Reviews

Anusorn Soisa-ngim, the irreverent, the illusionist

Anusorn Soisa-ngim is a 35-year-old Thai man with a frank smile and happy eyes, a clean-shaven beard and modern pants and shirts as his clothing of choice, in which there is no shortage of the image of Britney Spears, which along with love is the other thing in this world that you believe in.
He looks like a high school math teacher. However, sometimes I imagine him in another way, with a wardrobe of bright colors, an earring in his ear and a bohemian air, and in his hands a banner with a motto drawn in the colors of the rainbow, in the middle of a crowd, fighting for the right to equal marriage and the end of the discrimination to which LGBT+ people are subjected in their nation, or actively participating in other protests against harassment and marginalization carried out by executives in the Thai entertainment industry.
Perhaps this way, Aam, as he likes to be called, was more similar to his film work, because Anusorn Soisa-ngim is not dedicated to teaching logarithmic equations to inattentive teenagers: his job is to be a Thai iconoclast or, what is the same, one of the most unique authors of contemporary world cinema.
From his beginnings on the big screen as a screenwriter and director, Aam showed his ways as an original creator. With great artistic skills and indie creation, he says what he thinks and, above all, tells the truth.
Eternal nonconformist and controversial to the core, but never apologetic, few filmmakers can boast in their entire careers the significance of the titles they have delivered from 2012 to date. His debut was with 'Present Perfect', a short film made during his university years, in which he filmed a story related to himself, which would be taken up five years later in a film with the same title, with which he set out to bring back to Toey and Oat, his main characters, with the aim that the audience enjoyed his realistic perspective on what he believes about love, and with the key message that if you think in a new and different way, sometimes it is much better than you expect.
It would then be followed by the films 'Bangkok Dark Tales' (2019), and 'There Is No Space for Me' (2014), the three seasons of '2moons: The Series' (Mello Thailand, 2019), the documentary 'BL Broken Fantasy ' (2020), the feature film 'Present Still Perfect' (with which the cycle momentarily closes, but another installment is planned), the film series 'Call It What You Want' (GagaOOLala, 2021), which includes 'It's Complicated', and the film series 'Till the World Ends', the latter two from 2023.
Their creations share a taste for telling realistic stories that reflect their own lives, or about how they wish society was, how they wish people would treat each other. Despite the stylistic variations between each work, one cannot escape the feeling that they point to the same essences, convictions, fears, securities, philias and intimate worldviews of the author. As if Anusorn Soisa-ngim created a portal to his mind through his filmography, because the Thai director believes in the power of telling stories, in creating content that speaks to people, that makes them feel, think and question . He ultimately believes in being unapologetically himself, no matter what the industry says.
His journey has not been easy. After graduating in 2014, the filmmaker dove headfirst into the world of glitz and glamor that is the entertainment industry, only to discover that it's more about who you know than what you can do. But here's the kicker: Instead of following their rules, Anusorn Soisa-ngim made his own. And that provoked the anger of the hierarchy.
Inspired by real events, 'Call It What You Want' reflected the pressure of the BL industry on artists: plastic surgery, strict diets and, worst of all, the suffering to which young actors are subjected when they are harassed by film producers series, in addition to the need to keep the relationships between many of the protagonists of these dramas a secret from the company and fans. This meant an attempt to silence him.
Being banned from the entertainment industry has meant for him that he is not chained to having to follow guidelines, so he can break the rules and, although he does not have money for his creations, he has been able to push the limits and create art that really means something, without fear that it may generate controversy.
Aam's cinema has as many tricks as a conjurer. Characterized by telling real, raw stories full of passion, his works are about people, life, struggles and triumphs, and that is what makes them unforgettable. His creations go from laughter to horror as they reflect the sexual harassment of young actors by executives in the entertainment industry, or the promises that giving them their bodies would guarantee them entry to Earthly Paradise; but perennially having as its main theme the romance between boys.
Always trying to be himself and, at the same time, trying to understand what the fans really want to see.
Away from fiction, but about it, in the documentary 'BL Broken Fantasy' he addresses the behind-the-scenes of BL. Starring Bright and Win, the protagonists of the famous BL 'Still 2gether', Anusorn Soisa-ngim himself and a group of directors, producers, actors and scriptwriters of the genre, including Aof Noppharnach, Vachirawit Chivaaree and Metawin Opas-iamkajorn, try answer questions such as: Where does the BL series come from? Why are Yaoi fangirls devoting themselves physically and financially to BL?
Revered in 2022 as the best-selling BL sales director, in 2023 he was the Filmmaker of the Pride Month. He was nominated twice for the Asian Contents Awards, the first in 2020 thanks to '2moons: The Series', and then the following year with his second series, 'Call It What You Want', with which he was also nominated for an award. Content Asia, for "illuminating the struggles of independent filmmakers in the cutthroat entertainment sector." This series of films reveals, through the lens of Aam Anusorn, a tapestry of challenges, triumphs, and eternal perseverance.
Known for his unique approach to storytelling, drawing inspiration from his own experiences to create stories, Aam has made a name for himself in the independent film industry, and founded his own production company, COM'ME'TIVE By Aam, while still He was in his second year at Bangkok University, where he earned a bachelor's degree in Film and Performing Arts.

'PRESENT PERFECT' AND 'PRESENT STILL PERFECT'

Aam's most notable work to date is 'Present Perfect', which he adapted from the original 2012 short film. It is considered the first Thai film to receive funding from the government of Hokkaido, Japan.
The film revolves around Toey, a young Thai man who, after a painful breakup, decides to heal his broken heart in the Japanese city of Higashikawa, where he meets Oat, a man who travels to Japan to experience freedom for the last time in his life, because he is about to get married. From strangers to friends, romance blossoms between the two. Before returning to the "real" world, the two men have to pick up the broken pieces and rebuild them.
Starring Kritsana Maroukasonti as Oat and Tonawanik Adisorn as Toey, for her 2017 debut, Aam Anusorn Soisa-Ngim drew on him own experiences to tell this romantic story that will take the viewer on a moving journey as the characters follow the simple quest of love The encounter forms a beautiful relationship between two men, because each has his own trauma.
For the filmmaker, recovering these characters, especially Oat and Toey, was like seeing himself.
Produced by Nuttachai Jiraanont, Tanwarin Sukapisit and Chen Rong Hua, the film won the Best Film Award at the Amsterdam LGBTQ Film Festival in the Netherlands and was screened at many film festivals around the world, including the World Festival Bangkok Film Festival, the Serile Filmului International Gay Film Festival, Romania, and the Western Visayas Film Festival, Philippines.
Then, the film ended inconclusively, in the airport scene in which both young people have to separate. The director faced a dilemma, when one is about to accept or delete the other's friend request. And he chose to just leave it there, because he wanted people to create their own ending. "Those were those times, in 2017, when gay marriage was something we didn't talk about in Thailand," he told the press at the time.
While 'Present Perfect' is more realistic and intended to be true to life, 'Present Still Perfect', released on March 12, 2020, offers a more idealistic view of same-sex relationships in modern Thailand, while the A pair of former lovers reunites once again on the remote island of Koh Kood.
Four years after what is told in 'Present Perfect', Toey meets Oat at the airport and all his pain returns. In an attempt to cope with her pain, he decides to travel to Koh Kood where he meets Jane (Darina Boonchu), the guesthouse owner who recently discovered that her husband was having an affair, and Kenta (Ryota Omi), a traveler from Japan who was staying at his house.
The peace and beauty of the island brought Toey joy again, but he knew he couldn't ignore her feelings for Oat forever. Until one night he receives a message from Oat about how much he missed him. Toey responds by stating that he loves him too, because deep down being with Oat is all he wants, but he is cautious, knowing that his love is forbidden. The next morning, Oat appears on Koh Kood. Now Toey has to decide whether to follow his heart and rekindle his relationship with Oat or let him go since they can never truly be together.
'Present Still Perfect' is more about how Aam wishes society was. With his dream of getting married one day still unfulfilled, the filmmaker needed his dream to come true, at least on screen. For this reason, he did not hesitate to see his characters triumph in love. "I feel like I'm already married, even though that's not the truth. So yeah, the reason I keep coming back to these characters is because I want them to be successful in love, and ultimately they were."
The sequel to 'Present Perfect' makes a clear statement in favor of same-sex marriage.
And if on the one hand, the film has contributed to changing mentalities and making visible people from the LGBT+ community and their struggles for the legalization of same-sex marriage in Thailand, it also leaves another clear message: the act of letting go, the act of forgiving. If your husband is gay and you already knew it because you have been with him for years, you have to learn to let go and accept the truth.
In 2018 he did not have the budget to film the second part because no one supported him. Then one of his fans suggested, "Why don't you go to Indiegogo.com and then do some crowdfunding?" And after a lot of thinking: "Who is going to pay me the money? I'm a nobody. Nobody cares about me. Why do I have to?", he discovered one day that he had enough money to embark on that other trip. .
On the other hand, much of 'Present Perfect' and its sequel deal with cultural differences. In 'Present Still Perfect', for example, a Japanese character explains how in Japan it is considered disrespectful to let an old woman take her seat on the bus.
However, what is truly extraordinary is the cinematographic wrapping of these topics in films and series that leave the unmistakable feeling of being unique.
This, and no other, is the key to Anusorn Soisa-Ngim's exceptionality. If we look closely, the themes are not different from those of hundreds of authors, many of them also Thai, no matter how much personal quirks are sought in their work. However, his way of conceiving stories on celluloid has such a singularity that there is no other choice but to applaud and applaud him, like the magician who has just pulled a white rabbit out of his hat.

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Anusorn Soisa-ngim, the irreverent, the illusionist

Anusorn Soisa-ngim is a 35-year-old Thai man with a frank smile and happy eyes, a clean-shaven beard and modern pants and shirts as his clothing of choice, in which there is no shortage of the image of Britney Spears, which along with love is the other thing in this world that you believe in.
He looks like a high school math teacher. However, sometimes I imagine him in another way, with a wardrobe of bright colors, an earring in his ear and a bohemian air, and in his hands a banner with a motto drawn in the colors of the rainbow, in the middle of a crowd, fighting for the right to equal marriage and the end of the discrimination to which LGBT+ people are subjected in their nation, or actively participating in other protests against harassment and marginalization carried out by executives in the Thai entertainment industry.
Perhaps this way, Aam, as he likes to be called, was more similar to his film work, because Anusorn Soisa-ngim is not dedicated to teaching logarithmic equations to inattentive teenagers: his job is to be a Thai iconoclast or, what is the same, one of the most unique authors of contemporary world cinema.
From his beginnings on the big screen as a screenwriter and director, Aam showed his ways as an original creator. With great artistic skills and indie creation, he says what he thinks and, above all, tells the truth.
Eternal nonconformist and controversial to the core, but never apologetic, few filmmakers can boast in their entire careers the significance of the titles they have delivered from 2012 to date. His debut was with 'Present Perfect', a short film made during his university years, in which he filmed a story related to himself, which would be taken up five years later in a film with the same title, with which he set out to bring back to Toey and Oat, his main characters, with the aim that the audience enjoyed his realistic perspective on what he believes about love, and with the key message that if you think in a new and different way, sometimes it is much better than you expect.
It would then be followed by the films 'Bangkok Dark Tales' (2019), and 'There Is No Space for Me' (2014), the three seasons of '2moons: The Series' (Mello Thailand, 2019), the documentary 'BL Broken Fantasy ' (2020), the feature film 'Present Still Perfect' (with which the cycle momentarily closes, but another installment is planned), the film series 'Call It What You Want' (GagaOOLala, 2021), which includes 'It's Complicated', and the film series 'Till the World Ends', the latter two from 2023.
Their creations share a taste for telling realistic stories that reflect their own lives, or about how they wish society was, how they wish people would treat each other. Despite the stylistic variations between each work, one cannot escape the feeling that they point to the same essences, convictions, fears, securities, philias and intimate worldviews of the author. As if Anusorn Soisa-ngim created a portal to his mind through his filmography, because the Thai director believes in the power of telling stories, in creating content that speaks to people, that makes them feel, think and question . He ultimately believes in being unapologetically himself, no matter what the industry says.
His journey has not been easy. After graduating in 2014, the filmmaker dove headfirst into the world of glitz and glamor that is the entertainment industry, only to discover that it's more about who you know than what you can do. But here's the kicker: Instead of following their rules, Anusorn Soisa-ngim made his own. And that provoked the anger of the hierarchy.
Inspired by real events, 'Call It What You Want' reflected the pressure of the BL industry on artists: plastic surgery, strict diets and, worst of all, the suffering to which young actors are subjected when they are harassed by film producers series, in addition to the need to keep the relationships between many of the protagonists of these dramas a secret from the company and fans. This meant an attempt to silence him.
Being banned from the entertainment industry has meant for him that he is not chained to having to follow guidelines, so he can break the rules and, although he does not have money for his creations, he has been able to push the limits and create art that really means something, without fear that it may generate controversy.
Aam's cinema has as many tricks as a conjurer. Characterized by telling real, raw stories full of passion, his works are about people, life, struggles and triumphs, and that is what makes them unforgettable. His creations go from laughter to horror as they reflect the sexual harassment of young actors by executives in the entertainment industry, or the promises that giving them their bodies would guarantee them entry to Earthly Paradise; but perennially having as its main theme the romance between boys.
Always trying to be himself and, at the same time, trying to understand what the fans really want to see.
Away from fiction, but about it, in the documentary 'BL Broken Fantasy' he addresses the behind-the-scenes of BL. Starring Bright and Win, the protagonists of the famous BL 'Still 2gether', Anusorn Soisa-ngim himself and a group of directors, producers, actors and scriptwriters of the genre, including Aof Noppharnach, Vachirawit Chivaaree and Metawin Opas-iamkajorn, try answer questions such as: Where does the BL series come from? Why are Yaoi fangirls devoting themselves physically and financially to BL?
Revered in 2022 as the best-selling BL sales director, in 2023 he was the Filmmaker of the Pride Month. He was nominated twice for the Asian Contents Awards, the first in 2020 thanks to '2moons: The Series', and then the following year with his second series, 'Call It What You Want', with which he was also nominated for an award. Content Asia, for "illuminating the struggles of independent filmmakers in the cutthroat entertainment sector." This series of films reveals, through the lens of Aam Anusorn, a tapestry of challenges, triumphs, and eternal perseverance.
Known for his unique approach to storytelling, drawing inspiration from his own experiences to create stories, Aam has made a name for himself in the independent film industry, and founded his own production company, COM'ME'TIVE By Aam, while still He was in his second year at Bangkok University, where he earned a bachelor's degree in Film and Performing Arts.

'PRESENT PERFECT' AND 'PRESENT STILL PERFECT'

Aam's most notable work to date is 'Present Perfect', which he adapted from the original 2012 short film. It is considered the first Thai film to receive funding from the government of Hokkaido, Japan.
The film revolves around Toey, a young Thai man who, after a painful breakup, decides to heal his broken heart in the Japanese city of Higashikawa, where he meets Oat, a man who travels to Japan to experience freedom for the last time in his life, because he is about to get married. From strangers to friends, romance blossoms between the two. Before returning to the "real" world, the two men have to pick up the broken pieces and rebuild them.
Starring Kritsana Maroukasonti as Oat and Tonawanik Adisorn as Toey, for her 2017 debut, Aam Anusorn Soisa-Ngim drew on him own experiences to tell this romantic story that will take the viewer on a moving journey as the characters follow the simple quest of love The encounter forms a beautiful relationship between two men, because each has his own trauma.
For the filmmaker, recovering these characters, especially Oat and Toey, was like seeing himself.
Produced by Nuttachai Jiraanont, Tanwarin Sukapisit and Chen Rong Hua, the film won the Best Film Award at the Amsterdam LGBTQ Film Festival in the Netherlands and was screened at many film festivals around the world, including the World Festival Bangkok Film Festival, the Serile Filmului International Gay Film Festival, Romania, and the Western Visayas Film Festival, Philippines.
Then, the film ended inconclusively, in the airport scene in which both young people have to separate. The director faced a dilemma, when one is about to accept or delete the other's friend request. And he chose to just leave it there, because he wanted people to create their own ending. "Those were those times, in 2017, when gay marriage was something we didn't talk about in Thailand," he told the press at the time.
While 'Present Perfect' is more realistic and intended to be true to life, 'Present Still Perfect', released on March 12, 2020, offers a more idealistic view of same-sex relationships in modern Thailand, while the A pair of former lovers reunites once again on the remote island of Koh Kood.
Four years after what is told in 'Present Perfect', Toey meets Oat at the airport and all his pain returns. In an attempt to cope with her pain, he decides to travel to Koh Kood where he meets Jane (Darina Boonchu), the guesthouse owner who recently discovered that her husband was having an affair, and Kenta (Ryota Omi), a traveler from Japan who was staying at his house.
The peace and beauty of the island brought Toey joy again, but he knew he couldn't ignore her feelings for Oat forever. Until one night he receives a message from Oat about how much he missed him. Toey responds by stating that he loves him too, because deep down being with Oat is all he wants, but he is cautious, knowing that his love is forbidden. The next morning, Oat appears on Koh Kood. Now Toey has to decide whether to follow his heart and rekindle his relationship with Oat or let him go since they can never truly be together.
'Present Still Perfect' is more about how Aam wishes society was. With his dream of getting married one day still unfulfilled, the filmmaker needed his dream to come true, at least on screen. For this reason, he did not hesitate to see his characters triumph in love. "I feel like I'm already married, even though that's not the truth. So yeah, the reason I keep coming back to these characters is because I want them to be successful in love, and ultimately they were."
The sequel to 'Present Perfect' makes a clear statement in favor of same-sex marriage.
And if on the one hand, the film has contributed to changing mentalities and making visible people from the LGBT+ community and their struggles for the legalization of same-sex marriage in Thailand, it also leaves another clear message: the act of letting go, the act of forgiving. If your husband is gay and you already knew it because you have been with him for years, you have to learn to let go and accept the truth.
In 2018 he did not have the budget to film the second part because no one supported him. Then one of his fans suggested, "Why don't you go to Indiegogo.com and then do some crowdfunding?" And after a lot of thinking: "Who is going to pay me the money? I'm a nobody. Nobody cares about me. Why do I have to?", he discovered one day that he had enough money to embark on that other trip. .
On the other hand, much of 'Present Perfect' and its sequel deal with cultural differences. In 'Present Still Perfect', for example, a Japanese character explains how in Japan it is considered disrespectful to let an old woman take her seat on the bus.
However, what is truly extraordinary is the cinematographic wrapping of these topics in films and series that leave the unmistakable feeling of being unique.
This, and no other, is the key to Anusorn Soisa-Ngim's exceptionality. If we look closely, the themes are not different from those of hundreds of authors, many of them also Thai, no matter how much personal quirks are sought in their work. However, his way of conceiving stories on celluloid has such a singularity that there is no other choice but to applaud and applaud him, like the magician who has just pulled a white rabbit out of his hat.

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Korean Comedy Actor

Jo Jung-Suk is my favorite cast member so far because he is an excellent actor in many films and on some TV shows. This movie is about Jo Jung-Suk being stuck or maybe the company didn't acceptable to his job journey so his boss made him quit. After that, he tells her sister made him turn into a girl. Then he applies for a job with a fake identity to an airport job online. Then he went to his interviews with Korean Air, so he did it. The first flight was very dangerous because the airport plane going down with the girl saved over 200 people. I hope everyone watches this comedy Korean movie.

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Do you know what your neighbor is doing?

Living in an apartment where you can hear what's going on with your neighbors through the walls is the everyday life of many people. And of course, when you hear sounds and you don't know what they are, you start imagining different things. I'll never forget one night when I couldn't sleep because the neighbor above me was moving furniture at midnight, and I thought it was a real earthquake. This is also the premise of this film. A young woman who is pursuing a writing career is disturbed by the sounds from the neighbor's apartment, but interestingly, no one else is bothered by it. I liked that for the greater part of the film, as viewers, we remain in ignorance and suspense because we ourselves question what is really happening. Later, when all the elements are revealed, the film shifts the emphasis to another topic, so until the end there is something that keeps us attentive to the plot. But saying more would mean to spoil te movie.

The movie isn't bad, and I liked that it didn't try to over-inflate the tension. It tries to be as realistic as possible, and yet arouse interest in the viewers due to the slowly developing plot. I have some objections to the decisions and actions of the main characters, which seem illogical to me, but all in all, this is a solid film that turns from a social drama at the beginning into a tense thriller at the end.

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Amazing, emotional and romantic movie

I loved watching ULS when it came out, so I was really excited for this. It took a few months to get to international audiences but we finally got it. The movie was emotional and romantic and very well acted, the actors do an amazing job and have overflowing chemistry! The kisses were super hot.
The story in itself was nothing groundbreaking, childhood friends to lovers but very well written and directed. I was expecting the ending to be sad since this is a prequel and they're not together yet in ULS and while the ending was sad, it wasn't as sad as I thought it would be, more bittersweet than sad.The ending was really well written and didn't break continuity with ULS, but I wish we would get a sequel about them after ULS. I wanna see them in their happy dating era pls.

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Perfect! I really liked it

This movie had amazing action, nice friendship dynamics and even a bit humor! Though if you are sensitive to the topics of sexual assault / rape (especially towards children) then you shouldn't watch this movie alone.

I personally really like that they stocked to material art until the end, expect for a few expectations where he used a teaser or threw things at the guys, instead of only using it halfway through and then sticking to only weapons. I have seen a lot of kdrama and movies that involved too many guns which in my opinion is a bit unnecessary, maybe I'm just a bit old-fashioned in this but I prefer my action with proper fights so I definitely wasn't disappointed in this movie at all.

I also really like that none of the friends of the main lead didn't get hurt or that there wasn't any "betrayal" kind of thing. Also really like that the main cast didn't smoke at all, I've seen a lot movies/dramas where they made one or multiple of the main cast smoke so they seem more "badass" which is so unnecessary in my opinion.

I also really liked that it was a happy end, as I personally don't like sad noir open ends.

Only thing I didn't like is that one incident but nothing I would give less stars for.

I kept rooting for the ML the whole time especially because he has a good personality and good intentions, very empathetic and selfless.

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beautiful and sweet but irritatingly short

Time of Fever is a heartwarming spin-off of Unintentional Love Story that offers a glimpse into the earlier lives of Hotae and Donghee. While the series is brief, it effectively complements the original narrative and provides a satisfying conclusion.

The production value, though different from Unintentional Love Story, adds a unique charm to the series. The color grading and lighting direction, particularly during Hotae's hospital scene, were expertly used to convey their emotions.

Side note: If you didn't catch it the first time, on Episode 6, where Hotae was in the hospital, when he started talking to Donghee, the initial color is bluish representing "sadness" especially Donghee left him, but later on it was mixed with a more yellowish light to represent happiness. But when the call ended, it revert back to bluish because he's sad again. I am talking about this too much because I was in awe when I catch that.

While the series can be confusing for those unfamiliar with Unintentional Love Story, it offers a satisfying ending that speaks volumes through nonverbal communication. Hotae's actions, while somewhat questionable, are understandable given his emotional state.

The cameo appearances and familiar locations add to the nostalgic experience. The decision to keep the series concise and focused on the central relationship was a wise one.

Overall, Time of Fever is a well-crafted spin-off that provides a satisfying conclusion to the story of Hotae and Donghee. While it may be best enjoyed after watching Unintentional Love Story, it offers a heartwarming and fulfilling viewing experience.

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PECINTA SHOUJO WAJIB NONTON

Rasanya menonton movie ini serasa balik ke zaman SMP, templatenya shoujo romance sekali🤩😍

bikin doki-doki meskipun diumur sekarang nontonnya sempet merasa geli tapi beneran seru! dari awal mereka ketemu dan sampe akhirnya pacaran dll, demi apa bikin senyum senyum sendiri:""

awalnya nonton karena ryubi miyase, dan emang doi juga sih yang bikin jadi lebih seru wkwkw🤣 soalnya ikemen😝 jadi alur ceritanya terasa lebih enjoyable gitu lohhhh... endingnya cukup tertebak sih terutama jika sering menonton/baca genre shoujo, tapi aku tetep suka🤭😍

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Would definitely recommend

There are some spoilers ahead !!

The cast is definitely a 10/10. Sol Kyung-gu and Im Siwan really had good chemistry and really sold it from antagonist to bromance. The plot can be confusing as they jump from timelines to timelines so it was a bit hard to keep up however as the story goes on it will slowly merge into a storyline that makes sense. The only character I had a problem with was the chief, like I felt like besides wanting the drugs and arresting the gangster she had no depth to her character in my opinion! Im Siwan's character did not deserved to go through what he did!

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Actors with great chemistry does wonders

I will say this movie is not for everyone. I was lucky to grow up very diverse with many different genres of movies. Watching a story of a "family" going thru struggle is not my go to; however, the director masterfully tows the line between what could be boring and what is engaging story telling without explosions, guns, and high budget special effects. The plot is of a low income 'family" who all have somewhat of an honest living, yet it's not enough to support one another and thus break moral values to simply survive. The addition of a new family member will inadvertently cause a chain of events where everyone will have to reelevate the relationship with one another.

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"I want to do everything in my power. No regrets."

I am one of those people who thought this was a kdrama, and when I finished this movie, I STILL think it should've been a kdrama.

I was so intrigued by Kim Woobin's character, his friends, his boss and the people that surround him at work---I wanted to know their stories, their families, motivations and how they, too, might continue to inspire others. This is one of the major themes of the movie, which inspires us to find intention in what we do as a living beyond the simple happiness we might find from it. Because the one thing that transcends happiness is the ability to share the pouring passion from your heart and watch as this passion transfers and glows in someone else. Thanks to Officer Jeongdo's dad for that, by the way. Their scenes together as father and son made me cry.

As a sucker for action films, this definitely reached my expectations and I was excited to see how he combined moves from his holy trinity black belts in taekwondo, judo, and kendo. The action scenes were well-orchestrated and made it believable enough that he could take down tens of men at a time.

Now, the surface issue is presented as monitoring ex-convicts with ankle monitors for any suspicious activity, and to especially be on high alert for those with a high chance of committing the same crime. The deeper issue tackles at Korea's criminal justice system, which gives out way too generous sentences for serial rapists and rapists, period. 20 years for permanently damaging 15 children's lives really made me scoff.

But it's true, this is happening as we speak and it's important movies and dramas like this have been bringing light to the issue----recently No Way Out has done it as well. That's why I thought the movie deserved more storytelling that could possibly dive not just into our beloved main characters' lives, but also the journey to combating the system.

That's enough of my spiel though, and my real review is that this was a fast-paced, heavy-themed, but motivational movie. It makes room for you to ponder these issues like I did, appreciate the amazing action performances, and grieve after being emotionally wrecked. The lighthearted comedic moments give you a little bandaid in-between. I love Kim Woobin's simple-minded character so much, even his life motto is so simple, which is to "have fun" at everything he does. And it's crazy how much character development we got from him in less than 2 hours, because beyond this "fun" bloomed his purpose to continue serving, saving, and inspiring.

Hats off to this amazing cast for bringing this movie to life.

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