Zíza

In the context of high school romantic comedies where one is sort of likable and the other is relationally or socially inept, this is rather below average. But it's a fact that Tsutsun was funny at times, not a typical outlier because he didn't get tossed around so easily. Still, it pretty much stuck to the same well-worn grooves, it didn't really bring anything new to the table, and because it didn't strike me as interesting, I didn't even enjoy the clichés. To add to that, I wasn't happy with the quality of the animation and dubbing, either, so for me an anime that I could skip with a clear conscience. Maybe it's enough to watch the live-action movie and save some time and maybe have more fun.

The film was recommended to me by friends with the words: "We didn't even know films this good were being made in India." So I laughed at them and went to watch it. Three hours flew by, I don't even know how. Reasons to see the film: the three idiots are a likeable bunch, it has at least one catchy song, coincidence is a great thing, and dreams do come true. A movie that brings hope = it’s naive. Well, why not turn off for three hours?

What can I tell you, I got incredibly hooked during the first episode; it's just great! The plot, the excellent acting – Suda Masaki excels, not to mention the whole class of students, where no one is dead weight, everyone has a say, no one is ignored, as is usually the case with high school series where we get to know like three or four people from the class and that's it. Everyone has a role, motivation, gifts, and weaknesses. Apart from the students, the series also familiarizes the viewer with the police officers and other characters more than adequately. I'm not saying it’s a deep introduction, but each character gets just enough space for us, the audience, to understand their motivation for the actions they take. Mutō Shōgo really exceeded my expectations because he hasn't really written anything complex, basically it's a theme that quite a few series or movies are turning to these days, yet he puts a hilarious spin on it and the whole time drops hints, clues as to what's really going on and what it will all turn into. Certainly don't expect a whopping climax where the head of the American criminal organization is revealed... not at all, it's much more down to earth and human. And yet it actually manages to be that much more impactful. Basically, Mutō is speaking to us through Hiiragi in the last episode, when he says he hopes it will resonate with someone, at least one other person. He himself doesn't believe it will appeal to everyone, but he does believe it will at least reach someone. And I can easily say that this show got me. Not so much in its message, but in the way it's crafted, the soundtrack, and most importantly, the performances. You want an unusual high school drama? Go for it, because here a new generation of actors is being taught by a contemporary star and he does it brilliantly. I enjoyed it and I was looking forward to the next episode every week, to the twists and the suspense. For the first time in a long time, a series that entertained me from beginning to end; I liked how it was done and I want to watch it again right away. My number one for 2019.

Lyrical. Fantastical. A detective story. It's all intertwined and tied together very nicely by the soundtrack. I think it reflects the Japanese mindset in an interesting way, or rather how they are, what they believe in. Jun, Shiro, and the smoking detective were all well acted. The bonding, the slow unraveling of a past that to a certain extent is still very hard to understand, all of it made for a very interesting cinematic experience. Don't expect a frantic pace, don't expect bloody fights, don't expect a "fluid" story. This film is about the image, it's about what can't be conveyed through peppery dialogue. Watch and listen, but above all keep your expectations low.

Tedious. I watched it in three days, but that was only because I wanted to get the "burden" off my shoulders. Who wouldn't care if she died or not? But that's true of her entire storyline. I was more interested in the other one's storyline, the one who did the lending. And she also appealed to the Angel of Death, the Scheduler, who cried pretty hard in the end. I confess I shed a tear at the last episode too, not so much for the comatose one, but for the other one and what she found in the backpack. Well. You'll see if you watch. Otherwise, nothing. I didn't connect with them. I didn't sympathize. I didn't care for the OST either. But it left me feeling disillusioned – first, the ending sucked, and second it made me think about my own life. Yikes. A better 2 stars.

Yamada Yuki is just not suited to romantic comedy with his voice, looks, or facial expressions. He's a great comedian, he can handle dramatic characters too, bad guys even better, but the main character in a romcom... no, he just didn't fit. Nagasawa Masami, on the other hand, is the type who can act in them just fine, and she wasn't bad here either, though I've seen her do better. Director and writer Fukuda Yuichi, who has a plethora of comedies and parodies to his credit, took a stab at romance and I don't think it suited him. It seemed so bland to me, always just biting off something but not quite finishing it. Sure, it is based on the American original and leaves out the most vulgar jokes, though that's the film's strength and weakness. What it fails to translate, though, is the chemistry between the main characters; I really missed that here. I couldn't understand at all why the two fell in love. Not great.

Even if the actors were working hard here and there, nothing could save the horrifically bad script. Won Joo may be a good actor, but he just didn't have much to do here. Not to mention, I found the main character terribly unlikable the whole time and felt like she wasn't playing what she was supposed to. A terrible show, even the minimum of palatable scenes and the one mediocre song couldn't save it. An obvious Titanic.

Even though I'd been interested in Kikuchiya for a long time, even though it entertained me and made me laugh, it was too long... Yes, it's a legendary film that a lot of directors have taken their cue from. It's typically Japanese, those who don't know a bit of the Japanese mentality may be surprised by many things (the film remains misunderstood in many aspects); it flows slowly, it flows gradually, it flows with the seasons. And apparently it's a must for anyone who wants to get to know Kurasawa-sama a little :-) But let's not kid ourselves, the running time is just overlong... :-D

The beginning held my attention... for about ten minutes. Then came – apologies to anyone who might be bothered or offended, but I really can't call it anything else – blatant American kitsch. And it didn't hold my attention, or even seem to deserve it. Maybe Shane Acker should have stuck with his 11-minute short from 2005, because he didn't give the world anything new by multiplying the time of the short by seven. Yes, the grim depiction of a post-apocalyptic world was very successful, perhaps I could call it the animated face of Orwell's 1984, but that's just a maybe and a happy accident. Someone wrote here about the gripping action, which I certainly didn't find gripping, rather it made me worry about whether I needed to paint my nails, which I also managed to do, and that just doesn't happen with good fantasy... It would have been a good movie if it could have held my attention. And it doesn’t help that it had been one of my most anticipated films of 2009.

By now I'm worried about my mental health – how on earth did I devote 16 hours of my life to this? Cringey, awkward, boring, a bad story, and even the actors can't save it because they have nothing to play. I think this is a strong contender for the worst Korean series I've ever seen. I also think it's going to take a lot of time to find a rival on the same level. If ever.