Reviews

Highly Recommended Gem!

I initially watched this film solely for Kim Taeri and didn't have any high expectations. I was genuinely blown away by the beautiful visuals and found it unexpectedly emotional. The OST is great too.

There's been some online criticism saying that Kim Taeri and Hong Kyung weren't as good as professional voice actors. I think that this is unfair because a lot of their recording was pre-scored before any animation was done, which was a tough job. I watched the same scene (Nan-Young's video for Jay) with Korean, English and Japanese audio to compare, and found that Kim Taeri has the nicest voice and gave a more emotional performance.

I really enjoyed the movie and have rewatched it several times. 😊

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The Price of Every Step Up the Social Ladder

This is another hidden gem of Korean cinema from the 1960s, providing a classic depiction of the wronged female vengeful spirit (wonhon).

This black and white film's plot of betrayal and revenge, use of dramatic music, and creating tense scenes out of mundane incidents like making a small noise when trying not to get caught, was similar to what we have come to expect from Alfred Hitchcock movies.

For those who appreciate social commentary, the film's main theme of social climbing and its price is a great appeal. One such example being the use of the staircase itself as a visual metaphor for the desire for social elevation—a technique still used in modern classics like Parasite.

Despite its sometimes slow pace, the film managed to keep the viewers' attention through it's use of various horror and suspense elements; from the ruthlessness demonstrated by a man who will stop at nothing to achieve his goals, to the retaliatory psychological torment.

Though not my first recommendation, this is definitely an interesting watch for fans of the golden age of Korean cinema or Korean horror enthusiasts looking to watch a film which had an influential role on the genre.

Overall Rating: 3.5/5
Quality: 3.5/5
Enjoyability: 3/5

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Pretty Crazy Was So Entertaining

It's been a while since I wached a movie that made me laugh, cry and then laugh again, everything was balanced it was entertaining but emotional at the same time. 
YoonA was amazing in the movie she nailed the two characters she was playing, I especially enjoyed nighttime Seon Ji's scenes, she was so much fun and childlike in her behaviour but deep down she was a kind person who was treated with cruelty so she had to protect herself by behaviour that way.
Ahn Bo Hyun was also amazing I liked that he cared for both of them.
Overall this movie was great, definitely recommend.

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The Action Film That Hits You Right in the Heart

Wow. What a ride.

This movie had me hooked from start to finish. It’s dark, emotional, and seriously intense — the kind of film that stays with you long after it ends. Won Bin absolutely *nailed* his role as Cha Tae-sik. He barely talks, but somehow you feel every bit of his pain and anger. His quiet, cold exterior hides so much heartbreak, and when the story starts to unfold, you really get why he’s the way he is.

The bond between him and little So-mi was the heart of the whole movie. It wasn’t overdone or cheesy — it just felt real. Watching him risk everything for her was both heartbreaking and beautiful. Kim Sae-ron was incredible too; for someone so young, she delivered such a powerful performance.

The action scenes? Brutal but amazing. So well done — sharp, fast, and not over the top. I loved that the movie didn’t rely just on the action — it actually had *feeling*. The ending left me emotional but satisfied.

Won Bin was born for this role.
Emotional, brutal, and unforgettable

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Beautifully shot with best soundtrack

Japanese romantic tearjerking genre is my favourite kind and I knew I definitely have to catch this. Though there are too many cliches and coincidence but I guess I can see past them because the cinematography is simply gorgeous. I think the casting for Eiji Akaso works best here. Some gorgeous male lead might be a hit or miss when it comes to acting but I think when he has those sad puppies eyes, my heart totally cry for his predicament. The second male lead was great too but I find him annoying. I think it’s the way the character was written. The FL has the weakest performance here, that felt stiff and awkward at times.

Another highlight for this movie was definitely the OSTs. 366 Days and 恋して by HY definitely elevate this movie with the expansive orchestra arrangement or that vibey saxophone solo. Plus the vocals by the singers are chef kiss. The last verse of 恋して perfectly summaries the sentiments of ML with the dying FL and I can’t help to cry everytime I heard it. Rarely, I will praise a Japanese drama/movie OST because they are usually not memorable. But I think these two songs are really the best choices.

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Between Comedy and Identity

I found this film very charming: with lightness and humor, it manages to explore profound themes such as identity, family relationships, and the need for acceptance.
Its short running time, however, limits the possibility of delving deeper into both the personal stories of Nacchan’s three friends and Nacchan’s own past. Several compelling threads—such as family ties and the experiences that shaped the characters—remain only briefly touched upon.

Nevertheless, Himitsu no Nacchan is a tender yet lively story, one that leaves the audience with a smile, tinged with a touch of melancholy.

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Yoda trains Luke in Go

Pretty interesting movie about the relationship between a Go champion and his mentoring of a future Go champion.

The Go champion was a like a mean Yoda. The future Go champion was like Luke Skywalker who went from being brash to having almost no personality and being completely withdrawn.

The Go Yoda was verbally abusive yet the Go Luke had the utmost respect for him and continued to live in Go Yoda's home despite the abuse.

The Go Yoda's wife was incredibly kind and acted like a second mother. Go Luke literally called Go Yoda's wife "small mother". This was surprising considering Go Yoda was training Go Luke to beat him which would severely impact Go Yoda's livelihood. It was obvious Go Yoda and his wife were rich or at least well-off since they owned a house in Seoul which I think was rare.

I think it would have helped to also know the game of Go. When watching a chess movie I can appreciate the moves and strategy but with Go I had no idea what was good, when to be shocked, etc.

Lee Byung-hun was very good as always. I usually like his movies though he seems to prefer playing mean people now.

Overall the movie was pretty interesting for anyone who has an interest in Go or Korean culture or seeing Seoul in the 80's/90's. However, it's a bit slow and if it wasn't for the fact that I had nothing else to do on the plane I may never have watched it.

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People sure is harsh

i cant believe im defending an korean LA adapation. disclaimer, i did read the manhwa and yes there are so much changes that makes those who didnt read wont understand wtf is going on and those who reads disapointed. but honestly what did you guys expect ? a flashy laser clash like solo leveling anime ? dude this is live action, fix your references check onepice LA, or kamen rider or maybe gintama LA. cgi wise is not that much difference really, not better not worse either. the production is respectable

story changes for me personally i respect this change more than what happened with sweethome, both are monster based unknown disaster setup yet sweethome changes into zombie apocalypse at least after first season. i mean the point of the story is there even its so jumpy, and the bromance is okay mc believes that the mysterious guy will save the world, mysterious guy testing maybe mc can save the world instead of him.

acting wise, twsa mc (mysterious guy) doing okay i can see the tsundere. the mc however is so under he looks too whiny, after the first scenes the mc should have much more self confidence or kids these days called it aura farming, i mean dokja (mc) bluff is his best quality. and the other are too under developed well its just an 2 hour movie so its expected.

music wise its decent good, i like the music in the beast fight part. could be better though try put more proper ost, look at huntr/x its not even an action movie but the music battle is banger and no huntr/x is better not because its musical drama. try copy dmc anime, i can only imagine if the mysterious guy fight or the outsider girl rampage with dmc like music thats a fucking banger.

last message from me, dude please fix your references especially if you are korean. you guys dont want a spiderman level fantasy action movie with korean original thing ?, come on this maybe a decent first step.

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Watched an 11 min free sample of the film and decided it wasn't worth paying to finish watching it.

If you want a review from someone who finished watching it, just skip this review and look up that only one Japanese review from that one girl who actually finished watching the film. She said it wasn't bad, but it wasn't good either.

Anyways, I was able to watch a free 11 minute sample of the 33 minute long movie... and decided it wasn't worth it to pay 330yen to finish watching it.

Please don't get me wrong, the sample I watched wasn't terrible, but it didn't make me feel the need to pay money to finish the rest of the film.

Of the 11mins, the first 5 minutes were spent talking about how the omegas are looked down upon, then the next 3 minutes were spent talking about how the ML with the blonde highlights wants to suddenly start a relationship despite saying he doesn't understand love or relationships. Then suddenly the scene changes to both of them at work talking about alphas looking down on omegas and this new alpha guy at work (the guy in the white suit). The alpha guy is supposed to be hot and eye catching, but he barely had presence. The Omega with the blonde highlights also seemed indifferent throughout the whole 11 minutes...

So yeah, 11 minutes and barely any substance. I also couldn't figure out who the second ML was. Was it the guy from the bar with the black suit that the blonde spent 11 minutes talking crap about omegas and alphas with, or was it supposed to be the alpha guy with the white suit? Either way, none of them seemed appealing as leads to me. If it's the guy in the black suit, then they have no chemistry because it was hard to watch them together in the bar.

Anyways, the 11minutes I watched didn't really seem interesting. It's also a low budget film with subpar acting. Like, if the entire movie were free to watch then I definitely would be able to finish the movie, but paying 330yen to finish watching it didn't seem worth it to me.

Also, all of the actors are apparently from an undergound idol group that already lost most of it's members, so it makes sense their acting isn't the best. It's also interesting that none of their fans are talking about the movie either. Even the Japanese girl that wrote the review I mentioned either, wasn't even a fan of the group, just a normal fujoshi.

Overall, while I won't be finishing the film, it doesn't seem to be a good film or bad film. Probably mediocre at best. But again, I only watched 11 minutes of 33 minutes, so I can't really say if the film will redeem itself in the 20minutes I missed. However, I don't feel like paying to finish watching the rest of the film.

If someone else decides to watch this and give a proper review, please do. I'll delete this when a review pops up.
Who knows, maybe that review will convince me to pay the money to finish watching it.

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A Stand-Alone Gem from a Parallel Universe

My boyfriend, a huge manhwa fan, highly recommended Omniscient Reader: The Prophecy, and honestly, I went in with mixed expectations. The early reviews were pretty low, mostly from fans of the original webtoon, so I was surprised by how much I ended up loving it. Even without reading the source material, the movie hooked me. Lee Min Ho’s performance was great, the premise was gripping, and the CGI was top-notch.

As someone who used to read a lot, I get why webtoon fans were disappointed. Many scenes were cut or changed, but I understand that what works in a serialized story doesn’t always translate well to the big screen. Out of curiosity, I started reading the webtoon afterward, and yes, it’s much denser and packed with more details. Still, I see the movie and webtoon as two versions of the same world: parallel universes, each with its own charm.

The movie stands strong on its own. It’s cohesive, beautifully made, and doesn’t need the webtoon to make sense. For me, it’s a solid 10/10 experience, not because it’s perfect, but because it found its own identity instead of trying to mimic the original.

📌 Watch this if you love fantasy-action stories that balance visual spectacle with thoughtful adaptation, and aren’t afraid to see a beloved story from a different lens.

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