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Reviews
Biyeolhan geori (2006)
Top of the line gangster flick
Dirty Carnival is a story about a sergeant level member of a organized crime gang. At 29 he has little to show for his age and worse, has no prospects. While he seemingly has the utmost loyalty from his subordinates he is constantly put down by the under boss. He reluctantly seizes a murderous opportunity which would surely promote him to lieutenant to the big boss. All goes according to plan but he is anything but happy and in a drunken confession he pours his heart out to a filmmaker friend looking for the perfect plot to his movie.
I don't feel like I'm spoiling anything when I say the ending is not a happy one. It has become the trademark of Korean cinema, or to be cynical, a cliché. At first such endings were fresh and different but these days I could do without them. Nonetheless A Dirty Carnival is one of the best movies I've seen since, well, Once Upon a Time in High school. The movie achieves a gritty yet realistic tone I rarely see in movies. I can honestly say I enjoyed every moment of this movie and I have the attention span of a 3rd grader. Many people are interested in the fight scenes so I will say that there is one major brawl scene comparable to the one in "Chingu". Violence is scattered throughout the movie, at least enough to please action fans.
Gwangshiki dongsaeng gwangtae (2005)
another Korean movie that tries its best to avoid clichés
It's your typical romantic comedy 90% of its duration, but the ending made all the difference. I don't want to give anything away, so I'll just say it becomes rather poignant due to its omitting of melodrama. Instead it has one of those "life goes on" messages and does it pretty good. This created a very realistic vibe by the movie's end. The movie wasn't ambitious yet it wanted to be different, and I appreciated that. The movie knew its boundaries and excelled within it. The lead actress is very attractive as well. I hate to say the looks of an actress can sway my opinion, but I'm pretty bias that way. Its definitely not as good as My Sassy Girl but it's way better than say My tutor Friend.
Flandersui gae (2000)
most notably the movie is different.
The movie never has a real climax nor is it set up to have one. The most redeeming quality is its passivity. Such a comment may not seem like flattery, but hear me out. The movie very accurately captures the mundaneness that is life and the ever so rare mishaps that disrupt it. If drama is life with the boring parts cut out then this movie manages to successfully cut nothing out. I suppose that is the beauty of the movie: nothing ever seems contrived or pieced together. There are no real villains in this movie nor is it designed for the audience to choose sides. The movie is therefore flat, but in this case that is a good thing because it is different. As far as the comedy goes, on about three or four jokes I genuinely laughed at. Again, they are lines one might hear in real life discourse. Ultimately I got a sense of sincerity out of the movie, and for that it is worth a viewing.
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003)
Anti climatic, dull, unsuccessfully dramatic
Besides the nice looking cinematography the film has nothing to offer. Throughout, the film leads you to expect an extraordinary showdown; what you end up getting is a lousy, disappointing, shortened battle scene. Despite what you may have thought before hand, the film is not an action movie. The movie is comprised mostly of dialogue driven scenes. Because of all this dialogue, one would expect some sort of great finale to complement or even make up for the rather dull talk. Most of all it is not engaging. I would not be able to understand how any of the characters can have a connection to the audience. The movie is a failure in more ways then one, and is definitely overrated and mislabeled. 4/10
The Deer Hunter (1978)
Unsuccessfully dramatic (spoilers ahead)
This film was one boring experience. For the first hour or so, the film shows ordinary working class men and the nature of their friendships. They go deer hunting and drink at bars, playing pool. At this point, I'm already saying this movie quite boring, because I thought it will have connection to the second half of the movie, it is sure to have a great meaning and purpose. The film is brought abruptly to Vietnam, and moments into it, Deniro and company get captured, and are forced to play Russian roulette. For a movie that was superfluous, it takes a drastic turn to a "less is more" approach for the rest of the movie. We never get to see why Walken's character spirals into lala land, along with many other things. As far as the famous roulette scene goes, it does not even live remotely up to the hype. War is war; if the consequence of not "playing" meant a slow awful death, a revolver to the head really doesn't sound so bad.
Jigureul jikyeora! (2003)
Fresh but with flaws
If there is one thing this movie should be praised for, it is the film's ability to blend genres. The movie switches from comedy to suspense to drama, then back to comedy, inconspicuously. However, when it came to the science fiction element of the movie, I felt it failed. By the end of the film, the movie is built to be a satire; both came pretty unnaturally. Because of this, the movie loses it's momentum in the climax. In fact, the climax tries to be far too dramatic with "rain drops" and what not, and I wasn't buying it. The movie has a rather goofy, or what the other guy said a "quirky" ending. I suppose that is intentional, but that also ruined the effect of the movie to some extent. Yet when the credits start rolling, on half the screen we see the "alternate future," which leaves the viewers in a depressing state. I'm also surprised no one has mentioned the references to "Silence of the Lambs." Call it a homage, call it a rip off, or even a parody, the movie definitely uses stuff from "Silence of the Lambs." With a bad scene of cgi and various cliches, along with other problems, the movie has it's flaws. However the movie has lot offer. By no means is this a bad or an unoriginal movie. Somethings didn't work while the rest did; on that note I give this movie a 7.1 recommended
Killerdeului suda (2001)
Unintelligent comedy, but works in it's own way
This oddly toned movie runs entirely on silly comedy bits that some may find hilarious. However the movie does have some serious moments, which really makes it seem out of context to the rest of the movie. If you take it for what it is, then I'll say it's light hearted comedy about hitmen. Some of the more witty bits I found to be very funny, while others I felt they tried to hard.
6.8/10 Not recommended
Gongdong gyeongbi guyeok JSA (2000)
Somewhat of a masterpiece
I don't really care much for the political presence and historical background in the film. Ultimately the film was a solid mystery that transcends into a powerful dramatic piece. My two complaints about the film is the miscast of the Korean Swedish women, whose English was a real distraction; and the film really goes out of it's way to convey some anti American thoughts. The director's other film, Sympathy for MR. Vengeance, does just about the same thing, but less abruptly and more of it. The story telling, and the unfolding of the plot is rather unique. Although it is told in a series of flashbacks, no other movie has done it quite this way; which really adds to the effect of the conclusion. The film was very engaging, right down to the depressing finish. This is the type of movie you'll think about for the next 30 minutes or so after watching it, trying to piece things together.
9/10 Highly recommended