catherine
Endearing sometimes
There were some parts of this that were endearing and funny; something about how old it is filled me with nostalgia.That's not to say that this movie was perfect by any means — it was really really cringey and overall I wish it had gone in more deeply on the plastic surgery/kpop industry instead of just sort of treating it like a plot device. The romance was something I could have done without as well, although I do have a soft spot for the Secret Identity trope.
Another plus for this movie is that the songs are genuinely catchy — I wish they dived more into that as well, you could sort of tell some of it was just included in order to show the actress' singing chops.
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Fall in Love at First Kiss
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Slapstick but actually funny
The vibe of this movie was so weird when I first started watching; it felt like one of those Taiwanese or Japanese ads that are just purposely really weird and over-the-top. It was a little offputting at first, but once I got past this initial hump, I actually started to really appreciate how committed the movie was to that tone, and how it actually meant that scenes were genuinely funny, even though I was never a huge fan of slapstick humor.All that aside, this movie doesn't introduce much new content than what is already in the original (for the record, I've only watched the k-drama adaption Playful Kiss). I enjoyed this movie a lot more than Playful Kiss actually — the main female lead felt a lot less pathetic even though I still didn't love the aspect of her continually chasing after the main male lead and having her life revolve around him.
Unsurprisingly, a movie isn't able to spend that much time with the development, and there were definitely parts that I thought were a little jumpy. I did, however, think this was actually better than Playful Kiss in that aspect as well.
There were definitely other characters and subplots that I wish the movie could have dedicated more time to, still. Although I think a full drama is unnecessary, I think maybe a mini series with five-ish episodes would have worked.
Great OST.
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Rurouni Kenshin: The Final
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Beautiful backstory
I've said this in every one of my other Rurouni Kenshin reviews so far but I have to say it again: even though I didn't love the fight scenes in this movie as much as in the previous ones, this series still has the best combat scenes I've ever seen, in everything including cinematography, choreography, sounds, etc.The best part of this was undoubtedly Himura Kenshin's backstory and how it tied into the flashbacks we got in previous movies. I was so intrigued by the new pieces of the story we got and it also meant that we got a really good antagonist — one that had personal stakes. I did think the antagonist wasn't as strong as Shishio and it kind of wish this movie had the grandeur of the previous movies while keeping the emotional depth we got in this one.
I also really liked the scenes of our gang being together and as always, I wish we had more of that and of character growth in the side characters, especially Kaoru, who had the most personality during Part I: Origins and seemed to only get more bland and weak with every subsequent movie.
Apart from that, however, I think this movie was perfectly cast and it really makes me look forward to watching The Beginning!
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Cliche, falls flat
There were a few parts of this that were harrowing — the crane picking up bodies into the incinerator, for example. Other than that though, this movie just completely fell flat for me in terms of plot, characters, and everything else.I was first very put off by the characters; probably the only saving grace as Jang Hyuk as the male lead. The female lead was rude and annoying, and even though she was a doctor I felt like she made so many stupid decisions throughout the entire movie that made no sense. The child was continuously used as a plot device. It's hard to enjoy a movie when over half of it is about the main leads running around looking for a child (multiple times) who I couldn't care less about.
The last thing that really put me off this movie was unfortunately the cinematography; the camera just shook way too much during every single scene (even the peaceful, calm ones) and it made the movie difficult to get through without becoming nauseous.
All in all, this was exactly how you would expect a disease-based apocalyptic movie to go — incompetent politicians, abusive law enforcement, riots, etc. — but even with all these cliches, I felt like the Flu's downfall was its reliance on evoking the audience's sympathy with the little girl, a method that just did not at all work on me.
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Some cute parts but very cringe overall
I kind of LOL at this being the first Philippines drama I ended up watching because I'm sure it isn't representative.There are some cute moments and I do enjoy the enemies-to-lovers trope — when it's bullying it's always questionable but I definitely don't think this is as bad as Boys Over Flowers / Meteor Garden, though it does have many of the same cliches.
I'm not sure if having more episodes would have helped some issues I had, but I think it would have helped character relationship development for sure; the main leads did have some development but I would have loved more scenes of those. The side relationships also could have used a lot more development; they felt random and out-of-the-blue and because we had no context I just felt like it was taking up time and adding weird dialogue where the characters would cycle through discussing each ship in conversations .
Speaking of which...the dialogue and writing just were really awkward and cringe most of the time. I felt like even regular teenagers wouldn't talk that way — it was like watching a chick flick parody. Though I do admit there were some genuinely funny moments, scenes where the drama didn't take itself too seriously either.
The acting was also not great sometimes — I feel like it was very clear who was a seasoned actor and who wasn't, and many of the side characters were robotic and awkward.
Other than that, there are some subplots that are cliche but still sort of fun to watch, but the writing style and acting felt like something I'd write and act out in middle school and it took me out of the show a lot.
Good OST though.
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Rurouni Kenshin: The Legend Ends
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Exciting finale to the trilogy, Still the best fight scenes
So this series has the best fight scenes I'd ever seen and this is no different; the choreography, sound effects, cinematography for them are all just amazing and it is definitely something I'd rewatch over and over again. It gets me hyped every time.In terms of plot, this one had the most solid one in my opinion — it had established characters and there was a nice balance between personal growth and battle scenes. I loved seeing more of our main character's past and how he was with his mentor, leading to how he applied lessons to fighting with antagonists. Amazing development there.
The side characters were still consistent and fun, and I do think everyone got some scenes, but part of me did miss having the gang travel, work, live, and just chill together. I loved the scenes they did interact with each other and craved more of them.
All in all, I haven't read the manga so I don't know how great this series is as an adaptation (it sounds good from what I've heard) but as a movie and movie series, it's great and I'd consider it a classic.
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Sympathy For Mr. Vengeance
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Boring and not thrilling
This movie was marketed as a thriller but upon watching it, I did not feel thrilled at all.The story was just really meh — nothing really stood out to me, and it was kind of predictable. The characters didn't have much depth outside of their stories and the pacing of the movie just felt really slow and boring. I didn't feel the stakes in anything, mostly because a lot of the decision-making was questionable; it just felt as if the characters were going through the motions in order to make the plot play out tragically the way it was supposed to.
I'll still watch the next few movies but hopefully they make me feel more emotions; I didn't feel any while watching this one.
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Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno
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Fun and intense
This movie is different from the first one — there are some things I liked better and some things I liked less.I thought the plot was great — it was a lot more high-stakes than the first one, and the villains seemed to have more backstory and be more layered than the caricature money-hungry villain from the first movie.
This goes without saying but the fight scenes were great (cinematography, choreography, audio, and all).
There was a little less humor in this one, but it was still enjoyable nonetheless, and I don't have a problem with this movie having more intensity and seriousness.
Kaoru is not my favorite character and it doesn't help that both movies ended a similar way because of her; even with that, however, this was a fun movie with a great performance especially by the main actor.
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Endearing with great action sequences
There are some points of this movie that are a bit cheesy, and I wasn't a huge fan of the caricature-ish main villain and the addition of guns (close combat is just that much more captivating).All that aside, however, there was something just so endearing and fun about this being the first movie where we would get all our character introductions and see the gang come together, even if sometimes the storylines felt disjointed.
The main actor just KILLED it though. The transitions from hitokiri badassery to wholesome-guy-carrying-vegetables were great and the combat scenes were perfect, in terms of choreography and cinematography and sound effects. They're just so fun and satisfying to watch, and I especially loved that it was combined with hidden identity reveals.
There was a perfect balance of humor and seriousness — Sanosuke's scenes especially.
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Beatiful — but watch the Director's Cut instead
Title. I had watched the drama version before realizing there were extra scenes and going back to watch those. It's only about 10 minutes more but WOW, that cut added a bunch of scenes I had been craving and wrapped up a few loose ends. I'd definitely recommend just watching that instead of this drama.All that aside, however, wow. This was just beautiful and it had stole my heart from the beginning. 10 minutes in and I was sold. The chemistry between the leads, the little bits of nervousness and secrecy — it was all done so well.
The second half got a little cliche (The director's cut does explain it better than the drama does) but even though it had a twist I didn't love, I felt like it was understandable and it made the later climaxes worth it. Would definitely recommend this, it's going to give me a hangover for a week.
The OST was great too, especially a really nice beach scene with a song called Don't Turn Away by 5 Alarm!
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Life Senjou no Bokura: Director's Cut
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Beautiful
I had watched the drama version before realizing there were extra scenes and going back to watch those. It's only about 10 minutes more but WOW, this cut added a bunch of scenes I had been craving and wrapped up a few loose ends. I'd definitely recommend just watching this instead of the drama.All that aside, however, wow. This was just beautiful and it had stole my heart from the beginning. 10 minutes in and I was sold. The chemistry between the leads, the little bits of nervousness and secrecy — it was all done so well.
The second half got a little cliche (The director's cut does explain it better than the drama does) but even though it had a twist I didn't love, I felt like it was understandable and it made the later climaxes worth it. Would definitely recommend this, it's going to give me a hangover for a week.
The OST was great too, especially a really nice beach scene with a song called Don't Turn Away by 5 Alarm!
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All I Want for Love is You
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Cliche but cute
It's true that this is similar to A Love So Beautiful and Playful Kiss in its cliche premise of the not-so-smart girl chasing after the genius, aloof male lead. But there's actually not much similarity beyond that in my opinion — the vibe is completely different and All I Want For Love Is You is actually less cringy, and the chasing girl isn't as annoying and does stand up for herself.I still wish the FL had more independence and her own ambitions — I thought they could do this with her fighting ability but this ended up being kind of a side humor thing.
There were some good friendship moments but I really think this drama could've used more. There was a lot of girl-on-girl hate even for characters that otherwise had good development, and overall side characters were funny but I didn't love them. (Aside from my sort of second lead syndrome)
At the end of the drama, they also pulled a typical eleventh-hour conflict which really got on my nerves and felt rushed. Other than that, I actually felt like subplots proceeded very smoothly.
Overall still a really fluffy and fun watch despite all the cliches and over-the-top love rivals, and the female lead actress is adorable and perfect in her role!
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Fluffy but underdeveloped
This started off really cute — I loved how they kept running into each other and having awkward moments; it was adorable and I think the premise for both the side ships was really promising as well.Ultimately, though, I'm not sure if this drama just didn't have enough episodes or if they just developed it too fast, but I felt like there wasn't ample build-up to any of the ships after they were introduced. It felt like they used very cookie-cutter tropes without actually spending time developing them.
Still, though, it was fluffy and fun from start to end and I quite liked all the characters. This is one of those wholesome dramas where there are no villains.
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Adorable chemistry and healthy relationship
The relationship between the leads in this drama is, for the most part, so healthy and adorable — they were undoubtedly the best part and I just loved how much they communicated and trusted each other. Both the female and male leads were independent, smart, hard-working, logical...and were just overall really refreshing and natural personalities.I admit that I do think the relationship and the plot seemed to slow down afer the ships got together, but the chemistry stayed pretty strong overall.
There are a few things that left me unsatisfied, like characters whose arcs were seemingly just dropped, characters who got no closure, or just conversations between characters that I waited for the entire drama and never got. I felt like the parental characters could've been dealt better for sure.
Overall, the drama was still an enjoyable watch and I really loved how they handled different conflicts. There was one last ditch conflict that was a little annoying because it was borne out of miscommunication and just didn't make logical sense. Although they did resolve it pretty satisfyingly and the tone of the drama was consistent, the entire thing just felt unnecessary and made me drop my rating a bit.
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Endearing but cliche
For the most part, this was definitely a fun watch. But though it has high production value, everything from the female lead's personality, to the horrible turn of the second female lead, to all the plot tropes that were used, just made it feel like an oldie drama, It was just all the tropes that were already on my list of pet peeves that I just did not want to see again and was hoping this drama would veer away from. It didn't.Overall, the production value and visual effects of this drama were really a pleasure to watch, and like many other viewers, the second male lead stole the show for me. Honestly, I might've been a little more lenient for this review if it weren't for the last two episodes, which really pulled a time jump cliche and leaned fully into the love triangle, making the actual plot arcs feel irrelevant. I'm not a huge fan of character development happening off-camera in general, but it felt like I was watching a completely different drama. Those closing episodes very much snuffed out any momentum I feel like the drama had going for it.
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