Reviews

All is fair in love and war...

For those who love wuxia or Zhang Yi Mou's films, Hero will weave around you, wrapping you in its hypnotic effects of color, music, scenery, and skilled performances. The film is a poetic examination of the different facets of being a hero and the sacrifices required. As a fan of both wuxia and Zhang Yi Mou I found this film breathtakingly beautiful and emotionally heartbreaking.

It is helpful to understand on the first watch of Hero that the story is not told in chronological order or from a single viewpoint. Each viewpoint and version of the story has a particular color hue. When the warrior Nameless is brought before the Qin emperor, gray and black dominate the color scheme. Nameless has killed the three most infamous and dangerous assassins in the realm granting him unprecedented access to the emperor, coming within 10 paces of him with only several rows of candles between them. The emperor asks Nameless to explain how he came to possess the weapons when even 3000 soldiers could not acquire them.

Nameless (Jet Li) tells the emperor a story of how he defeated Sky (Donnie Yen) and his silver spear in the rain accompanied by an old blind man playing the guqin. Every time I watch this movie it is a treat to see Jet Li and Donnie Yen fighting in the rain with water dripping from the rooftops. Next, in a world gone crimson, Nameless explains how he defeated the warriors and lovers Snow (Maggie Cheung) and Broken Sword (Tony Leung). Broken Sword believes that calligraphy and sword fighting are intertwined. He and Snow are the masters in a calligraphy school drenched in red but have a rift driven between them. This vermillion school is the home of primal emotions-jealousy, hate, lust, and revenge. Nameless wants a banner with the unique and 20th version of the word "sword". This memory has a sequence with an extraordinary fight between Snow and Moon (Zhang Zi Yi). In a spiraling storm of golden leaves the two women swirl and parry until blood is drawn and the leaves echo the color of life and death.

The emperor doesn't believe Nameless and gives his version of events now told in blue. The characters are calm, clear thinking and accepting instead of being ruled by their passions. Instead of Nameless ending up with the swords because of vengeance, this time the lovers willingly hand over their swords in order for the skilled Nameless to kill the emperor. After Snow sacrifices herself Nameless and Broken Sword have a balletic battle over a tranquil cerulean lake.

Finally, the truth is told in white as death hovers ever near for the characters and the genuineness of their motives is revealed. The emperor's memories of Snow and Broken Sword attacking him three years ago are in green with floating green curtains hanging from the throne room ceiling. In this emerald world Broken Sword had a moment of clarity and that clarity distanced Snow from him.

Zhang Yi Mou's lush and color saturated frames were romantic and stunningly spectacular. Every version of the events was filtered through the chosen color-lighting, wardrobe, and sets. He is a director who always knows how to get the most out of nature's scenery whether in the wind blown desert or a verdant hillside. Tan Dun's score was splendidly lovely and mournful.

This film had a dream cast. Jet Li's reserved acting was perfect for the Nameless and committed warrior. Maggie Cheung and Tony Leung have never looked more beautiful. Snow and Broken Sword had a tender yearning for each other tragically tethered to her burning desire for revenge. They were truly the emotional heart of the film. Neither the lovers nor their swords could ever be parted. Their final scene was emotionally shattering. Zhang Zi Yi played Broken Sword's servant, Moon. Thinly drawn, she filled it out as much as she could. Donnie Yen was only briefly featured and brought the martial arts credibility to go along with Li's. Chen Dao Ming gave the right amount of balance, maybe more humanity than he deserved to the tyrant emperor.

Despite being a wuxia, the fights were not the main thrust of the story, even though they were well choreographed and shot. For those not familiar with the genre, the fights often relied on wire work. Though most of the actors were quite graceful as they danced and twirled in the air, there were a few gaps. The choreography tended to err on the side of the visual instead of the realistic which made for imaginative sword work. Jet Li moving through the rain drops is still one of my favorite movie images. The large Qin army raining down impossibly numerous arrows on the calligraphy school with two characters countering them conveyed the dire situation of the heroes and the high stakes.

The only thing that kept this film from being perfect for me was the ending. The emperor's adage that the brutal destruction of his enemies and annexation of their lands was for the greater good and the hero's acceptance of this was disturbing. I thought it was ironic that the old calligraphy master said, "Qin arrows can never annihilate our written words." In reality, the emperor did just that by massive book burnings and burying alive over 400 scholars who disagreed with him. I do agree with Broken Sword that the goal is to be rid of the desire to kill and the need for the sword and to live in peace with one another. Because this is not my country and history, I do not have an educated view on this emperor, only a limited personal opinion. Whether desiring to kill the emperor to prevent further war or letting him live to prevent further war, the heroes were willing to sacrifice all for their beliefs.

Despite the ending, I loved this film. The haunting score, the lush colors, fanciful fights, and sorrowful love story pull me in every time. In large part due to the stellar cast and Zhang Yi Mou's exquisite directing style, I have found few wuxias better than this one.


3/27/23

Leia Mais

There is nothing really wrong about this movie (except for the ghost snapchat filter, I can’t anymore), but there is nothing really right either. It’s structured in a way that it does not hold the suspense and I honestly did not care about the mystery of it all. The characters presented no depth and their personalities were as bland as they can get. Not to mention random involvement of the police, which was honestly not necessary.

The plot twist by the end made sense, but also came out of nowhere since it was not really set up throughout the film - it was the ending that simply felt flat.

When I watch movies like that I always wonder, how did this cast end up here? These are not unknown actors who have to take any project thrown at them. What made them think these were roles worth taking? How can one see a script to a mediocre movie like that and gladly be part of it?

There were a few aesthetic shots, but overall, the movie did not really offer much to be praised.

Leia Mais

Movie as flawed as the original drama: BL romance stays too superficial. Missed opportunity!

The movie (in its first half) is kind of a repetition of the drama with not a lot of progress regarding the relationship between the two main characters. Important questions regarding the couple's dynamic and the power of Adachi are never discussed. It could have been so much more if the writer had took this opportunity to approach topic such as power imbalance and consent in a relationship.

However, the second part of the film get slightly more profound as it broaches on deeper storylines around the treatment of same sex couple in Japan. Unfortunately, it remains quite superficial and reserved on the subject but at least it lays some good foundation before closing the story. Let's say that it is clearly more "baby-steps" than real LGBTQ+ militancy but it has the merit to exist I suppose.

Similarly to the drama, I had some trouble believing in the alchemy between the two main actors. There are very few believable skinship moments and I felt that the romance was progressing in an unnatural way: sometimes really slowly and some other times too quickly. The relationship was depicted as very pure and modest but that does not justify completely the lack of sparks between the leads.

The film-making was quite standard for the genre but given the release in cinema, it would have been nice to feel a bit more the budget when watching the picture and to have some more eye-catching scenes. The soundtrack did not leave a lasting impression on me, maybe because it was not really present.

I would recommend this to people that are fan of the original drama and are curious of the future of the couple. Do not expect something really deep but if you are up for a sweet BL office romance, this might do it for you!

Leia Mais

The ending scene of Asuka.....

So this is my theory...
In end there is a special scene where the headlines and picture of the murder of the red person changes intlo asuka's.

So from my point of view i think that asuka is actually murdered when she was 8 and in the whole movie asuka's character is just hallucination .

In the scene where they are in the library and Takahiro say something about him going to amusement park with asuka's family but she cuts off in the middle and in the ending scene they showed that she was murdered in an amusement park.

Next when they went to beach Asuka says that when they were younger they had a school trip like some swimming trip or something and she did not attend due to her cold but on next day they all saw her as invisible and forgotten I guess that's when she was murdered because of that they did not actually saw her and even she didn't know that she actually died.


I think they saw her at night because she only appeared to everyone at night for body search because she is the next person for body search. And Takahiro is the closest person to Asuka that's why only he saw her even at morning.


* THIS IS ONLY WHAT I OPINION AFTER WATCHING IT *

Leia Mais

melodramatic overkill

I've kept this review absolutely spoiler free because this is a movie which would completely lose any charm it has if the viewer is spoiled. Although, I personally found the poster of the movie and the arrangement of main roles in the cast itself to be a very huge spoiler.

The movie focusses on five girls at a literature club meeting, who take the podium one by one to read a short story presenting their view on the death of Shiraishi Itsumi, the queen bee of Seibo Maria Girls School. In each story the girls tell us how the kind Shiraishi Itsumi invited them to the elusive literature club, and each blames a different member for her death–mind you, this one i found quite interesting, how neither of the four think Itsumi suicided.

This a three tier story, the first being the account by the girls. Next is a message from the dead Shiraishi Itsumi herself and it reveals certain surprising details. By the end of it, we wonder is Itsumi really dead? That's where the last part of the movie comes in.

The real crimes and motivations of the girls are unexpected and quite dark considering the character we've been presented earlier–mind you, presented by they themselves. Darker is the story of Itsumi, who hides a viciousness behind that beatific smile. Darkest and craziest is the character who has been absolutely blameless. Although I could fairly predict which direction this was headed and who was lying, it would be wrong to call “Girls in the Dark” predictable.

For a thriller, it is not exactly gripping, but you somehow want to see how it ends you know? It is completely a psychological story which utilises the unreliable narration and the story will elude you till the very end, not because it's a particularly good plot twist, but because they drag it till the end. Instead of four girls, they should've kept to three because the story of the third girl Diane is just so out of place (maybe they just needed her to plant the lily flowers from France?) and makes it drag even more.

The motivations of the characters were not entertaining at all, and Itsumi herself was the most confusing one. There was no explanation for why she did what she did when she would've been much better off otherwise. The exposition of the villain is particularly ineffective, the ending was dull (and yes, after watching ten japanese productions, it's really not that hard to predict what was in that soup). Final takeaway: inconsistent storytelling which tried too hard.

Trigger warnings are potential spoilers and have been included comment below the review

Leia Mais

A film noir conveying an unclear and grey message

This police movie is quite classic in the topics it approaches: corruption in the police force, undercover investigations, drug crimes,...Its plot does not stand out among the existing movies in that genre and suffers from some pacing issues.

The main default of the film is the grey message that it is conveying. The ending was quite unsatisfactory to me, as I'm left to wonder what was the morale of the show. A story does not always require to have deep meaning but as the characters were almost having philosophical discussion on what being in the police workforce entails, the conclusion felts a bit like a cop-out.

The main cast (-an entirely masculine one with a lot of veterans) deliver solid performances. The relationship between the two leads is incredibly well depicted, making us doubts a lot the intentions of the characters. I wish the story had offered even more options to the actors to act their hearts out, because I'm sure they can show even more than what they did with the material given.

The film-making and directing are strong. There is clearly a "film noir" aspiration in the aesthetics and storytelling of the movie making some of the scenes really appealing to the viewer's eyes. On another side, the OST did not stand out to me.

I would recommend this to people loving Choi Woo Shik or Jo Jin Woong and/or who are looking for a police movie with high production value. It is still a pretty flawed picture in terms of story, pacing and ending, so you will not miss much skipping this one out.

Leia Mais

I only have one question here. HOW DARE YOU TO WASTE SUCH A TALENT AS ROH YOON SEO?

?️For two hours I've been watching good actresses playing fake friendship, fake love, and the most unconvincing crying ever. If it's unconvincing, it has to be a comedy, but it's far from that. Even the male characters were hopelessly bland, targeting the female audience. And I know, that this is not the actors' fault but the screenwriter's because in Our Blues Roh YoonSeo had a really great performance.

?️Seriously, guys, for how long are you going to make budget-safe and nostalgia-selling movies? I see you were influenced by 25 21, but the screenplay there was originally crafted. 20th Century didn't even bother to shoot a couple of frames on a real film camera.

You can't fake nostalgia. Periodt.

Leia Mais

An early gem worth checking out at least once.

A damsel in distress grows up into a strong independent warrior who slaughters sexist war-hungry pigs for breakfast.

Unfortunately, that metamorphosis happens off screen, but it is pretty funny to watch her aimlessly fly and teleport (preceded by a puff of smoke) back into the plot while her mentor scrambles around on foot behind her in a desperate attempt to catch up. There were many occasions where I couldn't help thinking that it would have been incredible to see back when this technology was still new and surprising.

The version I watched included the original score performed by Devil Music Ensemble that was premiered in 2008 and let me tell you it greatly heightened the experience. The surviving copy of this film is cropped strangely, cutting off important pieces of the characters and the intertitles, and the video seems to constantly dance like it's being viewed through the steam of a summer heatwave.

As with most old film, I'm surprised that more of it isn't washed out by now, but perhaps the fuzzy quality has spared us from having to think too hard about the unsavory details that would be frowned upon today. I'm no expert on some of these character choices (the most obvious one being the fake teeth), so I really can't say.

The limitations of the medium do require modern audiences to suspend their disbelief on quite a few occasions:

~ Terrified villagers run back and forth along one stretch of road like chickens with their heads newly liberated from their bodies.

~ Warlords, henchmen, and concubines painfully slouch their way up and down that same palace staircase countless times and absolutely no one looks like they know where they're going while doing it.

~ Subtlety rarely comes through in silent film, so the characters either act with exaggerated full body emotions or look like they aren't acting at all as they amble along following orders they don't appear to understand.

~ Escaping characters waste time walking in useless circles around a room before leaving the frame.

This last nitpick is just a personal thing, but I'm not a fan of actors running up to the camera and putting it in their mouths (or near enough to it). It thankfully only happens twice and may be a cool shot for some effect, but I don't need to see that and would prefer not to.

All that being said, the ending gave me strong "since I can't marry her, my cousin will have to do it for me" vibes and I will take that to my grave.

Leia Mais

A time capsule

This film was...surprisingly sophisticated and a decent female-centric melodrama for its time. It's pretty dramatic due to character decision-making and I know some things would seem like not a big deal in today's age — which is why I see this as more of a time capsule film. It was cool to see what story-writing focused on in 1960.

There are some annoyingly convenient plot developments (i.e. secrets being revealed because "she's sick and hallucinating!"), some narration that was so weirdly judgmental it took me out of it, some instances of cringy over-acting, and an ending that feels a bit superfluous, but it held up surprisingly well.

Leia Mais

Watched for a mind f*ck, Got a mind f*ck

I saw some edits of this drama on TikTok and saw that it was just a movie. I had been looking for a sad movie to watch so I didn't have to invest 16 hours of my life into a sad Kdrama. And when I tell you this is not the movie for ice cream and cry time, I wouldn't be lying.

The story had a few plot holes and parts where I didn't understand what was going on, but that could also be held to the fact THAT I WAS IN TEARS for a majority of this drama. I really have no room to judge whatsoever on the plot of this movie. Due to that, I gave it a 10/10. I can't rate it lower just because "he died" or "why did it have to end like that" the whole point of this movie was to get that point across. It's not like it was a cute little romance movie and I'm now gonna write a hate review because the couple I wanted to get together, in the end, didn't. This movie was about a serious subject and I shall rate it accordingly.

When going in to watch this movie I was a little worried about Park Jin-Young being cast in it. I was extremely nervous with this movie's serious subject matter, that the movie would try to "sexualize" him too much. But I was very surprised by the fact that he wasn't portrayed as a super hot brother seeking revenge on his poor twin. They didn't make him look flawlessly attractive giving him perfect skin a gorgeous makeup. He wasn't ripped in all the scenes where his shirt was off, and they surely didn't give very many of those scenes. On top of that Park Jin-Young's acting as Wol Woo was unrecognizable. Every signal scene with Wol Woo had me bawling my eyes out. Overall, the acting of both twins was splendidly done by Park Jin-Young.

I think this movie could have been completely ruined if they had added some sappy sad songs over some of the scenes. The lack of music made this movie seem all more real. There was no dramatic fight scene music as Il Woo was fighting for his life. There was no a-cappella being sung over all of the SA scenes. The only music throughout the whole movie that really made an impression on me was the Christmas Carol.

While I do think this was a movie worth my watch to see Park Jin-Young's amazing acting. If he wasn't in it I probably would have never found it or even considered watching it. The chances of me rewatching this again a slim to none but I am thankful that I had the opportunity to watch this one time.

If you do plan on watching this movie I won't stop you, but be warned this movie holds no bounds and absolutely no room for happiness. So grab your box of tissues or your roll of toilet paper as I did, and prepare to be Mind F*cked.

Leia Mais

The best acting from Kento Yamazaki so far

Just finished and I must say, the probability of me watching this again is pretty high.

The story follows two individuals, Nagata and Saki, from their weird first encounter to their ill-fated relationship that changes one another for the worse. Both individuals have big dreams. Nagata is a struggling theater director who's awkward and standoffish to everyone around him but dreams of making it big and coming into a lot of money through his plays. Saki is a kind and considerate girl who wants to be an actress in the great city of Tokyo, but life has other plans in store for her.

In the beginning it seems like this will be a cute little love story where the good-natured girl falls for the quiet boy but things take a quick turn as Saki comes to terms with the person Nagata really is. She did state that she knew what kind of person he was from the beginning, but a person can only put up with so much for so long. Though the movie never elaborates, I thought perhaps she stayed with Nagata so long because there was a certain comfort in being with him and it's hard to let go of the people you grow accustomed to. The highs were really high and the lows were so very low. I do however like how this movie didn't shy away from the toxicity that many people face in relationships and the strain it causes on the partners involved. This demonstrates perfectly that just because you love and deeply care about someone doesn't mean they are good for you and they should be in your life. Although it was unclear and never voiced by either of the two I personally believe that Saki and Nagata loved each other. It wasn't the bike scene that had me crying but the convo they had that turned into the play. It was so well done and the dialogue was great. The script for this movie was really good.

I came for Kento Yamazaki and heard he had some good acting chops in this. I wasn't disappointed. This is hands down the best acting I've seen from him so far. He looked unkempt and messy for the part but it was the instigative attitude and seemingly nonchalant front he portrayed that kept me enthralled. I would love for him to do more projects like this. Matsuoko Mayu was just as good.

Leia Mais

Youthful platonic and romantic story with the sweetest male lead ever!

This is a very cute movie with the sweetest male lead that can exist. It is a very youthful and platonic romance with a slow and quiet pacing. Story-telling wise, it does not reinvent the wheel but provide a satisfying experience to its viewers. The story has a real sentimental vibe and illustrates (-sometimes quite literally) in an interesting way the time passing by and the evolution of the relationship between its main protagonists.

I was impressed by the acting of Yamazaki Kento. He can sometimes be a bit of a miss for me but here I found his emotional scenes pretty convincing. He was able to subtly demonstrate a lot of feelings in a more natural and subdue way than in some of his other works. Overall, this picture had a good cast and did not feature too much overacting (which is often a big flaw in the Japanese productions).

Production was rather standard for a high school settings but some of the visuals were rather pretty. The stationery used, the doodles and drawings showcased in the picture were also a nice addition to the plot as it become essential to the characters developments. The OST was pleasant with his classical piano touches and fitted well the story.

I would recommend this to people looking for a sweet quiet romantic and non-toxic story with a male lead exhibiting all the best traits of characters and full of green flags.

Leia Mais

Very Loose Adaptation of the Manga.

While watching this in theaters I had two thoughts... "this is different from the manga," and "Itagaki Rhihito should have played Chigira-kun instead of Takahashi Kyohei."

•❅✧❅✦ Story ✦❅✧❅•

The film plays out exactly like the synopsis describes. Maaya and Chigira play the unrequited love game. It pretty much follows most of the flow of the manga, although the film does change quite a few things. The changes are big, but doesn't change much of the story or end goal. However, if I have to nit-pit, it would be that there is nothing that makes this film stand out in any way. Yes, it's beautifully done and it's romantic, but it's really just your average Japanese shojo manga adapted into a film. No drama, no amazing acting, no thing.

There is also quite a few plot holes and cliff hangers. The film brings up Chigira's past, but really does nothing with it. We know it's traumatizing for him, but because there is no dialogue during these flashbacks we don't know what is going on aside from his parents yelling at each other. We see Tezuka (Chigura's former, now rival) have a rivalry with Chigura, but we don't see them getting on good terms with each other. We only see Maaya tell him he doesn't actually hate Chigura, but he likes him. . . then the next scene they are now buddies. No closure. Lastly, the ending. We ended on a confession and kiss. . . but what about the whole school knowing about Maaya and Chigura? The whole school was messaging her and cursing her out, but she goes to Chigura's race anyways. They cuss her out then suddenly starting cheering Chigura on with her. Is her schoolmates over her dating Chigura because she was cheering her on? What happened here? I wanna have some closure, not just end on a kiss!

Anyways, the film wasn't bad, but when you think about it from a storytelling aspect, there are a lot of loose ends.

•❅✧❅✦ Manga vs Film ✦❅✧❅•

Sooooo. . . The film took their liberties and changed quite a few things. Some of them include. . .

• Yamada-kun being her classmate instead of being someone from her cram school. They also made him very very nerdy and unattractive.
• They didn't emphasis Maaya's thing for black haired guys with glasses, so Chigura randomly wears glasses at home.
• Maaya and Chigura don't ever do a "pretend dating game." Chigura just invites her on a date to the temple instead of the aquarium during their "unrequited love game."
• Tezuka is already Maaya's friend from the beginning and it's very clear he likes her.
• Maaya's friend doesn't seem to have a crush on Chigura in the film, unlike her having a crush on him in the manga.
• Maaya doesn't interrupt Chigura's fangirl's confession. She let's him go to her.
• The two keychains they have don't represent each other unlike the manga. Chigura buys it because Maaya thought it was cute.

And this list goes on.

I think it was a very loose adaptation where they changed lots of scenarios, but we still got the same end result.
I personally still like the manga better, but I enjoy how they changed Tezuka from being a random student Maaya meets to already someone who is her close friend with a crush on her from the beginning.

•❅✧❅✦ Acting ✦❅✧❅•

I feel bad saying this, but Takahashi Kyohei is not a great actor, not is he a great Chigura-kun. I had pictured Chigura-kun to be stoic only until Maaya says or does something that pulls on his heart-strings. However, Takahashi is stoic the whole time. He doesn't seem to be in love with Maaya. Furthermore, his acting is very stiff so his kissing, running, and lines are delivered a little to stiff to my liking.

Takahashi's performance wasn't terrible, but it was stiff to the point where half-way through the film I started thinking "why doesn't Maaya get together with Tezuka? Tezuka is so much better!" Itagaki Rhihito's performance was so natural and good, that I was looking forward to him appearing on screen more than Takahashi. I also started to think that with Itagaki's acting talents, he might make a better Chigura than Takahashi. Everything that Tezuka thinks is etched onto his face, so if Itagaki had portrayed Chigura maybe we would get the Chigura that is stoic until Maaya pulls on his heart-strings just like the manga. In the manga it's implied that maybe Chigura likes Maaya from the start since he blushes and gets upset based on her actions. Because of Takahashi's constantly stoic version of Chigura we can't really tell of Chigura likes Maaya until he takes her on a date and confesses to her.

•❅✧❅✦ Overall ✦❅✧❅•

This film wasn't terrible as a Japanese shojo movie, but it didn't really live up the the manga. There were a lot of plot holes and questions that weren't answered, as well as a stiff male lead. I just felt the magic that was in the manga was missing in the film simply because of his stiffness. Maybe if it were there I would like the film just as much as I do the film.

Leia Mais