No Breathing (2013)

A brief disclaimer before starting the review: I watched this movie in a theater with two of my girl friends without English subtitles. Why did we do this? Because we thought that seeing wet, half-naked man-boys would be able to sustain our interest for two hours despite our mediocre Korean skills. Imagine then how surprised we were to have reached the end to the movie and realizing that we had laughed, we had teared up a bit, and we had thoroughly enjoyed this movie.

The story is not a complicated one to follow: Seo In Guk plays an orphaned teenager who once was a competitive swimmer but who quit after experiencing a trauma. This trauma left him unwilling, and perhaps unable, to enter the water. Lee Jong Suk, on the other hand, plays an Olympic-bound swimmer with the typical rich, overbearing, and distant father. Rounding out the main cast is SNSD's Kwon Yuri who doubles as the boy's mutual childhood friend and current "love interest" (in scare quotes because the romance was hollow and weak). The soundtrack of the film is most provided by Yuri, whose character is a hopeful on a Superstar K-like show, meaning that the music is bland pop-rock carried by Yuri's weak vocals. For someone in such a renowned pop group, Yuri's music moments were extremely awkward.

Acting-wise, the cast did their job well. Yuri did her best to pretend to be an actress. Lee Jong Suk was his typical angst-ridden teenager (is there a single role this kid has where he isn't moodily listening to music through oversized headphones?). Who really blew me away was Seo In Guk. Yes, his character was a little over the top, but he committed to every moment, making for a hilarious and lovable portrayal of Won Il.

As we were walking out of the theater, my friends and I all agreed that this is one movie we would watch again when released with subtitles. It was fun, a dollop of drama to add the right amount weight to the story without bogging it down, and a bit unpredictable, which is a rare thing in the wold of formulaic Korean dramas and light films. A definite watch, with or without subs.

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I have been waiting to watch this movie for several months because come ON! It's Seo In Guk and Lee Jong Suk together! And after watching it, I can definitely say that it was more and less than I had hoped for at the same time.
Story- I love sport movies, and this one was no exception. I loved both main characters, one who was very talented but didn't wamt to swim and the other one who was less talented but trained a lot and was pressured by his dad. I specially liked the bromance between Wu Sang and Won Il, it was my favorite part of the movie. The weakest part of the story for me was the romantic part. The female lead was shallow and poorly written so I could never understand how they would fall in love with her? What did they see in her?
Acting - I already knew both SIG and LJS could act really well, they have proven it before, and this movie was no exception. Seo In Guk nailed his performance of an orphan rebel kid, bringing life and joy to a character who could've been very tragic and Lee Jong Suk also excelled in his role of a pressured kid who doesn't know how to have fun. Sadly, I can't say the same thing about Yuri. Saying that I suffered watching her acting was an understatement. I understand that the producers were trying to attract a younger audience and that's why they chose an idol for the love interest, but why did it have to be Yuri? She barely knows the basics about acting and her character seemed too plastic, taking credibility from the love story.
Music- Again, it was a weak part of the movie, way too mellow and pop-ish.
Rewatch value- I will definitely rewatch this again because it's the kind of movie that you enjoy watching several times
Overall, if you're looking for a good sports movie about friendship and bromance, this is your movie! PLUS! Lee Jong suk and Seo In Guk shirtless 95% of the movie! :D

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This was promoted as one of the best movies of the season.
If you have high expectations, you should stop here.
If you're looking for hot men in swimsuit then, you should go on.
I approve that too but, it's not enough to make me like the whole movie.

The characters are plain and unrealistic even if all the cast did their best. In some shots, it looked like the actors were holding back just to fit the role.
The growing relationship between the swimming group members it's what I enjoyed the most, also with the wonderful and funny acting of Seo In Guk.
As for the main plot.... meh. It was so predictable. I think everyone can say what will happen right after the first 10 minutes. But, I must say all the shots were well planned and I also liked the locations very much.
The "band" part was a bit unnecessary tho. I think they could have found a more interesting way to insert the 3rd main character, which lacked of personality and credibility compared to all the others (even the supporting ones) which showed a strong motivation and (somehow) intense feelings.

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Other than the casting and acting, this movie was a bit disappointing. I had expected a lot better. The storyline was somewhat not as detailed as I wanted; also kind of unrealistic at one point (I'd spoil if I'd tell). The last ten minutes were the best because of the excitement of the competition. This was the main peak of the movie and imo it came in too late. I know I'm not the director or anything, but I feel like it would be better to have a peak in the middle of the movie, or at least have more tension throughout the movie.

It also seemed somewhat unprofessional when it comes to the details of the school. It was hard to get they say, but I saw several swimmers that were not as professional as the main characters. Thus making the movie less trustworthy.

Music was okay. Other than Yuri singing some weird songs, there was some piano melodies included.

I would not watch it again, and also not recommend it unless you love the actors. There are a lot of funny moments, but not as good as to make up for everything in between.

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Fun and pretty to watch

Another potentially great movie dragged down by a annoyingly written lead... If it was not for that this would definitely have gotten a 9.5. The story is nothing new really but it is well executed, fun to watch and keeps the viewers guessing right till the end.

Lee Jong Suks character is lovable, well written fun, gorgeous from start to finish so I have no complaints what so ever about him while Seo In Guks character is portrayed as an annoying gluttonous airhead a role he does well and is not his fault but does drag down the score. However he does go thru some development and becomes a cute lovable puppy by the end of the drama.

Best part of this drama is the suspense, the friendship, the countless scenes of swimming men... and well Seo In Guk and Lee Jong Suk do make a great looking team (if I am to be superficial).

The side characters all play their roles well, and there are many familiar faces making you go oh there is that guy... Including a very young Nam Da Reum doing what he does best (playing a younger version of someone).

All in all definitely worth watching.

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Time for a movie that even before the premiere, thanks to the cast and announced setting, has become a favorite movie of all women. To some extent, this helped achieve commercial success and it grossed almost 3 billion won (~$2,8mln), although it was seen in theaters by less than 500 thousand people. This is the debut movie of director Jo Yong-Sun and another cliche story by Yoo Young-A (The Wedding Dress (2010), As One (2012) , My Paparotti (2013) , Bel Ami (2013)). This is not, in any way an ambitious movie, it is not even a good movie, and the only thing that saves it in the eyes of the audience is Lee Jong-Suk and Seo In-Guk in the main roles and a large amount of fan service. The whole movie can be summed up in one sentence Free Live Action Movie and this is unfortunately very accurate.

It is not only similar to anime Free in the fact that everything is about swimming. We have a similar form, the same lack of plot, the same cliches, the same plot solutions and a large amount of fan service.

Almost every 5 minutes you see half naked guys, which would not be bad, if not for the fact that the only purpose of this is to distract viewers from the vanities of this movie and to attract fans who wanted to see their idols half naked bodies. Let's focus for a moment on storyline presented to viewers. All the action develops around rivalry between two swimmers, Jeong Woo-Sang (Lee Jeong-Suk) and Cho Won-Il (Seo In-Guk), even though the movie is about swimming, their rivalry comes down to fight for Jung-Eun (Yuri). All three of them knew each other since childhood. Even then Woo-Sang and Won-Il competed with each other. However, after the death of his father, Won-Il resigns from swimming and their paths diverge. Woo-Sang keeps swimming and becomes a national star. After seven years, Woo-Sang at the instigation of Jung- Eun and her father, returnes to swimming and lands in sports school, at the same time to the same school moves Woo-Sang after he was removed from the representation because of the fight. At this point, the story should start developing, but unfortunately, we get the cliche of rival athletes who eventually become friends. The movie also does not offer any twists and at a steady pace heads to an end.

As for the characters, do not expect interesting creations, we have another dose of cliche. Woo-Sang comes from a wealthy family and presents another stereotypical "celebrity", he is proud, acts cool, and is trying not to mix up with those below him. Despite these drawbacks, he is somewhat likable seeing how hard he work yo be the best. On the other hand, Won-Il is a typical child prodigy, he is lazy, rude, eats all the time, and if he could he would sleep all day, but it also has its good side. Thanks to his not too serious approach he is cheerful and easily make friends. So we have the main characters straight from the manga. To add authenticity of their rivalry, we get Jung-Eun, beautiful, funny and musically gifted girl in which they both have a crush.

Each of them struggles with their personal problems through the movie, but of course at the end they all live happily ever after. The sad thing is that none of the main actors rose above the level of the movie. Despite great talent Lee Jeong-Suk and Seo In-Guk, presented only decent acting, the only one actor playing supporting role Jae-Suk (always reliable, Park Chul-Min) rose above others. Disadvantages of the movie are also its advantages. No Breathing is not an ambitious movie, instead it provides a solid dose of fan service for the ladies and cliche but comforting story.

If anyone is looking for a good movie then don't watch No Breathing, but if you're looking for a light and simple movie with lots of half-naked pretty boys, then this is a perfect movie for you. Although the storyline is the remains of last day meal,and the actors messed up, I have to admit that it had a nice time watching this movie.

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Seo In Guk plays a goofball character in this show and he has many opportunities to show off his physical comedy, which I found quite funny. Lee Jong Seok's character is more reserved but his charisma shines through. It certainly felt like he didn't have to try too hard in this movie.

Yuri's character is not very fleshed out, and I found her storyline as an aspiring singer to be completely boring and the connection with the swimmers' stories felt very forced. With the little material she had, Yuri's acting still leaves much to be desired. At times she seemed a little stiff, at other times it felt awkward to watch her.

The movie also tried to touch on backstabbing and bullying, but it was quite brief and the supporting characters were also not fully developed.

Overall, this show is mostly light with some brief moments of gravitas. Enjoy the fanservice, aka abs galore and montages of topless men exercising.

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Yes Swimming

When i started watching this movie i was not expecting something extraordinary. Before i watched the film itself, I've read some bad reviews and saw Free! (anime) so i was ready for the worst (despite actually liking free! i know it's not something that should be made into a movie). To be honest, i was quite surprised because in the end i enjoyed No Breathing.



Story. 5/10

The story is not the strongest point of this film. There are things that are surprisingly vague and the lack of details makes the story forgettable, the friendship between main guys could be a little more explored and the romantic sidestory could be handled better (tbh it wasnt necessary for Seo In-Guks character at all). Also emotional scenes didnt get to me much (but it could be only me).

However, I dont see a reason why it is compared to free!. Swiming, handsome guys, friendship. Yes. ... but well... i still dont get why people say it could be live action of free because imo No Breathing has different atmosphere.

Despite the fact that story is nothing new and the film is 2 hours long i actually was not bored at all. The first hour was fresh and funny and the second part was ok. To sum it up, the story was nothing (i wont probably remember it tomorrow) but i enjoyed it very much.



Cast. 10/10.

Initially, I was drawn to this film because of Lee Jong-Suk. I am dissapointed that his character was not written better but he still is a good actor.

BUT maaaaaaaaaaan I have to admit that Seo In-Guk is a great actor! I havent seen many of his dramas but whenever i see him i just cant help myself and love whatever he does. He simply carried this film on his back. I'm not afraid to say that without him, the film would be much MUCH worse.

As for Yuri... Well, I am always wary when are idols casted in a film/drama but she wasnt bad. Personally, i dont think her story line was good (or important for the film). However, that is not her fault and i think that she handled her role quite well. She actually looked like an ordinary girl which (,for some weird reason,) i appreciate.

Also, I cant help myself, but i feel like I have seen Shin Min-Chul somewhere but after checking his biography he seems fairly new. I hope we will see him more in the future.



Music. 3/10

Whatever Yuris "band" sang, i didnt like it. And the rest of the ost sounded pretty generic so..



Rewatch value. 4,5/10

The film is not worth of rewatching. But some of the scenes were good and if i ever feel like i need more of Seo In-Guk in my life, i might watch first half of the film (because as i've already said, i liked it a lot).



Overall. 7,5/10

I know i give this film higher rating than i should but (and now i will repeate myself again) Seo In-Guk was great and I didnt get bored despite this film lacked in so many ways. (If you are interested, mathematically correct rating based on my individual ratings is 5,5 but i liked this film much more :))



You should watch this film if you:

a) are Seo In-Guk's or Lee Jong-Suk's fan,

b) have spare 2 hours and you want to spend them watching smth easy and non-complicated

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I chose to watch this movie needing something light-hearted and quick. Reply 1997 has been my most recent drama watch and Lee Jong Suk has always been one of my favourite actors - so why not?

The storyline is predictable and simple but the characters worked well to keep the story entertaining. Lee Jong Suk plays, as usual (but no complaining), an angst ridden talented teenager. His character develops a lot through this movie and my only complaint is that we see it a little bit more. Some moments confused me because it was like what - shouldn't be see a little more build up before he's nice to someone he hated a few scenes ago?

I absolutely loved Seo In Guk's character. Blown away, actually. His over the top character was super entertaining and funny and his emotional more serious scenes were done brilliantly. The bromance in this drama was nice too - reminded me slightly of School 2013 with less angst.

I haven't seen Yuri act before but I didn't have high expectations and I'm glad I didn't. I can see she was trying her best but her scenes felt awkward. The writers really didn't do enough to make her a likeable character and it was difficult to see why two boys are so helplessly in love with her. It was like they just needed an idol and thought her prettiness would excuse the flat character. The soft pop rock also didn't work for me but that could be a personal preference.

Overall I did enjoy this movie as it was light and fun. If you're looking for a feel good movie I'd recommend this.

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Lots of wet handsome guys

I must say that I watch this movie because they feature 2 of my favorite Korean actors, Lee Jong Suk and Seo In Guk. And I’m really glad that I watch it.

Sure, it have the typical, cliche plot of sports movie, but the execution is good and the wet handsome guys sure keep me entertained 😉. Our two main actors do their job well in portraying their characters. I’m cheering for the both of them.

I wish they give deeper exploration of character for both of them instead of giving them love rival. I think this movie would have been better with just the two main sports rivalry and friendship. The romance feel forced and flat. There’s not enough going on about the romance but it takes time away from our main character back story explanation.

The music is okay, I quite like the easy kpop songs sings by the female love interest. But I would enjoy it more if the story about her character is replaced with more back story for our two leads.

I would definitely rewatch this movie, since it’s entertaining, easy and fun. Not to mention all of those wet swimmer body...

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