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Lilac
Far from the Madding Crowd
Angst stemmed from a society that shuns
The entire movie was a cry for help, it is about two boys handling their inner demons in very different ways, one taking to recklessness and the other latching on to even the slightest bit of affection, so much so that it turns to obsession...It was heartbreaking to see one having only himself to talk to and him recording those conversations on his camcorder, while the other was seemingly popular but he knew that no one cared much for him and rather he garnered respect by evoking fear in others...The way they met and how it piqued their interest of wanting to get to know each other was quite precious but was made out to be something so much more complicated, leading to them being ridiculed by many...This caused him to distance himself from the friendship, which the other couldn't seem to handle...he turned aloof, while he turned more and more obsessive...his last desperate cry to his mother was so pitiable and painful, yet no one helped him through that and he ends up doing something which I will probably never understand, but with that he surely destroyed his last chance of keeping himself sane...Overall it was disturbingly real and although I cannot condone his final decision, I do not have the right to judge him for it...
The direction was seamless and as a cinematic experience it was thought provoking and quite wholesome...It made me feel terrible for ever having judged someone without knowing their circumstances, since we rise by lifting others and not by pulling them down...
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12 beautifully pulled shots of coffee
Would You Like a Cup of Coffee? is a KakaoTV production spanning 12 episodes, each being 25-30 mins long. Highlighting the ordinary and simpler things life has to offer, it is a heartwarming story of people, and of course-coffee!The drama starts off with one of our lead characters, Kang Go Bi, seen exiting an exam hall after having failed to clear the civil service examination for what appears to be, not his first attempt at it. Struggling to find the right words, he texts his mom about it and is met with an encouraging and supportive response. The conversation ends with him deciding to get himself a cup of coffee and start preparing for the exam once again. It is for this cup of coffee that he stumbles upon 2nd Generation Coffee House and we get introduced to the owner and other lead, Park Seok. This cup of coffee that he gets served at the café is what awakens and confirms his passion for coffee, giving him a dream for his future and the determination to pursue the world of coffee.
Would You Like a Cup of Coffee is all about the microcosm of the coffee house and its atmosphere, and it pretty much excels at it. You don't have to be a coffee connoisseur yourself to be able to understand the emotion that goes into a job well done, or the passion behind the pursuit of perfection. There is nothing quite dramatic or exciting in the course of this series and its beauty lies in the fact that it is a story as ordinary as one can get.
The main characters, Park Seok and Go Bi complement each other rather beautifully, and it's their mentor-mentee relationship that makes this drama what it is. The other characters, either recurring or not, are sketched out sparsely, and are mostly used as tools to get a message across to the viewers.
The actors playing the main leads have done a great job and are convincingly passionate about coffee...it was wonderful to see how they gradually got comfortable with each other over a shared interest, as the drama progressed.
The cinematography and direction are worth mentioning, for each frame, each scene of this drama is aesthetically pleasing, subtle and artistic. The sort of sepia tone used in capturing this series is rather perfect and really sets the mood for it.
The format of this drama is like a potpourri of different types of people and themes, that leave lingering messages for the viewer to mull over. And just like a cup of coffee, it isn't a drama that should be gulped down in one go but something that should be savoured, enjoying one sip at a time. The episodes almost always provide a sense of closure to the viewer, yet leave it open to interpretation, and the balance struck in maintaining the two is seamless!
This drama doesn't have elements that would give it a mass appeal, but rather caters to a fewer number of people, all of whom would whole-heartedly enjoy this sweet, nuanced, slice-of-life story.
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When water is thicker than blood
The film navigates around the lives of two people brought together by fate in rather dismal conditions, to form a bond that is beyond that of blood relations. Being based on a true story makes it all the more convincing and hopeful...It is a sentimental and heart warming portrayal of the lives of two disabled men...Se Ha who is paralyzed and wheelchair bound due to his quadriplegia but is otherwise extremely sharp with an active and able mind, and Dong Goo who is mentally challenged(autism I suppose) with an understanding of a 5 year old, is athletic and has commendable physical strength...it is almost as though fate meant for them to meet and complement each other, so much so that they become one complete person. Se Ha was dropped off at an institution of the disabled after the passing away of his mother and Dong Goo was abandoned by his mother finally to be taken in by the same institution, where they then meet, and Se Ha prevents the others from bullying Dong Goo, after which their loyalties never waver...For twenty years they stay together as the perfect partners, where Se Ha manages the finances and is the brain of the two and Dong Goo is the brawn and helps execute the orders given to him...
The story is written very well with an adequate dose of humour to lighten the otherwise heavy premise, they realistically portray all the problems faced by them, but also convey hope by how they implement counters to all of that and can find joy in their everyday lives simply because they have each other...The plot is simple but is riddled with its fair share of problems and has a predictable yet impactful ending which was cathartic...
The main leads were brilliant in their roles and executed them to perfection...Lee Kwang Soo doesn't have much to speak but makes endearing, large and ludicrous gestures which frankly just say it all...Shin Ha Kyun in particular relies on his words and facial expressions to convey his feelings and intentions since his body is motionless, neck down...and he pulls it off fantastically, portraying the frustration, anger, disappointment and fondness ensued by their brotherhood with utmost finesse...
Overall it is done quite delicately and with utmost respect to the differently abled...It was a symphony of emotions I felt while watching the film and that's what made it so pleasurable...
And indeed, family is the people in your life who want you in theirs and accept you for who you are, family isn't always blood...
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Pain shared is pain halved
When one knows one's end is coming, how would life seem but a painful wait for a seemingly inevitable truth...Then, does hope seem like a foolish comfort that entices only to disappoint or a powerful tool that inspires to do the impossible, making one reckless and irrational but also fearless and bold...The story revolves around Wei Yi Hang, a bitter and disillusioned teen and at the time the film begins, it has been two years since he has had an operation for a brain tumor...No longer in high school, he has no friends his own age and he just sees his parents struggle financially covering for his treatment, frustrated with his helplessness he often snaps at those around him and hates the fact those in the cancer support group he goes to, try to find meaning in what he believes is a pointless existence...In one of those meetings he meets Ma Xiaoyuan a girl his age who is direct and outgoing, and is quite unfazed by cancer as a whole...she slowly and steadily makes him appreciate what he has and in the process makes him want to make the best out of his situation...
Jackson Yi is good but is saddled with a self centered adolescent role who is hardly given a chance to redeem himself...I hoped for more character development for the male lead as I failed to sympathize with his response to the people around him who went out of their way to cater to his every whim...Liu Hao Cun was extremely good, both the character she played and her acting were real and unabashed, giving this film its best moments...
The story is pretty standard and seems to have been heavily inspired by the plot of The Fault in our Stars, but pales into nothingness doing so...The shots are beautiful and the cinematography is aesthetically pleasing to the eyes and soul...The direction is a tad slow but the scenes are shot cleverly and are quite well executed...As for the screenwriting, the characters lack depth and the film leaves me wanting more...it could have been done with more brevity for the plot they had in mind...
Overall it is an enjoyable watch and does justice to showing how the people around those suffering or the ones left behind, cope with the sense of doom and come to terms with what cannot be helped...A little restrained but otherwise heart warming and emotional with a deeper take on life!
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An unabashed portrayal of man's descent into madness
Who defines madness and who are we to do so really? Till where does one establish a line and say that, this and onwards is deemed crazy? Aren't we all crazy then? This film is a clever depiction of such vague themes and raises questions that are usually avoided and left unanswered due to said or unsaid societal norms...The premise is dark and rather melancholic, with a doctor who moves to the countryside and works at a fairly small clinic, after a failed practice and marriage in Gangnam... He stays rather aloof and usually just keeps to the clinic and home, on doing a colonoscopy once he comes across his landlord's father speaking under the influence of anaesthesia, describing what sounds like a well planned murder coming from someone with experience. From then on there isn't any clear distinction between reality and imagination, and much of it is left to the audience's conscience to decide for what had actually happened...The pace is slow allowing the tension to build steadily...the direction is clever and tries to impart meaning to a lot of its setting and the surroundings, it is a delight for a keen and intuitive audience...I would also like to give credit for the ingenious selection, the title of the film is...from what I understand, it is in reference to the French folklore Bluebeard wherein the antagonist would test his numerous wives on their obedience with the penalty being death...
Overall it was rather twisted and didn't show the best in humans but made me sympathize with the one who slowly lost his sanity in the company of all those around him...It is a subtle commentary on the dog eat dog world we live in where people go beyond limits to safeguard their own interests...
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An encompassment of so many complex emotions
Well the story isn't exactly a happy one but it left me feeling so warm, that inspite of having cried in each episode I remember smiling through the tears...the inner turmoils of a terminally ill patient was shown with such caution and care, with him going through various stages of acceptance, regret, anger, desperation...all done so delicately. The way the parents were trying to show constant consideration but were scared of having him gone before they even got to know his true self was heart wrenching...them feeling guilty of not having known what he truly liked, somehow led to them accepting the estranged younger brother in such a liberating manner...Then his dynamics with his girlfriend was so real and beautiful, with her realizing how precious the feeling was of not having to see the person you love leave first...her way of consoling him with simpler things was so hopeful yet devastating...The way his lost friendship with his college friends was rekindled with just a short exchange of words and how much they knew of each others' likes and dislikes was so intimate and heartwarming...The sequences of him dreaming the other world was unreal yet so connected to what was happening in his life...and that led to him accepting that he loved the life he had led and that their is no life without regrets because in a way that's how one finds meaning...Overall it was a brilliant watch and kudos to Jisoo for having pulled off this role fantastically...This drama actually makes me want to satisfy my every whim and live to the fullest since I may not know if there will be a tomorrow...
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This review may contain spoilers
Beauty as perceived by us...
It is quite short but I had a jump scare after seeing the faces. It made so much sense since we all have a preconceived notion of how one defines beautiful and in pursuit of this idealistic beauty somewhere individuality is lost and we all become masks of one another...plastic surgery being a very common affair in south korea i suppose this film is a poignant reminder to the youth who seeks confidence from "fixing" their faces...who said one needs a high nose bridge or plump lips or for that matter double eyelids to look beautiful?Beauty is as beauty does...Was this review helpful to you?
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