Audience Member
[img]http://www.filmcasino.at/dead_or_alive/doa_01.jpg[/img]
[b]Dead Or Alive [/b](MIIKE!)
[left]This is not the Miike I generally enjoy the most, but this flick had decent action and characters, as well as surprising twists. In other words, it was fun. There's the ultra-cool Riki Takeuchi (the Kitano wannabe in BR2) killing around and Sho Aikawa (the frustrated [i]Zebraman[/i] protagonist) trying to stop him. OK, so the plot is more complex and involves more yakuza and stuff (it's not as confusing as I thought it would be). The first ten minutes, while overrated, are indeed stunning, and the conclusion is... eh... campy? Or should I say insane. What happens in the middle is not specially boring and offers a solid plot and silly concepts. Besides, the film's got pros for featuring Ren Osgugi and Susumu Terajima (they die too early, though). [/left]
[img]http://wbff.org/films/2002/takecare.jpg[/img]
[b]Take Care of my Cat [/b](Jae-eun Heong)
[left][size=2]Those goddamn koreans. How do they manage to be so brilliant? The premise itself isn't too exciting: a portrait of a group of young women at the start of their adulthood and how their friendship is hurt by their separation (the cat of the title is the symbol of their relationship) I don't think this is at all a coming of age story, perhaps coming of adulthood (if that makes any sense). Considering this is a debut movie, I must admit it's a very well crafted, character-driven piece which manages to successfully avoid many topics (although some sentiementality and clichés are unavoidable, they're well used). The director seems very determined about what she wants; the use of mobile phones SIM text messages was a very nice detail as well. The three main protagonists are very well defined and they really manage to get to the viewers heart. Great soundtrack as well ([url=http://www.digital-musicfilm.com/portfolio/music/view.asp?gotopage=2&sword=&sitem=&c_id=music&id=31]check[/url] it out). Very recommended.[/size][/left]
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[left][img]http://www.mediacircus.net/ambtz_4.gif[/img] [/left]
[left][b]Art Museum by the Zoo [/b](Jeong-hyang Lee)[/left]
[left][size=2][size=2]Alas, more korean greatness. This film is just... lovely. Its a romantic comedy starring a very attractive couple, Sung-jae Lee (of [i]Kick the Moon![/i] fame) and Eun-ha Shim (the protagonist of the excellent [i]Christmas in August[/i]), as two persons who meet purely by chance. Its basically a tale of two very different people who, for various reasons, end up sharing the same appartment, and of course end up falling in love. In this aspect, the film is pretty predictable, but their relationship is handed in a very, very fresh and original way. The film also features a second narrative: the leads end up writing a screenplay together, and that screenplay comes to life in diverse scenes. It actually reminded me a bit of [i]Whisper of the Heart[/i], although the tone os very different; either way, those imaginative and naive sequences were well edited. The performes enthusiastically play their roles, and the feel good factor is superlative. It will surely leave you smiling... and wanting for more. [/left]
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Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
02/02/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Just watched [i][url="http://www.mediacircus.net/ambtz.html"][color=#0000ff]Art Museum By The Zoo[/color][/url][/i] yesterday. It's a lovely, lovely film, and I could sense the vintage feel of it (probably because it's quite an old film; circa 1998). That added to my appreciation of the movie. When I first saw the plot summary, I thought it was a tried and tested formula, with the lead girl Chun-hi (played by the talented Shim Eun-ha, from [i]Christmas in August[/i]) and the lead guy Chul-Soo (Lee Sung-Jae from [i]Attack The Gas Station![/i]) bearing completely different personalities that result to confrontations and witty banter. But after watching so many romantic comedies, I know that there's one important element that would make any cliched romantic comedy work: chemistry. And man, Lee Sung Jae and Shim-Eun-ha had loads of chemistry. I could totally relate to Chun-hi, 'cause I'm a slob myself and don't particularly care about how the rest of the world sees and thinks of me. And I think any girl could relate to her unrealistic expectations on love.
Chul-soo is a brash and arrogant guy, but there's something in Lee Sung Jae's portrayal of him that made him loveable to the viewing public. Well, my viewing eyes, at least. ;) I found myself saying "Aww" more than once everytime I saw him pine for his estranged girflriend Da-Hye, and I admittedly went "Aww" again whenever I watch the tough guy image naturally disappear whenever he's around a woman that he loves (Da Hye, and eventually Chun-hi).
I agree 100% with the review in MediaCircus about this film; that other than the chemistry of the leads, this film's strongest aspect is that it doesn't offer easy, miraculous and unbelievable solutions to the characters' problems. Chun-hi remains the slob that she is up to the very end of the film, and she doesn't have to change for Chul-soo to fall for her. There are no "Eureka!" moments wherein Chul-soo suddenly sees her in a very beautiful light, and vice versa, Chul-soo didn't need to compromise his initial brashness that made his character unique just so Chun-hi could fall in love with him. There are no makeovers, no changes in personality, and we don't even know if they won the script-writing contest that initially brought them together!
I'm not going to pretend that the film is a "deep" film, or that it breaks new grounds or anything. But it's definitely worth the watch. :)
Rated 4.5/5 Stars •
Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars
01/15/23
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