zandert33

Lately I’ve been a real sucker for Korean melodrama. I’m not really sure why that is. In the past I really found the whole style to be very boring, and unwatchable. Perhaps I’m becoming a softy in some ways. I watched “Sad Movie” over the weekend, and have to say that this is the best made South Korean “chick flick” I’ve seen, it’s ahead of even “My Sassy Girl”.

The movie is basically four different stories, which happen to come together at some points. Each story has it’s own dynamic, and is really interesting it’s own way. I would not have been suprised to see any of these one stories made into it’s own movie, though a longer version of each story may have felt a little too thin. The first 3/4 of the movie is actually quite funny and light in parts, however when the “sad” parts come, they are really sad. I’m not going to lie, most of the things that happen I saw coming a mile away, but the way it’s presented is really well done.

If you are a sucker for some melodrama I would recommend this fully.

The Good: Great acting, good stories that weren’t too thin, but didn’t feel rushed either.
The Bad: Predictable, nothing really new here

Review: 4/5

Wow, I wasn’t expecting this. I avoided watching “Hustle and Flow” for a bit, mainly because I didn’t think the movie would have much for me in it. I do enjoy rap music, but am not a fan of the southern “crunk” that seems to have filled the radios and music videos. After hearing quite a bit of hype for this film, I decided to check it out, and I was blown away. The movie is really incredible. There’s no crazy special effects, no real action, it’s really just a nice character film.

Even though my life couldn’t be further from the main characters, I was able to connect to him in some way. I do believe many of us feel like we are “stuck”, and it was very uplifting (and in some parts heartbreaking) to see the main character striving so hard to become more then what he is. The acting was fantastic all around, I cannot think of a single flaw in this film. This is the TRUE best movie of 2005.

The Good: Great acting, great story, everything is great.
The Bad: I really can’t think of any real flaw in this film, maybe the ending tied things together too well… oh well, I completely bought into it.

Review: 5/5

Shinobi is another film in Japan’s recents strings of all style and no substance action films that have come out as of late. This film fails in too many ways to sum up in a paragraph or two. The action is stale-cgi, the characters are paper thin. There is nothing new or every interesting going on in this film. They very well could have named it “Azumi 2.5″ and nobody would know the difference.

The Good: Not all action is bad
The Bad: Boring story, stupid character design, I didnt’ care at all for any character in the film

Review: 2/5 (Skip it)

In 1999 I started working as a busboy, by 2000 I was promoted to the lead waiter during the Breakfast/Lunch shift. I was in the food industry just shy of 2 years, and though it was a lively and fast paced job, it did have it’s major disadvantages. Being a waiter would be so good… if it weren’t for the customers.

“Waiting” has been receiving some hype lately, many have been calling it the “next “Office Space”", I’m not so sure I can really agree 100% with that. This movie is worth viewing, and is funny, especially if you’ve ever worked with food. “Waiting” covers all the bases, you’ve got the guy who is always hitting on all the girls, you’ve got the woman who’s been there a little too long, you’ve those who don’t know what to do with their lives (just that they don’t want to be waiting), the stoned busboys and you’ve got the lovable and insane kitchen crew.

The main problem I have is that much of the humor is low-brow, with an on-going joke that runs the full movie that I would rather do without (though there is a certain sense of reality to it). This isn’t a movie with a real plot, it’s more of a “day in the life”, very similar to “Clerks”. I did find the movie enjoyable, though I feel I may have enjoyed it because I’ve been there (though I was never aware of mishandled food, thank God). If you’ve never served before, much of the humor may be lost. I wouldn’t recommend a “buy” either way, I really don’t think this movie deserves more then a rental. The next “Office Space”, I really think not.

The Good: Lots of truth to what happens, some very funny parts
The Bad: A little too much low brow stuff for my liking

Rating: 3.5/5 (Worth a rental)

Zinda is a very interesting film. For those who are unaware, Zinda is the Indian remake of the very well known South Korean film “Oldboy”. When viewing the film I really tried to look at it two ways. Firstly I wanted to judge the film compared to the original film, which is only the natural reaction to a remake. I also wanted to judge the film as if “Oldboy” never existed.

When viewed in light of “Oldboy”, which I think is an amazing film, this film really doesn’t stand up. One of the main issues is that Sanjay Dutt’s performance cannot compare to the amazing one given by Choi Min-sik. The notorious “one take fight” is redone in this film, but really doesn’t have the same effect. Sanjay just doesn’t really look fit enough to be beating up all of these guys, it just doesn’t work. Much will be said about the changed ending of the film. The new ending just doesn’t have the punch or emotion that “Oldboy” had, in fact it almost comes off absurbly comical.

When viewed outside of “Oldboy”, I will say that this is a pretty darn good film. Firstly, it is well shot (even if a lot of it is ripped direct from the original). The acting, for the most part, is actually pretty good. If I had never heard of “Oldboy” before seeing this, I might have said this film was an amazing leap forward in Indian cinema.

The main problem I see is this: If I had a copy of “Oldboy” and “Zinda” sitting on my shelf, and was in the mood for a movie there is NO WAY I’d ever in a million years pick “Zinda” over “Oldboy”. I will say that it’s worth a viewing, but stick to the original.

The Good: John Abraham was suprisingly good, the film is well shot, and it’s not completely horrible, it ripped off a great film and did a pretty good job of doing so.

The Bad: Sanjay Dutt isn’t believable, the emotion of “Oldboy” is lost in this film, the movie is a complete ripoff, and also the film has a very blue hue in some parts that is distracting.

Review: 3/5 (Worth a viewing, but only once)

Welcome to my “Movie Blog”. I’m Zander. One of my favorite hobbies is buying and viewing movies from all around the world. I’ve decided to keep a log with the movies I view, with a brief review. You may say that there are plenty of other sites who offer the exact same thing, what makes this one worth viewing? I hope to offer another perspective, as well as offering reviews for many movies that may not be reviewed by other sites. I do hope you enjoy, and feel free to post comments.