Reviews

Social Issue Movie w/ amazing cast and action scenes.

Shin HyeSun is an amazing actor, and she truly was perfect in this role, with the back-and-forth between the meek teacher and the Catman.

There is always an inner debate about whether one should keep quiet so as not to cause issues or raise hell to allow justice. The bullying scenes depicted were cruel and honestly scary. The brazen harassment of a teacher and other students was allowed via power through parents and the school administration.

Though perhaps unrealistic, I did enjoy the notion that the school and even the bully's gang had good in them at the end and were coerced into the sadistic bullying they did since they eventually turned at the end.

The action scenes though were truly the star of this film from the hallway confrontation to the sequence at the end. I love the realistic overpowering of the female lead at times and the way she is able to fight back through technique and will.

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This is not a cult work at all.

First of all, we are going to talk about the origin of this story Takami, the original author, only came up with this because of a dream he had after watching a drama. He later wanted to make a poorly done "criticism" of Japanese society. This was rejected by the publisher since the government had banned any non-educational content, after the Kobe murders, which were perpetuated by a 14-year-old boy and with the mentality of a psychopath of a 30-year-old man.

Likewise, when the film was made, the director invited teenagers under 15 years of age to go see it, despite the Japanese government's prohibition, accusing it of censorship, when there was a compelling reason why the government had prohibited kids see this.

With this premise and a director who was extremely irresponsible for what he could cause, I didn't expect much from this.

I only watched it because I was interested in why the girl called "nebada tan" had become so obsessed with this. Well, actually, although you are a psychiatrist, you never know that she is really going through the head of a murderer, and even more so when she is as young as she is as a child. Importantly, this girl's strict psychiatric regimen was extended because she was becoming more and more apathetic, less social, and more aggressive, and the experts did not know the reason why she was not getting better, but was getting worse. She was only released when she turned 21, I still don't think so. Like the 14-year-old boy, they were people who could integrate back into society.

That being said, when I saw it yesterday it was torture to watch. 2 hours of what? Of seeing teenagers killing each other and seeing the decay of their psyche until they become murderers. The exchange student was already a danger from the beginning, but since he is dedicated only to killing, and does not speak, nothing is delved into why he is like that and what his objective really was. Survive? I really doubt it. Plus he had infinite bullets lol.

What was the message at the end? Where was the reflection? How did this program benefit the students' non-violent behavior? Nothing is clear. You just see kids constantly killing others.

The acting didn't help matters. When they died, it seemed like a parody or something.

I am one of the people who cannot "enjoy" (that's a way of saying it because I didn't really enjoy it) if there is no message or at least a reflection.

When there was going to be a sequel, it was postponed until the Nevada Tan controversy subsided.

None of the directors really realized the serious consequences this had caused.

Even comparing Sthepen King to Takami is an insult to Sthepen King himself. Although some of Stephen King's books are difficult to understand, there is always a real reflection or criticism in each book. Here Takami doesn't achieve that at all and the director even less so.

People who find it fun and fascinating to see how children kill each other have a big problem.

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The reason for all of this was so stupid.

The dynamic of Rawi and Phloeng is very reminiscent of the characters they played in Cutie Pie. Almost Scarily similar actually.
I wish we could see them both in different roles that aren't the exact same thing. NuNew and Zee are both so talented and their chemistry together is crazy, yet this movie did nothing to showcase any of that.

The plot isn’t that hard to follow, but I feel like they’re trying to lean into this horror/mystery aspect and it’s not working very well in my opinion. Although I will admit the “ghost lady” we keep seeing is very creepy looking.


I'm sorry but all of this.. everything that happened was because of a woman who was obsessed.. That's the reason you're giving me? Seriously?

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"Even if you solve this problem, no one will be happy"

Perfect Number was an entertaining thriller where the genius was neither a serial killer nor a super cop. Just a lonely mathematician whose lifetime obsession with solving *Goldbach’s Conjecture* had left him despondent. Female director Bang Eun Jin, helmed this 2012 film, one of her half a dozen directorial efforts.

Kim Suk Go spends most of his waking moments thinking about math, until Baek Hwa Sun and her niece Yoon Ah move in next door. The beautiful and kindly Sun brings light into his dreary world. One night Hwa Sun’s ex-husband attacks her and Yoon Ah in their apartment. Suk Go can hear the violence but doesn’t intervene until silence returns. He volunteers to help Hwa Sun with the “cockroach” she killed. In a matter of moments, he perfects an alibi for the two, so that they will not end up going to jail. Hwa Sun and Yoon Ah follow his every order which might work until an unexpected variable enters the picture in the form of Detective Jo Min Bum, a tenacious cop, who also knows how smart Suk Go is.

If there was a true villain in this film it was Kim Chul Min, the abusive, rapist, pedophile, possessive, ex-husband. His violent assault changed the lives of all the main characters. I’d also call the women’s predicament an indictment on a criminal system that would punish them for defending themselves as they fought for their lives. Suk Go and the women walked outside the lines, but would never have been in that position without Chul Min’s brutal abuse instigating their actions.

Jo Min Bum was a sympathetic cop. He was doing his job and doing it well, which of course threatened the three people trying to avoid punishment. They were also sympathetic. Hwa Sun was willing to turn herself in but needed to protect her niece. Suk Go wasn’t just thinking with his head, he was thinking with his heart. All of which made the central conflict—“Even if you solve this problem, no one will be happy.”

Perfect Number wasn’t perfect as there were lapses in logic. I figured out most of the twists ahead of the big reveal, but it was still enjoyable watching Suk Go lead Min Bum on a merry chase in order to protect Hwa Sun. In the end, the two friends and adversaries would discover that the answer to “Making a problem no one can solve or solving that problem, which is harder?” was both.

20 June 2024

*Goldbach’s Conjecture*
“Every integer that can be written as the sum of two primes can also be written as the sum of as many primes as one wishes, until either all terms are two (if the integer is even) or one term is three and all other terms are two (if the integer is odd).”

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I knew what I was walking into

This movie was incredibly made. I knew what this movie was about but no one would ever be prepared to watch anything like this. If you are uncomfortable with child sexual assault and/or rape in general I would not recommend watching this but if I’m being honest I don’t think I’d recommend this to anyone. When I walked into this movie I thought it would be the main guy preforming these disgusting acts on kids but I was wrong. My heart breaks for those victims and my heart goes out to them. Just the fact we live in a world with people like that makes my blood boil. The last 20 minutes left me had me sitting on my floor with tears forming in quite


I many opinions about what should happen to sex offenders/rapist, ect. I believe they should be castrated, tortured, then put to death after suffering for a long time.

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Daring, original and crazy South Korean horror.

Na Hongjin continues to establish herself as one of the most exciting creative voices in South Korean cinema. With The Wailing he is more ambitious, original and delightfully crazy than ever before.

"Not everything that moves, breathes and talks is alive"

The film's original title is Gokseung, which is the name of the sleepy little South Korean mountain village where the story takes place. The residents live simple lives, everyone knows everyone and the police force has nothing meaningful to do. All this changes when a mysterious Japanese man (Jun Kunimura) settles in the village. Right after his arrival, horrors begin to happen when some villagers seem to suffer from some kind of physical and mental illness. First, they lose their minds completely and go on a violent rampage against themselves and others, followed by an inevitable and painful death.

Primarily, we get to view the course of events through the perspective of police officer Jong-Goo (Kwak Dowon), as the uncontrollable chaos moves closer and closer to his personal sphere. Like the other villagers, he struggles with increasing paranoia and an increasingly important question: Do the events just have something to do with hallucinatory mushrooms in the forest, or has the devil himself come to Gokseung?

You're never quite sure of the answer, but the events get steadily weirder and the plot more complex as the game progresses. When the film's credits roll, you have at least as many questions as answers, which I love. It will take a number of rewatches for me to really grasp everything that is happening in the film, get total clarity on the character dynamics and such, but that does not mean that this first experience is weaker.

The atmosphere and aesthetic that director and screenwriter Na Hongjin builds up is incredibly immersive and enchanting and even if I don't always have a full grasp of exactly what is going on, I lose myself in the film completely. Some scenes in the second half - Such as those involving the shaman Il-Gwang (Hwang Jungmin) - Are so wildly crazy and unforgiving that some of the audience will give up. It's a shame, because if you go along for the ride and surrender to the fun and originality, it really pays off in the end.

Despite the fact that the film is almost 160 minutes long, it in no way feels drawn out or tough, but the tension is constantly sky high and in large parts of the film you really sit on pins and needles waiting for the next development. Visually, it does not disappoint either. Cinematographer Hong Kyungpyo has previously shot gorgeous films such as Sea Fog, Mother and Snowpiercer and here goes all in with the rainy, foggy and ghostly mountain environments. It's an endlessly eerie place, but you don't want to leave.

The constantly fascinating characters probably also contribute a lot to that. Kwak's police officer is further proof that South Koreans have an extremely unsympathetic image of the country's police officers, but despite being clumsy and slightly incompetent, he never becomes some sort of simplistic caricature or parody. The acting he delivers is truly impressive and the portrayal of the growing desperation is flawless. Kunimura and Hwang also give really strong performances, but the sharpest is Chun Woohee in a role that you should know as little as possible about.

In terms of horror, I think the film is very reminiscent of Robert Egger's masterful The Witch in how it slowly and confidently builds pure terror that crawls under one's skin, but the few times the violence completely explodes, nothing is held back. That arrangement makes The Wailing hit very deep and hard, and I have a feeling it will be a long time before it completely lets go of me. A fantastic film, simply.

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So corny!

Whoever wrote the dialogue for this film, didn't ever hear humans talk to each other! Haha! The dialogue is just so corny and cringe and unnatural. It's probably the biggest issue of this film.
As for the rest, it works well enough. But I have to say, I thought the main couple's relationship didn't have the necessary build-up to inspire loyalty from viewers.
What do I mean? I mean, the reason why they should be in love is so vague and underdeveloped. We see the aftermath of the obsessive love but the love's existence in the first place is not explained well-enough. And I don't mean exposition or info dump. I mean, nothing is shown in the beginning that makes me believe this is a genuine mutual love. Why should I care or even believe that this is love when these characters have barely had any interactions and what little interaction they had is fraught with conflict and rejection? However, a well-written conversation would've solved this issue. Unfortunately, the dialogue was too shabby so it didn't help matters.
That said, if you suspend your skepticism and accept that sure! They are in love, whatever! Then, you can enjoy the bizarre and tumultuous second half of the film.
The acting is good. Kim Nam Gil is in this and I think this is my first time watching him. He's pretty! Lee Young Hoon is very good too and now I'm wondering why he isn't active anymore.
The film is almost old, so I don't know what to say about the production. It's okay I think. The editing is a bit choppy but I think that is intentional. This has a very indie movie vibe.
And the final act is so exhilarating and shocking.
No regrets about watching this. I recommend it. And no...it's not THAT explicit! Grow up! Stuff right now are so much worse. That said, it's still an Adults Only film. So minors stay away. Seriously!!!!

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Story:
The story was new to me, as this was the first movie about a guide dog that I’d ever watched. Before I even started, I knew I’d end up crying, and it did not disappoint, lol. There were parts of the movie that I liked and parts that I didn’t.

Let’s start with what I didn’t like. I almost stopped watching after the scene where the dog was left outside in the rain. At that moment, I really wanted to smack the character's head. I also wondered if there were no other people around after they assigned the dog to him. In reality, there should be at least a week of supervision for both the dog and the human. Maybe because it was a movie and they had to fit everything into two hours, but there was no discussion about how to feed Little Q or when to let him out for pee or poop time. It was like the blind man was blindly taking care of his unwanted guide dog! That part felt very unrealistic since these are basic things a trainer must explain to the person taking care of the dog. This was a significant flaw in the portrayal of guide dog training and care.

Now, onto what I did like. I absolutely loved Little Q. He was such a good boy and his acting was spot on, lol! Every scene with Little Q was my favorite, except for the one where he was under a car on a rainy night looking up at his new owner’s window. That was so sad; I’m tearing up just thinking about it.

Acting/cast:
As I mentioned, Little Q's acting was spot on. He was simply great. The main character’s performance was also excellent. There were many times in the first part of the movie when I really wanted to smack him because his acting was so convincing. As they say, you know you’ve done a good job as a villain if the audience hates you for what you did, and I certainly did at first. But when he started to care for Little Q, I also started to like him. He was so relatable when it comes to dogs. He spoils Little Q just like I spoil my dogs.

The rest of the cast also did a good job, especially the little girl. I liked her; she loved Little Q.

Music:
The music was also good. It didn't particularly stand out, but it complemented the scenes well. It enhanced the emotions without being distracting, which is exactly what a good soundtrack should do.

Rewatch Value:
I don’t need to rewatch this movie because its story and some of its scenes will always stay with me. Having just lost a dog, I know that if I rewatch it in the next two or three years, I'll be an emotional wreck.

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This Cast

PROS:
○Acting
○This Cast
○ Uhm Tae Goo
○Based of true history (not sure how historically accurate the film stayed. Need to research it)
○ The themes
○ The pacing
○The writing

CONS:
○Some shaky camera at times
○The CGI wasn't always great
○Some of the wigs weren't great

Overall glad I watched it.


⚠️TRIGGER WARNINGS⚠️
This is a war movie so these topics are through out the film.
◇Death💀
◇Violence
◇Suicide
◇Blood🩸
◇Some Language
◇Talk of sexual assault (not on screen)

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From time to time you can see movies with real and controversial themes with gay characters

Homophobia, which can be expressed both manifestly and subtly, has been brought to film from various approaches and cinematography. One of the films that addresses this issue, even from its symbolic and recurring title, is 'Human Too', by Thai director and producer Supannasa Sirikuptapasan.
The premiere of the LGBTIQ+ themed romantic drama took place on February 28, 2024 and is based on a script written by the filmmaker himself. With a duration of 44 minutes, Supannasa Sirikuptapasan turns the fear, rejection and hatred towards homosexual people into a film.
Nueng is a gay teenager who is the victim of bullying. The son of absent parents, he faces verbal and physical violence every day from his classmates. Likewise, the teachers and school directors, as part of a patriarchal society, deny him the necessary protection.
The story reaches its climax once Nueng is led, by the circumstances in which he lives, to consider taking his own life, with which we immerse ourselves with him in a true endless nightmare, a tunnel in which there seems to be no exit. The physical and psychological torture to which Nueng is subjected hurts us in our own flesh.
Supannasa Sirikuptapasan takes the risks and dares to show us through his film one of the cruelest and most regrettable truths of Thai reality and also, why not, universal: the homophobia that exists in a conservative country with strong patriarchal and heteronormative traditions. The film constitutes a shocking social denunciation against the discrimination and harassment that homosexuals around the world have suffered and continue to suffer at some point.
Patiphan Namsamut's performance is convincing. With his appearance, the actor gives life to a tormented boy. Key, as he likes to call himself, was very clear that he was the key for the public to perceive homophobia and the physical and mental damage it causes in those who suffer from it. His role stands out for providing humanity to the adolescent trapped between hatred, shame and misunderstanding.
For his part, Win Witthawidth Kittitheeranon, his best friend, platonic love and the only person who always protects him, plays a worthy co-star role, among other things because this young man, whom we could see in the short film 'Names', from 2023 , makes Key's work even greater, an eloquent example of support between two artists in front of the camera.
After causing her harm, Tong admits to himself his love for Nueng and without hesitation comes out to his mother. Other flights also correspond to its role, such as showing the dehumanization of those who promote homophobia.
The dramatic charge reaches a high level in each scene, especially in the moments of harassment and on the roof of the building where the also protagonist of the love triangle in the film 'Limerence', from 2023, intends to jump into the void.
Portraying sexual assault, physical and verbal violence, mental and cyberbullying, on the one hand, and the support and accompaniment that the protagonist receives from Tong and the father's acceptance of his son's homosexuality, on the other, magnifies the film, taking it beyond the coordinates of cinema of social denunciation to become a medium-length film of discovery, acceptance, coming of age, personal transformation and maturation.
The photography by Jirayu Khositwansakul, Tanayut Sawarut and Sirichai Chaisirimit contribute to narrating in detail each of the tribulations of its protagonist, from the scenes of harassment and discrimination to those of receiving the long-awaited declaration of love, from the violent initial scenes in a depressed and gray high school to the bucolic and bright of Nueng hugging Tong after defying death.

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"Oh how lovely, oh how sweet"

Pieces of Memories was a whimsical and touching look at how memories shape our perception of life. Ku Hye Sun perhaps best known for playing Jan Di in Boys Over Flowers wrote and directed this short film. I read she also wrote the music for the haunting song that played throughout the film.

The film begins with an older man lamenting that his future is uncertain. He has tried to conduct his life, but found that not everything could be controlled. As he sits down at the piano, a portrait comes to life to direct the music and memories displayed. Time rewinds and his life is shown through his years at the keyboard.

What comforts us in difficult times and as our life draws to a close are the cherished memories of loved ones. While we cannot control much of what happens in life, we can control how we frame those thoughts. Love lives on and the sweetness of it enriches the moments that pass and heals the losses we suffer.

Ku’s music was both melancholy and uplifting, much like this short film. It reminded us that even when we haven’t visited our memories for some time, they are still waiting on us like old friends. This short film was an inspiration to live life to the fullest and to take every opportunity to make sweet memories.

“Our moments together
Days we share together
Now melt down in my teary eyes
Hurting, dampening, distancing
O how lovely, O how sweet
My immortal love that you are”

19 June 2024

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