Reviews

Lot Of Gore... Lots Of French... A Learning Experience...

I Love And Adore Wang YiBo, That Is Why I Wanted To Watch This... I Was Happy To See Jason Gu From Oh My Emperor, And X-Nine. I Have To Say The Movie Was Quit Grusome. Lot's Of... Let Just Say Don't Have Dinner Or Lunch While Watching This Movie. The Stunts, And Diffrent Affects Were Amazing. I Was So Afraid Something Bad Was Going To Happen To YiBo, His Stunts Were So Crazy. This Young Man Is Such A Brave, And HARD WORKING Young Man. The Story Line Wasn't That Great, It Was More Of The Fact That Wang YiBo Was In It, And It Being Action Packed. There's A Lot Of French In It, So Be Prepared To Read Alot. The Acting By YiBo, And The Main Actors, And Actress Did Amazing Jobs. Everything Was Really Good Except The Gore, And The Story Line. And Don't Get Me Wrong, It Was A Good Movie For Educational Perposes, Never Knew Anything About This About China, Niether Did My Husband... So I Am Quit Happy I Ended Up Watching This Movie, And I Want To Thank YiBo For Being Apart Of It, Because If It Wasn't For Him, I Probably Would Have Never Watched This Movie. I Am So Proud Of Him For Being In This Movie, And Showing How It Is For The UN In China.

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Half History channel -half comdey/action

Where to begin? Watching this movie feels like watching two one-hour movies smushed together to create this two and half hours “movie.”

In the first half, it feels like Jack’s modern group is just wandering around, lecturing the viewer about Chinese history, while the scenes set in ancient times are just reenactments you’d see in a history documentary. Then, in the second half of the movie, it shifts into a comedic action film with a hint of nationalism.

Sometimes, it feels like a vanity project for Jackie Chan, yet at the same time, he’s hardly in the movie and often feels like a background character in his own story. It was supposed to be a great love story between Jackie’s Zhao Zhan and Meng Yun, but they don’t share enough screen time to make their relationship engaging. It ends up feeling more like a one-sided love story between Meng Yun and Hua Jun. I suspect the limited screen time is partly because they spent a lot of money de-aging Jackie, which adds to the “vanity project” vibe. Meng Yun’s love for Zhao doesn’t feel essential to the plot but seems forced because it’s a Jackie Chan movie. The ancient storyline could easily be about war and revenge, and it wouldn’t change much of the overall plot.

The one bright spot is Peng Xiao Ran’s Xin Ran and her romantic pursuit of Lay Zhang’s Wang Jung. This subplot kept me entertained throughout. Her character is genuinely funny and engaging. Honestly, they should have made her the reincarnated horse, Lei Zhen, instead of giving that role to the gamer, since the horse Lei Zhen has a more substantial character arc than Zhao Zhan. “It sacrificed its life in the past for its master and returned in modern times as a woman to pursue its man again.”

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Crazy Delight

Rewatching this gem after so many years, I am quite surprised how little recogniton this film has even among Korean film enthusiasts. There are fans who know all the main directors and love to watch arthouse directors, such as Hong Sang Soo, but whenever I ask them have you seen "Save the Green Planet?" I'm often met with a perplexed look: "What's that?"

Save the Green Planet!, Jang Joon Hwan's feature-length debut film, is a sci-fi, comedy, psychological thriller. Yes, somehow Jang Joon Hwan also manages to masterfully weave the disparate genres all on his debut! The film is told from the perspective of Byeong Gu, a secluded beekeeper living in an isolated house on top of a mountain. This house, however, is no ordinary house; it was rebuilt over an abandoned mannequin factory allowing for a labyrinthian underground palace with various elaborate makeshift devices and traps. Byeong Gu is also no ordinary man. He is a delusional conspiracy theorist who is convinced that the CEO of a pharmaceuticals company is in fact an alien overlord. Sheer madness and hilarity ensues when Byeong Gu kidnaps and traps the CEO under his house. Byeong Gu attempts to torture the truth out of the CEO, while he goes on with his ordinary day-to-day activities, while avoiding the attention of authorities, and all while treading the thin line of sanity and insanity, if he hasn't already fallen over that is.

What I most appreciated about the film is how Jang Joon Hwan subverts the traditional hero's journey and what we have instead is a very confused and pitiful villain against an asshole victim. Our morals are constantly tested, the legal procedure is flipped, and just as we are complicit in Byeong Gu's devious acts, we also end up a little bit insane with him. The film ossicilates between the different genres quite naturally. It has moments of absurdity with surrealistic elements, but Jang Joon Hwan doesn't use the surreal as a cheap tool to lose the logical coherence of the film as most surrealist comedies do. Rather, it is a tool used to create or alleviate tension and self doubt. For maximal enjoyment of the film, I recommend not to view the film as morally prescriptive, but rather examine how Jang Joon Hwan plays around with various tropes and conventions.

Unfortunately, after Save the Green Planet's box-office flop, Jang Joon Hwan must await nearly a decade for another attempt at feature-length film. But by then, the damage is done; the creativity and ambitions of Save the Green Planet! is long gone and what's left is caged bird: the conventions that Jang Joon Hwan attempted to overcome becomes his shackles.

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steaming in heat

This movie had everything I wanted it to have. From the storyline, to the characters, to the intense scenes of seduction, this movie made me steam in more ways than you’d think. I have never felt more engaged with a film than while watching this. At one point, it did throw a curve ball when the male lead said he didn’t want to date, which honestly made me think I would have a lower rating, but by the ending it made everything perfectly resolved. I love the female lead; everything from her personality, to her lustful desires to give into the DS relationship, I envied the male lead for being the one who did all those thirsty things to her, because it should’ve been me! From licking her feet, to being tied down and humiliated, to being her dog and sex slave; everything made me envy him! I think what makes this film so unique is the fact that there wasn’t any actual sexual scenes but you could just feel the tension between the characters and it was overall erotic and stimulating, to say the least. Definitely rewatching this movie and I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in the BDSM community.

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Touching story or just morally wrong?

This was recommended to me as a touching story, even compared to "Miracle in Cell No. 7" but it was far from it. I do understand from what angle they wanted to portray the plot as a 'heartwarming/touching' story when an old, always drunk man, found an abandoned baby, and then the baby became his direction in life so he started working hard to raise the kid.

Then we downgraded to a grandfather who's now using the kid to con people? From street vendor to con artist real quick. Another problematic thing is how they are trying to earn money using other people's desperation like couples who for some reason cannot have kids of their own so the thought of adopting is like a beacon of light only for it to turn out to be a scam and instead of a child, they welcome a thief instead. It becomes more problematic when the grandfather says, "There are 2 types of people, those who fool others and those who get fooled."

I understand that some people can be really beyond poor and can be considered as a victim of poverty -- it may explain why they commit crimes but it is never an excuse. After few con gigs, the grandpa eventually put the kid's future above himself and left him with a couple who's willing to adopt the kid but there were no resolutions to everything that he taught the kid wrong. There were no explanations about how stealing and fooling people is never okay for whatever reason. Don't get me started on how they spend the money they get from stealing. I just can't imagine why he downgraded from someone earning small decent money from working/selling to someone who opted to fool people even calling it 'donations'. They also had a lot of chances where someone really wanted to help them with genuine care. Not just adopt the kid but to help them both. To give Kid an education and him -- a shelter but he still chooses for them to chase the one-day fun together, with no direction at all.

It was a whole disappointing plot and I kinda hope there is some redemption towards the end but nothing. It was swept under the rug of time just because he eventually gave up the kid (finally considering Kid's future) and went on his own -- God knows how he lived whether he continued stealing or worked for himself, it's still up in the air. Then we just fast forward to a grown-up Kid who's finally reunited with the grandfather before he passes. (Which also makes me wonder, how did Kid grew up like it's an interesting scene to see him in therapy. How he interacted with other kids after attending school, were there missing items at school because of him. The kind of childhood he had would definitely affect him as a grown-up so it's unrealistic that he's just a normal adult.)

I definitely would not recommend it. Everything that I said above sums up everything that happened hopefully, saving you some time.

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APENAS AGRADÁVEL

É uma história um tanto clichê, mas bem conduzida e dinâmica. As atuações foram muito boas, e gostei da sublimidade e sutileza ao abordar a provável homossexualidade de Ri Hyeong Sang. A forma como ele se sentia sufocado ao seguir o rígido padrão do regime norte-coreano foi bem transmitida, especialmente ao mostrar sua disposição em carregar esse fardo a qualquer custo. Na visão dele, Gyu Nam também deveria suportar esse peso.

Outro destaque foi a atuação de Hong Xa Bin, que interpretou o imaturo e inconsequente soldado Dong Hyeok. Para mim, o drama transmitiu claramente a mensagem de que a Coreia do Sul está aberta aos desertores do norte, com um viés político e humanitário intrínseco.

Já notei que em dramas sul-coreanos há uma tendência a estereotipar outras etnias e culturas, exagerando em alguns aspectos e, por vezes, cometendo equívocos. No filme, todos os norte-coreanos são retratados como extremamente pardos, com suor exagerado nos rostos.

No geral, é um bom filme, porém, não memorável.

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Soulmates is a myth about love that has remained alive for centuries, perhaps because we are all looking for it, because we know a story that reinforces it or, possibly, we have seen many romantic movies.
Cinema has delved into the search for perfect, magical and lasting love, and has shown more than once that soul mates exist and are in the places you least imagine.
If destiny wants a couple to stay together, so it will be. This is the premise of the LGBT+ themed romantic drama short film 'The Postcard', (Korean title 엽서/ 'Yeopseo'), written and directed in 2007 by Josh Kim, the Korean-American filmmaker based in Thailand, director of the film ' How to Win at Checkers (Every Time)', the yaoi drama whose premiere at the 2015 Berlin Film Festival served as this Southeast Asian country's official entry to the Academy Awards and Golden Globes for Best Picture in Foreign Language.
In his second film after 'The Police Box' (2006), Josh Kim introduces us to Suh Inwoo and Simo as protagonists in the roles of Boy and Postman, respectively.
The film revolves around Chico, a shy young man who is in love with a handsome and sexy postman, but feels too intimidated to even dare to look him in the eyes, much less have individual conversations with him.
Are you someone who often spends restless nights thinking about your crush and wondering if you're on their mind too? The most difficult and frustrating part of falling in love is not knowing if the other person feels the same way. This may make you wonder what you will do to get their attention.
In this effort, Chico goes every day to the post office where Postman works to send himself open love letters on postcards, only with his own address, so that they can be taken by the person who makes his heart skip a beat and who will wait daily at 4:00 p.m.
On a postcard he wrote: "Your eyes, your hair, your smile and your uniform are beautiful," and this causes the intrigued Post Girl 1 (So Yun Park) and Post Girl 2 (Sun Zoo Park) to start guessing. who is destined Who will all these shipments be for? Will it be for any of them?
Postman, who also has feelings for Chico, decides to knock on the door of his house after reading the text written on a postcard, but one of the girls at the Post Office, who mistakenly assumes that she is the one the letters are addressed to, he overtakes him.
Boy, who does not believe in destiny because he has always believed in himself, and in hard work to get ahead, will discover that he has been wrong. Fate will make Chico and Postman meet, that same day, in the least expected place.
Through the use of slow shots, dividers in dead time and a certain form of naturalistic narration, the viewer is kept in a state of suspense throughout the 15 minutes of duration, the same one that the characters suffer and that the viewer literally receives through the screen.
The first scene marks the ambiguity of the film. The presentation shows us that we are looking at a contemplative film. Nothing about simple identification. But a contemplation of a present, of a dead time even, in which Boy devises within himself a plan to attract Postman's attention. His job as a card dealer will inspire him to carry out his plan of conquest.
The film does not have a fixed tone, it is sober, melancholic, nostalgic, laconic. A tone brand of South Korean LGBT+ themed cinema that we could locate in the cinema of Kim-Jho Gwang-Soo and Leesong Hee-il, with their 'Boy Meets Boy' (2008), 'Just Friend?' (2009), 'Love 100° C' ( 사랑은 100℃ / Sarangeun 100℃), or 'One Night, Two Days', 'One Night', 'Baekya' ('지난여름, 갑자기'/'White Night' ), 'Suddenly Last Summer' (지난 여름, 갑자기/'Jinanyeoreum, gapjagi') and 'Namjjokeuro Ganda' ('Going South' /남쪽으로 간다), all from 2012, respectively, addressing themes such as sexuality, identity gender and being queer in a heteronormative and homophobic society.

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The simplicity of the plot makes it for me

I was delighted to watch this movie. Aside from seeing familiar faces, I just really loved the simplicity of the plot itself. Most of the North Korean-themed movies I've watched are too complicated or too heavy to understand adding the fact that it's just a movie so usually I just end up confused but this one is so simple, you know what's going to happen, what's happening, and stuff. I kinda wanted to know more about the nomads in the story rather than them just being a device plot. Some might say it is predictable, but it definitely is but I guess this is my cup of tea.

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Stunning movie with an alternative angle on the Yakuza world.

[Light synopsis spoilers in the final paragraph]

The first in what would be come a long running series of theatrical and later video releases. It's easy to see why this film was a big hit.

The film is utterly stunning and carefully filmed. I'm don't usually think about camera angles and settings when watching movies but this film used such interesting and picturesque framing again and again I couldn't not notice. One scene in particular with two leads talking alone on a boat all filmed in one shot with no cuts as the scenery passes behind them through the window was utterly breathtaking and the angle really created this sense of intimacy and tension. I could go on and on about the use of interesting framing from the hair salon mirror framing the reflections of actors speaking to the scene in front of a giant aquarium tank backdrop.

The acting was incredible and the lead actress Iwashita Shima absolutely dominated the movie. She had this captivating aura and fantastic wardrobe and I found myself hanging off every word. and in every scene she was in. Rino Katase who plays her sister also did really well, especially as I've read she was rather nervous filming this role next to Iwashita. Everyone was convincing in their roles.

The story for the most part was very good. It managed to capture an alluring side to the criminal world but also deeply rooted in a sense of realism that it is gritty, violenct and death happens. I thought it was an interesting take to see the side from the wives point of view, many with husbands in jail or just trying their best to support them. I also liked the choice to not show alot of the happenings between the men and keep it as exposition and keep the focus around the women and what they are doing while the story is happening.



[Light spoilers already in the synopsis]
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I'd rate the film higher but without saying too much, I just could not get on board with the relationship between the younger sister and her love interest which is outlined in the synopsis which I won't go over here. I just could not swallow the plausibility or buy her devotion to him after what he did to her. Suspending my disbelief for the rest of the movie and just going along with it and the film is brilliant but even as the credits rolled I just couldn't forget the problematic way their relationship started. Shame really because this could have easily been dealt with in a more convincing and different way and still had the same storyline. I would have much preferred a sort of star crossed lovers scenario which would have still given the same results.

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