garyi-223-270702

IMDb member since November 2011
    Lifetime Total
    5+
    IMDb Member
    12 years

Reviews

Bad Lands
(2023)

unexpectedly lyrical
Just worked. Took it's time but held my attention. I've seen a lot of movies that more or less covered the same ground but I'd really put this up with others that I also liked. At the end I asked my self why I liked it so much and I think in part it was because it didn't try too hard. All the performances worked. No loose ends. Oddly poetic. I'd put in the same category and at the same level as films like Night In Paradise but less grim or maybe Beasts Clawing At Straw but with a more of a leisurely pace. Given the terrain it covered it still managed to leave me feeling sort of uplifted. Or at least amused and glad that I watched it.

Warrior
(2019)

Yes !
I enjoyed this series from start to the end of season three. I can't really come up with any kind of criticism and I felt like there was a lot to like. If I knew that it was decided that there was going to be a fourth season I'd be pleased though i wish there wouldn't be such a gap in time as I guess is necessary. That said I kinda wonder where the series would end up going ? I wonder if it would devolve or get more or less repetitious ? Historically the big issues like the tongs fighting with each other and the complexity of the Chinese presence (consider the Exclusion Act is right around the corner from when the series is set) are not going to be resolved. So where does the story go ? Does it just become some sort of drama ? I think if it does it would probably be well done and entertaining but like what usually happens I think it might go down hill. I guess I'm saying the story of Chinatown at that time in history doesn't really have a "resolution". If they wanted to stretch the arc of the story twenty five years or so they could maybe use the earthquake as a way out so to speak (never mind how old the characters would become or all the new ones you'd need). I don't know. I really really like the series. I put off watching the last episode cause I didn't want it to be over. And even though I'd miss it if were over I'd rather have it be done than have more seasons that didn't seem as interesting to me as the first three.

Beibî warukyûre
(2021)

who knew ?
From the films title and cover photo you can pretty much tell what you're in for. What I didn't expect was how well acted, how well filmed, choreographed, funny and over all charming I would find it. Did I say funny ? It is funny! I think the two main characters really deliver charming, nuanced performances. Yes it's an admittedly ridiculous version of teenagers having to face the absurdity of modern times but it's well done even endearing. Think "The Raid" meets "Rurouni Kenshin" meets "Ghost World" meets something funny. I really liked it. I don't know that it warrants a sequel as I see is planned but as a one off I think it was really successful !!!

Naui ajusshi
(2018)

Heartfelt
I can't recall another series with the amount of characters whose individual story felt so poignant and relatable to. I found the entirety of the series to be deeply moving and thought provoking. I've heard people say that as long as one is "remembered" they never really die. I finished viewing My Mister awhile ago but find myself not only still thinking about it but also reflecting on the struggles and choices I've made in my own life that the characters in the series were facing. As powerful in what was shown as in what wasn't. I could go on about the this and that of it but really I just wanted to acknowledge how much I liked it !

Pusher
(2012)

drug dealer having a really bad time of it . . .
Not bad . . . . really, i didn't think it was bad, but that said, certainly not necessary . . . I could imagine some viewers being put off by the rougher cinema verite feeling of the original (which I'm a big fan of as well as Pusher 2 and 3) . . . . and i can imagine some that would prefer the original compared to the slicker pumped up production values offered here . More than anything I'm left wondering why? It's not like they really tried to tell the story in a way that would in my mind justify the time and money spent given there was no real departure from the original story line. It would seem to me that if you're gonna just make the same film what you come up with should really bring more to the table than what i saw here. Are there behind the scene issues having to do with distribution or something or all said and done is this really just for people who don't wanna have to read sub titles . . . ? in any case for anyone whose seen the original i suspect you'll wonder why they bothered .

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