It lacked a big brain energy.

It’s not like I expected realism - I went in to watch a fun action flick and it is more or less what I’ve got. Yet, it still bothered me how little it took for the main character to infiltrate the scammers and how the scale of their project did not match their security.

What’s more, the movie lacked interesting characters. Gwak Pro had some personality and that’s where the list of interesting characters ends. Everyone felt painfully flat and boring.

Truly the best part of On the Line was the behind the scene of how voice phishing works and how many victims may there be with just one fake call center. It’s a good watch for everyone who is on the more gullible side.

That said, the movie serves more as a criticism to the government and the lack of effort and work put into catching the criminals, over a valuable lesson for the viewers. There are no real hints on how to deal with similar issues if they happen in real life, except “hang up” - the issue is, you only hang up when you know something is a scam, and figuring it out is usually the problem.

Acting was fine. Since everything was rather flat, it’s hard not to deliver decent performance.

Overall, I would say a documentary on the similar subject would be a more interesting watch.

Citeste mai mult

It's never too late to redefine yourself and start anew.

Dear My Room is a short and simple story that gives hope to all the young adults that are still searching for their purpose in life, feel like they are stuck in a grim reality, not finding happiness in any aspects of their lives. It questions what it truly means to be a responsible adult and how (un)important it is to follow other's expectations towards ourselves.

We follow the life of Eun Joo, who, after quitting her job, starts to explore her surroundings, relationships and finds her true passion. The drama shows how one small event in our life can be a start to self-improvement.

The show does a good job with not following the expectations of the viewers. Some plot lines went in a completely different direction that I thought, and I could not be more happy about it. We are also presented with truly wholesome and natural romance between main leads, with no painful Second Lead Syndrome (even though Jae Hyun was an extremely nice character, that quickly became my favorite).

Hye Jin was frustrating at times, but she plays an important role, showing us the contrast between her and Eun Joo. We can see how vital it is to have loyal friends, be true to yourself and your convictions and sometimes take a risk for the things you love and enjoy doing.

The production of the show just made me feel warm and happy. That's it. Each episode made me feel hopeful. People from their mid to late 20' could easily relate to the struggles of the characters and emotionally invest in the story.

The OST was perfect. It never felt out of place, had this sweet indie vibe. It perfectly matched the scenes, making them that much more enjoyable, and at times moving.

Overall, a perfect slice of life that tackles serious topics that young adults have to face, while not being depressing about them. The show truly motivates me to act on my ideas and hopes, instead of wanting to give up any plans I might have.

Citeste mai mult

Lots of fun if you leave the brain out of it. Do not try to understand it or find a logic behind anything, coz it ain't there. The whole premise of the show is built on misconception about a certain topic.

That said, I had lots of fun for the majority of watch time. They committed to the gruesome and violent scenes and questionable/ evil characters. I watched it and asked - is this really Korean? Where they censor and blur knives from scenes?

Editing was spectacular, except for some special effects, but I'm picky about these. Most people would probably love them. The fighting scenes were well choreographed, but it was the editing that added that special and unique edge to them. And the violence was... well, violent. Ain't some random few punches here and there.

The acting was for sure the strongest aspect after the directing and editing. Kim Da Mi's performance truly amazed me, especially closer to the ending. She showed a lot of skills and duality in her acting. Truth to be told, the whole cast did an amazing job. I was frustrated with the random English lines here and there, especially since Netflix does not provide subs for them, and as a not native speaker, with the accent, I did have some problems with understanding some of them...

So what went wrong?
The reasoning, explanations and motivations of the characters were all over the place. I enjoyed the movie up till the moment they tried to explain what exactly is going on. Why? Coz the explanation was simply dumb. They gave the same excuse many low sci-fi movies give, which was proven false countless times. Still using it, in my eyes, means lazy and unoriginal writing.

Was it a good movie? Yes, just do NOT think as you watch.

Citeste mai mult

What the author had in mind?

First thing first: trigger warning for real animal cruelty. Damn 2000's was a different time for this movie to be able to exist. It's mostly fish, but they are not that nice towards dog, bird and frog either...

This movie is kind of hypnotising - you cannot stop watching not matter how gross and weird it gets. You question everything and yet you don't hit that pause button. I think the depth of that movie is hidden deep down in the mind of the author. Is this deep symbolism, or is it a shallow pretentious symbolism? I don't know.

The movie has little to no dialogue and yet it was directed in a way I did understand easily what was going on and what the characters were thinking and feeling (it was all fucked up, but I could grasp it). It's a story of two broken people becoming more broken and more fucked up.

The acting was great, not gonna lie. Seo Jung as Hee Jin was simply disturbing.

Overall... that was quite an experience and I don't think I know even one person I would recommend this movie to.

Citeste mai mult

Horror never found…

It’s for sure more of an action fantasy with just some elements of horror. Truth to be told, it had more comedy than horror and I’m not mad about it.

It was an entertaining and light watch. A lot of jokes were basic, but they landed well. Simple plot works well with simple writing and good visuals, and that’s exactly what this movie delivers.

Timing for some revelations was a bit questionable, like when we find out what is the actual goal of the main villain. Or what is the importance of each and every character. Still, the pacing is great and the pay off is decent.

Honestly speaking, the production value was for sure the best aspect of the show. Great special effects, great set design, beautiful lighting and use of colors and filters. Stunning for many scenes, screenshots worthy.

For the acting, no complaints, but the roles were not that demanding anyway.

Overall, fun and simple sometimes is the best combination. Not everything has to be a complex philosophical tale with double meanings, sometimes a movie has to be just an entertainment.

Citeste mai mult

By the end I was filled with a feeling of emptiness…

And I honestly do not know how to explain what it means. I just wanted to feel a little bit more, understand the characters a little bit better, connect to the story a little bit deeper, but it all stopped right before it hit the spot.

How to put it… every new revelation made me disconnect from the plot more and more. Soramame started as an amazing and relatable character, but then was stripped from that mundane context that made me love her so much. Oto stayed frustratingly consistent throughout the show, but by the end some of his choices just made me roll my eyes - why so dramatic? Why can’t you act like a normal adult?

While I enjoyed the mutual pining and I have no issue with slow pace plots, the fact they were able to build misunderstanding on already existing misunderstanding was one step too far. The story focusing on chasing their dreams also lost its charm the moment we found out both leads some really unique skills that most people do not have. Not exactly motivational storytelling if you ask me.

I liked the show a lot, but I also liked it a little bit less with each episode I watched, and by episode 10 I had too many conflicting feelings about it.

Writing aside, the acting was great. I loved how the whole cast was able to deliver such unique and vibrant characters in such an approachable way. Hirose Suzu did an amazing job especially during the more emotional scenes. With that performance you can truly relate to the saying sometimes some of the happiest people are hurting the most.

Directing and editing was great. Loved all the shots during the sunset/dusk and how warm the tones were during them. The set designs were also to die for, made me want to live in the house with the leads, enjoying each day and anticipating what the next one will bring.

Overall, it was an enjoyable drama, but I cannot stop myself from feeling like something was missing.

Citeste mai mult

Detailed presentation of a complex situation.

I’ll be honest with everyone - the only reason one should watch this over a director's cut (which for me is a 10/10), is to later watch the director's cut and appreciate it even more.

Memoir of a Murderer is a story about simple characters in a complex and convoluted situation - both internally and externally. The addition of dementia is such a fresh and fascinating take on the typical serial killer story. What happens when a “reformed” serial killer starts to lose himself in the past, regressing to immoral behavior and not being able to control his urges that were tamed for years? Add another layer of him trying to catch another serial killer while struggling to remember all the encounters and identities of people around him - what a horrifying, but also captivating scenario.

What the movie does perfectly well is confusing the audience - what is reality? What is just a fragment of imagination? What was a lie and what was a forgotten memory? No matter how much you might pay attention, you cannot differentiate between the real and the fake, unless the movie itself wants to tell you the truth. How did they achieve that? Smart directing, amazing editing, trusting the audience and one aspect that made the director's cut better - the conclusion that actually makes sense.

Sol Kyung Gu as Kim Byung Soo? Perfection. The range of emotions and expressions, the chilling narrations and that eye twitch… The performance that somehow made me sympathize with a serial killer, even feel bad for him. Disagreeing with his murderous nature was obvious, but the fear of losing your identity and years of life and memories is such a horrible vision, it was hard not to feel anything while watching the movie.

Overall, probably one of the best serial killer movies I have seen in years, easily top5 of all times. Personally preferred the director’s cut, so if one is not up to watching mostly the same movie twice, skip the theatrical release.

Citeste mai mult

Bumpy road with not so smooth storytelling.

Copycat Killer is for sure not anything groundbreaking, but it has its charm thanks to the 90’ set up and great performances.

It’s best to watch it without trying to figure it all out. If you start to pay too much attention to the plot and certain details, you’ll start to get more and more frustrated. Yes, it’s the case of poorly done detective work and letting the killer get away a few too many times before the final face off. If you just go with the flow, it’s a rather entertaining watch and game of wits from people who don't really have that much wits in the first place.

Honestly speaking, I truly enjoyed the first 3 and last 3 episodes, but the middle part was just not well constructed and, at least for me, it failed to connect the initial set up to the given conclusion. All the revelations made sense, but they never truly felt earned. I also wished we had more background on the mastermind, more information and explanation for his motives. They spent a lot of time developing things that by the end did not matter as much as the vital aspect that were left underdeveloped.

Copycat Kill in a not so subtle way delivers a message about the biased portrayal of victims in media and the negative consequences of chasing after topics, disregarding feelings of people who are involved. While the message was clear, even that felt a bit wishy-washy in the presentation.

Best aspect of the drama? Undoubtedly the performances. Chris Wu aced the role of the justice driven, hardworking prosecutor with a tragic past. The raw emotions and vulnerability he delivered on screen amazed me quite a few times. That was truly a one man story. Technically speaking there were 7 main characters, but by the end of the show, everyone seemed like a supporting character for Guo Xiao Qi’s journey.

Personally, I loved the production quality. Great and detailed set designs, beautiful use of lighting, smooth editing and transitions between scenes. The 90’ aesthetics were presented in a realistic way without making the show look dated. The few gore scenes had perfectly done makeup and practical effects. It's not over the top graphic just to shock the audience, but it also does not shy away from the reality of the gruesome crime.

Overall, a nice watch. Nothing thrilling enough that would make you binge watch in one sitting, but something that might make you want to watch an episode every few days.

Citeste mai mult

10% of the writing and 90% of fluff.

It's the most digestible show I have ever seen with close to zero stakes, almost none evil or mean characters, no long term conflicts, every character starts more or less already good so you don't get stressed out by how bad they are and how much they have to improve and since their flaws are so inconsistent, they don’t create much tension either.

That said, it does have a lot of truly good elements. First of all, the relationship between the leads evolve in a really natural and entertaining manner. The bickering is always lighthearted and Lu Si Cheng is for sure not one of the mean main leads. The interactions between the team members are heartwarming at times, and even the relations between different teams made me smile more than once. I also loved the female friendship between Tong Yao and Jin Yang.

One of my favorite things about the show was how it truly did address the toxic fans culture - the idolizing people fans don’t know, seeing them as flawless, trying to control their private lives, living in a delulu land they created in their heads and then getting paranoid and angry when the unrealistic bubble shatters. But, and it’s a big but - I truly disliked how they did not present the same stance towards all public figures. Lines that went similar to: I’m not an idol, I can date, gave the message that idols do not deserve the same level of privacy and personal life as, in this case professional gamers do.

Another straightforward, but fairly well presented issue was the discrimination of women in certain jobs and social groups. They did not shy from showing the unfair treatment Tong Yao had to face especially in terms of the public's opinions and reactions.

Production value was great. The game scenes looked amazing and I loved the design for the in game characters. On a technical aspect, I think they did a perfect job with opening each new episode - added enough scenes from the previous one to make a proper set up, but not long enough that you want to just skip it all.

Performances were… questionable. I was slowly losing my mind with each and every Korean scene. The dubbing was so awful I wanted to cry. The fact that Chinese characters spoke better Korean than Korean characters was just the cherry on top. Cheng Xiao had a few glimpses of potential in a few scenes, but overall the whole performance was mostly a surprised hamster.
Xu Kai was honestly not much better and there was only one scene when I went: oh, acting! That said, I still enjoyed his handsome face in each and every scene.

Overall, the only thing this show had to offer was cute fluff, but sometimes this is all one needs to be happy.

Citeste mai mult

Logic left the room, but the friendship was nice.

This is such a feel good show, you will end up puking rainbow by the end. When they started to recycle all the trash, all the suspense and anticipation said its last goodbyes and died. They basically told you they are going for a Disney ending and nothing will stop them.

Is that a bad thing? Depends what are you expecting to get out of this drama. Anyone who thinks this drama has good writing, is lying to themselves, but at the same time, I honestly don’t think a good writing was their goal. This is a show that is supposed to have generic motivational messages, generic saint like leads, generic conflicts and generic resolutions and it all presented in a perfect, light, fun and addicting manner that invites you for the binge watch.

There is honestly close to nothing to say about the leads. Both Ji Xiang Kong and Qiu Ying are good, hardworking, friendly, honest, passionate - so perfect it’s boring. Luckily we get some amazing supporting characters to add spice to the mix: Pei Xi, who was the literal MVP of the drama for me. I adored his character and the surprised complexity he presented. Another character I appreciated a lot was Luo Tian - on a rather low key, but he stole every scene he was in.

Story wise, it’s the underdog fighting to get to the top for both leads. They follow exactly the same path - working hard and being passionate, but always facing issues because of the jealous rivals who play dirty. For some strange reason everyone was painfully informant about the dirty tricks and no one cared to actually run a business and bring profits. My favorite unrealistic part? The internal investigation lasted weeks, but consisting only of questioning 4 people, no one knows what tracking IP address is. What I am trying to say - to make the conflict last longer and feel that screen time, to make the leads journey more meaningful, as they have to face more hardship, all the characters in the show - be it good or the bad guys, had to stop using their brains and make all the dumb decisions possible.

As it’s always the case with shows like this, the best aspect was the friendships and partnerships. The number of fun and heartwarming interactions between various characters was a blast to watch. My favorite pairings were Pei Xi with everyone (but especially Qiu Ying and Ji Xiang Kong) and Qiu Ying and Luo Tian. Friendships and mentor-mentee relationships between female and male characters are so underrated in dramas.

The production value was fine. On one hand we had a great set design for different locations, on the other hand, unfitting styling for the characters. One thing I truly cannot stand in dramas is dolled up female characters even if the setting makes no sense for it. Why did both Qiu Ying and Lu Yi Yi look like idols ready to go on stage no matter the circumstances?

Acting wise, I don’t have massive complaints. Taking into consideration the writing, I don’t think anyone could give a better performance.

Overall, it’s a fast-food of dramaland - nice, addicting, something we crave from time to time, even though it’s not exactly good.

Citeste mai mult

The initial hesitation and resignation I felt when I started watching, turned into interest and excitement by the end. I mean, I did not think a group of annoying and obnoxious teens that are basically asking to be killed could make a fun watch - I was wrong.

Somehow, I slowly got invested. I honestly didn’t care who would survive, I just wanted a few dead, and after each vote I got more and more anxious and annoyed - what if they will survive? Not really caring about these kids is actually a good thing. This movie is not made to awaken empathy in viewers, it’s not deep, and does not serve as social commentary. You are here for the thrills of who will die and who will survive the mind games.

What I also liked about this story is how we saw both the participants and the operators' perspective. Personally, I think it made the movie more digestible.

Acting was good. I don’t think it needed strong performances. Asakura Fuyuna was probably my favorite.

Overall, surprisingly fun, building the tension and thrills as it goes with a great ending that actually made me appreciate it even more.

Citeste mai mult

This is not tomb raiding, it’s politics.

Sue me, but I skipped 1/5th of the show. I truly could not stand Hendry’s dubbing. I was not interested in the whole political ploy for power. Not gonna lie, I struggled with the rating a lot. It's not like I think the series is bad, I was just painfully uninterested in the plot and came into it with different expectations.

Mystic Nine is nothing like your typical The Lost Tomb Series. It focuses far more on the politics and power struggle between the Nine Clans (more like 4 families, the others just being mentioned by name every now and then) with additions to awfully generic white man Hendry and awfully generic power hungry Lu Jian Xun. Also, claiming Yin Xin Yue and Ya Tou are main characters is a fat lie. One shows up every few episodes to look pretty and worried about Zhang Qi Shan and the other mostly exists in the same five flashbacks that are played every time Er Ye needs his emo time.

The best part of the whole show was literally the ending scene. That type of badassery is what I want from the Tomb Series. So why did it feel like Lu Jian Xun was the main character and the center of this boring political story?

Acting was objectively good, but I was not once moved by any performance since I simply did not care about any of the characters. Production value was more or less the same as any of the first Tomb Raiders shows. The few CGI scenes were awful and I loved them.

Overall, if you go into it knowing it will be mostly politics and a lot of talking, and that’s what you want - you will enjoy it a lot. If you want a more typical Tomb Raiding adventure (like I did), I’d recommend picking something else.

Citeste mai mult

Being brave does not mean not being afraid...

It means doing what's right despite your fears. Great message for a movie that obviously has kids as their target audience. And for kids I would for sure recommend it.

It was painfully cheesy, especially the ending. The messages were literally slapped into my face, no ambiguity, no need to dwell on them more. The power of love, care, friendship, bravery, apology, reconciliation - everything kids should be learning about, you have it here.

Watanabe Kei is honestly a great character - usure and scared, but willing to learn and improve if it means helping others and saving his younger brother. He is not a perfect hero, he is a normal kid that other children can relate to. What helps is also an amazing performance from Terada Kokoro - this child knows how to scream and has actually great comedic and dramatic skills.

Production was nice, typical for fantasy movies for younger audiences, focused on the practical makeup and costumes with CGI just as an addition slapped on top.

Overall, while I obviously was not in mind of the creators when they made it, I still had a great time and even cried by the end. As cheesy as it was, it’s a nice and simple story that can teach kids some life lessons.

Citeste mai mult

Covid driven horror stories? I guess it can work...

Bad luck is a bitch
I think the first story had the most confusing message. What was I supposed to get from it? Don’t always help people who claim they are in need because they can screw you over? Don’t break covid isolation restrictions by letting strangers stay at your home?

It was fun and wacky and the emo teen magician shaman boy got me dying from laughing, but I’m just not sure what the writer wanted to tell with this one…
Also, excuse me, but why was this story so dark? Damn, I could barely see anything.

Nothing beats meat
Decent story, but I’m not sure I like the black and white aesthetics. It was also way too short to have any meaning or impact. Felt a bit like an ad break. I understand it’s linked to all the fake covid medication and how not following the actual doctors’ advice and listening to random people with their great healing stories can screw you over, but… it kind of felt flat in presentation.

Shit happens
I did not think the title would be literal… I need a white truck of doom to give me amnesia asap. Oh gosh… why? When I thought it couldn't get any more gross, guess what. It got more gross.
The message is there - mistreatment of patients, overworked medical staff, desensitization to other’s suffering - great and strong messages, but why did they have to literally cover it all in shit?

HM?
Job insecurity during the pandemic was a big problem and the consequences are still here and with the current market, I don’t think they are going away anytime soon. The desperation of trying to earn money in any possible way is something many people could relate to. I’d say this story had the most clear direction and storytelling. When you feel like you won’t be able to even feed your child, you would ignore potential dangers with the hope of getting that coin.

Citeste mai mult

A few too many boobs shots.

That’s your typical, dumb and sexualizing women comedy… That is not funny. Such a dumb jokes I don’t even know how to comment on them.

I was watching and I felt my neurons dying and IQ decreasing. I’m not even against dumb parody movies - which this tries to be. The execution must be good though and the jokes take a jab at the well known cliches in a clever way. This had none of it.

I guess the best part of the movie was the relationship between the brothers. It was well established, had some nice moments and a solid conclusion. The acting was also decent. Not from all the actors, but the main cast did fairly well.

That would be the end of compliments I have.

Sure the scenery and views were pretty and the makeup for zombies was not that bad. But it also was not good enough to recommend anyone to watch the movie.

Basically speaking - you won’t miss anything if you skip this movie.

Citeste mai mult