Reviews

The snowy mountains and the lone Warrior at the beginning are so beautiful together

Because of the understanding of Zhang Zhehan's current situation in the country, a talented artist, but in the country has been comprehensively slander social death, his name is not, his TV series has been completely removed from the shelves, the film has been cut out, and even the case has been filed. There was nothing wrong with him at all, so the difficult climb of the snow mountain at the beginning made me cry. This unprecedented injustice, in the face of such a great injustice, he did not choose a dead end, but went to the most beautiful scenery in China - Tibet, to the human fireworks to find themselves, to find the meaning of life, to heal himself, but also to heal the injured people, this is the reason why I like. After watching this film, you will gain the strength of calm and go nowhere. I like the narration of this documentary best. The writing is so beautiful.

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Fantastic directing and great acting in a sensitive take on a delicate subject

What a wonderful watch. I loved how the story was revealed to the audience, from the first meeting of our protagonists, the relationship of Lok with Yan-Yan, to finally his second meeting with Yip Nam, and the struggles they went through. It was such an interesting way to tell their story, I completely didn't expect how it would unfold when I started watching.

I also think that the film provided us with enough information about both protagonists to understand their actions, including Lok's final decision or Yip Nam's lack of professionalism when she got involved with him in the first place. I liked that both FL and ML shared the same theme of their mothers affecting how they navigate relationships and love (I appreciated that Lok wasn't just reduced to being a person suffering from schizophrenia, but we got to hear of more of his life experiences influencing how he behaves).

The acting was great. Both main actors did a wonderful job, and both made me cry with their respective break-down scenes. The directing was beautiful. I loved all the far distance, wide angle shots, which - for me - emphasized the feeling of derealisation, but also switching from "Lok's perspective" to the "real world" perspective. I also enjoyed how a lot of scenes were filmed from the perspective of standing outside a window or hiding behind a shelf (as if someone was constantly there with Lok, following and observing him).

The movie treats the subject of mental illness with sensitivity and depth. I appreciated we got to see how Lok navigates his life (e.g. relying on the cellphone to see if a person talking to him is really there) and feel the insecurity he might feel, not knowing if things around him are real. The relapse scene at his apartment was really painful to watch. Yet at the same time, it was so well- filmed and acted that I was enjoying its every moment. The sequence when Yan-Yan and Yip Nam are both holding onto Lok and "fighting over" him was excellent in every detail!

Finally, a separate praise goes to the love scenes. The chemistry between Lok and Yip Nam was palpable, especially in that scene on a crowded train.

Highly recommended!

This was cross-posted with Viki.

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"Sometimes I have to follow what others do. I don't know why life is this hard"

All the Crows in the World is a short film by Tang Yi that won the 2021 Palme d’Or Best Short Film and the 2022 SXSW award for Narrative Short. A clever satirical look at “respectable” businessmen and also a warm take on how friendships can occur in the strangest of places. Tang Yi built her world, added some surreal elements, and let her sharp female lead navigate it with care and fun.

Zhao Sheng Nan and her friend are enjoying a snack when the shop owner takes off with a female “friend” before his wife comes back. Sheng Nan starts a stopwatch and bets how long he’ll last. A relative advises her with a bullhorn that her cousin wants to meet up with her. At the restaurant table filled with middle-aged businessmen she finds herself, her virginity, and her marriageability the center of conversation. A conversation that includes a Taoist priest. She’s also gifted numerous red envelopes. The party moves to an “entertainment” establishment where numerous girls in short dresses are introduced. Sheng Nan finds a safe harbor with Wang Jiang Guo who has no interest in women or the evening’s proceedings.

Shot on a small budget, Tang Yi was the writer, director, and cinematographer. She utilized her 14 minutes and managed to make Sheng Nan and Jiang Guo come to vivid life, also helped by the actors’ performances. Though teenage Sheng Nan still had an innocence about her, with each zip of her jacket she showed that she was also aware of what men’s eyes desired. And was confident enough to put the businessmen in their places. Unlike the mainland where gay love is verboten, this Hong Kong film had an openly gay character. Jiang Guo and Sheng Nan formed great co-conspirators as they found their own way to enjoy their evening.

I enjoyed this quirky short film which even found time for a quick dance number complete with wings, bubbles, and strobe lights. Sheng Nan and Jiang Guo’s developing friendship was entertaining to watch as they commiserated with each other and poked fun at the respectable people around them. Tang Yi is a fresh voice and one I want to hear more from.

24 September 2024

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Good food for thought

I really like the setting of this short film. It offers the possibility of a future where gender transition is actually supported by the government, but it's always inside the limits of the gender binary - not only on a biological level, but also on a social level.
Yi An is almost 17 years old and will soon get his one-in-a-lifetime chance to choose the gender they will want to be for the rest of their life. As they interact with their best friend Wen Hua and their crush Zhou Yang Kai, their doubts keep increasing.

The events are kept vague, but also detailed enough to let the viewer reflect on what is happening in the film and make their own conclusion, which I liked a lot as I believe it mirrors the uncertainty of Yi An's feelings toward themself, toward the choice they're meant to make, and toward the people around them. I don't want to include spoilers, so I'll only add this: I believe that when the film ended, we got all the information we needed about the characters and their thoughts, and that anything else would have been unnecessary.
The actors all did an amazing job (Hsiang En Hung as Yi An, Audrey Fong as Wen Hua, and Ptero Li as Zhou Yang Kai). Props to Hsiang En Hung in particular for being able to portray Yi An's inner turmoil so beautifully.

I really liked the music used for this short and the camera angles. I also really liked the idea of using both a masculine and a feminine voice for Yi An's thoughts/narration, alternating the two or even using both at the same time.

It's a nice little piece of art. Recommended!

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Le fait que «Silenced» soit tiré d’une histoire vraie, rend ce film encore plus terrible, déchirant et inhumain. Ce que traversent ces enfants, il n’y a pas de mots pour le décrire, rien qui ne pourrait être assez fort pour l’exprimer. Je m’attendais à ce que cette histoire soit difficile à regarder, mais pas à ce point. J’ai passé les deux heures qu’il a duré à vouloir prendre ses enfants dans mes bras pour les protéger, et vouloir faire payer ceux qui les ont blessés, ainsi que tous ceux qui les ont aidés, directement ou non. J’espère sincèrement que ceux qui ont été victimes de tout ceci vont mieux maintenant, et qu’ils ne sont pas seuls, mais bien entourés. Pour ce qui est du film lui-même, je le conseille vivement ! Oui, il est difficile à voir. Non, je ne le regarderai pas de nouveau. Mais ces enfants méritent que leurs histoires soient connues, et les acteurs, que ce soient ceux connus comme Gong Yoo, ou les enfants, ont tous joués avec brio ! «Silenced» est vraiment un de ces films qui ne peut laisser indifférent !

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*Avis Complet sur mon Blog :*
https://lamagiedeshistoires.wordpress.com/2024/09/24/septembre-2024-en-rafale-dramas-films/

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«Where Your Eyes Linger» parle de deux amis qui, socialement, ne sont pas égaux. Un travaillant comme garde du corps pour le second, qui lui, vient d’une famille riche. Ils ont toujours été ensemble, l’un veillant sur l’autre comme une ombre. On les voit dans leur amitié, mais aussi, on voit les sentiments inavoués, la jalousie, la douleur d’un amour cru non-réciproque, etc. Ces sentiments sont parfaitement mis en avant dans ce mini-drama ! Avec une très bonne histoire, une alchimie encore meilleure, ce drama a rapidement capté mon attention… Même l'OST est excellente !

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*Avis Complet sur mon Blog :*
https://lamagiedeshistoires.wordpress.com/2024/09/24/septembre-2024-en-rafale-dramas-films/

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«Sweet & Sour» suit la relation de deux personnes, et les changements que celle-ci subit lorsqu’une de ces personnes se voit transférer à un poste plus loin de chez lui, les forçant tous les deux à avoir une relation longue distance. Ce film est actuellement assez réel, on ne suit pas une histoire parfaite, ou quoi que ce soit. Non, on voit les problèmes qui s’accumulent, que ce soit quelque chose de simple, comme la fatigue et le traffic pour se rendre au travail, à d’autres bien plus complexes. Les acteurs ont été excellents, et le retournement final, fut une vraie surprise ! Malgré tout, j’avoue que ce ne fut pas mon film favoris, un des sujets étant quelque chose que je n’apprécie pas du tout (infidelité, même émotionnelle) même si j’ai passé un bon moment.

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*Avis Complet sur mon Blog :*
https://lamagiedeshistoires.wordpress.com/2024/09/24/septembre-2024-en-rafale-dramas-films/

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What does it mean to be a mother?

No Blood Relation was the second oldest surviving film from director Naruse Mikio. Like Ozu Yasujiro, many of his early films have been lost to the ravages of time. Based on a novel by Yanagawa Shunyo, Naruse asked the question, “What makes a mother?” Is it biology or nurture? A little girl would be torn between the only mother she’d ever known and the mother who came to town to claim her.

Famous actress Tamae Kiyooka returns home to Japan after making her fortune in the United States. First on her list of things to do is to regain custody of the daughter she abandoned as a newborn when she ran off with her lover to pursue her career in Hollywood. Coincidentally, her ex-husband is filing for bankruptcy and being hauled off to jail for reasons related to the downfall of his company. Kiyooka is unaware of how deeply Shegiko and her stepmother love each other. Masako has raised Shegiko as her own with Shegiko never knowing she’s not her biological mother. Kiyooka uses Atsumi’s mother who is disgruntled by their backward step in fortunes to kidnap Shegiko. Neither the little girl nor her stepmother are willing to be separated, but Kiyooka believes she has the moral high ground with the blood relation and is wiling to be patient.

Okada Yoshiko had the difficult job of making Tamae Kiyooka sympathetic. The script didn’t help much but her ability to convey Kiyooka’s sorrow and frustration over her daughter not only not recognizing her, but hating her as well came across wonderfully nuanced. Because Kiyooka remembered her child it never occurred to her that Shigeko would feel no connection to her. The consequences of her choices tumbled on her like a falling spotlight. “Is the bond between mother and child so fragile?” When you’ve put no effort into it for 7 years, yeah, it’s pretty fragile. I found Okada to be a fascinating person. The actress led a complicated life with various lovers culminating with a move to the USSR in 1938. Instead of a happy ending they were jailed and tortured as spies. She was incarcerated for 10 years and her lover died before she ever saw him again. Okada went back to Japan to make a few films in the 1970’s but returned to the Soviet Union not long afterward. Her story would make an intriguing film.

Tsukuba Yukiko as Atsumi Masako gave her character heart and a gentle fierceness as she fought for the daughter she loved. Traditional Masako was shown in contrast to Kiyooka’s modern and Westernized woman. Kiyooka deserted her daughter for a career while Masako began a job to keep her daughter. Oka Joji played the Atsumi’s friend, Kusakabe Masaya. This was a distracting casting choice for me. Nara Shinyo as Atsumi was homely and petite. I couldn’t help shipping handsome and imposing Kusakabe with Masako. Kojima Toshiko was charming as Shegiko, the precious child two mothers fought over. Katsuragi Fumiko played Atsumi’s greedy mother who proved that gold is thicker than blood.

I watched this silent film on the Criterion Channel where the film had an unobtrusive piano accompaniment added. There was significant salt and pepper pocking as well as white lines on some frames. The intertitles were used efficaciously and provided the necessary information needed with one exception. I wasn’t sure why Atsumi was sent to prison. Naruse made several awkward choices with the use of speedy extreme closeups interspersed with choppy shots of people and exteriors. His later work would flow much better. The bumbling brothers felt like they were part of different movie when they were clowning around all while two women fought a devastating battle for the affections and custody of a child.

With no spoken word, compelling performances were a must for silent films. No Blood Relation was fortunate to have quality actors conveying the film’s message. “It’s raising a child, not giving birth to one that makes a woman a mother.” Kiyooka had to learn the difference between love and possession while Masako had to dig deep to fight for the daughter she loved. If you enjoy Naruse’s films this poignant story about maternal love and what constitutes a family is one to try.

23 September 2024

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A different rendition of the end of My Home Hero.

Part 2 of the manga is one of my favorite pieces of media. It was harrowing, disgusting, and a massive low point for the Tosu family. However, Part 3 didn’t live up to my expectations. It dragged and didn’t feel like a satisfying conclusion to the story. But this movie, for me, is how My Home Hero should have ended.

Since they excluded the second arc, they had to rework some key plot points to fit the story they were telling. Unfortunately, the biggest casualty of these changes is Kasen, considering the second arc revolved around her. Shino and Ozawa’s personalities also took a hit, probably because there just wasn’t enough time to flesh out their subtleties. Making them more extreme versions of their characters works, too, I guess.

That said, the movie does have plenty of positives. There were a few major throughlines. One was Tetsuo’s confession letter-turned-novel. It’s what caused everything to spiral for him, and the way they tied it back at the end? SO GOOD! Another was Reika’s childhood vacation story, where she had to save Tetsuo, even though he was supposed to be the one saving her from drifting too far from shore. That same beach ends up being where Tetsuo stashed the Mano group’s money after taking Kyoichi’s freedom. All roads led back to that beach, and it’s also where Tetsuo loses his own freedom. It’s such a good final set piece, and I’m really glad they included Kasen in that scene. It’s a good farewell for him. I also love the contrast between Tetsuo’s scream to the heavens in the live-action series and his quiet, pained look from behind the prison walls here. He lost his freedom, but he protected his family.

It’s a really well-done, streamlined version of the end of My Home Hero. If you have the time, read the manga too!

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A feel-good movie

It is indeed one of my favourite Chinese movies, the kind of movie that makes you feel really happy and hopeful afterwards, hence 10/10 rewatch value from me.
The storyline is nothing out of ordinary, you can probably guess it just from watching a trailer. However, the way it flows is quite natural and does not have gaps where you feel bored or lose interest, instead it makes you cheer for the protagonist, you want him to win. The final battle where Chen Shuo incorporated everyone's dance moves into one is undoubtedly the climax of the film.
The only downside for me is I feel some of the dance scenes are unnecessarily heavily edited with too many visual effects, which kind of made the dance sequences a bit less enjoyable to watch.

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A viagem que é esse filme não ta escrito

Comecei a assistir o filme por puro impulso, pois tinha acesso a ele há bastante tempo, mas nunca tive coragem de assistir, sempre achei muito viajado. Sabia pouco do filme, vi trechos dele no tiktok, especificamente da cena daquele ovo alienígena soltando tentáculos nas pessoas, achei ruim. Olhei a capa do filme e vi a Kim Taerin, por isso baixei, mas nunca tive a audácia de clicar no play.

Anos depois, dei uma chance, e meus amigos eu estava certa, é um filme para se ver chapado. Você não da nada o filme inteiro, até mesmo na ultima cena eu ainda estava desacreditada de como um filme com um orçamento, nas alturas não foi engavetado? Com um elenco de peso com ninguém menos que Kim Woobin e So Jisub, que só o cache deve ser absurdo. E oq dizer do CGI? Esse filme tem muitos efeitos especiais por ser fantasia, além do figurino que também não deve ter sido nada barato. O pessoal estava mesmo apostando nesse filme.

Internacionalmente falando, nunca ouvi ninguém citar esse filme, certamente não faz o tipo de muitas dorameiras. Com muitas cenas de ação e de luta, é um filme que com certeza deve ser visto chapado, ainda mais por ter 2h30 de duração com um final aberto.

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Esta wena pero no taanto

PARA EMPEZAR: Vi esta película con mi mamá y me pareció entretenida para tomar tecito en la tarde, pero a los días se me olvido que existía hasta que la vi acá asi que toco darle una review. >>
•1.Este drama es la típica peli que está en Netflix sobre gente peleando con personas malas y pues senti que era una más del montón, lo que me llego a atrapar en algunos momentos fue el tema que aborda la película pero más de eso no me llamo la atención.
•2.La actuación del policía estubo buenisima (el poli tmb aajekek) y pues estuvo muy wuapo asi que le doy mas estrellas, agregaré que me encanto el cambio de look que le dieron al protagonista porque el pelo que llevaba antes no me gustaba nada la verdad (ahora si esta bien wapote).
•3.Respecto a la trama, no me pareció nada mal y me hizo encariñarme con algunos personajes, me gusto que el protagonista cuando veía a alguien en problemas no dudaba en ayudarlo. No me arrepiento de verla, byebye.
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La recomiendo? Maso (recomendaria otras)
La volvería a ver? Nop
7-8/10

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Should you watch it?

Not the kind of show I would watch but decided to watch because of the hype.

In terms of pacing and writing it’s really good and also the basis of the story being centered around probation officers, martial artists who monitors possible offenders that might do recidivism is really a unique storyline of unsung heroes who usually go unnoticed. One thing that is believable about this movie is the mc’s father and director motivation to inspire others as well protecting the less vulnerable is very commendable and it doesn’t feel too forced upon or cringy. There isn’t really a boring moment in the movie which did make me guess how much more dangerous will the next offender be.

Mc has really good group of friends and support group so it was nice to see that their friendship isn’t only limited to hanging out playing games and eating out but it goes beyond that. They were willing to go the distance to help mc when it comes to catching the serial rapist. Mc’s relationship with the director was also wholesome and cute as they looked out for one another.

Overall, I can see why some might enjoy this as there are mix of light-hearted moments, good-hearted Mc and a unique storyline.

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