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Vermines (2023)
Infested with boredom and bad plot
This might seem like an unpopular opinion if you check the review section. But I got to say it. I found "Infested" very uninteresting and terrible in every way.
To start, the story is supposed to be about killer spiders. But it shows 4-5 people running around scared more than any sort of killing. It is supposed to be horror film but sadly there is no horror element in Infested. The spiders seldom kill, and all the kills are off screen. There is no reason or logic provided to explain how they get so big within hours of hatching. You are left to figure out what exactly makes them dangerous, are they poisonous? Even an iota or effort to make the plot interesting seems to be missing.
Now characters are even terrible. Kaleb, the protagonist is an orphan with a sister. They quarrel constantly and hint that their mother died recently. It doesn't add any depth to him or the plot. He deals in smuggled goods but somehow has a heart of gold. He helps the janitor; he must be a saint. To top it all he also collects bugs. His friends and sister are equally unlikeable. It felt that the actors are not even pretending to be scared and clearly know what is going to happen next.
The director also attempts to bring in unnecessary social commentary, if the lack of horror made to zone out this would make you turn off your TV and stop watching. Apparently, no one in the country is worried about the infestation as proven by twitter. The police as usual is dumber than ever. They take guns to kill spiders and quarantine people instead of evacuating them. Their general rule is to beat people to pulp if they want to go out.
Watch it at your own risk. If you are looking for anything remotely scary/disturbing, skip this one.
MobKing (2023)
King of Trash
I was skeptical but I still watched it as I did not have anything else. As expected, it turned out to be terrible. The first scene itself was a warning and I should have stopped. I continued instead and finished it in around 30-40 mins after skipping through . I can't begin to describe how badly this film is made. The actors are all terrible and are not invested in it at all. The story tries be another run of the mill gangster saga but fails miserably.
It starts as a prison drama and cuts short to a family with an addict daughter who doesn't bat an eyelid after shooting someone at point blank range. She helps her parents bury the body and is unphased. But wait, she cries a tear after 30 minutes and it all just adds up. It tries to be gritty and becomes laughable. You get yourself a revenge flick, a father daughter family drama and gory scene where a person is chopped up. And all this adds up to absolutely nothing. There is no character development, but 2 juiced up terrible actors scheming against each other. The only highlight of this film is a partial nude scene from Celine Alva. If panned out properly, it might have held might my interest at least for a minute more. But alas, this too fizzles out.
This is just another bad film Avoid it!! Terribly overrated.
Long ma jing shen (2023)
I feel bad for Jackie for taking up this project
I watched the movie not knowing much. The Rating right now is 6.6, which is decent. I was excited as it has Jackie Chan and I have been yearning to watch him in a decent film. After The Foreigner (2017) Jackie hasn't done any decent movies and I was excited to see an action comedy from him. But alas, this is just another typical Chinese movie, full of sappy moments and nothing else.
The story features Lao (Jackie) who is a former stuntman, burdened by debt. His only companion in life is his horse, Red. One day he is asked to return back the horse which was given to him by a businessman and he needs a lawyer to fight for his right. Enters the scene, Bao, his daughter who is very conveniently studying law and is estranged from Lao for some reason only god can understand.
The plot revolves around retaining Red and making up to Bao and that's it. You don't see anything else. There are 3 action sequences, all with the same set of goons who finally become friends (eye-roll). The action is generally so bad that you will notice a body double and a fake horse when there is a close-up shot. It is ironic to see a body double for the legend we all know as Jackie. He is a really fantastic actor but he hasn't been given a chance to act. He goes, does some laughable-looking stunt for movies and cries with his daughter 5 minutes later. If for some reason she is not there on the screen, he cries with the horse. The other irony is that at one point, a long video is played, it actually shows old footage of Jackie doing some very recognizable stunts. But this movie can't hold a mirror to those. I ended up skipping quite a bit as the film was tediously boring.
Jackie is a living legend and this movie is an insult to him. He ought to do more English films like The Foreigner (2017) and leave behind this crap. Avoid this one unless you want to see Jackie crying every 5 minutes for some reason.
Voy a pasármelo bien (2022)
I did have a blast!!
I couldn't find an official English title for this film yet on the internet but the literal translation as per google and official subtitles is I'm going to have a blast/good time. And, I did have a blast last night watching it.
The plot follows David and Llayla, childhood sweethearts, who meet after 30 years and find that the spark between them is still alive. Their story is told mostly in flashbacks recounting the days of their gang "Shorties".
The movie uses a light comical setting sprinkled with a few song and dance sequences that light up the screen play. It heavily relies on the music of famous Spanish band "Hombres G". To be honest I have no idea of Spanish music, but I loved how the songs were used in the movie. The well-choreographed dance sequences and kids singing in their own voice worked well. Its not a full blown musical and the peppy numbers strewn across add to the charm. I couldn't help being swept over by a strong nostalgic feeling seeing various stages of life and school they go through. The shorties bonded well and showed its not only cute faces but performance that matters. David Serrano does a commendable job as the director to get the most out of the child actors and to make everything believable.
The movie was a breath of fresh air, and I had a smile plastered over my face throughout the runtime. It did well to evoke all the right emotions and made sure I had a really fun time watching it. I would recommend it to anyone looking for an easy, light watch and which uplifts their mood.
Solid 8/10 from me.
A Dark Foe (2020)
Just Terrible. Ignore the fake ratings!!
This was really bad. I mean really. There is absolutely no plot and the story meanders from one scene to another without any connection or logic. The acting is stiff and wooden and not a single actor plays the part believably.
It can't even be called amateurish as Maria Gabriela Cardenas drops the ball in the very first scene and never tries to pick it up. It seems she wrote and directed it with her father, Oscar Cardenas who also plays the lead just to extend his non existent carrier.
Its an atrocity made by the Cardenas just for themselves. Please avoid it if you're reading this.
Vayu: Tohfa (2021)
A lovely breezy song
A really nice light song which hits all the right notes, literally. I caught a few lines in TV and searched for it for days, and finally saw it again. Hooked to it now!! This is what we need instead for terrible remixes and wannabe rappers.
We Will Not Die Tonight (2018)
The audience will die tonight, of boredom.
The audience will die tonight, of boredom.
I got the name of the movie via a list on the website "Asianmoviepulse". It was listed as "The 10 Best Asian Action / Martial Arts Movies of 2018". Since it hasd titles like The Night Comes For Us and The Witch: Part 1 in it, I thought of giving the others in the list a go as well.
The movie has a very simple plot that follows the protagonist Kray and her group of ragtag friends. Short on money, they decide to take a gig that is supposed to be a cashout for them. IN an unexpected turn of events they get entangled with a gang of organ traffickers and have to survive the night against all odds.
The movie opens with a scene where we see Kray taking on 2 goons by herself as a stunt double and it turns out to be shooting for some film. This was the 1st red flag for me. As soon as the action starts the camera starts jumping between different angles. You see someone trying to land a punch and the camera cuts to another angle before it actually lands. I thought that this might be because the director wants to present a dramatic scenario for the movie being shot. But that didn't turn out to be the case. This is the case throughout the movie. As soon as there is a tension build up, the camera stars to shake and cutting angles. You never see a fight sequence clearly. The childish camera works adds more confusion than drama and never works in favour.
The characters too are rather shallow and cliched. No time has been taken to develop them and this makes them very unrelatable. You get you warrior princess, a tomboy, an obese comedian and a fading love angle all in the same frame. The worst part is that none of this is even slightly believable. On one hand, Kray is shown as a formidable stunt woman who replaces famous actresses who can't do their own action scenes. On the other, you can clearly see that she can't even lift her leg above her waist while kicking. Every single punch that is thrown never lands but is complemented by a fake punch sound which makes the action even more terrible. No matter what the weapon, a machete or a gun, it seems people don't bleed. They just hold their stomach and limp a little.
I could never really put my finger on anything that I liked. This a terrible piece of cinema. Avoid it.
Mientras el Lobo No Está (2017)
Hits all the right spots!!
While the Wolf's Away, as its called in English, had been on my watch-list for several months. Its kind of impossible to watch a Spanish movie in India, as you will understand. Any when I finally found it streaming with English subs I dove in to watch it.
While the Wolf's Away, portrays the story of children in a boarding school in 1958. These are misfits abandoned by their parents for being brats and put in a rich man's school made specially for unruly kids. The story follows Alex, who from the very beginning tries to find a way to escape the treacherous warden and make a run for his life. Little does he know that dark secrets line the alleys of the school which will come to haunt to him in his stint there.
The films opens with sordid view of a lush green deserted country landscape and goes on to introduce us to the school. It is made plenty clear that even though it features children, the film will be dark in its character. And it never disappoints. Things get darker and gloomier for the kids with each passing minute and interesting for the viewer. Whats starts as a boarding school drama ,with kids getting punished for trivial stuff and ratting on each other, turn into a nail biting thriller in the second half. The script blew me away. The pacing was perfect and and I never felt how the 120 mins zoomed by. The film is littered with moments which will make you heart race and clutch your hands in anticipation of whats going to happened next.
The director did a splendid job in introducing the characters and making me feel for them as the movie progressed. The acting was top notch and this is an example that shows how can a good director can hold everything together even with an inexperienced cast. Every kid acted out his part realistically and made the movie very believable.
Do yourself a favor if you are reading this, go and watch this amazing movie.
Inori no maku ga oriru toki (2018)
An intriguing murder mystery
I watched this film knowing nothing apart from the plot summary on IMDB. Which itself is pretty confusing. But I am glad that I did.
The story follws detective Kaga who gets entangled in a murder which might have some connection to his estranged mother who had died 16 years ago. He along with his cousin set out to solve the mystery which brings out facts and relations that were better hidden.
The best way to describe the movie is to compare it with the Suspect X franchise. If you have whated it, you know how Japanese murder mystries work. This one is similar to that genre but severely more complex.
The film not only explores a murder but also relations between various people. Anything is not what it seems. While the initial part of the film may point towards a hardened criminal, we find out that all the events are more personal than one might think. And the director does a fantastic job in weaving a web that connects all the dots together. As I said earlier the story is very complex and had me confused in the beginning specially with so many Japanese names and characters that were hard to remember. There were scene changes follwed by explicitally written narative and I found it weird. But I realized halfway through the film that those were necessary to actually understand the plot and keep the veiweres on track. It took me sometime to grasp everything but I was insync with the film thanks to the amazing editing and a realistic portrayal of a police investigation.
The movie is around 2 hours long but is paced brilliantly. I was nevre bored as the story unfolded layer after layer before my eyes. The director took his time to explain the plot but it was never dull. The length seemed necessary to introduce and develop the character and it was done beatifully. Its not always that you sympathize with every single chatracter. And that is the USP of this film. You learn something by every passing minute and every theory atht you have in your mind is flushed down the drain.
In the beginning some connection are made very easily and looks like the crime is solved. But the very next moment the films contradicts itself and makes itself more complex. That is the charm of this movie. It cathes your attention from the very beginning and never lets it go. It dives in to become a cheap and unthought thriller and hits you right back in the face when you think so with a logical plot twist.
I would advise everyone looking for a genuine and intelligent murder mystery to wathc this.
Botongsaram (2017)
A mildly engaging drama that raises some valid questions
Before I start the review please note that this is not an action flick. I realized this only halfway through the movie. IMDb has got is wrong as usual and I have submitted a request to correct the genre.
Now, the heart and soul of this movie is "corruption" and how it affects people in its wake. The story revolves around Sung-Jin, a detective living in poverty, awaiting a long due promotion. He tries his best to impress his superiors but things don't seem to be going right for him. He catches a lucky break when a man apprehended by him is declared a serial killer by the secret police. He sees his status rising financially as well as professionally and he is hailed as a hero in the police department. Soon after this, while investigating further, he starts to realize that this guy might not be the killer and is being framed by high ranking officials just to close the case. The dilemma before him is to keep his mouth shut and disregard his moral values so that his disabled son can get a operation or to blow the whistle and face the music as a consequence.
The story is pretty straight forward and makes us witness the dilemma Sung-Jin is facing. It shows how a corrupt system engulfs unsuspecting people by praying on their weakness (generally poverty) and how the rich and the powerful manipulate other as per their whims and fantasies.
Although I didn't find the drama very engaging, it does raise some seriously valid questions that can be related to by people of any nationality.
The movie starts on a lighter note and progresses to the actual plot around midway. The actors do a good job of portraying the respective characters and make it watchable.
I still wish they had a made it shorter by 20 minutes or so.
Guggadaepyo 2 (2016)
An entertaining and uplifting biographical sports comedy
Takeoff 2 is supposed to be a sequel to Take off (2009) and this shouldn't deter you from watching it as there's not much of a connection actually. I had watched the 1st one long back and was able to grasp the whole movie without remembering anything.
The story is pretty simple and we see a bunch of rag tags coming together to form South Korea's 1st women ice hokey team amid a lot of speculation. The story is similar to what to you see in a typical sports flick. It was executed well with a humorous undertone and I have to say, it worked nicely.
You start relating and sympathizing with the characters from the very beginning and the directors makes sure you fall in love with them by the end. The comedy is subtle, as expected in a Korean flick. But what takes the cake is the choreography of games they play. The actual action was filmed pretty well and didn't leave me cribbing. I have to say it was a well produced movie. It clearly shows that the actor had put in a lot of effort make the games realistic.
Overall Take off 2 was a entertaining movie with some heart. I just hope that the director had shaved 20 mins from the total. He spends a lot of time in showing flashbacks, and IMO that wasn't required.
Nonetheless, indulge yourself into the experience.
Nal, boreowayo (2016)
Not what I expected, very average
I had my eyes on Insane for sometime now. So I binged on it as soon I was able to lay my hands on some decent English subtitles. Well, who doesn't love Korean thrillers, especially the ones with tortured dames and what not.
The story is about Na Nam-Soo a disgraced programmer director of a then famous reality TV show, trying to seek redemption through a forgotten incident that might be linked to influential people. When he gets a second chance at the show, a diary mailed to him by Kang Soo-A deccribing her ordeal in a mental institution, catches his eye. She claims to be admitted there forcefully, tortured brutally and is accused of her farther's (some senior police officer) murder. While clues are non existent Nam-Soo strives to find the truth and uncover a big scandal.
The film started of well. You see shots of Kang getting captured and held up in a mental asylum where is is beaten up and tortured. Her cries and whimpers gave me goosebumps for sure. And I was pretty excited to see what does "Insane" have in store for me. It progressed fairly well and scenes at the asylum were effective enough to engage the viewer. But then started Nam-Soo's investigation and the plot became completely incoherent. The director tells you multitudes of possible twists and most of them seemed pretty moronic to me having a good idea where it was headed. Its a kind of a plot where you see the victims reaction being enacted and then you get a final blow on your head with the expected plot twist.
It would be appropriate to say that no matter how how contrived they tried to make the plot, it turned out to be rather uninteresting and boring.
Urineun Hyeongjeimnida (2014)
A reunion worth your time!!
There were no reviews to be found for this one and I watched it just on a whim. The poster looked funny and so did the plot. But to my surprise it turned out to be a lot more than that. Yes, it was a comedy for sure, but it also had a lot of other elements blended in and came out as a well-rounded drama.
The story revolves around 2 brothers who got separated from an orphanage. Their father died and since their mother couldn't afford to raise them they were put in an orphanage. While the elder brother is adopted and taken to America the younger one runs off to look for his mother. Fast forward 30 years or so. A TV show tracks them down and plans to telecast their reunion. The brothers find out that one of them has become a pastor and another a shaman. Thus starts the bickering and the comedy. In spite of their newly found differences they find themselves working together once their senile mother takes off form the TV studio and they have to embark on a journey to track and bring her back.
The story does start as a comedy but soon turns into a gripping drama about family values and acceptance. The brothers who thought each other's lives to be perfect in the beginning soon realize the hardships each of them have faced. They fight and bond over trivial issues and learn more about each other.
The acting is very good mostly and makes the story more believable. The hate, the subsequent love and care and the realization among the brothers was filmed perfectly and makes you relate with them more than often. While you laugh at their histrionics and I found a lump in my throat during some of the scenes towards the end. The film surprisingly was a refreshing take on family reunions and I loved it for what it was. I would suggest it anyone who likes quirky and yet meaningful drama.
Geodgiwang (2016)
Just watchable and nothing more than that
So let me start with the plot first. Man-Bok (Shim Eun-Kyung) is a high school student. She suffers from severe motion sickness and can't ride any vehicle as a result. As she can't tale the bus to school she has to walk for 2 hours everyday to attend classes which leaves her too tired to focus in classes. When a teacher finds this out she decides that Man-Bok might have a talent for walking as she seems to have a lot of stamina and introduces her to the sports coach. And thus, begins her tryst with the lesser heard sports of "Race walking".
The movie mainly deals with Man-bok's excitement and love for the sport along with the subsequent but the much anticipated frustration. Like any sports flick we her falling in love with the sport, ditching it as it proves too much too handle and finally accepting with an utter determination to succeed.
The acting ranges from bad to OK and who will find yourself grimacing at Eun-kyung Shim's histronics as Nam-Bok more than often. She is 22 years and doesn't make the role of a teenage believable.
Theirs a fair bit of comedy mixed with the film and it provides the much respite in the midst of a over used and clichéd story. But as the film progresses I started getting tired of that as well.
Given a second chance I would definitely avoid this.
Geulreobeu (2011)
A Home Run!!!
I have always been a fan of sports movies. Well, who doesn't love an underdog who rises up to the occasion and wins everyone's heart. This story is no different and showcases how hard work can do wonders and make you achieve things you never thought of. It all starts when Kim Sang-Nam, a legendary pitcher from a big team gets into a drunken brawl once again and is on the verge of suspension and a ban altogether at worst. He is coaxed by his childhood best friend and his manager, Charles, into coaching a hearing impaired team who loves baseball but doesn't have proper guidance as means to improve his public image. We are also introduced to Seon Yu, a feisty teacher at the school, who is passionate about teaching the disabled kids a skill that would make them feel more accepted by the world. What ensues is a battle of wits between our protagonist, who finds the coaching job ridiculous, and Yu. The story is nothing you haven't heard before. We see a troubled pro athlete struggling and being handed over a bunch of odd balls to train. The film progresses beautifully and succeeds in evoking different emotions effortlessly. While you giggle during the first listening to the banter between Sang-Nam and Yu, the director makes sure that you find a lump in your throat during the second half when you see Sang-Nam bonding with the kids and reminiscing about his old college days when he actually loved baseball for what it is. The story though not new, works perfectly and teaches a really important lesson in perseverance. Unlike many other films we don't see our team winning right from the start. What we witness is the actual formation a team. We see how kids who can't speak or hear properly communicate with their heart in the field to overcome their impairment. We see a player who has forgotten why he started playing baseball finding his roots again in the form of coaching. The acting is mostly very good and every actor plays his part believably. Yes, I did find a few motivational speeches a bit over the top but it still worked and merged into the plot effortlessly. If you are a sucker for motivational sports flicks, I would definitely recommend this.
Gobaek (2015)
Slow and predictable
When I read the plot I somehow knew that I know this. And when I started watching and I definitely could figure out what was happening.
The movie starts with Sang-woo waking up in a hospital after a near fatal car accident which has taken away his memory. He has no idea who he is and who his wife is. As the story progresses we see him getting confused with flashes of memory and texts from a private investigator whom he had hired before the accident to spy on his wife. To make the matters worse he soon finds out that his wife might have been cheating on him and has been hiding this from him.
The plot offers nothing new and you might guess where it is headed from the first few scenes itself. The acting too was not worth a mention and becomes irritating from time to time.
The final twist/reveal doesn't explain much about how things were handled and will leave you completely unsatisfied. To me it seemed that the director took too much time in building up the plot with non sense sub plots and yet rushed the end without providing proper explanations.
Gets a 4/10 from me. Save your 100 mins by avoiding this.
Bi-mil (2015)
A fast paced, somewhat clichéd but enjoyable drama
Circle of Atonement (English title) is a story about fate and repercussions of tragedy. It starts when Yoo-sin is killed by a deranged taxi driver,Shin Ji-Chul, who is depressed as his estranged wife doesn't allow him to see his daughter Jeong-hyeon. Yoo-sin had been left on the side of the road after having a fight with her fiancé Chul-Woong, who now blames himself for her death. Meanwhile Lee Sang-Won a detective who catches the killer decides to adopt his daughter, after her mother too is murdered, and protect her from the fate of being the "murder's daughter". After 10 years of the incident fates of Chul-Woong, Yoo-Sin and Lee Sang-Won collide again and the story focuses on the events thereafter as Chul-Woong finds out that Yoo-Sin now his student is the daughter of the murderer of his fiancé.
The plot though not very new seemed pretty interesting to me. Its not a thriller as IMDb suggests but a pretty engrossing drama about how one copes with a tragedy. The aspect of holding a grudge against someone for a long time and withering inside with a hint of revenge has been portrayed effectively. The actors seemed natural and made the clichéd plot believable and engrossing.
You see Jung-Hyun accepting Detective Lee Sang-Won as her father but at the same time despising him deeply. Similarly, Chul-Woong never finishes grieving and looks for some to blame for his fiance's death. The relationships have been investigated properly by the plot and the director's makes sure you know how each character feels.
The strong editing and direction makes this over used formula into a pretty decent and worthwhile movie. Watch this if you like a good drama exploring connection between people and don't expect a thriller.
Seoboojeonsun (2015)
A nice little fun flick
The Long Way Home is a film that touches the subject of war as many others have done numerous times. It does so in a non serious comic way that you don't get to see very often.
The story is about 2 soldiers from different side with their own agenda, goals and orders to follow. While Nam-Bok has the responsibility to deliver a top secret document to his superiors, Young-Gwang has to deliver his tank to the battalion after his unit is ambushed and killed. Their fates collide and they find each other at loggerheads.
The acting ranges from average to good and doesn't leave you cringing. The banter, fights and reconciliation between the duo is shot nicely. You see them fighting comically one moment and loitering around joking after drinking snake wine the next. They act well enough to make the film worthwhile and bring a smile to your face more than often.
The film has surprisingly good production value as the few action scenes here and there have been shot really well and realistically. The special effects though not top notch, are believable. The blasts, gunfights have been shot nicely to make a war like atmosphere.
Lastly, the director does a good job focusing some attention to the casualties of war. Although comic, the film takes enough time to show how people who would be great friends are put in a battlefield to kill each other just for the sake of war. It shows how a raging war destroys everything in its wake and how masses are affected by it just to satisfy the whims of few.
I wouldn't call it a masterpiece, but it can definitely be watched once as a fun flick.
Doo-geun-doo-geun nae-in-saeng (2014)
Funny, sad, depressing and uplifting. A Beautiful Film!!
I watched this movie even though it didn't have any reviews after seeing the subject line. The story revolves around a family of three, with the son having Progeria. A disease that makes you grow 10 times faster and affects 1 in 30 million.
Mi-ra and Dae-soo were teenage lovers and conceived Ah-reum at a tender age of 17, who now suffers from Progeria. The film doesn't focus much on anything else and derives its plot mainly from the relation that the three leads share. It surprisingly doesn't focus much on the "teenage parent angle" to make the film sappy and I have to say it works brilliantly. The connection between different characters is explored deeply and is presented with immaculate perfection. We see the parents reminiscing about their old life as a singer and an athlete before they had a child. Whereas Ah-reum struggles to come to terms with his approaching death while trying to take in as much as he can before he passes on to another life.
The actors do a very convincing job and you start feeling for them right from the beginning. While the kid on his death bed wrenches your heart the director makes sure that his quips make you laugh the exact next moment. How he connects to the world around him was a delight to watch. You see him as a super positive person in the beginning and also as a scared and irritated being as he approaches his premature end.
My only gripe was with the characters of teenage Mi-ra and Dae-soo. You shouldn't make people in their mid 30's play teenagers. It looked to evident and distasteful. Apart from this the movie was a delight to watch and I would recommend it to everyone.
Dol-yeon-byeon-i (2015)
An anatomy of human nature
I hadn't heard about this film but decided to indulge as the premise seemed interesting. Well, who doesn't like the story of a mutant.
But don't be confused and don't take this as a sci-fi. The story is about Park Goo who starts mutating into a fish after he volunteers for a drug trial. That's the only part closer to science as the whole movie deals with his struggle and various people who are trying to help him for different reasons.
The film though a bit slow focuses on a some very important issues and raises some valid questions. It shows how an event which is about to nearly destroy the normal life known to one is turned into something political and financial by the system. It is shown beautifully how people sympathies with the "fish man" and treat him as a reflection of their problems on one side while others are ready to utilize him for their political of financial gain.
Lee Kwang-Soo playing the fish man appears under a mask for most of the time and we seldom see his face. He still gives a convincing performance and his low, timid voice is enough to let you know what kind of pain he is in.
The supporting cast is good too. Joo-Jin and Sang-Won do a brilliant job shifting their character from one shade to another. And, Jang Gwang too plays the part the of a shaken and disturbed father to excellence.
Overall I liked the film for what it was and what it wanted to say. It might seem a bit slow to some but the director does a good job to keep in under 93 mins.
Do give this a viewing as it has a lot of soul and a brilliant story to tell which is highly relevant to the system we abide to.
Geom-sa-oe-jeon (2016)
An okayish formula flick that's somewhat easy on the eyes!!
So I had been dying to watch this as it stars Jung-min Hwang and I am a fan I must admit. But due to the lack of good subtitles I was not able to do so. Finally, yesterday I got my hands on some decent English subs and dove right in to watch this. I wouldn't say that I was disappointed but it certainly wasn't up to my expectations.
The story is pretty simple with Byun Jae-wook, a honest prosecutor, being framed for murder by negligence and thrown into the jail with a 15 year sentence. The film then depicts his struggles to fight the corrupt system and get out.
Looking at the plot I thought there would be an intense drama showing his hardship in the jail, but sadly they avoided that part and the story leaps 5 years ahead as soon as he is imprisoned and shows him as the "prince of prison". I was hoping to see some solid prison drama here.
The latter part deals with Byun Jae-wook reopening the case and fighting his case in a courtroom. I expected some decent courtroom drama but this too ends abruptly leaving to much to imagination.
What lifts up the movie from a dismal plot is the acting by the cast, especially Dong-won Kang. He plays his role as a con man to near perfection and does a commendable job. Jung-min Hwang too is slick and handles whatever is thrown at his like a real pro. There chemistry in the jail is rather good. They bond on screen with real ease and make you chuckle every now and then.
All being said you can give the movie a go, just don't expect anything too gritty or earth shattering.
Heosamgwan maehyeolgi (2015)
Absolutely irritating and terrible
This movie is supposedly an adaptation of a book with the same title. I watched it without any idea about this fact and have say to that I absolutely hated it.
The story is completely incoherent and it seems like a jumbled array of scenes put together shot in complete isolation. There is no logic to be found even for a single minute. The director seemed to have completely lost the track of direction and has put together a 124 min long cesspool that should absolutely be avoided.
The movie had decent rating although with very few votes and had "Jung-woo Ha" who has givem some seriously solid performances in Assassination, Chaser, The Berlin File, The Yellow Sea and many more. I dove in to watch this as a result. I wonder what made him choose such a stupid venture to act in.
I can't say that I wasn't warned in advance. The second scene which introduces Ji-won Ha as the popcorn selling dame itself was filmed to immaculate imperfection. It almost made me turn off my laptop but I though it might get better and stuck with it. But believe me, it doesn't. The story keeps going downhill and gets caught in a spiral of clichés, melodrama and the worst degree of film making.
In the 124 mins you will be treated to people getting married in a day, getting a nose bleed and dying the next day. The story jumps to and fro without any explanation as to how a successful popcorn business went down the drain. And the acting by any of the participants wasn't of any help either.
The tile saying "blood merchant" would make you believe that the plot would revolve around it. But sadly that's not the case. That part is hardly touched in the movie apart from last 30 mins.
All in all this was one the worst Korean flicks I have ever seen. Take my advice and please save your 2 hours.
Gurasuhoppâ (2015)
A very watchable crime thriller with a satisfying end.
I had been seeing grasshopper listed on Kissasian for quite a few weeks but I always gave it a miss as there were no reviews to be found. I decided to give it a go as I didn't have anything else to watch last evening and wasn't disappointed.
The movie mainly deals with Suzuki, who's fiancée has been killed in a traffic accident orchestrated by a crime lord Terahara. He decided to take revenge by infiltrating the gang after receiving an anonymous tip uncovering the actual person behind the crime. While doing so his fate collides with numerous others including the gang members and several hit men hired by Terahara.
I wouldn't say that the film is some sort of a masterpiece as the story is something that you must have seen several times before. But what makes this film watchable is the way it has been filmed. The end too was highly satisfying not leaving anything to the imagination.
The plot unravels a bit slowly and the director takes ample time to introduce us too the characters involved and develop them at the same time. The script seems a bit over used but the screenplay saves the movie from being another run of the mill thriller.
The acting ranges from average to good and actors never drop the ball. One actor I really liked was "Nanao". Apart from the fact that she's is amazingly pretty, she lit up the screen whenever she was in it with sheer raw talent. She acts flawlessly and shows what it takes play bada$$ gangster on the screen. She gives an amazingly intense performance and I loved her angry grunts and outbursts.
If you have liked films like the Suspect X series you may find this interesting, although its not a investigative drama. My advice is to give it a go if you enjoy Japanese drama every now and then.
Four Sisters and a Wedding (2013)
A lovely family comedy/drama
I am not an expert in pinoy flicks having watched only a handful of them. Some dramas that I loved before this were "crying ladies" and "Everything About Her"and this movie grabbed my attention as it seemed similar. I started watching this with pretty low expectations but was surprised to see how well made it was.
The poster might lead you to believe that this is a "LOL" kind of movie and will have overacted histrionics comprising the comical scenes. But that's not the case at all. This is a well thought and well acted "dramedy" that you can enjoy with anyone ranging from friends, siblings to parents.
The story revolves around 4 sisters who dote on their youngest brother CJ. Once they hear that he has decided to marry a girl he just met, they embark on a mission to stop the wedding at any cost and save their "baby brother" from yet another heartbreak.
Every single person in the cast was really delightful. They remain in their character throughout and deliver a very good and likable performance.
The film might seem like a outright comedy to some but it turned out to be something a lot more than what the poster depicts. It not only deals with the mission to stop a wedding but emotions and feelings all the sisters and their mother harbor for each other. In the beginning it seems like a picture perfect family. And although they love each other the film progresses at a great pace to show the bitter sweet relation between the sisters themselves and their mother. The movie never gets to heavy apart from one scene at the end. But that scene too, though a bit sappy, is filmed to near perfection. The dialogue was just marvelous and the final sequence had a lot to reveal in a really well scripted manner.
My advice is to not pass this as a clichéd "chick flick". This movie has lot more heart than what would one guess initially.
Dabbe (Dab6e) (2015)
Spoiled by too much ambition
I found out about the dabbe series while browsing through IMDb once and decided to give them a go as they had pretty rave reviews. before watching the 6th part I indulged myself into Dabbe: Cin Çarpmasi (2013) & Dabbe: Bir Cin Vakasi (2012) respectively. I loved the former and found the latter to be above average too.
I was excited to watch this latest installment because of the above mentioned movies but sadly i was thoroughly disappointed. It seemed the director wanted to involve too many horror elements and was not able to contain the cesspool he created. The result was a boring, illogical movie that would make you scratch your head and think "Where have I seen it before?"
I agree it was creepy and the gore was good but it was really bad at the same time. Following are some of the things that i absolutely hated.
1. The movie is shot in a really weird way. There is a strange vignetting effect in nearly 70% of the reel. The center of the frame is clear whereas the rest is blurred on purpose. As the movie progresses the director switched to shaky cam give it a found footage effect unnecessarily and that annoyed me greatly.
2. The pacing is really slow with nothing happening at all in the first 60 minutes. We just see Alya getting possessed, mouthing words and pouncing on people aimlessly.
3. The special effects were just terrible. I don't expect such horrible imagery in movie released in 2015.
4. A lot of scenes seemed to be inspired or directly copied from major Hollywood movies. One of the renditions of the jinn seemed to be taken from "the woman in black" for example.
5. The director tries too hard to shock the audience and it stops working after a while as it starts getting too long and boring. A lot of scenes could have been done away with, without altering the story.
My advice is to avoid this movie if you have watched the previous films in the series. This has nothing new to offer.