korean-dude Reviews

The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya (2010)

A non-spoiler review of this awesome movie

[10/10 · 29 December 2010]

The movie 'The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya' was excellent. I went into this watching it with high expectations and it still passed my expectations. If you are already a fan of the Haruhi Suzumiya series then this movie should be seen ASAP.

However, if you have not seen the Haruhi Suzumiya anime beforehand, I suggest you watch the series first. So far there are 2 seasons, each comprising of 14 episodes; making a total of 28 episodes. If possible, all 28 episodes should be seen first. If not, then you will be going into the movie relatively confused(ie. not knowing the main characters and the bulk of the storyline). However, even without seeing the series, this movie can still leave a good impression and will likely lead the viewer interested to watch the original series.

Now, for the movie. The main theme/genre and storyline of this movie tie in with the original anime series. The screenplay itself has a lot of depth and successfully portrays the uniqueness that is The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. This movie had me thinking for a very long time. It may even take a second view to understand the movie completely, that depends on how focused and absorbed the viewer is into the movie though. Also, I noticed that it contains "movie-like" features. For example, the scenery and atmosphere is a little different from the anime, but it is for the better. It doesn't belittle the original anime, but it strengthens the movie.

Another thing to note about this movie is its length. This movie is approximately 2 hours and 40 minutes long. This could be a good and bad thing. In my case, it is a VERY good thing. For any fan of the series I'm sure the longer the movie, the better. However, some do not feel comfortable sitting through a long movie. Trust me, in this case it makes it all the better. The sheer length of the movie provides a great amount of time for story buildup and more; which makes the impact of the movie all the more greater.

All in all, a great movie with amazing screenplay and animation. Definitely worth viewing.

10/10.

To Catch a Virgin Ghost (2004)

Hilarious, unique, and entertaining

[10/10 · 25 June 2010]

I would give this film a 10/10 just because of how unique, different, and surprisingly fun the film is. I really have not seen any other film like it. The film is chop full of clichés and stereotypical ideas people have about films. Notably, the horror and gang genre. Im Chang-Jeong is quite an extraordinary actor and portrays his character very well. I especially liked him in "Sex is Zero"(Raunchy comedy often dubbed as the "Korean Pie") Interestingly enough there was some romance in it as well, very minimal but still there. This was a goofy outrageous movie and a good one to watch. The relationship developed between Im Chang-Jeong and another certain character(I will not spoil it) caused a huge laugh and it was really a breath of fresh air to see such a relationship. Though this is a horror-comedy combination I would not draw similarities between it with films such as "Scary movie". "Scary movie" does spoofs of other movies, however, Sisily 2km is very original but still fun. Highly recommended.

Yasuwa minyeo (2005)

One of the best Romantic Comedies I have ever seen

[10/10 · 18 June 2010]

The Beast and the Beauty is as of now my 2nd favorite romantic comedy; My Sassy Girl being my number 1. It is definitely underrated having a 6.6, it deserves at LEAST a 7.5, but everyone has their own taste.

This movie has a VERY good mixture of romance and comedy. It is hilarious and provides the viewer with many funny scenes. It is funnier than most other comedies I have seen.

Ryu Seung-beom and Shin Min-a make an excellent duo for this movie. Ryu Seung-boem, or Dong-gun(the role he plays) plays a very comedic role and does an excellent job. Shin Min-a, Hae-joo(role she plays), does an awesome job in portraying her character as well. Not to mention Shin Min-a is one of the cutest actors I have ever seen.

10/10 Highly recommended.

Cheotsarang sasu gwolgidaehoe (2003)

I don't know why everyone is hating, it was a pretty good movie.

[10/10 · 15 June 2010]

Okay, so most of the other reviews are making comparisons with My Sassy Girl. Why the heck would you compare a romantic comedy to My Sassy Girl? Which was/is the best romantic comedy to date(Most people would agree). Any romantic comedy compared to My Sassy Girl would of course be not up to par.

I give this a 8/10 or so. The story was actually not a bad one. The ending is somewhat a cliffhanger and allows the viewer to determine what happens(which I don't personally like in a movie) but whether it be a happy or sad ending it was still pretty good. This definitely deserves better than a 5.1 though. I would say it have at least a 6.0 Everyone is complaining about Cha Tae-hyun's character just screaming to be funny. Well, that is his character in the movie, that is his personality so I don't know why you would complain about it. Also, Son Ye-jin's character is supposed to be a crier. If any of you had the slightest clue of why she did what she did then you would understand why she cried so much. Yun Dong-geun did a great job as well. His character changed dramatically because he became better friends with Cha Tae-hyun.

People need to look deeper into a film than just judge the general film itself. Why the heck bother to write a review if you do not fully understand the movie's plot.

Maundy Thursday (2006)

Fantastic acting and story

[10/10 · 9 June 2010]

Definitely a 10/10.

I do not write many reviews but there are not many reviews for this awesome movie. Maundy Thursday is a religious term, and this movie touches on some religious context.(Note:Do NOT avoid watching this movie just because you may despise religion, it is still a great movie and it does not contain too much religious aspects anyway). The movie literally translates to "Our Happy Time" and the title really gives meaning to the movie. This movie is a total tearjerker and one of the biggest tearjerkers I have ever seen. The cast was awesome all around. The two main actors both portray their characters very nicely and did an awesome job. The director did an amazing job as well with the camera angles; It made a huge impact. The soundtrack was perfect as well which I consider one of the most important aspects of a movie. This movie is the romantic relationship between two people who meet together in a rather odd way which leads to a very melodramatic storyline. This movie was not too melodramatic but just enough that it was just spot on. The buildup of the movie is great as well.

Highly recommended.

Hard Candy (2005)

Not as good as I thought it would be

[5/10 · 21 January 2010]

So I was looking up On Demand, on Comcast, and I saw this movie. I saw that it had a good rating on IMDb. And usually, IMDb ratings are reliable. However, for this movie, it was not. It was a total cliffhanger in my opinion, what happens at the end is unclear. The acting was overrated. I think the girl did a decent job. I'm sure a lot of actresses could have done as good as her. The guy REALLY did not deserve what he got. It was never even proved that he killed the girl or that he would have tried to have sex with Hayley. It never seemed that he was a pedophile in ANY way. I honestly believed that he was not, but it could have been an act. They should have put in something that actually proved he was going to try to have sex with Hayley and not just make her go crazy and torture the guy. I don't see how this got more than a 7.0

A Tale of Two Sisters (2003)

By far the greatest psychological horror movie ever made. period.

[10/10 · 27 January 2009]

This movie is great. Not being bias or anything...I seen this movie near its release and thought it was alright. I recently seen it again and I got more detail of what the storyline is. Honestly, probably nobody will understand the plot 100% on the first time. Watch it at least 2 or 3 times to get a good feel of the movie. It is really suspenseful and has you interested the whole time. The camera work is amazing. It is very interesting where the director, Kim Ji-woon, places the cameras and how he moves them. The storyline is perfect. May be confusing at first and you might be thinking what the heck just happened? It happened to me plenty of times, but you will soon start to understand. The movie is just in general, well put together. Probably my favorite movie at the moment. WATCH IT!