Last Quarter - Japan

          Director:  Ken Nikai
          Year:  2004
          Plot:  "On the eve of her 19th birthday, Mizuki doesn't have a lot to celebrate about.  After loosing her mother, gaining a step-family, and being hurt by her boyfriend and best friend, Mizuki runs from everything.  Deep within a dilapidated house Mizuki discovers the mysterious Adam, playing a hauntingly familiar melody on the guitar.  Melancholy and full of secrets, it seems that Adam, and the house, have a strange, irresistible link to Mizuki."


          The reason I watched this is a bit long.  It actually all started when I heard The Cape of Storms for the first time.  This is of course the song in this movie by Adam's group Evil Eye.  I was really captivated by the song and wanted to watch the movie then.  I didn't watch the movie completely until now for one reason.  The reason was I had dial up.  I only got to watch the first half hour or so then, and forgot about watching it until know.
          This movie was based off of the manga by Ai Yazawa who also made the manga NANA.  This movie did have its faults for me though.  The ghost scenes looked rather crappy.  This isn't a major problem though, it is just one of the faults that this has.  I say it isn't a major problem, because sfx aren't quite advanced in Asian countries.  I actually love this fact, because it means that they haven't used it as much.
          I also think that this movie was a little slow at points, but it didn't really hurt the movie too much.  The fact is that if you get interested in even part of the story, it is extremely hard to walk away from this movie.  So much of the story line is hidden until the end that you just want to know not only why everything was happening, but what was going to happen to Mizuki.
          The love story in this movie was really sweet as well.  Adam's fate was a little sad, but I guess it had to do with his own choice, but it is sad.  The ending of this movie was very strange though, with the ring on Tomoki and all.  If you get what it hints to, it is a little strange, but I guess it also explains some of the faults that he has when it comes to Mizuki.


          I would still suggest this movie to fan's of Hyde just for the fact that he is in it, but I would also suggest this to others because it is an interesting movie.  The sweet love story is also a plus for this movie.  This definitely isn't for those that want action or anything fast-paced as this movie is neither.  This movie is good for a watch though and does have it's good points.

Iris: The Movie - Korea

          Director:  Kim Kyu Tae, and Yang Yun-ho
          Year:  2010
          Plot:  "Hyun-jun and Sa-woo, close friends and rivals from the South Korean special forces, are recruited by the secret agency NSS. They both fall for Seung-hee, the beautiful but lethal profiling specialist at NSS. When they are faced against each other in a nuclear terrorist attack, they are forced to make their final decision and Seung-hee's formidable secret is revealed."


          If you have read the post for 71: Into the Fire, you probably know why I decided to watch this one.  Yes, it was all about Seung Hyun Choi (T.O.P) for me, which seems kind of sad now.  This is actually edited from the TV drama.  I have been wanting to see it, but wasn't sure if it was worth my time.  Because of this, I decided to watch the movie first (I wanted to watch the drama for T.O.P of course).
          I have to say that this was a really good movie.  It seems that the drama was edited very well to make a movie.  I do have one complaint though.  It is the reason I said my initial reasons for watching it seem sad now.  It is all because T.O.P has only like three scenes.  Apparently it isn't much different in the drama though as he appeared in five out of the first fourteen episodes.  Rather disappointing.  The scenes that he was in were good though, and he did look great like in the screenshot at the bottom.  n.n  I am not the biggest fan of T.O.P looks wise (usually), but I can't deny that he looked really great in that scene.
          Oops, a whole paragraph for someone in only three scenes.  I will reign in my fan-girl tendencies now.  Okay, so about the movie itself.  It really had me immersed in the action, even though I had to stop every once in awhile for it to load.  The action was just as good as the underlying romance.  I did dislike the ending, but that can't be helped much.  It wasn't a bad ending as it did work quite well, I just wish it hadn't ended that way.
          I don't really know what else to say.  If I talk anymore, I might give away something important.  That wouldn't be very good, so I will leave it here.


          This movie really kept my interest the entire time and didn't leave any bad taste afterwards.  This is definitely one to watch though.  Whether you watch the movie or the drama first, is up to you.  I do suggest though watching them both if you watch the movie first.  I intend to be adding both to my collection in the near future, that's for sure.  n.n

Intial D - China

          Director:  Wai-keung Lau, Alan Mak, and Ralph Rieckermann
          Year:  2005
          Plot:  "After winning his first competition, Takumi focuses his attention on drift racing, a sport he has unknowingly perfected while delivering tofu in his father's Toyota AE86."


          I am not sure why I decided to watch this movie over all of the others on my list.  I do like Edison Chen, but that wasn't really a deciding factor for me.  I had decided to watch it while I was knitting, because knitting without watching something is pretty boring (well for me).  The problem with this movie was that halfway through I had to stop knitting.  I was rather into the movie.
          I haven't read the manga or anything, but I did enjoy this movie.  I am not a fan of most racing movies.  There is a reason for this though.  I don't find normal racing to be very entertaining.  In many race movies, I get the feeling that not much skill is very necessary.  It is more whose car is better not really who is more skilled (I know it is not supposed to be that way and many movies try to show the skills but I just don't believe that they are good).
          My feelings about race movies change when you make it drift racing.  I simply can't get enough of it, nor the skills that they shoot.  Oh yeah, the movie.  This is a good drift movie in my opinion, well, better than Tokyo Drift.  I liked Tokyo Drift, but this one has the better story line to me.  I loved to see Takumi in the Toyota AE86 take on the so called better cars.  The funny thing is that my heart was pretty much racing with the cars during the final race.  I got a little too much into this movie.  n.n
           I did have an issue with the ending though.  I thought it was quite sad especially because they never even discussed what was going on.  The two just left it that way even though one had decided to stop what the other was upset with.  Man, talk about trying not to give a spoiler, yet still explain myself...  Sometimes this is hard.  >.<


          I definitely suggest this one.  It is definitely at least worth your time.  I found it to be more than just a good waste of time, specially seeing that it caused me to put down the pillow I was working on.  >.<  Man, now I have to find another movie to watch so I actually get some work done.

Hear Me - Taiwan

          Director:  Fen-fen Cheng
          Year:  2009
          Plot:  “A delivery Boy falls for a young girl who is hearing impaired.  Comparing themselves with "water birds" and trees, together they are going to break the barrier and pursuit their dreams and take their relationship to the next level.”


          So, I needed a movie to watch and this one has been on my “to watch” list for awhile.  I have to say that this is another movie that is well worth its time.  There is so much that is good in this movie.
          I love the fact that most of the movie is sign language.  At first thought, it might seem kind of strange to watch a love story without any actual words.  The fact is that love doesn’t really need spoken words to still be wonderful.  It also makes for a rather unique story.  Though of course there is that little twist at the end.  Though the twist wasn’t really a twist.  Thinking back, it was quite evident in the beginning, but throughout the movie, you tend to forget about it.  At least I did.  >.<
          I also loved the relationship of the sisters.  Things were rather hard of them with pretty much being on their own and all.  My favorite line from this movie has to be, “If there is a next life, will you still be my sister?”  I just found that to be really sweet and touching.
          This is another movie where I am not sure what was wrong with it.  I guess it is hard for me to see anything bad unless it is pretty evident when it comes to a movie that I like.  I forget to watch it like I am going to write a review on it, and simply watch it for myself.  n.n


          I definitely suggest to check this movie out.  It has a very sweet story and is rather well done.  It also has some rather funny parts.  About the only people I wouldn’t suggest this to is those who hate subtitles (If you do, why are you on here?) and those who are strictly Horror or action addict (I am too, but I love Asian romance).

Love Exposure - Japan

          Director:  Shion Sono
          Year:  2008
          Plot:  “Three emotionally abused individuals from the fringes of society get locked in a convoluted love triangle.  Yuu, a Catholic boy searching for true love ends up taking "panty shot" photos of women in public.  Yoko, an anti-family, misandrist girl finds that her foster mother will be marrying Yuu's father.  Koike, co-ordinates a plan to convert Yuu's family to her cult.  Under her careful direction, their lives come crashing together in one fateful street fight.”


          I definitely had to watch this movie, as it stars one of my all time favorite Japanese musicians Takahiro Nishijima from the band AAA (Attack All Around).  Seriously, check him and the band out if you haven’t because they are great especially with Nishijima’s voice.
          Okay, back to the movie.  This was just about the longest movie I have ever watched, besides Stephen King’s Rose Red and that was meant to be a miniseries.  The thing is though, this movie was definitely worth the time spent to watch it.  Though it is just about four hours long, it is very entertaining and well paced.  The only reason it took me two days to watch this is because it was already two in the morning when I got to the 155 minute mark.  So yeah, I felt I needed to sleep before watching the last 82 minutes.
          This probably isn’t one for a prude to watch as there is much up-skirt shots and mentions of erections.  The fact is, this movie was very funny and not to be taken too seriously.  I mean a kid who runs around using martial arts moves to get up-skirt shots for his priest father (not literally, but so he can confess his sins).
          This movie was really just a bundle of jokes about different people and their issues.   The great thing though is that it did have its very serious points.  Even though it makes fun of so much and so many types of people there really is a great love story hidden within it.


          This is one of my favorite movies of all time.  This is definitely one that I would suggest to anybody with enough time for it.  For those who are rather busy, I would definitely still suggest this movie, but also that it should be watched in parts.  This movie deserves a higher acclaim than it has gotten, and I believe it isn’t well know simply for the 237 minutes it is.

Ai no Kotodama - Japan

          Director:  Satoshi Kaneda
          Year:  2008
          Plot:  “Ootani and Tachibana have been inseparable since high school.  Now that they're in college, they live together, they're happy and everything seems prefect.  But their little world is disrupted when they meet an old high school friend, Yuki, who seems to have a crush on Tachibana, making Ootani feel jealous and insecure.  Will Tachibana really choose him over a pretty girl?”


          This is a rather good movie.  Okay, so I did decide to watch it because of Yasuka Saito.  I can’t help it, I find him kind of pretty.  n.n
          Oh yeah, about the movie.  There were many points that I really enjoyed.  I absolutely loved how different the two main characters are.  I sometimes love the opposite attraction rather than the perfect couple thing.  The thing is though that the difference in characters leads to rather big problems.  Just like the plot statement says, Ootani get jealous, and rather rightfully so.  It isn’t that things are necessarily happening like he thinks they are, it’s just that from his view, his thoughts really do seem true.
           I don’t really know if there was any points that I really disliked with this movie.  I am sure there is some points that could have been better, but nothing really drastic.  There really wasn’t anything that stuck out to the point where I was drawn away from the movie itself.


          For fans of Boys Love movie, this is one I would suggest.  PDA is rather watered down throughout this movie, but it is not nonexistent.  I found that it is just a little hidden (though not completely) in the beginning and finds its way out through the movie.  The ending is very cute though.  n.n

Hua Mulan - China

          Director:  Jingle Ma, and Wei Dong
          Year:  2009
          Plot:  “The epic story of the Chinese girl-warrior, Mulan, who fights to defend her father.”


          Here is another one that I just had to watch.  When I was little, I remember watching the Disney movie about Mulan.  As an adult I found myself coming across Mulan again, but this time it was the movie made for adults.
          I have to say that this movie was one of those that got me crying.  Yeah, it seems a lot of Asian movies have been doing that to me lately.  I have no problem with this fact though.  It just seems to prove that they are in fact good movies.
          It was definitely strange to watch this movie having previously seen the Disney version.  This one though is definitely a better movie as there is more depth to the story and the characters, but of course kids would definitely enjoy the former better than this one.
          I don’t know if there was anything that I felt was done poorly in this movie.  I really did enjoy pretty much everything about it.  I did though get disappointed with the ending.  I know it is the most logical, but I would have been happier with a perfectly happy ending.  The ending just made the movie seem more realistic, and like I said, it made sense.


          I feel that this is definitely one to watch.  I actually bought this movie minutes after watching it.  I simply couldn’t pass up the opportunity to own this movie for myself.  Like I said, this is definitely one to watch, and I would suggest it to just about everyone.  n.n

Kindan no Koi - Japan

          Director:  Kusano Yoka
          Year:  2008
          Plot:  “Ritsu returns from New York, where he has been studying, only to find out that the boy he loves, Shou, has left school and doesn't leave the apartment he's living in with his brother and father.  There is also a secret his sweet and innocent brother, Ryou, is hiding.”

          I have to say, this is definitely a strange one for me.  To a point, I really enjoyed this movie.  The flashbacks are super cute, and the relationship between the main two characters is really sweet.
          There is one big problem with this movie.  That problem is the entire ending of the movie.  I get the whole brother thing… Yeah I can’t tell you what my main problem is.  >.<  Anyway, the other issue that I saw was the guy laying in the flowers was not supposed to be breathing, I mean it just messed with my head.  I thought, “I can’t believe that.  Wait, it isn’t true.  He’s breathing.”  When you make a movie with that kind of scene, you really should make sure the actor doesn’t breathe so obviously.

          I don’t think that this movie was a complete waste of time despite it’s major issue.  The background of the characters and the love of the main characters was very touching.  It really did keep my attention for the time, and I really did want them to be together from the get go.  This movie definitely wouldn’t be in my top movies, but it wasn’t entirely bad.  I would seriously suggest someone check out the other Boy’s Love movies that I have suggested before giving this one a shot.

Ip Man - China

          Director:  Wilson Yip
          Year:  2008
          Plot:  “A semi-biographical account of Yip Man, the first martial arts master to teach the Chinese martial art of Wing Chun.”


          I bought this movie a while back (like three weeks or something), and just finally got to watch it.  I wish I would have watched this sooner.  It also has to do with the fact that it stars Donnie Yen, who I am starting to become a big fan of.  n.n
          I have to say that this is a very good movie.  I loved the fight scenes in this movie.  Again people complained about wire work, but really I think those people watch the movie to see the wire work.  If you are actually focusing on the movie and not caring how they made it, wirework just doesn’t seem obvious.  I really didn’t see any problem with or without wirework.
          I loved when Ip Man beat the guy up with what looked like a feather duster.  I mean, how great is that, though some of the sound during it didn’t make much sense.  I don’t think I can really list specifically what I liked about the various fight scenes, as there is quite a bit, but I did think it was great that he taught the mill workers to fight, even though they weren’t the greatest.  Oh and the scene near the beginning with the police officer’s gun.  It wasn’t much, but I thought it was rather interesting.
          I don’t know if there was really anything that I disliked.  There might have been points that could have been a bit better, but nothing really specific.  I think this movie was very entertaining and rather well done.


          I am happy that I decided to buy this and have it in my collection.  It is a good movie for martial arts fans, and of course those of Donnie Yen.  Definitely one I would suggest, and not just as a martial arts movie, the storyline is also quite entertaining of itself.