Reviews

Bravery

I don't know much about the real folk story told by Thai people, personally I love Thailand but if this is it then Apai Manee did do well, it was hard but he had to.
I mean he was a really good brother but he was also an okay father escaped with his son as well as the mermaid's family.
But then even if he didn't love the sea ogre he should not have cheated on her and included his son also because you could see clearly that she really loved him.
Whiles his humbly and loyal brother searched everywhere for him he was busily falling in love, when his brother was so depressed over him. He had no choice but to make a baby with the sea ogre.
I think she would have not had such a fate if she had not been so jealous.
I still don't understand why Apai Manee left his son with his brother to go with the mermaid. And also his son is such a brave boy. A must watch definitely worth the time

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A sweet but not yet complete love story

I did not watch the series, and also did not know there were added scenes to the original story, when I watched this. I think this a beautiful, short and simple love story. After watching the movie, I read some bad reviews saying that it lacked character development. Another review said there was no conflict in the story line. I somewhat disagree. I think the conflict emerged at the end of the film (both guys may be questioning their feelings) and therefore I am hoping there will be a sequel to this one where we get too see how their love relationship develops.

Yes, we don't get to know much about Sang Yi's background (family, friends, past love affairs), but does it matter? We also could only guess a bit about In Soo's past, when his manager shared about In Soo's character to Sang Yi. Then we find out that his father was the CEO of the company (I had already sort of guessed that In Soo came from a wealthy family, who for some reason left home). Bu it didn't really matter to me not knowing much about their backgrounds, and this would be the very reason why we need a sequel to this movie. It had a happy ending, but I'm curious to know how the main leads continue with their lives.

I loved the music, especially the theme song, I found out that both actors are singers in real life and they recorded the music together. This perhaps explain why the chemistry between In Soo and Lee Sang (Sang Yi) was s great. I also think Lee Sang brilliantly acted his role as a closeted gay guy who was kind of shy, or uncertain about his own feelings. All those awkward moments, like when he saw In Soo passing by on the street, and he chased In Soo who was in a cafe, and the scenes in the company, where he wasn't sure whether he should enter the studio or not, knowing that In Soo was there, was probably something everyone experienced when having a crush for someone else. And in this particular story, it's about a guy having a crush towards another guy. Lee Sang brilliantly expressed the confusion a closeted gay would get when attracted to another guy, especially one who remains mysterious, ambiguous and enigmatic like In Soo. The subtleties in their interactions were really what made this movie interesting, like the casual hug at In Soo's place, the physical closeness they showed while singing together, and finally the kissing scene and the awkwardness they both felt after the kiss.

I liked this movie, even though the story was somewhat simple. The music also helped build the mood to make this movie a memorable one. A sweet, yet not yet complete, love story.

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Going into this movie I thought my first sentence of a review would involve the words---rock bottom. To my surprise, I'm not going to use those words. There were some things to like in this Godzilla movie aimed at a younger audience.

What I liked:
The humans were a more engaging group than usual. The scientists had long time Godzilla actor, Hirata Akihiko, there to help them. An intrepid reporter had parachuted onto the island where the scientists were running tests to try and attempt to control the weather (nothing scary about that!) and he found a young woman who has been marooned on the island since her archaeologist father had died there years ago. The humans ran into problems having little to do with the monsters on the island and it gave them added depth as they had to work together to survive and get along.

Several giant praying mantis lurked in the jungle were a threat to the scientists and sleeping under the ground was a giant spider waiting to go all Shelob on them. The fights involving the giant monsters were all pretty well done and interesting.

If watching with children- Godzilla and his newly hatched son (which raises a lot of questions in and of itself from the mythos) are very affectionate, not scary, so this movie would be appropriate. Instead of frightening, Godzilla comes across as cuddly. There are a lot of loving interactions as Godzilla teaches his son to use his powers and also protects him. Minya protects his papa, too. And for once, Tokyo or some other town is not annihilated. Kamacuras and Kumonga might be too much for small children or those with arachnophobia.

What I didn't like:

Minya's/Baby Godzilla's costume was about as ugly as they could make it and Papa G's didn't look much better this go around. Kamacuras and Kumonga were styled better. Big G has battled far greater enemies and shouldn't have struggled as much as he did with the giant island bugs. Maybe his poorly created face caused him to feel inferior and he fought down at their level.

The sound department couldn't decide what noises to give Minya so they used a puppy, cat, lamb, and even donkey on different occasions to try and make Minya sound cute and helpless. I struggle anytime Godzilla is anthropomorphized to this extent, though it’s certainly not as bad as in Godzilla vs Megalon.

Overall, by setting aside the fearsome, destructive original Godzilla and accepting this era's kinder, gentler anti-hero, I could enjoy this movie for what it was. The humans were more compelling than in most Godzilla movies which helped as well. The truly scariest part of this whole movie was the humans' hubris in thinking they were wise enough to control the weather and not create greater world-wide catastrophes.

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A dark and captivating teen romance that fails to be truly compelling due to poor directing choices

It's hard to know exactly what I think of this, because there were certain moments that I loved, but there were significant issues with the execution, so as a whole it didn't quite work for me.

I think the story was good, despite one plot point that felt a bit conveniently staged. And actually quite beautiful. The relationship at the center feels vibrant and unique, rather than like just another carbon-copy shoujo manga couple, and the conflicts that follow have interesting emotional content. However, sometimes this really failed to come across effectively due to the flawed storytelling. Instead of focusing in on the emotions in important moments, it completely jumped over them with a time skip, which meant I sometimes had to fill in the blanks to understand the actions or feelings of the characters. While I found the portrayal of these youthful, impulsive, and free-spirited teens captivating, the character drama was not nearly as compelling as it could have been. One of the darker scenes really failed to communicate the extent of the emotions properly, while another seemed intent on making the viewer question the reality of what was going on, which was completely counter-intuitive, since this was not a mystery where the goal is to keep the viewer guessing, it's a drama where the goal is to portray the character struggles. I was really not surprised to discover the director, Yamato Yuki, had also directed Hot Gimmick.

The editing was just bizarre. Some scenes were filmed without a single cut, though I really have no idea why. In contrast, at other points the edits were very quick, which could make the story feel disjointed. Sometimes they seemed to be trying to use the frantic edits to create intensity, but it just distracted from the emotions. Only occasionally did it succeed in achieving the "artsy" feel it was going for.

The pacing was definitely a bit strange. At times I wondered why they were spending so much time on a seemingly less important scene, when a seemingly more important exchange had felt too brief. I also think this could have been a little longer, since it was less than two hours despite adapting a longer work. Perhaps they could have left in a few of the important aspects that they cut.

The soundtrack (Sakamoto Hidekazu) was also all over the place. It mixed a number of styles, but was heaviest on the emo rock instrumentation, which wasn't necessarily a bad choice in principle, but the result was music that generally seemed too loud or out of place.

The locations were beautiful. The cinematography (Shibanushi Takahide) itself was just decent. Much of the atmosphere came more from the scenery than the way it was filmed. There were some memorable shots. However, at times they really overdid it with the shaky camera.

The aspect that worked the best for me was the casting. Komatsu Nana and Suda Masaki had great chemistry and they really felt like young teens. Though I did struggle to feel the emotions of the story at points, I blame this on the director, not the actors' portrayal. I felt that Suda Masaki, especially, fit his role incredibly well, as he seemed so striking, and even ethereal, with his blonde hair and almost emaciated body.

Overall, I think this film failed to achieve the emotional poignancy it could have, because it used an (amateurish, teen-feeling) indie-artsy style, when what it really needed was a more mature, raw, and perhaps understated style. Still, I definitely don't regret watching it and would even consider rewatching it, at least in part.

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Well this was certainly interesting. The reveal was a little predictable but the plot still had its twists and turns due to Heo Eun Hee’s style and approach to the film. Some things are purposely messy, I feel. It is said in the film that in a dream, things aren't always clear so I believe that artistic choice was intended here. Alice: The Boy From Wonderland is a film about a woman racked with underlying guilt that she didn't even know she had, on top of the clear mental illness that she's had since early childhood. She goes to this house, meets two people who seem to be familiar with her - one is cheerful and love while the other is not - while her Aunt and a Shaman have their own little journey, which peels back some of the layers and mysteries surrounding it all.

Perhaps the storytelling could've been a tad more poignant and thought provoking, although I do think some of its messages were portrayed well thanks to some rock solid performances from our leading three - Jung So Min (Hye Jung), Hong Jong Hyun (Hwan) and Jung Yeon Joo (Soo Ryun). The plot with the parents is lacking much depth. We don't see much of Hye Jung’s parents and their relationship. We don't see much past the Mum is disabled/Ill and the other likes someone else. Rather hollow storytelling regarding what would be something that's pivotal for the plot. And I'm not really sure that the romance fits well with the conclusion. I'm all for freedom in choices but I don't think it really adds anything. This definitely could've been without seeing them *cough*do it.

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Awesome movie, WATCH IT

I was looking forward to watch this movie when i first watch the trailer and it definitely live up to the expectations i had or even crossed it.
after watching the movie, i saw reviews and i was shocked by seeing all those negative comments, i don't know whatt they were expecting, please don't sway by those comments
i highly recommend this movie to everybody.
Awesome story
A damn good plot twist at the end
and Last but not least you will learn something form the ending
please watch it, mark my word this is some good stuff
it won't disappoint you

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Conflicted

"Sweet & Sour" is a perfect title for the movie tbh. At moments, it's romantic but not really as the romance ends nowhere for both leads. I can feel they're both unhappy in the end, which is a shame because this should've been about healing a relationship or moving on.

As much as I don't hate the twist, I wish they didn't rely on it in the end like some satisfying resolution to a conflict that's actually was NOT solved at all. There are a lot of tropes that just weren't handled well, or rather there's no justification for using them. I think the ending ruins a lot of the conflict that the movie was supposed to resolve. So overall, it's not a bad movie, just the direction didn't make sense.

This MIGHT be a waste of time as there's no take away from it. How am I supposed to feel in the end? I don't know. It just feels wrong lol. Does anyone else feel that?

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Feel-good time travel story that leaves its viewers smiling.

A seemingly one-take sci-fi comedy that makes up for the lack in budget with creativity and lots of charm.

I had the best time watching this hidden gem. Starring a bunch of actors from a popular theatrical troupe and directed by Junta Yamaguchi, who doesn't have many credits to his name yet. The fact that this movie accomplished so much with so little is what made it so outstanding to me.

Given the time loop setting, it's a bit repetitive at first and takes some time to get into its flow since all characters have to understand the whole concept first. But as the movie progresses it just keeps getting more inventive, hilarious and absurd in the best way possible.

A compelling and whimsical take on time travel shenanigans proving that sci-fi doesn't always need a big budget.

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yet another (multiverse) Mulan bites the dust

this is a wuxia-style action adventure that re-imagines the life of Mulan of folklore as a military general instead of a soldier. it takes a setting in the year 424 A.D. during the third emperor of Northern Wei's reign, and the story is about the mission to rescue a princess. the show is suitable for late teens to above. the show incorporates elements of traditional wuxia storytelling. there are also elements of tragedy, brutality, and violence in this show which some may enjoy more than others. another strength of this show is the generous use of natural environments as background sceneries, both indoor and outdoor.

this show feels more like a pay-per-view or a cable tv production instead of a big screen film. it starts off at a relatively fast pace in the first quarter. then it slows down in the second quarter that can feel draggy. the pace picks up in the third and fourth quarter. it is yet another one of those bandwagon production that tries to capitalize on the Mulan folklore. the show doesn't actually need to be based off the Mulan folktale character into the storyline at all. the main female character can be any name and any background and she doesn't have to be based off Mulan folktale to be relatable, presentable, and endearing.

others may might feel find this show rough around the edges. the overall presentations of these elements, the story flow, and the editing can at times be insubstantial.

you name it. idk. bandwagon. domino effect. the blind leading the blind. yet another (multiverse) Mulan bites the dust.

//enjoyable//
+ outdoor and indoor natural environments as background sceneries or setting
+ background sounds/music arrangements and selections
+ traditional wuxia storytelling elements

//can be improved further//
o casting
o presentable performances but contextually inconsistent. there are multiple detectable issues. part of it might be casting, part of it the guidance/mentoring/directing, part of it editing, part of it the actors'.
o camera shooting techniques like closeups and slow motions, but sometimes inconsistent. occasionally it feels like big screen camera techniques, often it feels like tv drama camera techniques.
o martial arts choreography and string-fu with some flaws;
o detailed and colorful costumes, but there are a few ridiculous and unconvincing costumes
o storyline flow and the length proportion of certain segments
o interior props
o mediocre CGIs
o with inconsistent editing
o the You Ming territory segment starting from the second quarter of the film. better directing and editing, better planning and preparations, better plot writing, and stronger performances would improve this segment.
o the rescue-the-princess segment in the third quarter of the film
o brief incorporation of comic illustrations
o the director and/or screenwriter/s attempt to present the main antagonist more as a human being so that the audience can empathize with the main antagonist. but i feel the attempt is futile
o generous amount of blood splattering effects which can sometimes feel superfluous
o interior design, setups and props are not a distraction, some are more detailed than others
o dialogues are enjoyable but not always consistently enjoyable

//turnoffs//
- inconsistent translations and dubbing (voice over)
- error in the first opening translation. 公元 (gōngyuán) is A.D. not B.C.
- inconsistent directing, editing and editing control/management
- some logical flaws with the raiding scene at the beginning. for examples: i) how can pushing a person cause the vomitting of blood? the only explanation in a wuxia series is injury from being hit by an inner force; ii) how can a strengthened rattan shield be so easily leaved in half like styrofoam from a top-down forceful slash? again, the only explanation is if inner force is used; iii) how can someone die or fall flat on their back immediately after a mere push? same thing, only through inner force; iv) how can 2 arrows (one on top of another) hit 2 men who are about a meter away from one another? the arrows must have target guidance technology; etc.
- why is the princess riding a camel instead of a carriage?
- did the Northern Wei dynasty ever form any sort of alliance with the Northern Lian dynasty?
- the compass is way too intricately designed for 424 A.D.
- there are dialogues/segments for dramatic effect that can feel goosebump-corny
- starting from the second quarter of the film, Mulan looks like someone with sleep deprivation or a drug addict. i don't understand why they put that darkened makeup under her eyes.
- there are several draggy segments
- what is the purpose of giving a couple of seconds of screen time to a walking mouse to the storyline/plot?
- the fake princess stabbing Mulan scene. there is no way the dagger/knife could penetrate Mulan's armor and body if you observe the physical space of the fake princess, the distance between the fake princess's left arm with the actor standing besides her, and the physical movement of the fake princess's left arm in stabbing Mulan. the only convincing way to explain it is that the fake princess uses inner energy on the stab, which is also impossible as she fell down so easily to the ground
- the scene where the fake princess is killed with an axe is unconvincing
- editing issue of CGI or special effect at the scene when the guards congregate around the princess and a soldier is struck by an arrow on his back. you can see blood splatter when the arrow struck the soldier's back, but a few frames later you can see there is no blood marking on the soldier's armor
- etc.

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time waste

●I finally found the continuation of the movie PERFECT MATCH.
it took me quite some time to find out the next part but am able to find it on Iqiyi.
●there is a summary of movie, to stop ones wasting time on the movie.
Ren hao jie harass ruan qing tian in the previous movie.
So movie starts with ren hao ming in talks to her for transfer school, to which she agrees. Hao ming also hires her as company’s spokesperson to know why she wants money.
Hao jie eventually finds her at different school and keeps stalking and harassing. He keeps pestering her to accept his love and finds out that his brother is also in love with ruan qing tian, which he is unable to accept and starts drinking. He eventually kidnaps her with the help of mafia S, but hao ming comes to rescue. Hao ming convinces him that love cannot be forced. Hao jie is then murdered and the movie ends with a cliffhanger with hao ming and qing tian.

●Yes the end is a cliffhanger and there is more to the story.

●Acting is very poor, none of the actors had a convincing expression according to the scene. Its pure flat. FL is so bad in this one, where she had to get angry, she had blank expression. Production quality is low. Ren hao ming is shown as billionaire with assets, having private jet, oh please!!! stop that talking. They don’t even have clothes which and continues to repeat it. As for hao jie, his uniform looks tacky, which he wears evrytime in and out of school.

●rewatch please no!! this movie just consumes time. it doesnt have one good scene worth remembering.
●unlike last time where I didn’t find the next part. I have already fond the next part titled THE SPECIAL AGENT AND HIS HOT GIRL.

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Boring and not interesting

The story is very boring. I watched it till the end with both displeasure and not happy feeling.
I'm just waiting and watching it till the end of story bcz i just want to know how this story will end.
The ending is predictable. The character and female roles are very flat. There is no interesting storyline of this film.
Oh Soo's character is described as very emotional but his acting doesn't show anything like that.
The female police officer is very boring. characteristics of the police that are very absent in today's environment.
And other supporting characters are not well described. Looks like just a passing cameo.
There is no focus storyline and focus role for each character.

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Shocking plot twist in the house yeah..

It was all great as they depicts a realistic problem of LDR couples. As an audience who doesn't like typical plot this was remarkable. I think no one could have ever guess the plot twist.

Acting wise there was nothing to say. They did well, it was all natural. Besides, the shots were typically good for me.

The characters were portrayed agreeably that I personally hate a particular character. I saw and barely understand everyone's point of view.

As for the music there was nothing that get stuck on my mind. They did not prioritize the background music that much I believe.

All in all, it's great and fine, it just all went wrong in the coda. In which, they could have explain more rigorously.

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Super underrated masterpiece!!| Maybe I'm one of the few people who actually enjoyed this..

***
This movie has always been in my list since it got into Netflix. I'm a huge fan of one shot sci fi & action movies that used perfect CGI effects like Yin Yang Master : Dream of Eternity so when I saw the trailer I was thrilled and the movie really exceeded my expectation. It's a shame I just discovered it on 2021. But, I never regret every second I watched this MASTERPIECE! Yep, I said that. I don't know why it got very low ratings despite all the allegories, symbols, theories & lessons to be learned.

Well, here's a cup of my thoughts about this movie :
❤Story : 8,5/10. I rated this high, bcs how impressed I was with the idea, creativity & rich literacy that the writer aka Mr.Chong used in this movie (Feud's theory of Id, Ego & Super Ego, Carl Jung's & theory of hirearchy of dreams). The pacing is quite good for a one shot movie, it also blends well with how diverse the genres they included. One thing for sure, you'll be surprised with multiple plot twists that will literally blow & twist your mind. A great movie will leave its viewers with theories, debates & reasonable questions that depends on how we interpreted it. This movie is literally the epitome of that.

Basically it will tell you a story about self discovery of a young genious, idealist soon to be writer-Sang Yu- that had severe insomnia for months. He fell into deep despair & depression, he failed being a survivor in the society bcs of his own insecurities & fear to take an action towards his dreams. The only thing that kept him sane was the love of his life-Hua'er. But the reality hit him hard when he couldn't differentiate the reality & imagination/delusion. He then unfortunately traded his life to satisfy his desire. Things get messy & adventurous when Sang Yu discovered that he could bring back something valuable in the dream world in exchange for money, wealth & what he thought was 'love'. But for everything has its price, he soon discovered that anything in this world is not free and easy to take.

At first, I felt kinda confused with how the world in this movie is working, but slowly I understand between each of parallel universes (the dream & reality/life & death/the past & future). It actually has the same vibe as "Inception" & I love it!! The way the story line tells a man who gets wealth in a short time is actually cliche & you can actually predict multiple usual endings of it, but I'm satisfied with the way they brought the movie overall.

❤Actings : 10/10. Props to the legendary Darren Wang for once again carried the whole movie on his shoulders. I'm pretty sure if it's another actor, I may not rate this movie this high. Darren Wang always amazed me with his skills, damn he always took me into his roller coaster of emotions. Another shout out to the rest of the casts, they did amazing too!

❤Cinematography : 10/10. Almost perfect shoots, angles, cuts/transitions & most importantly I love the CGI works!

❤Music : 7,5/10. Nothing worth to remember but the sound effects are placed perfectly. It complemented the action sequences.

Things I'd like to criticize :
(-)Once again, I really wanted the production team to extend this premise & story line into a big series. 20 episodes maybe? Just like "Monster Hunt", we didn't get the chance to delve into the world of "Super Me" that well. The production team fortunately made a justice to the story line for a one shot movie, but to make this into a much better project, it'd be better to explain & add the background stories of each of the characters (like how the kind vendor went through the same way as Sang Yu did, or how San literally had the loyalty towards Sang Yu in wealth & poor, the indepth explanation of the dream world, new characters, etc) into a series.

(-)How difficult it was for the viewers to interpret the ENDING! I had multiple theories & I sorted them into two main possibilities (SPOILER ALERT!! : a.)Either Sang Yu had already died bcs he was killed by the mafia/trapped in the 'in between dream & reality' world so the happy ending actually his dream all along, or b.) Sang Yu did survive and the ending showed that the demon (his super ego) has incorporated with his actual life and will always be there to remind Sang Yu to not go back to the way he was ) It's up to you guys how you wanted to interpret it.

(-) SPOILER ALERT!! One plot hole I seem to notice : When Sang Yu trapped in the 'in between dream & reality' world, he envisioned his past and one of the highlights was how he died/actually jumped from the building. So was that true? He actually died and all along it was his dream/his spirit trying to get the things that he couldn't get in the real life?

Other than that, I loooveee this movie! Yes it will make your head go crazy or even feeling slight depressed for thinking the suitable interpretation of the ending, but trust me, it's worth your time. One clear message that I get while I watched this movie : DON'T BE AFRAID TO TAKE LONG-LONG BABY STEPS TOWARDS YOUR DREAMS, FOR A SUDDEN ACHIEVEMENT THAT YOU GOT FROM CHEATING WILL ONLY COSTS YOU MORE.

So, what are you waiting for? Watch this masterpiece & tell me your theories!
(P.S. For one of the explanations/ theories for the ending : https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.cinemablend.com/news/2567591/super-me-ending-explained-was-it-all-just-a-dream )

Overall, I'll score this movie 8,5/10 ❤

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another multiverse Mulan bites the dust

this is an action adventure film adaptation of a female heroine from ancient traditional folklore. this film re-imagines the character, re-imagines her ordeals, and re-imagines the universe/arc she lives in (like amultiverse of sort). this film is suitable from teenagers segment and above. it has decent quality filmatography, lighting effects, and film quality shooting techniques accompanied with generally enjoyable background sound/music arrangements and selections.

there is nothing fresh/original and outstanding about the storyline and the plot. this film offers a generous employment of natural environment, but there are a few goofs (for example, the same scene from 2 different angles show the moon differently, one with a full moon while another with 3/4 of a moon). some of the actors' performances are decent, but not enough to make them endearing. martial arts choreographies are accompanied with string-fu and they are arguably enjoyable. the casting, actors, and performances are decent, but nothing outstanding. there are minor inconsistencies with the dubbing (voice over) but overall it's passable.

from the ending, it looks like the producer and/or the director planned for a sequel.

the film starts to go downhill fast for me starting from the battle scene midway through the film. the chronological order of the decelerating enjoyment goes like this = observable issues with the battle scene -> dancing-singing Mulan -> drunken Mulan revealing she is a woman -> the shaman/witch segment -> etc.

//turnoffs//
- translation is mediocre. for example, come on, (Thai) baht? we are talking about Northern Wei dynasty in the 4th century AD here.
- the realism aspect of the fighting scenes can at times be lacking and inconsistent. it's the same issue with the battle scenes, the design/setup and choreography are nice, but the realism aspect is inhibited. i am not fully certain if this is entirely the director's fault, the editing's fault, or both. a few examples, i) the killing of captured prisoners segment. there is no way anybody will get hurt by the way the sword is moved to cut the throats; ii) the battle scene midway through the film. there is a segment of 2 soldiers thrusting their spears towards an enemy. thing is, the enemy vomits out blood when the tips of the spears barely touched the surface of his armor; iii) at the battle scene midway through the film, when the two opposing armies rushed towards each other, you can actually observe a few of the extras halting and waiting (for something). it's battle, doing that will get you hacked and killed instantly; iv) the actor playing Mulan fumbles with the sword grip; iv) sometimes the actor playing Mulan's sword swing looks low-energy and slow, and there are a few instances that the way she holds the sword could easily injure her wrist; etc.
- sometimes there are editing effects that can get distracting and annoying, like the flashes of light, blurring effect, etc.

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