Reviews

Why, of why did I read Violet's review? I had somehow fallen into a sort of quiet limbo regarding my favourite actor and almost forgotten about this movie accordingly, when I read her review, ran to watch the movie myself - talk about patience - and was instantly thrown into my most familiar obsession: Hyun Bin.

My bad. To top it all, I agree with her: this movie is beautiful. I know this is a remake of an older Korean movie with the same title which I haven't seen, but from the start it reminded me a lot of the american/french film "Before Sunrise", with the two leads carving out for themselves a tiny bubble in space and time, far from their present lives and the world outside.
The difference - a notable one for me - is that while in Before Sunrise the two protagonists talk a lot, too much for my taste, here silences are a lot more poignant and meaningful. I am actually glad I watched it raw, to the point I think everybody should do so. To elaborate: most dialogues take place in English, but there are moments when Anna speaks in Chinese and Hoon in Korean. English is their communication tool, but the reason why they understand each other is not a language. Apart from the dance scene mentioned by Violet, I fell in love with another, in which she tells him her story in Chinese and he only comments "bad" or "good", depending on what he feels is her mood. Watching it raw, made me live the entire surreal dialogue as if I were him, not grasping one word, but trying to understand what she conveyed with her posture and eyes.

I also agree about the direction, and I have come up with a sort of theory of my own as to why the colours are so subdued. What we are offered is the world outside the prison as Anna sees it. Since colours only depend on our perception, there isn't much reason for her to paint her life. No wonder she wears make up and happier clothes only for a brief moment: they look fake, in contrast with her mood. The only colourful moments are those in which she imagines.
I guess the choice of Seattle wasn't accidental either: as I recall, it is known as the rainiest city in the States.

The acting is spectacular. Hyun Bin is a gorgeous man, but that's definitely not the point of this movie, where he doesn't have to be good-looking: he has to look vain. And I'm glad it is so, for dwelling on his looks would be an offence to his acting skills.
Wei Tang's performance is outstanding. As I said, she expresses a world via silences.

Beautiful music. I wouldn't have minded a little more of it.

I recommend this movie, but only if you are prepared for its pensive pace and all the untold. Not a fluffy watch by all means, and not for anyone looking for comedy.

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An outstanding movie, actually. Why I didn't give it a 10? Only and only because of the colors... I'll explain. The movie is full of symbolism, most of the time very clear and eye catching... and absolutely fitting. My only complain is, that the director tried too hard with grey colors to make the characters seem more lonely and lost. The only 3 sparks of color were when Anna wore that gorgeous red lipstick and the green dress, the dance of the unknown couple (by the way, this scene is mind blowing and breath taking, silent, and at the same time telling so many-many things)and, of course, the kiss... it was a firework of colors, like the sky suddenly became so bright with sun, you couldn't even look straight...
To talk about acting... to say anything... really won't mean anything... as everything was just perfect, perfect, perfect!
And the music... sometimes it made me dizzy, if I wasn't sitting while watching, I'd fall down for sure...
This movie really made my day!
Totally recommended!!!

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This movie is basically the Korean version of the American movie "Cruel Intentions" except it is set in a historical period of Korean instead of Modern times.
The story was pretty good. It was definitely VERY risque for a Korean movie. I'm quite surprised they actually have movies like this there was quite a bit of random nudity. The acting was also very good. Overall this movie is definitely worth watching. Myself, i loved the American version and ive watched it several times; seeing it played out in a historical Korean setting was very interesting i really enjoyed it ^^

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First of all - cute movie!
the movie is based around the family bonds and relations: the older brother that protects her sister the best way he can through any hardships, the man who protects them as if they were his own, etc.
not only does the movie concentrate around the family but also around friendship, new encounters and as well searching for the meaning in life (in my opinion)

Very nice movie with great acting!! the little girl who plays the sister's role is just amazing..even though she is small and does not have experience in acting...she was able to bring the character to live with the help of the other casts :)

The scenery is just beautiful throughout the movie. The bicycle ride just brings to many different places that enriches the standard of the movie :)

Just to mention the movie is set in the country side meaning that the situation of the families and the life does differ from the city life. It is set in a much poorer area and one might not like the fact that all characters in the movie speak with an accent

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What I liked about this movie is its unique and interesting storyline : it’s practically a biography which talks about Lee Tae Sung who after serving the army decided to go to Japan since he has always loved,then he fell in love with the musician Yuri who encounters a tough family life. Even though there was the language differences and difficulties, they actually get along, he helps her to continue her road in music and arrange her family life.
I specially loved the lead actor and found many stro,g points in his acting unlike the lead actress whose acting was a little disordered especially at first but things get along well as the movie goes on.
I loved this film despite its sad atmosphere, it was a great because its true story that was made to honor the Korean student for his noble act, I won't say what's the story of the noble act you have to watch the film and find out yourself .
If you're looking for something different then this is recommended; you will understand my cryptic last lines when you watch it.

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This movie is so bitter sweet, like Romeo & Juliet. It' such a tragic story, but at the same time their love is so powerful and beautiful it makes the movie worth watching. Although im only giving it an 8, i really did love this movie. The acting was amazing and the story was very creative. It wasn't really an 'edge of your seat' kind of movie and i ended up watching it over the span of two days. The romantic aspect of the movie is so beautiful.. almost surreal in the sense that its pretty much love at first sight. It kind of reminded me of a Korean take of Jordin Sparks; The Notebook in many ways other then the obvious fact that both female leads have alzheimer's.
This movie is definitely a great one. i would recommend it to anyone who likes romance. Its a tear jerker though so bring some kleenex and keep it beside you. ^^

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Being a lover of Nana and of Nakashima Mika I figured I owed it to myself to watch the sequal to Nana. I can't say I disliked it or liked it. Although it followed the manga enough that I understood what was going on. I felt a little disappointed by how rushed everything was. However since it's a movie I can understand how the writers couldn't fit everything in. Another thing I didn't really like how they changed the actress for Nana Komatsu, it's not that Ichikawa Yui did a bad job it's just I personally didn't enjoy her playing Nana as much as I did with Miyazaki Aoi.
If you liked the manga NANA then you owe it to yourself to atleast give this movie a shot.
I recommend it.

Happy Watching

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