badly written.

The truth is, I avoid this genre – romance – as much as I can as I find these dramas cringe-worthy especially when the leads were to act out a romantic scene. I don’t care how much of it I’ve watched already – I’ll drop it once I can’t take it anymore just like what I did with the “Descendants of the Sun” series.

But staying at home for month put me to a new state of boredom that I didn’t even bothered checking which genre this show belongs to – romantic comedy. I had doubts but instead of my usual sour face, I actually found myself enjoying every single scene from this show's two main leads – Do Bong-soon and Ahn Min-Hyuk. With their great display of chemistry, you would even wish at the bottom of your heart for these two actors to actually date in real life.

However, despite finishing this drama, I can’t help but feel dissatisfied with it as there were just a lot of poor writing in the show. Since the story’s main focus aside from building romance between our main leads, which I don’t mind except for one thing (let me talk about it later), is chasing this psycho killer, the need to distract the audience and give them time to catch their breaths was essential, thus, causing the show to add filler scenes. However, I wish they put extra effort in choosing what fillers were to be injected and dropped.

Right from the start, it has been established that this is not pure romance but also half comedy. However, as the show progresses, the humor becomes repetitive and annoying. The comedy is just so forced, no one would even judge you if you skip these filler scenes and just jump straight to the main story. I especially dislike every gangster and fake monk scene in this show. Not to mention, the tasteless gay jokes they tried to pull that made me feel uncomfortable. I know they meant no harm but some scenes we're just way off. Of course, it still depends on the person whether this kind of humor is their cup of tea or not but for me, the writers could’ve chosen a different approach because this just wasn’t it. But of course, since our main character is a strong woman – literally – the action scenes made up for all those annoying fillers.

As I’ve mentioned, I don’t mind if the show focused more on the main story while building up the romance between the two leads but I wish they gave the second male lead the chance with the female lead. With the show’s poor use of In Gook-Doo’s character – our second male lead – the show, instead of creating an actual love triangle, created a big wall between the main couple. It’s like the show had an unspoken rule that no other love line could ever exist. And if there must be another love line, it must be between the two male leads, like what? You'll get it once you watch it. I admit, I totally love the main pairing but I also couldn’t deny that it was unfair for him. Gook-Doo wasn’t given a chance at all because it’s like when it comes to his character, time seems to be running in 2x speed that you can’t help but feel bitter about it.

The psycho killer scenes turn the light mood in 360 degree that sometimes when it goes overly dark, it would feel like you’re watching a different show. But don’t worry too much. For an average person, the scenes were still tolerable enough to continue watching. And if they weren’t anymore, you can just fast forward anytime. Still, I must say I hate every scene with the psycho killer. And if you’re sharp, you would even catch the show’s poor logic saying hi sometimes.

Overall, the show was still a good watch, thanks to the action scenes and the lovely main couple. But put this in your mind that everything in this show can be a little nonsensical so you better prepare yourself for it. Who knows, you might like the show's humor. Personally, I enjoyed this so I'll still give it a thumbs up and would not hesitate to recommend this to anyone.

#SeriesFeature #Korean

This 2010 Japanese drama (wow, it's been 10 years already?) involves Daichi, a yankee (a delinquent) who got mistaken for being the legendary yankee called Hurricane Ada after an incident in the past and Ada, the megane girl (a girl wearing glasses) , who concealed her past as the real Hurricane Ada by being the class president.

Mistaken as the legendary yankee, Daichi always find himself in a fight until one day, Ada showed up and helped him. After that, Daichi unexpectedly got caught up on Ada's business, to the point that he even got appointed as the vice-president of the student council. The series highlights the importance of family and friendship. If you're easily moved, you better have your handkerchief right beside you. Of course, there is romance involved. This is a rom-com after all. I can say is that, the romance is pretty laidback which is good, at least for me, because I didn't have to force myself to sit through cringe-worthy scenes. In fact, I actually enjoyed the romance part! I guess it's because it's not your typical shoujo drama where the female MC can't do anything else but cry.

When you watch Yankee-kun to Megane-chan, you'll feel like you're watching the anime series because of the way they exaggerate their expressions, in a funny way. Some may find it cringe-y if they haven't watched any anime turned live action before but it's tolerable so I suggest you still give it a chance. It's really fun and funny as well. I'm sure you won't regret it.

There is one complain though. They should've done another season where they focus more on the romance side. The ending was satisfying but my brain was literally looking for more romance. Still, this series sits at the top of my list and I'll never get tired of recommending this one. Trust me. This is pure gold.

#SeriesFeature #Japanese

Set in the age of technology where Artificial Intelligence had already been a part of our everyday life, this film by Spike Jonze shows how love can make someone break boundaries as a lonely writer developed feelings of love to his personified AI assistant.

The film introduces the main protagonist, Theodore Twombly, as a lonely letter writer in the final stage of his divorce who likes to play games in his free time. After passing by an advertisement for the first artificially intelligent operating system or OS1, he decided to give at a try and from that moment on, he began to question himself for his feelings towards Samantha, the voice behind his personified AI assistant as they grew closer to each other. Samantha, being an AI, has the capacity to learn through a person's thought patterns and learn what and how to respond. Thanks to this, the lonely Theodore started feeling a little less lonely as he has now a company who listens to his ramblings about life. If only the story could just end with the two being happy with each other. Too bad, as the story unfolds, the audience get to witness how feelings of doubt arise between the two of them as Theodore tries to find his sense of reality while Samantha learns to develop human-like emotions despite being an AI and begins to seek for a sense of identity.

Cinematography-wise, the film boasts with its A+ shots of the city's exterior and interior, giving off a soft, futuristic vibe. The office interior where Theodore works for is also a treat to the eye as it is filled with orange and yellow hues which is a total opposite to what emotions the main character portrays, especially in his long shots. The choice of music in this film is also something I want to praise as it added flavor and depth to each scene. From the background music to the film's official soundtracks, everything just fits perfectly. I especially love the song Samantha sung in one of the scenes that it made me learn to play it in the ukulele. In case you want to listen to the original version, it's called “The Moon Song” by Karen O.

This is a film that does not follow the conventional love between two humans, opening the audience to the idea that love is not limited to a certain set of rules which makes it a must-watch in my opinion.

#Film #FilmFeature #Western

The reason why I insisted to myself that I must watch this movie before any other movie is because it reminded me of my favorite song from Julie London which has the same title as this movie. I am glad I did. The movie truly is a masterpiece that lets you experience every kind of emotion there is when you’re in the mood for love.

It's about a man and a woman, both living with their own spouses, who went to move to their new apartment, which happened to be next to each other’s, on the same day. Since I'm a huge sucker for romantic films, things like these already put me to an assumption that this is Wong Kar-Wai's, the director, cute way of introducing these two to each other’s lives, but as the movie progresses, I realized I got fooled. Instead, I can say that it was rather a sad and a unique way of intertwining the fates of two strangers.

This is a movie that does not rely on words but more on actions like the shots where the two protagonists would pass by each other through a narrow stairway that leads them to and away from their apartment – a scene I find the most aesthetically pleasing. But even without words, you can feel the tension between them in every scene.

Honestly, the plot is really simple and there’s not much I can talk about it but the feels it brings, and how realistic it is, can send shivers. I must say, this is hands down one of the best movies I’ve ever seen, especially in this genre, as it captures the true essence of romance. It’s a type of film that will make you feel a lot-joy, sadness, longing, bitterness, regret-in just one sitting. And once it ends, you’ll be left wondering how love can be so beautiful yet so scary.

After watching the movie, I tried to look it up and wow, this movie continues to bag awards. Aside from the fact that it became a nominee for the Palme d’Or in the 2000 Cannes Film Festival, it has been continuously receiving recognition from huge publications and film critics until the present. Year 2016, the film ranked second in “100 Greatest Films of the 21st Century”, a compilation made by BBC about the best films that has been released since 2000, from a poll answered by 177 critics. And just this 2019, has been included by Guardian in the Best Films of the 21st Century list, taking the fifth spot. Although all Wong Kar-Wai films are amazing, this one is the real deal. It is the masterpiece out of all her masterpieces that's why it deserves every recognition it has gotten and will get in the future. Bravo!

#Film #FilmFeature #Chinese

Judging from the title and the movie poster (the scene which happened to be my favorite part of the movie), you can already get a grasp of what the movie will be about. Shoplifters by Koreeda Hirokazu in a nutshell is about a family that steals together and stays together.

What I like about this movie is that even if you know for a fact that theft is something that deserves to be punished, you will not be able to stop yourself from rooting for this family because the movie appeals to the audience by highlighting the unfairness that happens within the society, not just in the movie but also in real life.

It also challenges the idea of “family” that the society has set, as you witness the truth unfold in front of your eyes. I must say that the plot twist of this movie is something that I have never seen so far that it totally left me scratching my head and gasping for air. The constant switching from one character to another, showing the truth behind each character with a close-up shot and how it chose to reveal itself in a fast-paced manner is something I also want to mention. It really was a brilliant approach to tackle the climax as it puts the audience on the edge of their seats, just like the characters. And the fact that the movie did not forget to drop hints here and there but still manage to the leave its audience in awe, proves that Shoplifters is a movie of a different caliber. It’s a movie that will make you feel hooked until all you can see is a reflection of yourself trying to process everything that just happened. Also, don't forget it's A+ cinematography.

If you sum it all up, you won't even be surprised to know that the movie won the Palme d’Or, which is the highest award in the Cannes Film Festival.

Shoplifters is a masterpiece. Koreeda Hirokazu is a genius and I'm definitely going to watch his upcoming films.

#Film #FilmFeature #Japanese

This Australian “clay-figure” animation film focuses on two characters which you already know the names of, as they’re literally on the title-Mary and Max, whose lives will not at all intersect if not for our little Mary’s curiosity. The film represents Mary’s world in brown while Max’s world was represented in black and white, which struck me quite interesting.

The movie accurately depicts through Max how Asperger’s Syndrome affects people which totally deserves a big round of applause because it was informative and did not sensationalize it. Through Max, the audience were able to get a grasp on how people diagnosed with this mental illness deal with their anxiety attacks and how they really think about themselves and other people. While every person has their own thoughts and their own ways, the movie can be used as a reference as it approached things in a realistic way. On the other side of the the movie, how certain events and words affect people at an early age while they grow up was depicted through Mary.

As the movie progress, I actually started forming a hunch that something will happen so I already assumed the worst and yet, I still lost it when it reached the climax. I just cried so hard I didn't have any tissue to pull out. Good thing I was all alone that night. Funny how a “clay-figure” can make someone ugly cry until the movie reaches its end.

This is a must-watch for me and I will never get tired of telling people about this movie.

#Film #FilmFeature #Animated

If you ask me what one word would best describe this whole series, I'd pick wild without even batting an eye because it really is. Kyou Kara Ore Wa! is an action-packed series that will send you crying out of laughter. If you're into slapstick comedy, this will definitely be your favorite.

The show features our two main leads who after graduating middle school decided to be reborn by changing their hairstyle. Their boring life suddenly turned into an action-packed one as both of them made their own resolution to become the best delinquent in Japan with their new hairstyles. New hair, new life indeed. We've met a lot of strongest student in highschool already but have you ever met a delinquent who doesn't even know how to be a delinquent? For me, this is a fresh approach to this kind of genre. And the main reason why this show is funny as hell. The way the two tries to exaggerate their way of speaking just to sound delinquent enough still gets me every single time. The actors really did a great job at re-enacting every scene like it was straight out of manga especially the facial expressions. If you're familiar with manga turned live-actions before, I am sure you're familiar already on how actors must exaggerate their expressions but since this is a comedy show, it works very well especially when it's our blonde delinquent who does it. All his expressions are just pure gold I'm already laughing just by thinking of it. I don't plan on spoiling anything though so I'll stop right here but trust me, you will burst into laughter while watching this. There are jokes that might turn you off though so you can just skip those. You should note though that it's a remake from a 90s manga and jokes like that were pretty common during that time. Sad fact.

If we talk about the cinematography, I must say it's pretty decent. The long shots are beautiful and it captures the mood perfectly especially on the later part of the series where the story has deepened. The camera-work really didn't have to go all out but it still did anyway. If you're soft-hearted, you might cry because of the way the scenes were shot. I don't have much to say about the music because it's just your typical comedy drama. For me, it's enough that the sound directors knows what and when to add for each scene. It worked well and it helped the show become extra fun especially when it's the delinquent duo's time to shine.

Overall, the show is really fun. To tell you the truth, it's one of my personal favorites. Don't expect something serious though because you won't get it here. This is for people whose goal is to just laugh and have fun.

#SeriesFeature #Japanese