Reviews

It's not really fair to call this an affair.

This film is special, and special in a way not many non-Filipinos will really grasp, and that’s okay. The film brings us along a journey of love, hiding, and communism, if you would believe, that spans decades. Through these decades, we are given an insight on the politics and events that shape the Philippines from the late 60s to the dawn of the new millennia.

Jun (Lucero) is a budding idealist who strives for change in the time the Marcos dictatorship in the Philippines was about to really go South. We see him struggle to fight for his political beliefs while going through the struggles of being gay in late 60s Philippines. We see him start an affair, though I’d prefer to call it a relationship, that lasts decades. In a way, Errol (Domingo) is his soulmate, and because of society being the way it was back then, the two go down a spiraling path that is wrought with a lot of pain and hiding; them hiding their love for each other. Errol gets himself married with kids to a girl who actually loves him more than he ever does her. Jun, on the other hand, goes through a plethora of relationships that don’t really ever go well, because deep down he knows that his heart only ever really belonged to Errol.

The main take, for me, is this. We stand on the shoulders of those who came before us; those who had to hide or get persecuted for just loving. No words can really describe how lucky we are, the younger generation, that we live in such a different era of acceptance compared to then. Though the fight for our rights is still going on in different levels around the world, we can never deny the difference a few decades has brought; what the hardships of generations past has brought for us.

In the end of everything, through that spiraling path they went through, life found them a way. In the end, love still won. Though time has robbed them of many years together, Jun and Errol are allowed to be together for the rest of their days.

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It's not very often a martial arts movie comes out with strong fight scenes and even stronger acting. Brotherhood of the Blades boasted a quietly competent cast who elevated this movie above standard wuxia fare.

Three Imperial Assassins and sworn brothers, though skilled with their swords had to face down death and deception from various factions. The always troublesome eunuch (this time after he was deposed) who shows up in numerous martial arts movies, once again instigated double-crossing schemes, this time imperiling the three loyal assassins.

Chang Chen led the three sworn brothers. His character, Shen Lian, though loyal to his brothers and emperor, was morally ambiguous. Willing to do whatever the situation called for, he set into motion a sword that would hang over all three of the assassins' heads.

The three hearty friends all harbored a need for money. Shen Lian wished to free a courtesan but lacked the power and money to do so. Wang Qian Yuan, as Lu Jian Xing, longed for promotion, only lacking the amount of money needed for bribing officials. Li Dong Xue as Jin Yi Chuan, the third assassin and the youngest, loved a doctor's daughter and had secrets of his own. The eunuch's waning power and wealth still proved perilous and tempting. The loyal allies had no safe quarter with the emperor and his officials. Blades aimed at them from nearly every quarter, even longtime allies proved treacherous.

The fight choreography was quite good, less reliant on wires and Olympic level gymnastics. The fights were fast, brutal, and bloody. They stretched reality in a few scenes, but so do most action movies. If I have one quibble, it's that the action scenes went on too long and were overused. As the story felt thin, perhaps it distracted from the lack of a more complex plot and character development.

The cinematography though dark and dreary fit the mood of the film. Often monochromatic, the shots worked perfectly for the bloody fight scenes. The costumes and sets were well done, befitting the time period. Brotherhood of Blades was stunning to watch without being overdone.

Chang Chen gave a mesmerizing performance, filling in gaps the script lacked. The supporting actors were all strong even though many of their characters were thinly drawn.

Brotherhood of the Blades battered away at the characters through intrigue and loss. Dark and intense, this film balanced its three main characters on the edge of a knife in the midst of hungry wolves. And set this viewer on the edge of her seat wondering who, if any, of the Brotherhood would survive.

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short and a bit undercooked

This doesn't really feel like a short film at all, more like a well-produced music video. It has a certain quality to it that makes it seem like a film that was shot in a day - probably mostly in terms of little things in production value like the costuming, the sets, and the lack of additional performers.

It is gorgeously shot and the costumes are lovely, but the reliance on the soundtrack to tell the story and the limited dialogue made the entire thing just feel very, very simple.

I was surprised to find out that the two women who star in this were dating (they seem to have had a cycle since where they broke up and then are back together). It was a pleasant surprise.

Honestly even though I cam down kind of cool on this, I would love to see more wlw wuxia. There doesn't seem to be a lot of it out there - I've been compiling a list - and I would love to see more.

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Amazing action scenes

I liked it!
It is not a surprising story and there are some movies with similar plot.
Protecting someone, revenge, misleading, etc.
The characters are interesting, the plot ok.
STORY – the story is not unique, but I liked it. I found myself waiting to see what would happen next.
ACTING – I think most of the characters did a very good job and the fighting scenes are amazing.
MUSIC – I do not recall it well, so I think it did the job, but without being amazing.
REWATCH –the action scenes for sure, because I already know the outcome.
OVERALL – very entertaining and I really that if you are looking for an action movie with lots of good scenes without resembling a marvel movie, you should try this!

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Love It!

Just finished watching both parts of the movie and I quite enjoy this 2 part movies. The movie in my opinions feels more complete and less draggy. I really like how the heaven sword and dragon sabre has more story and action in it compare to the 2019 and 2001 version of it. The fight scenes you may ask? I Love It!. You can actually see them fight it out instead of just playing with ' The Force' ( you know...the star wars thingy). There is a good combination and balance of fast and slow motion fights too.I wont be commenting much on the acting ...they are all very ok.I dont see raymond lam age as a problem to me imo. Music? A cantonese song for the cantonese version would be great. But the mandarin one is still really really good!. Will I rewatch again? Well, yes and i will rewatch when i feel that its time too. Ok, thats all from me. This review may not really be too deep, or too in depth....cause i am a lazy man :P.

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A love letter to the scifi genre

Whoever worked on this knew what they loved about the scifi genre and they knew what story they wanted to tell and they did it.
Its a lovely and poignant action filled romp from start to finish.

Acting is great. Characters are touching. Costume and set design is memorable. Action scenes are smooth and stylized. Villian is just the right amount of over the top.

Also, the robot is trans.

And! It felt really international in a way that more media should. I heard at LEAST 6 languages with maim chars and long scenes being in french and english and chinese and korean.

If you like starwars, cowboy bepop, firefly, wall-e, or like any of that kinda of genre of scifi then you will love this.

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Great Conclusion to the Series, Awesome Fight scenes

I have loved all the Rurouni Kenshin movies. The scenery locations, sets, clothing, makeup, etc. was all fantastic. The fight scenes were phenomenal as always. Favourite fight sequences were those with Mackenyu Arata's character. Both Takeru Satoh and Mackenyu were awesome in The Final. [I would love a spin off movie with Mackenyu's character.] The other actors/actresses that we saw in the other movies, came back for their rolls and they were all great too. Some new ones, as expected and everyone gave their best performances.

The only reason this movie didn't get a 10/10 from me is because: 1) there were re-caps/memories from one of the previous movies, that seemed too long, 2) Karou and Kenshin's partnership lacked growth and romance and 3) I wanted more screen time for Mackenyu's character.

I have rewatched this so many times, that I have bought the entire series (DVD set)!

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A mature work about gay relationships

This movie has the big advantage that it's source material is splendid, and while I did read it many years ago and have forgotten most of it, I can say that they not only managed to preserve its quality but surpassed it.

“No Touching At All” is not your typical BL story nor movie, they went for a literary approach that matches the essence and tone of the source, so if you aren't a fan of the quiet, artistic style that doesn't rely on ups and downs but lives between its shallow waves, then you won't be happy with this movie.

The actors are perfect for their roles and shine the brightest during the silent encounters of the two leads, the only erotic scene is so sensual, emotional, that you can feel the heavy burden and hope this special moment represents.

While it is a film many people will surely enjoy, I think it's important to say that it's much more impactful, and meaningful, for those who know how painful it is to fall in love with a straight man; all the fears, the self-hate and guilt, that is clawing at your insides, the blame you put on yourself for stealing his future, and the blame some of them unjustly put on you.

It's one of the very few BL films that realistically show how it is to be a gay man and the many downfalls that come with it, there's no sugar coating, no false positivity or cute moments to appeal to certain watchers, it wants to portray the story of mature men trying to find happiness with, and in, each other.

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Intense!

This was a seriously intense movie. I happened to find it from a Music Video someone had done with scenes from the movie and translated into English. I read what they said about it and thought ok why not try. Psychological, intense and graphic. It is graphic. Be warned.

The acting was really good especially for the character Makoto. Both were really good but he was amazing. What he was going through you could feel his pain, fear and every other emotion he had.

I am not sure I could re-watch it. But it does have the potential. I thought it was a well done movie that is why I rated it higher.

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Some things won't change even after 10000 years

This was another great taiwanese movie! I actually walked into the cinema with the thought that this was going to be a funny movie with some love story, i really did not expect the horror parts to come in

To be very very honest the plot was kind of not exactly there, like i was super confused when the bad guy came in because they didn't like very clearly explain why he wants revenge or maybe i did not watch the movie clearly HAHA

The scary parts were so scary its like all jumpscares if it wasn't jumpscare maybe i wouldn't be so scared

I also wanted to know more about gingle wang's character and how she died, like they did show that she was murdered but that made me want to know more about it so that was kind of a part which i did not truly understand too

Okay now to the love story, the love story was super duper cute and the way they showed the development paired with harlem yu's 情非得已 just brought back so many like memories HAHA, kai ko and vivian sung's chemistry was😙😙😙😙😙😙 HOWEVER i did not cry which is a huge shocker because your girl here cried watchinf frozen II. I was just super confused by the plot and couldn't get into the emotional part yk yk

But overall this is definitely worth a watch, but i suggest you watch it with your friends because there is one extremely unholy scene involving a man and a motorcycle and that got me like 🤕🤕🤕 in the cinema HAHAHA

MUSIC: gosh i repeat weibird's 如果可以 every single day i think it will definitely snatch a spot in my spotify wrapped this year

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it tackles the story of a divorced man with a kid returning to his ex-boyfriend who isolates himself in a small village. The divorced man will come to this village with his daughter, and this will be the start of their story where they will be living on the same roof. where they will be facing real-life problems about two guys or a gay couple having a child.
What I like about this movie is that it shows the real situations of gay couples in a community. This movie was worth it to watch because the chemistry between the couple is strong and their actings are outstanding.

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Amazing action scenes and touching fatherly love

The storyline of this movie is something simple and very predictable however I do acknowledge the intricate action scenes on the movie and the expression of fatherly love from the lead to his daughter.

JangHyuk was definitely a great actor and I've watched him from his other dramas and movies. His acting skills is really great but I didn't like this piece as much as his other shows. I fell asleep halfway the movie because there are really lots of boring parts or maybe I'm just really not in the mood for historical setting drama.

Overall, I still appreciate most parts of the movies and I think it's still a great watch considering the acting and the action scenes.

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This just might be my single favorite Shaw Brothers film.

This just might be my single favorite Shaw Brothers film. There is more going on here than in most of the Shaw Brothers films I've seen. No, I don't mean it's more complex or complicated I simply mean that was more character depth here than in most I've seen. The fighting was decent and quite brutal for the time, the acting was actually more restrained which was a nice touch. But it was the direction, cinematography, and score that lifted the film. Chang Cheh's use of slow motion, close-ups, score, and framing really gave the film a mythic feel. The main lead Lo Yi seems compelled against his will to get involved even though he knows how things will turn out. This was grand stuff, there was so much back story missing and so much left unsaid but instead of lessening the film, this plays as a strength as it makes this feel like this was just a single chapter in a much larger story.

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Should be called Umbrella!

This movie starts off with a beautiful fight scene followed by the female lead covering the male lead with a red umbrella and giving him a honey drink. This, was a pretty great umbrella scene and I dare say that the umbrella made way more impact than that honey drink therefore I declare this should be called Umbrella and not Honey!

Other than that is pretty cliche but they are sweet lovable cliches and you know what even though the Male lead is not always true to his understanding of consent he is actually not the least bit in need of a lesson about consent because this guy actually gets this more than any guy I remember seeing on screen to this day! So kudos!

There are some parts in this movie that do feel a bit different and they do touch on men's violence against women with some not greatly done scenes but one heck of a dialog:

Girl: Am I the only girl you hit?
Guy: Of Course you are my number one gal, and the only one I hit !
(maybe not those exact words but... )

Can you just feel the romance! I definitely can...

Jokes aside, that is actually reality for many women and it is NOT their fault and it is complicated, however I did like that the writers included this in the movie.


The male lead and the friendships hera are really good, the female lead has her good parts and bad parts but I am not really convinced by her acting skills at time (sometimes they are good so it could be the directing.

There is also one part that just seems odd and unnecessary, about an uncle.

Definitely fun to watch and entertaining but maybe not a masterpiece...

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A Sleeper That Should Become A 'Masterpiece'!

First of all, one reviewer said that there was nudity; the worst thing shown in this movie was the back of a female's body and her side in bed view; definitely not enough to complain about nudity as a reason for not watching this masterpiece!

Actually, in my opinion, the first two times they make love are two of the most erotic moments in Korean cinema!

And, as another reviewer stated it, "The mild sexual content was tasteful and beautifully filmed, as well as was there for a purpose not just for thirsty eyes." I agree completely!

The two act as if they are scared of each other and are still cheating on their hospitalized spouses; they seem to be in high school and afraid to get caught 'doing it' for the first time, but their "need" for sex forces them to continue the taboo act...sex, and psychological release, from their forced-upon-them ordeal.

Each of them would have never thought of cheating on their spouse had they met in the same situation and their spouses' actions had not been discovered.

Also, the version most people had access to cut out important pieces of the rest of the story; what happened to In Soo (Bae Yong Joon) was cut from the readily-available version on YouTube. I was told that in the director's cut In Soo did divorce his wife, Su Jin (Lim Sang-Hyo, the female who survived the crash) and marry Seo Young (Son Ye Jin).

Since I only had the edited version to watch I thought the two were just cheating on their spouses again - the director's version makes the two going out on a road trip during a snow in spring (April) more acceptable.

I personally would have also divorced Su Jin after her action following her realization about her lover, Kwang-il {Kim Kwang-Il).

For this movie, you have to think like the wronged spouses here:

Both surviving spouses found out about their partner's being in a hospital through someone else calling them; they had no idea that his/her spouse was cheating on them!

Can you imagine the thoughts, doubts, and questions that were going through each other's minds
as they read the text messages of their partner's cell phones (as the hospital turned the cell phones
over to each of them?

Can you imagine the self-doubts of each of the leading cast members as they probably questioned
their self-worth as a partner, knowing that they (both) were being cheated on, and then to have to
meet the spouse of that person who was doing the cheating with their partner as well?

Can you imagine both partners wanting to (as I would have been prone to do) take a pillow and simply
smothering their spouse, solving a cornucopia of future problems that would have come about with
the cheating spouse recovering? In Soo even suggested this to his wife that she just die!

Can you imagine living in a guest house or nearby hotel/motel to a hospital as your spouse is (hopefully)
recovering, with nothing to do except ask yourself questions over and over again; and the only other
person who understands what you are going through is the spouse of the person your loved one was
cheating with in the first place?

These type questions are being asked by the two main leads minute by minute, and the answers to these questions form the basis of this wonderful movie!

As this movie slowly develops, we are shown that these very, and other, questions are plaguing both main leads, and ultimately, they only have each other to turn to in trying to find and maintain some form of sanity while waiting for their individual spouses to survive...or die!

Both leads are not sleeping; and both leads need someone desperately to talk to about their situation, someone who understands what they themselves are going through.

Both leads want to understand what was going on in the minds of their spouse, and how long it had been going on; this 'need' to find out more drives them to overcome their initial wariness of talking to each other and asking each other to see whatever records they may have to help them understand what their cheating spouse was thinking.

I saw much respect in the approach of the two toward each other as they knew the other may have information about the affair which the other didn't: In Soo was very polite and courteous to Seo Young as he initiated the request to share the cell phone text of her injured husband; Seo Young was equally respectful of In Soo in sharing this info...and her giving him property which she knew didn't belong to her husband.

This is not a movie that kills a person every 5 minutes, but it is about the psychological process of each of the wronged spouses is what makes this movie special!

Woven intricately by the director is a metamorphosis of the main characters' understanding of the situation they are dealt and how that affects them, the cheated-on spouse: you can see their bodies and actions "change" and become more stressed as these revelations take their toll on them, they become more pessimistic, cannot sleep and desperately need someone else to share their feelings; in In Soo's case one of the support cast sees these changes and how it affects him early on.

You also are dealing with two spouses who are in the prime of their life, especially Seo Young; had their spouses not wrecked a vehicle on their cheating vacation, the cheating spouses probably would have gone home and had sex with their waiting spouses, leaving the at-home spouse ignorant of their activities on their 'business trip.'

Sex is also a great way to relieve stress as you watch these individuals become more disillusioned, they NEED to relieve that built-up stress somehow; you can almost see it in their eyes as they find out that their partners' affair may have been since their college years.

Seo Young holds off her tears until after the funeral of the young man whose death was caused by the vehicle used by her husband and In Soo's cheating wife...you can almost feel the tension being released as she gets the build-up stress out of her system finally. Her exceptional ability to show emotion also came out in her portrayal of both the mother and her daughter in The Classic (2003)

It is shown over a time-lapse shot of the interval needed of her tension being released.

Each time I watch this, I see more of the carefully-placed emotional gestures of the two grieving, and wronged, spouses.

Only after Seo Young finally starts to accept what had happened, can she start being human again; her character is very quiet until this moment!

What follows is the remainder of the movie as these two draws closer to each other, out of necessity and desperation!

This is a movie that needs to be watched several times to pick up the nuances embedded by the director/screenwriter Hur Jin Ho, and I recommend the long list of several other hits he has been a part of in the past...and hopefully in the future!

The main cast makes their characters come alive and makes you forget that you are watching a movie; the sign that every great movie has in common with each other.

The support cast act professionally and in the background as they should, giving the two main leads the limelight and thus doing their part in supporting the movie's story.

The music, cinematography and props all make you feel you are in the presence of everyday people living their lives as tragedy strikes!

RE-WATCH VALUE: Don't get me wrong, you can watch this once only if you desire, but I believe that it would be a mistake only to watch it once! It definitely gets my vote for a re-watch!

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