Story: Both Blanc and Noir contain disturbing elements, depicting mostly the ugly world of male prostitution, whether as a host for female customers or as a gay fuck toy for monied clientele. Especially jarring are the numerous instances of sick torture, unreasonable demands, basically shit that the MC and others like him have to go through just to keep themselves alive, and hopefully out of debt.

It is understandable that copious amounts of sex would be involved in a movie about selling your body, but sometimes I don't see why it's necessary the client's backstories are included, like a precursor as to why they seek male companionship in the first place (I especially had problems with the goat story).

It seemed to me the movie is going for shock value with the numerous fucked up scenes, but at least not as mentally disturbing as some other shorts I've seen trying to pass as film noir.

Acting: With their clothes off, they are quite convincing but with their clothes on, not so much

Music: Nothing to write home about

Rewatch: Maybe for only some parts of the movie (just to measure the trajectory of piss-cum), but unless I'm a masochist, then no.

Overall: Watch only if you want to say that you've watched it. Or if there's no good porn left on the net.

Citeste mai mult

Story is nothing new, it's one of the most common clichés about bestfriends falling in love.
However, the story-telling is a bit new. I did not realize how a very short film without speaking parts can speak volumes with just their actions.

And here the acting comes in as natural as if the actors are living it. The small touches, the glances, the visible clearing of throats, all gestures
contribute to the beautiful and poignant telling of the story of requited or unrequited love. (depending on one's view).

The music brings attention to the flow and ebb of emotions and moves the story along.

Re-watch value: The need to play this movie over and over again is quite strong, and quite tempting as it is short.

Overall, a very short and sweet film.

Citeste mai mult

Story: It is about the journey of four very different characters, each with their own unique baggage:

Kim Min Ki: The soft-spoken younger brother who was mourning the loss of his elder brother, goes to Thailand to seek answers from the brother's boyfriend. Angry at first at Jae Hee, whom he thought neglected his brother upon his death, and maybe the reason for it, comes to accept him in the end. I find his character a little bit wishy-washy, to the point of being a pushover. We could see this when Jae Hee, not even knowing who he was, bumps into Min Ki on the street and just starts randomly kissing him and he did not even push the stranger away.

Kim Min Hoon: The older brother who committed suicide because he was being bullied in the military. Instead of talking to his friends and family about his troubles, decide to close himself off, leaving the people around him asking questions, wondering what else they could have done.

Lee Tae Kyung: Jae Hee's stepbrother who is ill and in love with Jae Hee. Fakes fainting at one point which is not cool. I find him sometimes being hypocritical, blaming Jae Hee for being insensitive and when Jae Hee pays him attention, Tae Kyung pushes him away. What does this guy really want?

Park Jae Hee: He is like the "prince" of the harem with three people who were or could be in love with him. He gets the short end of the stick as he is made out to be the "bad" guy. He's being accused for being heartless, yet he's always the one who waits for his Min Hoon to show up for their dates, always the one to take care of Tae Kyung, and even concedes to Min Ki despite not saying sorry for his loss.

Acting: Pretty good for relatively new actors.

Music: Suited to the film

Rewatch Value: Good enough to watch it again.

Take-away: A story about seizing the moment, and not letting go of the chance to fall in love again, while letting go of the past.

P.S. The only thing that bugged me about the movie is the likelihood of Min Ki hooking up with his dead brother's boyfriend. Min Ki could end up being a replacement for Min Hoon or not, but it is hella weird.

Citeste mai mult

Story: The premise of this movie is about a young adult becoming a masseuse in order to pay for his grandmother's medical bills. In the beginning, the MC refused to do more than legit massage, even though his boss and male customers occasionally ask him to perform "extra" services. MC kept insisting he wasn't gay and even called a female friend to engage in a make-out session that went south quickly.

MC was fond of one frequent client in particular, who seemed to share his feelings, so MC finally relented in one of these sessions, which culminated in them having sex. Little did he know that it would be the last time MC would see him again. The boss found out and figured that if MC was open to sex with men, that he would also provide the same sexual service to other clients and started booking him for such. Unfortunately for the MC, the clients were lacklustre at best, and greasy or even violent at worst, that he decided to quit after there was no longer a reason for him to keep making money.

Which brings us to the crux of the movie: I find this movie is less about MC accepting his sexual orientation and more about his relationship with his grandmother. I had to commend the MC for being so young and yet understand the concept of filial obligation even when his parents abandoned him when he's a child. The gentle attitude and caring he showed towards his grandmother, even though she mistook him for his useless father, brought me to tears.

MC's genuine concern for his grandmother is a rare sight among youth. Even though she hid all the medicine that he bought specifically for her with his hard-earned money, he stuck by his grandmother. Sometimes even adults would have just left their ailing parents in a nursing home somewhere.

Acting: Very good considering MC and grandmother are amateur actors. Their characters are believable because of their acting.

Music: Average.

Rewatch value: You don't really need to watch this more than once. Especially when it's such a sad story.

Citeste mai mult

Story: Watching the movie without reading the description in the summary is like going on a trip to the jungle without a road map, and even then, the potential to get lost is great. Which is what happened to me when watching this movie.
Only in the end did I realize that there was actually a love triangle between Lin, Josh and Sean, but it was really hard to tell among the constant revolving door of almost naked men in their cheap-looking underwear that look like they've been worn since they were teenagers.

Honestly, I did not realize that there's actually a story in this mess. My take-away from this movie is that gays do drugs, bad disco and sleep around with whomever and whatever is available. But I know this is not the case. There is even a line in the movie, that for gay men, what is important is not the clothes you wear, but the body underneath it. Basically, if you're fat, you're fucked. Or rather, not fucked. Unless you are some guy with connections or money, you're pretty much hopeless.

But to give you a quick brief, so to spare you from wasting almost two hours of your life. This is basically what happened, if I understood it correctly.

Spoilers ahead:

Main Line:

Josh has been in love with Lin , who is still hung up about the death of his boyfriend.
Josh sleeps around with everyone except Lin.
Lin has AIDS and Lin dies by suicide similar to what his boyfriend did.
Sean did something about a video, probably driving LIn to his death not sure.
Sean did the above to get Josh.
Sean also has AIDS.
The description says that Josh and Lin are boyfriends but it doesn't look like it in the movie, they may like each other but nothing that shows they were together, except that Josh frequents Lin's flower shop a lot.

Side Lines:

Miss Rose is the manager of the Red House.
Lang is Miss Rose BF who sells/supplies drugs in his apartment. Another hang-out.
Lang also sleeps around. No surprise there, as almost everyone is.
Miss Rose also provides sexual services to keep her business afloat.
The Red House burns to the ground mysteriously during or after or before a police raid.

Acting: They are all convincingly gay.

Music: The only good part about the movie.

Re-watch value: Watching one time is more than enough.

There are so many loopholes, gaps, questions about this movie that is so choppy at best, and laziness at worst.
The only reason I am giving this a 3 star even though it is a bad movie, is because I have seen worse if you can believe it. I'm looking at you, Graupel Poetry, Innate Differences, Alternative Love, In Between Seasons, A Touch of Fever, and the list goes on and on.

Unless you are a masochist, be forewarned. No matter how you like Sky Li or Aric Chen, they will not save this movie. Nobody can.

Citeste mai mult

After patiently waiting to watch this movie, I have finally done so. What to say about it?

Story: I find the premise (after reading the movie summary) to be "cute", however, I had a high expectation going in that
I thought the story would unfold with more plot elements than what I have read. So either the person who summarized the movie
was pretty good or that the story did not live up to it.

Acting / Cast: Aside from some of them being eye candy (one in particular), I can say that the acting is quite run-of-the-mill and
nothing that stood out that I would give any of them an Oscar, but they were believable enough in their roles that I did not spit out laughing inappropriately.

Music: I really don't pay attention unless it's pretty amazing or pretty horrible, I guess it didn't fall in either bucket.

Re-watch Value: Nah, I don't re-watch movies or dramas unless they are playing in a TV screen somewhere and I'm too lazy to change the channel,
which it ain't happening with this one as I had to scour the good old net to watch this movie.

What I liked: There were a few adorable moments (like the awkward lip to lip action - if you can call it that) and maybe I just got curious of how they
would end up or tackle the age-gap issue that Kazuaki kept bringing it up.

What I didn't like: If Kazuaki was so hung up on the fact that he was so much older than Yoichi, why did he keep going back to Yoichi's house with
different excuses? I can't say more than what is beyond the scope of the summary. Don't get me wrong, I'm not against May-December romances,
but when one is just barely going out of his teenage years, and the other almost as old as his father.....what could be really holding them both together
except attraction or curiosity maybe?

They already have enough challenges as it is, being both males in a very restricted culture, and to compound on
that their age gap issue, and other difficulties (like when Kazuaki gets transferred to Osaka).
Would Yoichi's young shoulders be able to handle all these then?
I wanted the movie to address these questions, I guess I wasn't satisfied with the answers to give the movie a 10.

Citeste mai mult

I watched this movie primarily for the supposed BL, but I stayed for the story, and the eye candy didn't hurt either.

Story: I liked the banter between the two leads, it feels like a typical rom-com where the couple started off hating each other and later their relationship blossoms into romance. I feel that I'm watching those type of movies but instead of a girl and a guy, it's a guy and a guy. I found the movie also to be quite funny, from their bickering to them eventually bunking together in the same house. I find it also adorable how they tried to fend off prying eyes, how their story turned into tabloid fodder.

Cast: They were pleasant to look at, really pleasant. The cast must have done a good job to have me in stitches while watching the movie.

Music: Pleasant enough.

Re-watch: I would re-watch just to catch more of the nuance between their actions.

I couldn't get enough of this movie, my mind went into over-drive just watching this. Yes, there is no BL skinship or any mouth-to-mouth action to speak of, but that doesn't mean they do not care or love each other less. The two men were practically attached to the hip till the very end, and even ditched other girls/commitments for more "couple" time.

Citeste mai mult

This is easily one of my favorite BL-themed movies that come from China. It was not rapey, it had some skinship and it did not end abruptly
unlike some other movies or dramas coming from this country.

Story-wise, I liked the simplicity of the plot: two boys who are lost in their own way and finding each other and making good music.
There were quite a few adorable moments between the two, some flirting banter, push-pull-relationship.

Acting-wise, there is nothing to write home about, but the cast were quite decent for relatively new-comers.

Music: It was poignant as it is used to reflect the moods of the characters and their feelings.

Re-watch Value: I would watch it again since it was an easy watch.

Considering that this was an online web movie without the trappings of a big budget production,
I did not go in watching with a huge expectation, and I was pleasantly surprised at how fluid the story was,
maybe except towards the end (which I won't spoil)...that I wish there was more to it.
This made me yearn for a sequel, which is really not a bad thing.

Citeste mai mult

The premise started out great and we see the dynamic between the characters, it was not overdone or totally subdued, so there is enough nuance in the story if you read between the lines. Despite being amateurs, the cast delivers a performance that made the characters believable. Cinematography is a plus also and the director took conscious care of the film's rich surroundings despite being in a small random cafe/resto.

The only drawback in the short film is that it left more questions than answers. Although there are moments of clarity, the film introduces elements that are out of whack: like what is the significance of mentioning that of all the days that the scheduled chef broke his arm is the day that Min Jae shows up with the new boyfriend, is it supposed to be a fate-inspired meeting or was it deliberate? Why did Min Jae ask a random question to Geon Woo to see if he truly likes him?

Maybe the true purpose of this film is to make people question their current and past relationships that fall into a cycle, as Noona says, of getting to know each other and once this phase over, moves onto the next.
But despite the average review, I will still encourage supporting the titles coming out from this small production studio. (Strongberry on Vimeo)

Citeste mai mult

I did not have any high hopes about this movie, so I had no idea going in what to expect so I was pleasantly surprised that it wasn't as bland as I thought it would be.

Story: It was a fun and light-hearted movie that moved quite quickly (which was why I was confounded by the turn of events in its sequel, "The Ambiguous Focus.")
The two boys had a love-hate relationship that blossomed into a close-friendship, and eventually into a full-blown relationship (not shown here but in the sequel).
Obstacles were in the way, but they were quite minor as the two guys were able to rely on each other.

Cast / Acting: Not much to say, except that they're hot, especially in their swimming trunks.

Music: Not memorable.

Re-watch Value: I'd rather re-watch something else.

It was neither here or there, but I certainly liked this one better in terms of substance, than its sequel, "The Ambiguous Focus."

Citeste mai mult

I have mixed feelings about this movie / drama. It deviated so much from the movie, not just in terms of plot, but in terms of feel as well, that I am
wondering whether I'm viewing the same story.

Story: This one is so much darker than "Kinematics Theory," relationships more complicated, and there is a lot of sh!t going on
that I wonder if whether it is the fault of the writing or the character's life-decisions.

Acting / Cast: After watching Kinematics, I guess I am surprised at how the lead character development changed from the movie to this drama.
The cast was able to deliver the transition without so much as skipping a beat, and they were believable in their angst and insecurities.

Music: Nothing worthwhile to note.

Re-watch Value: Not entirely sure I would. Maybe would only re-watch for the hot sex scenes, but I'm bad like that.

Citeste mai mult

Story: Simple enough. A virgin buys a pack of condoms as a present for his boyfriend who turns out to be only interested in one night stands.

Premise is interesting because the condoms and sex toys are given voices, making this a quirky short.

Acting: Average. Not the greatest but not so bad either.

Music: Relatively funny

Rewatch value: If only for the short erotic scene.

Available on Vimeo and GagaOOlala.
Please support StrongBerry and Matchbox productions!
P.S. I am not affiliated with them nor am I gaining any type of renumeration for promoting these studios and their works but only a strong advocate for LGBTQ productions especially coming out of Asia.

Citeste mai mult

Out of the Club Friday Stories that I've watched with a gay theme, this is easily my favorite out of them all. I almost did not watch this drama
because Tao who plays Todd, annoys me with his pencil thin excuse of a mustache (I'm quirky like that). But after watching a few episodes I got used to it, (I just used one eye to look at him). And Toni who plays Meng is a hot tamale and his chemistry with Tao/Todd is sizzling hot.

Speaking of which, I have to give both of these actors credit, as Tao managed to make me want to punch him in the face because of his childish antics. He played the role of a free-spirited rambunctious guy who does nothing but cause trouble for Meng. But when push comes to shove, Tao as Todd delivers and becomes the responsible adult that sometimes Nuch wished he was. Toni was also believable as the conflicted Meng, who believes he is doing everyone a favor by being nice. On one hand, Meng tries to cater to his girlfriend's unreasonable whims, and yet on the other, he tries to keep his best friend Tod close to his hip whenever Nuch is not watching. Nuch, meanwhile, is really annoying as the bitchy and jealous girlfriend who does not seem to think about other people except herself. I was so annoyed that I wanted to boot her to the curb faster than you can say "sayonara."

The story is interesting as it took me through a journey where I also felt confused about the actions that Meng took, because it seemed to me he was the center of the drama, and also the center of the problem as he could not seem to make up his mind about what he wanted. It looks to me that he wanted his cake and eat it too, but we all know that couldn't happen. The story however left me hanging and felt that it was not resolved either way, but maybe it is a good thing and this is one of those dramas that I am OK with an ending that is up to interpretation.

Citeste mai mult

Story: This drama focuses more on Boss than on the romantic relationship between him and Win. It shows how Boss struggles with his feelings throughout his high school days into adulthood, whether it's a one-sided relationship, unrequited love, or a brief wind of romance. I liked also the dynamic between Boss and his mother in particular, about how they truly care for each other.

Acting: Pchy, from Love of Siam, delivers the role of Boss to the T. He plays with such a range of emotion from happiness of his first love and to the sadness of his mother's illness. The actor who plays Win, however, is bland. I believed the Pchy carried the role and made the story more believable as we see him going through the struggle of getting his family to accept his lifestyle choices.

Music: Nothing worthwhile to note

Re-watch value: If only to see Pchy's acting maybe, but otherwise, not really.

Citeste mai mult

This drama will only appeal to a select few. If you are morally appalled at the thought of an emotional affair between a 20+ yr old man and a much older woman, run from this drama. Otherwise, it is a beautifully crafted love story between two people who have similar interests but opposing ambitions. It is the story of two people's journey and the choices they make in life: whether to be poor in love but wealthy in life. ..or to be poor in life but rich in love. Can you really have both? Yoo Ah in is perfect as the piano prodigy as his fingers weave through the keys. Great acting from both leads. Only drawback from the drama is it could be draggy at some parts.

Citeste mai mult