Reviews

The relationship between two brothers

Even though I will watch another two movies tomorrow, today is officially my last full day at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival also known as KVIFF.
It was awesome, I'm definitely going again next year!

I can say Pierce could be one of the best movies I watched here (if not The best). I witnessed the red carpet presentation of the staff and the main protagonists of the movie (omg the applause was so weak, I felt very sorry for them ?) and then went to the actual screening.

Ms. Low's speech was awesome, she even cried during it. Almost every seat in the hall was occupied, that was crazy! And then they received so many long and loud applauses I was happy ^^ I hope they will win the main contest, it blew me away how good it was, they deserve it ?? I even cried which is very rare for me. The movie is beautiful. I knew it would be good when I saw the big poster at the festival. This is Nelicia Low's debut feature if I'm not mistaken which is even more breathtaking. She is very talented. It left such strong emotions on me that I was trembling after the end and couldn't get to calm myself. If I could I would make another reservation or buy a ticket to watch this masterpiece again!

A big Thank You to Ms. Low, the staff, and the actors, you all did an amazing job ??Pierce is the best movie of 2024 for me and I think nothing will beat it now. And I'm excited to see what awesome project Nelicia Low will prepare for us in the future :)

Today is one of the happiest days in my life ?

Leia Mais

Well that was... something?

I enjoyed it overall. Japanese horror is always a bit unhinged and morally disturbing, so I was not too taken aback but yeah, it was a shitshow hahahah. It kind of reminded me of Grand Guignol.
I haven't read the manga and I felt a bit confused at some point, but it was nothing to bothersome. Stuff like the reason for Zera's goal and crazyness, for exemple.
I loved the acting, the cast did a really great job, especially Tamiya, and the characters were all great (I mean, as characters, not as people obviously). One thing tho, at the beginning they introduce the characters with one clear stereotypical role/personality each: like there's the nerd, the emo, the stupid, etc... so I thought they were going to be caricatures, but then they dropped it and those roles were no longer portrayed at all throughout the movie. Which I think is great, I would have hated caricatures, but then why introduce them like that in the first place?
I was also confused with how they handled Daff. The whole Tamiya, Daff, Kaneda thing was super wholesome, and I was expecting them to die and feel sad about it. And you can see it's what the director tried to do: make you sad about the original hikari club getting crushed. But then why have Daff do such a shameful thing? I mean, just touching a woman and wanking to it already made me lose all sympathy I had for him, but they made it even worse by showing everything, in the most humiliating/shameful way. So in the end I was like "Poor Kaneda and Tamiya for losing what they loved the most, but Daff you can die idc." Which isn't what the director was aiming for I would guess.
The colorimetry was awesome, it was really beautiful to watch. And I'm not a fan of gore but it was ok I guess, and although it wasn't very realistic it was not too ridiculous either. Except for the guy who got thrown against the wall, I laughed so hard at that one.
Anyway, don't watch it if you don't like being morally challenged and if you don't like gore, otherwise, go for it!

Leia Mais

A story that I think I will never forget for the rest of my life.

I think I cried at this story when I was 15. How time flies! Now I am 28 years old.

I decided to write this review because I suddenly remembered Miura and it was Koizora that made me meet him.

I was just watching it last night but this time I didn't cry like when I was younger. Could it be that I've become colder? hahaha.
But I did keep thinking about how obsessed I was with Koizora at that time, and even more so when I learned that it was a true story. At first I didn't really believe that this story was real, I kept wondering, does this type of love really exist? Well, reality always surpasses fiction, right?

I still like the story even though a decade has passed. I think they are stories that never die and you will continue to remember them even if you are of age.

The chemistry between Yui and Miura was very good but I felt a little uncomfortable in some scenes, especially the intimate scenes. Not because it bothers me to see intimate scenes, but because they were recorded from a slightly strange plane lol.

I also believe that even if I am 40 years old, this story will remain in my heart and I will never be able to forget it.

Leia Mais

While there’s nothing outstanding about this movie, it’s nevertheless a fun, lighthearted watch with an entertaining plot. It knows not to take itself too seriously yet manages to build tension toward the end anyway.

Most of the story is driven by the female lead’s tendency to misinterpret things as evidence of crimes, then make questionable decisions as she investigates the supposed crimes. It leads to plenty of moments that had me sighing in amused resignation, because of course she does whatever she shouldn’t do in any given situation. Her outlandish ideas did actually keep me guessing which way the film’s writers would take things, too.

Acting-wise no one blew me away, but the cast were all able to match the tone of the script and keep things enjoyable. Most of the film understandably focuses on the three leads, and I especially like the comfortable casualness between the female lead and her long-suffering policeman friend. That said, the supporting characters are entertainingly quirky in their own ways. An amusing example is how the acquaintance of the two friends shamelessly prods the cop to be bold about his feelings for the female lead solely because the young woman wants to see any resulting drama.

Another aspect of the movie I really like is the resolution of the climax, which had me actively cheering the female lead on. My favorite small touch, however, is that the emergency operators recognize the female lead’s number/caller ID and greet her by name whenever she calls.

Now, a quick side note about the music: I honestly can’t recall there being any whatsoever, so I just stuck my rating in the middle. Presumably there were at least some background instrumental bits to help set the tone for suspenseful scenes, and if so I guess they must’ve blended in pretty naturally.

Overall I wasn’t deeply invested in this movie, but I still had a good time watching it. If I’m ever in the mood for something kinda silly and fun in the future then a rewatch isn’t off the table.

Leia Mais

Forbidden love…crimes, tension, cheating, everything.

The first time I was introduced to this movie was when RM from BTS came out with his single, “Closer”. The music video was this movie, and I was immediately intrigued. However I never got to watch it. Later, my friend told me she watched the movie, and said it was one of the best movies she ever watched. Once again it got added into my movie list, and yet, I still haven’t gotten to watching it.

Only today, while I was bored and in need of watching something, closer by RM was non stop replaying in my head, and I decided to watch it.

First off, I was caught off guard by the fact that this movie was 2 hours long.

I knew a little about the movie through my friend…”insomniac detective falls for one of his suspects.” Hmmm…sounds romantic right? What could they possibly need 2 hours for?

Then everything started confusing me.
The insomnianc detective in question was married, and the FL aka the suspect, was a widower, suspect of the murder of her late husband.

I was confused. Was this going to be an affair love story?
I didn’t like that one bit. If there’s one thing I dislike, it’s when writers try to make affairs seem romantic, to some extent I would’ve tolerated it if both parties had terrible partners, but that wasn’t the case at all. Well, I guess not the case for the detective, who was the one who silently initiated things in the first place.

I wondered why my friend praised this movie so much, and even though they never do anything physical in the first few minutes of the movie, there was definitely emotional cheating involved.

But I didn’t want to jump into anything since I wasn’t even halfway into the plot. So I trusted the process.

Things unravelled, and the plotwists kept me on my toes. But still, I could not find it in me to like the main characters. They both kept finding ways to make things worse for each other, but, you know how the quote goes..”The heart wants what it wants.” And that was very much the case for these two.

Towards the ending of the movie, I started feeling a little empathetic towards them. The tension, the struggle, the love albeit it being wrong. Everything was so well done, that at the end of everything I couldn’t even find it in me to be mad at them!

The ending broke me. And although I couldn’t understand why the two main characters did the things they did, and although I would still not support them and their actions, my heart ached for them regardless.

Amazing movie, amazing acting, and amazing camera work. I’m not usually a big fan of cinematography where they try to be too creative with their zoom ins and transitions and makes it feel like you should just focus on the camerawork rather than the movie itself, but they made you pay attention to both. The small zoom ins, and the way the camera is telling you, “Pay attention to this!” and you can’t help but listen and do so.

I recommend it, although the beginning is a little slow (in my opinion), everything gets better as the story goes on.

Leia Mais

Movie missed the mark on many aspects, but still a good watch.

I read the description of the movie and thought this could be good, thinking it would be a thriller kind of movie and it got better when I saw that Zee and NuNew are in it, so what can go wrong, boy was I wrong.
I won’t just be assuming things are going to be something just by reading the description anymore without looking at the tags, so I guess that’s what I get for not reading the tags they have for this and thinking it’s going to be a thriller but whatever, I still thought it would be good, but even that thought fell short as I was watching it.
Story:
I liked the idea of the story, that’s what made me want to watch it, plus the hotties I would get to see. ? Anyway… I just wish the story didn’t fall short of what it could have been… It’s like they tried to make a short movie into a long movie without making it long, but not actually doing it. They needed to made the movie longer so that it would allow for a more substantial background story and character development.
It all happened in a blind of an eye it seems like, so they really needed to make this longer, or made a series so more could have been done, shown an told. I had questions (well mostly just one) why I was watching this, The main one got answer at the end of the movie, but a few of them wasn’t… so if it was longer then they could have answer them plus more.
Music:
I liked the music thru out the movie, I though it was pleasing and suited the movie and the situations well.
Acting:
It’s Zee and NuNew what more can I say? They others were good as well. Lol
Overall:
I did like the movie, it is good enough to watch once, though I wouldn’t say it’s something you would want to re-watch much, if at all (well for the story that is, but to see the hotties yea I can see that). ;D

Leia Mais

A Realistic Portrayal of Abuse

I wanted to write a review because this movie didn’t have any reviews before this. This is my first review that I have written.

I really liked how realistic this movie portrays abuse. The abuse isn’t too graphic but the scenes stick with you throughout the movie. Tong Li Ya and Wu Yu Han did a phenomenal job in acting and showcasing this particular story of abuse. I really felt the emotions and pain Xu Min was feeling throughout the entire film. The supporting cast did an excellent job in portraying their characters as well; especially Wang Ying Lu. (A favorite scene of mine was the bedroom scene with Xu Min and Xiao Meng).

Throughout the movie, I was constantly rooting for Xu Min to be able to get away from her husband but realistically it isn’t that simple. The movie does an excellent job in how nuanced abuse can be. The movie also showcases how filing for a divorce can be a demanding both a physically and mentally draining process. The emotional toll on the children as well was a very realistic aspect in the movie. The music didn’t stand out but also didn’t distract from the film. I highly recommend watching this movie if you can handle the topic matter.

Leia Mais

This was just bizarre

I watched this again after reading some of the positive reviews, thinking there must be something I missed in this story. But I still found it quite bizarre, violent, and triggering. I understand how the kidnapper wanted to help the suicidal man feel again and value his life. But using sexual assault didn't seem to be the best way to achieve this end goal. Then to see their relationship shift to a romantic one was just not believable. Stockholm Syndrome. If you want to see repeated and graphic male on male sexual assault, then this is the film for you. I have no problem with male on male sexual intimacy but the sex scenes were not sex, they were rape and it was just too gratuitous.

Why did I keep watching this? I really thought it would get better; that by the end it would actually make sense. But it did not.

Leia Mais

My life, my love, my lady, is the sea

Full Ship was a 1967 film set in a fishing village on a remote island. Poverty and tradition kept the islanders in a vicious cycle with seemingly no way out.

Gom Chi is a fifty-year-old captain of a fishing boat and the father of new baby boy. Two of his three grown sons died at sea while the third refuses to sail. The sailors and Gom owe money to the owner of the boat who takes most of their haul to pay for gas and union fees. If they don’t catch fish, not only do they not get paid, they owe for the use of the boat. They are paid pitifully even when a “full ship” returns, sometimes only hulled barley. Gom Chi dreams of owning a boat and when his boss finds out, calls in Gom Chi’s debts.

Full Ship demonstrated the trials of living in a subsistence community and much like old coal mine towns where people owed their soul to the company store, the villagers were always in debt to the boat owners. Despite having lost two sons to the sea, Gom Chi could not fathom why his son Do Sum wouldn’t join the other men on the boats. Villagers and family whispered that time in the military and his education had made him “wild.” Gom’s wife did not want either Do Sam or her new baby to become bewitched by the sea as Gom Chi had. Do Sam’s sister, Seul Seul, was not opposed to leaving the island, but her fiancé Yeon Cheol was happy eating yams and being with her, with no desire to move to “land.” Beom Soe, a former islander who made money on land, came back and had his gaze set on Seul Seul. He also brought a dark secret with him.

The last twenty minutes were dominated by tragedy after tragedy as the Dragon King reminded the villagers that they did not control the sea. And just as with the miserly boat owner, the bill for depending on the sea, came due.

“To escape from an inch of regret, to leave behind an inch of suffering, those people were thrown into the providence of the sea.”

2 July 2024

Leia Mais

REVENGE THRILLER BANKS INTO A FASCINATIONG WHODUNNIT

A young dude kills a young lady in a vicious way. Fisherman Dad is pissed and plans to avenge his daughter's death. This man doesn't care who knows his quest because he's willing to die as long as the killer dies first. Our ML is tearing the place to shreds in a really scary yet entertaining way because Daddy Don't Take Prisoners.

But just before this long movie's middle it struck me -- wait -- they never showed us the killer killing the young lady. And all of a sudden we're inside a fascinating whodunnit. I won't drop any hints here but tell you the quest for the killer makes this a THUMBS UP to watch.

What I will say is the movie slightly fumbled the reveal of the executioner. We discover that someone inspired the killer to kill the young lady, but the inspiration was fumbled instead of compelling. Once you've seen this film -- and you should -- see my comment below that says REVEAL SPOILER and tell me if you agree.

I watched this because of ZHOU XUN (RUYI, IMPERFECT VICTIM, IMPERFECT LOVE, etc.) and ZHOU YI RAN (TO THE WONDER). They didn't disappoint.

Leia Mais

It was not perfect, but it was perfectly entertaining.

Personally I like my zombie horrors with a dose of humor and I am a Hero delivers. I do think I might have laughed at some not exactly humorous moments too, but that's how you roll when you've seen so many horror movies in your life.

The best aspect of this movie is the fact it has personality. Having a normal guy be the real and grow to be a hero is a dynamic journey I love to see in movies. I do believe that he was too dumb and too naive for too long, but with how the story ended, I can somehow forgive it. What's more, I appreciated how the zombies had these specific behaviors connecting them to their past lives. Big shoutout to athlete, who from zombies' perspective must have been the MVP.

On the other hand, I wish they turned Hayakari Hiromi a bit later in the movie, or let her meet Suzuki Hideo faster. We did not really get to know her that well as full human before she turned, but after the change, she was not really much of a character to follow anyway.

The acting - good. I feel like the only person who truly had to show some skills was Oizumi Yo. The other characters were a bit too flat to requite a high level of performance.

Loved the design for the zombies. The eyes going sideways was creepy and the visible mutation was a great touch. They actually looked scary. Props for all the practical effects that made the movie that much more gruesome.

The action scenes were also great. Some more, some less believable, but I appreciate no one turned into a ninja or professional fighter. They all fought with all their strength and limited skills. That said, there was one scene closer to the end that did feel a bit long and I was really close to skipping few seconds.

Overall, this was such a fun ride. A lot of blood, a lot of killing zombies.

Leia Mais

Hits close to home in a good way.

Today's the last day of showing in our local cinemas. I tried so hard to stop myself from rewatching, yet in the end, I rewatched it today because this movie has been on my mind ever since my first watch last month.

I thought I wasn't gonna cry because I know the whole trajectory of the film, but boy was I wrong. It still hits close to home. The storyline is simple, but it's so damn relatable. Despite some nuances, I know that we Asians have some similarities in our family cultures. I'm not Thai nor Chinese, but I still related to M's family problems and complex relationship towards his family.

P'Billkin and P'Taew's acting is amazing. Honestly, all of them acted realistically. It just feels like you're watching a family live their lives.

The cinematography and color grading has a nostalgic feel to it. And the music scores too!!! One of my main reasons for rewatching this film is the score. Kudos to Jairaroeng Studio for making these magical scores. Huge thanks to P'Pat too for directing this film! His works are phenomenal.

This is the type of movie that you'll be thinking and remembering for a long, long time. I just wish that they put this on Netflix soon so that more people watch this masterpiece.

Please hug your grandmas for me. Love them while they're still alive.

Leia Mais

What I liked the most was that they didn't portray as much how aggressive Yano was towards Takahashi in the first part as he was in the manga. I really hated him for so many things and I still hate him, I'm sorry lol I completely understand what he was dealing with but he made a mistake and hurt Takahashi so much that I always dreamed that he won't stay with her.

Likewise, Takahashi, young and adult, was a strong character. She is not the typical silly protagonist who allows everything, she is intelligent, she says what she feels and does not dwell on the lies she tells Yano, she goes deeper making Yano recognize everything she really did and happened.

Sincerely Nana's sister (Yano's dead girlfriend). She's... a crazy bitch. She is so crazy and bad that she has no limits. She really wanted her to suffer for her entire life for being so bad, the worst thing is that people like her exist and it's scary.

I really enjoyed the movie, it goes from an innocent love to something that becomes a very twisted story.

The performances were very good and I sincerely recommend it. But you really won't stop hating Yano, sorry lol

Leia Mais

Beautiful, realistic romance story of an adulthood

Damn, I think this is the best Japanese romance movie that I ever watch. The plot was really good, portrayed the reality faced of many couples that faced the transition from university romantic life to fully responsible adults. The dilemma between career vs love isn't uncommon, and this movie shows them in a very beautiful way. There is also no apparent plot hole and strange introduction between characters (which I often find in many Japanese romance movies). I also like how this movie uses real-life references like Brazil vs Germany in WC 2014 to show "I'm still pretty lucky compared to them" and random online strolling on Google Street View (which I personally did many times).

Leia Mais