie is about a girl named Chen Nian that has just lost one of her "friends" due to suicide because of bulling. As Chen Nian was too afraid to do anything, she wasn't able to help/save her friend. After Hu Xiao Die's death (Chen Nian's classmate/friend) the bullies wanted to find a new person annoy and the one they chose was her, Chen Nian. After that, Chen Nian finds Liu Bei Shan, a boy who is only good at fighting and getting himself in trouble. After another event (of her getting bullied, again) , Chen Nian asks Liu Bei Shan to protect her. As the story continues, their relationship gets better and better and they start having feelings for one another (I mean, have you seen them both? They're gorgeous how could they not fall for each other?).

This movie also shows us how different teenagers and adults act in situations like these. It's very rare to see movies of this kind nowdays and that's a very negative thing. A love story of a 'bad boy' (who is actually a HUGE softie and a HUGE green flag) and a girl desperate to succeed in order to live a better life with her mother. I truly loved this movie and I definetly recomment.

Read More

"...and life will get better and better..."

To Live aka Lifetimes put Zhang Yi Mou and Gong Li in the penalty box for two years due to what was considered a critical view of some of the Chinese government's policies. The film followed a family from the Civil War in the 1940's into the Cultural Revolution. The little family chose to adapt and to do what was necessary to live as the volatile political climate changed around them.

Xu Fu Gui (Ge You) was an inveterate gambler married to Jia Zhen (Gong Li) with a young daughter and a baby on the way. His gambling caused him to lose the family mansion and his wife. Fu Gui lived in dire poverty with his mother as he attempted to sell thread and needles on the street. Jia Zhen came back to him with his daughter, now a mute due to a fever, and a baby boy when she heard he'd stopped gambling. Gifted a box with an elaborate shadow puppet set by the same man who maneuvered him into his losses, Fu Gui created a traveling troupe and took his show on the road.

While on the road, Fu Gui and his friend Chun Sheng become conscripted into the Nationalist army where they pull canons and entertain the troops with their shadow puppet show. The Red army overruns the Nationalist army and they end up doing the same thing for the other side. Fu Gui is finally able to go home and he finds a very different environment. His wife and kids are selling and delivering drinking water. Nui, a local communist leader oversees their neighborhood. Long Er, the man who ended up with their mansion was executed for being a counterrevolutionary after burning the house when the government tried to confiscate it. Fu Gui declares it's good they are poor and that he'd lost their house or he would have been the one executed.

The 1950's arrive and during the Great Leap Forward everyone is required to "donate" all of the iron items they own leaving them without cooking utensils. As Nui states, "We're racing toward communism and you're worried about food?" You Qing, their son, fights back against his sister's bullies and the family is almost labeled saboteurs. The next morning, after very little sleep he and all of the other young school boys are required to smelt iron. His mother tries to keep him home but Fu Gui is afraid of the repercussions if the child doesn't go. Tragedy strikes and an old family friend is reminded that he owes them a life.

The 1960's bring the Cultural Revolution. Fu Gui is ordered to burn his shadow puppets or risk being declared a capitalist. The neighborhood and homes are covered in Mao propaganda and images. Their daughter Feng Xia is wed to a lame Red Guard leader at a factory. When the time comes for her to birth their child, her parents discover that all of the doctors and medical professors have been imprisoned for being reactionaries with only young student zealots left. Feng Xia's husband brings an imprisoned doctor to help, but he's starving and of no use.

Some of the family's own choices led to their suffering as in Fu Gui's disastrous gambling habit. But the political situations had more than their share of tragic effects on the family. The lack of sleep so many suffered from caused a death. Locking away doctors and intellectuals left people vulnerable to unskilled students. With only one party, corruption or paranoia could lead to innocent people being arrested as capitalists, especially when no dissenting opinions were allowed.

Fu Gui's shadow puppets became symbols for part of the story's theme. Initially, they were used only for entertainment with the artistic freedom to make the show lewd or comical. Later the puppets told more propagandistic stories. Eventually, Fu Gui was forced to burn them lest their feudal and subversive nature land him in prison. His family became part of the neighborhood theater instead. When Feng Xia married, the song sung, toasts given, pictures taken, and even the presents all revolved around Mao. They didn't even have the freedom to say, "thanks, that's just what we needed, another Mao statue/picture/mural/book" as they glance over at the table and walls filled with them. The family never complained as the political landscapes changed, they merely dressed the part and endeavored to recite the party lines whatever they were. Only at You Qing's grave did the family crack, removing their masks and let loose their true feelings toward the governmental perpetrator.

The performances were phenomenal. Ge You gave an outstanding performance as the complex Fu Gui. He won a Best Actor award at the Cannes Film Festival. The film also won the Grand Prix award. Gong Li's part was smaller as the wife and mother, but her performance was powerful and compelling. Her tears, dignity, and rage pulled me in and never seemed contrived.

To Live showed how people adapt and survive even in tumultuous and dangerous times. The family conformed and persevered clinging to each other in order to live. Once he kicked his gambling habit Fu Gui realized why he wanted to live---his family. "There's nothing like family." Despite tragedies, Jia Zhen only desired "…a quiet life together" and repeatedly and doggedly chose to live. Together they weathered the political changes that created financial and social upheavals in their lives, never letting hope completely die. As Fu Gui declared to his grandson, "life will get better and better" without any evidence that it would yet he still chose to live in expectancy. To Live used the political changes as a structure to show how people are able to endure and to live with dignity even when the world tumbles around them. Zhang Yi Mou made a beautiful film about the tenacity of the human spirit and one well worth trying.

6/9/23

Read More

Call Me Chihiro portrays the lonely life of a woman named Chihiro. She used to work as a sex-worker, but quit and is now working at a Bento Shop.

Chihiro character is really complex and have many layers. Her character can be interpreted in many different ways, since the movie does not explicitly specify what her character is. However, still, her character is very relatable for a loner like myself.

She's portrayed as a warm-hearted and cheerful woman, who doesn't cover her past as a sex-worker. Though that reason is what makes her look so distant and empty - as people who knows her, don't actually know her nor her real backstory.

As a loner myself, I relate to her very much, as my close friend often describe my character as similar to Chihiro.

Overall, it was a great movie. Ngl, I would like the writers to elaborate more on Chihiro's backstory.

Read More

until that ending, i was thinking of rating this 3 stars

well this was "interesting" for lack of a better word, disappointing is a more fitting word & given the cast we got here, will say that again - idk what the writer's/director were thinking - but this was a mess at parts & at others, just illogical b.s.
used to seeing incompetent cops that can't find their head with their own 2 hands, let alone shoot a gun when needed. but can/will lookover most of the glitches - even the plotholes until that whack end - like seriously?!?

Alpha the invincible machine was taken out, in that insiginificant way? why?!? why he the only test subject to get his eyes wired shut?!? how it go from japanese guys doing human experiments, to the test subject runing the show?!? just to make a antiaging drug? and if that wasn't enough, we got that rotten cherry on top (finding out Lee Do Il's son survived) but he being kept locked-up - why? why that CEO keeping the successful experiments confined, to what end?!? and as Lee Do Il doesn't know this fact, why we got this reveal?!? so "they" can make a part 2 - to this mess?!? (ノへ￣、) plz...

pity, this had potential. it was ridiculous with the water-slide of blood used in every kill, let alone the cruelty at how each kill was implemented - overkill IMHO - just revolting (get it, they were bad-guy, still just nauseating). or those exaggerated foot falls of Alpha ¯\_(ツ)_/¯(like plz) so much could've/should've been cut short, so we get more of a story to the main plot. ironically or not the only one i rooted for (even before he came on scene) was Alpha. the rest were meeh (also the one i wanted dead from the start was the nurse (¬‿¬) OMG she got under my skin, i applauded her kill).
anyway like i wrote above, this plot needed to be rewritten, with a clear end & some answers about the main charecter's/plot, that would be appreciated (let alone make this a good movie), as is - it was fine for a 1 off. but still a bummer

Read More

Disappointing

I'm on a Tazza run right now, so I thought I'd watch the newest one as well.
Sadly it did not live up to my expectations.

Here are the most noticeable flaws:
- The acting was pretty iffy, but overall I think the directing was the bigger issue.
- The lack of tension, especially at times when the viewer should feel it.
- To add to the previous point, the lack of music. Usually background music helps build the tension a lot. But in quite a few scenes where they should have added it, there was none, which I feel was very detrimental to the atmosphere of the movie.
Going with no music at all could actually be very interesting, but the acting and directing has to be solid for it to work, in my opinion.
- A lot of crucial scenes were omitted.
Characters were getting kidnapped without showing the actual scene.
We were lacking some insight into the characters' thoughts at times.
- The finale felt very dumb and lackluster. Realistically speaking, nothing guarantees that the opponents will keep their word if they lost so it all felt pointless.

I was intrigued by Ozawa's story the most, but I'm not satisfied with how they chose to portray it either.
The first half was at least enjoyable, and the movie being quite short there wasn't much left after that.
If you do want to start it, I would just advise you to not go in with any expectations and just enjoy the ride!

Read More

Better not watch

This is the most homophobic sht I've seen in a long long time. I'm so mad about literally 75% of the film, especially at the ending I felt like it must be a joke. Are you fcking kidding me? I sat there, mad and in disbelief, that this is considered a BL, are you fckn serious!?!?!? I'm just warning ya'll, don't expect sht, it's horribly written, there must have been serious homophobes at work, who know nothing about love or teenagers, or the world, or feelings, or depression, or happiness. This is some fckd up sht man. Should be taken off of GAGAOOLALA GAY theme! For real!

Read More

Small Space and small Cast

The use of this very small space and this very small cast of actors is the incredible thing about this movie. It doesn't need a huge cast to make an impact and the directors and actors did such an incredible job utilizing these very few resources. I've been into Zombie movies when I was younger but very quickly realized that a lot of them don't have any real depth and the struggle that is being portrayed feels "fake" - this movie is an excellent opposite of all that I've just mentioned. All in all it's not necessarily a typical zombie movie, but it is worth watching, especially when you are not totally keen on the typical zombie movies.

Read More

Loved this movie.
It was just a recommendation in a youtube shorts and watched it yesterday. I totally loved the movie and story plus actors did a good job in their role. But the only drawback of the whole movie was park shin hye's acting who played the adult version of the kid.
It looked more of her character from "the heirs"
All her scenes made me remeber that character as if she did not come out of that character yet when she portrayed this role.
Even in her monologue scene where she was standing for her father, the scene looked more of her fighting for her love for her boyfriend. She looked more of that poor girl rather than the character she had to play.

Read More

Just a simple romantic fantasy movie

I have been following this movie since it came out and just heard the reviews are unfavorable regionally and internationally. Yet i encourage you to watch this movie without any bias, but based on the fact that you love a good simple romantic film.

Plot summary:
Childhood friends who lost each other and found each other again after many years, thanks to fate! However, life happens along the way and their love is tested. Fantasy elements are introduced and the unfortunate couple tries to change their destiny to stay alive, but this time without each other. Yet as the saying goes, what is meant for you will find you no matter what.

Acting:
I saw CFY in Lighter and Princess and i dare say he is improving. he is a young actor and is in the learning process. then again, in this very particular movie, he portrays a very normal youngster who is in love but goes through hardships in life.
Zhou Ye is also quite decent and depicted a very cheerful yet faithful lover. Both had good chemistry together. i just wished we could see more kiss scenes, albeit the ones shown were ok imo.

Writing:
It's a movie so we can't expect to see many details and elaboration of how things are. everything is fast-paced. Also, this movie is a fantasy romance, so many things cannot be explained with logic. it's just how it is. One thing that was a bit questionable to me was that they keep saying their love is tested and that we can't fight destiny. Yet in the end, we see a different scenario. Like are they gonna suffer again? the curse was gone? did they go through the loophole again? but the ending was kinda nice. they got what they deserved.

Production and soundtrack:
The movie is rather simple. It has been filmed in very simple locations as it is in most movies. The soundtrack was kinda nonexistent. I didn't hear anything playing Lol

Overall, it's a beautiful romantic movie. Nothing that extraordinary, but very beautiful if you're into romance. Don't pay attention to the overly negative or overly positive ratings.

Read More

When choosing to watch a student-made film, one doesn't typically expect to come across masterpieces, although sometimes there can be pleasant surprises. Despite tackling a challenging subject, this short film managed to make me laugh, not because it was bad, but rather due to the evident budget constraints that led high school students to portray the roles of parents with teenage children.

However, despite the poor technical quality and performances that may elicit amusement, the film remains watchable due to the intertwining of the two main characters' stories. It is interesting to observe how these young aspiring filmmakers and screenwriters depict school bullying alongside an unstable family situation and the pressures exerted by parents who compare their children, leading to sometimes disastrous consequences.

This film made by high school students is a testament to their creativity and dedication, despite the limitations they had to face. While there are aspects of technical execution and acting that could be improved, it deserves to be appreciated for the important themes it tackles and the evident determination of the young filmmakers to share their vision with the audience.

Read More

You will cry

I don’t know if I was too emotional watching this today but honestly I cried for almost every scene with Mija and Okja…

Part of me felt connected because me and Mija’s names are similar, and also since i’m a huge animal lover. I don’t know, it struck my heart.

I can’t help but feel unsatisfied with the ending albeit it being realistic to some extent. I watched this movie for the first time when it came out but I didn’t remember much from it except for the factory part. I decided to rewatch it today solely to remind myself of how it is.

I know them saving the whole super pigs isn’t realistic or palpable especially in the short amount of time, hell they would probably need a whole new movie for that, and even then the new movie would probably need a new movie to get some damage on the company.

I’m happy Okja and Mija got their happy endings with each other, but still my heart aches everytime I remember that there’s still those super pigs suffering and dying for those horrible peoples profit.

I don’t know, maybe I did get a bit too emotional. But I can still feel my heart ache a lot.

It’s also 3am…lol

Read More

Zombies with vampire teeth

I feel pity for zombies after watching this movie. Because it's a shame for them. A minute silent for poor zombies.


Why I watched this movie?

I'm a lover of Korean zombie movies and series and I'd rather Korean version of zombies to American or Japanese versions. So when I first read the title of movie I said I should give it a chance and WHAT A WASTING.

What was the story about and how did it go?

The movie started with a scene that male and female lead are running away from zombies and it goes straight to the main point but after a few minutes the thrill of it vanished and story became so childish. Just a beautiful girl and handsome boy that had a crush on the female lead without any chemistry, kicking zombies and fight with them, falling on the floor and standing up again...

The make up was terrible and zombies were just humans with weird acts and noises. Let me be fair sometimes you could see ketchup around their mouth. Belive me it was the weakest make-up that I've ever seen in a movie especially in a movie with the horror genre about zombies.

But wow this movie represent you a new thing: zombies with vampire teeth. THAT WAS A NEW THING LOL.

What about genres?
Horror: not even a little. A child could afraid me more.
Comedy: it was that akward to make you laugh though yes. (yes but NO!)

Finally watch it or not?
It's not worth watching and it's not about taste. As a person who watched all of the zombie K-drama and K-movies it was just a weak movie in director and actors CV.
Don't give it a chance as you don't give a chance to your ex.

Read More

A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Asshole

Sure, lots of writers are famous for being self destructive, substance abusing assholes (Ernest Hemingway, Hunter S. Thompson, and Norman Mailer, to name a few). But a biopic should not simply be a portrayal of an asshole writer doing lots of asshole things in cliched romantic ways as if to excuse his being, oh you know, an asshole. It should be somehow revelatory as to who he is as a complete, fully faceted human being. Even if he's unlikeable, we should still feel the authenticity of his humanity. This movie, however, has not given us a human being. It has given us a caricature.

And let's talk about the dialogue, which is god awful and packed with exposition. Characters continually have conversations that are exclusively designed to give us a cram-course in their backstories. The only thing worse is the dialogue delivering lectures about the exceptional nature of the Artiste (oh yea, make that a capitol A and spell it French, because that's how cliched it is). Naturally, it usually comes down to the Artiste's special license to be, yep, an asshole.

But I will give praise to the cinematographer. It was shot gorgeously.

Read More