Lovers of Six Years

Lovers of Six Years Synopsis: (from www.koreanfilm.or.kr)
Jae-young and Da-jin have been going out for 6 years. Living next door, their sex is not so hot as before but they know everything about each other. Da-jin doesn’t mind to let Jae-young buy a tampon for her. Jae-young visits Da-jin’s mother from time to time to repair the house or just to say hello. One day, a fresh young girl approaches to Jae-young while Da-jin encounters a charming man through work that she shares a lot in common with herself. When these new people bring fresh air to their lives, their long love relationship starts to shake down.

My comments:
I liked Lovers of Six Years despite finding it a bit long and the story too simple. It’s basically about ordinary couple Da Jin and Jae Young being together for 6 years; they are so familiar with each other that there is almost no sparks between them. When they are together, they fight/argue about small matters so they question if the love still exists and if they are really happy. Both of them have people who shows interest in them and can they resist? I was slightly disappointed that one of them couldn’t resist and cheated but I believe that in real life it would happen too. I had difficulty siding who because there are times that is hard to judge who is right and who is wrong. But at the end, I think it’s all fair and I believe it’s a happy ending.

I like the performance of Yoon Kye Sang and Kim Ha Neul in this movie. It’s very spot on, nothing over dramatic. They make a cute couple.

Run Papa Run

Run Papa Run Synopsis: (from Yesasia)
Raised by a single mother in a crime-ridden neighborhood, LEE has risen from street punk to successful syndicate crime boss. Fast money and women have always come easily to Lee. But Lee unexpectedly falls in love with a lawyer named Mabel. When Mabel becomes pregnant, Lee panics. Unable to commit, Lee refuses to marry her. Determined to make the relationship work, Mabel moves into his apartment uninvited. Mabel's stubbornness pays off when their baby HEIYI is born - Lee's paternal instincts are awakened and he is transformed into a doting father. Desperate to protect his new family, Lee conceals the true nature of his business. His gang members undergo an image makeover and to all outward appearances Lee is now a legitimate businessman. His secret is exposed when Heiyi reaches adolescence. Heiyi urges her father to go straight. But Lee has just been handpicked to be the next kingpin of the underworld and Lee must make a choice between the brotherhood and his family.

My comments:
I think that Run Papa Run is a pretty good and enjoyable movie. The first half is more comedy while the later part is more drama. I like the use of Louis Koo’s voiceovers as a way to narrate the movie but I find the singing segments of Rene Liu a bit random. Louis Koo gave a fine and affective performance. His character is not really the cool type and he’s flawed but it’s very touching to see how hard he’s trying to cover his gangster identity in front of his daughter Hei Yi. The poor guy must be under a lot of pressure and stress all these years. Hei Yi is like the most precious thing to him and you see how this character develops and changes because of the daughter. Rene Liu is good as usual.

They made a good choice for casting the actress who plays the adult Hei Yi because she really looks like Rene Liu. I like Hei Yi and her boyfriend’s part and when Louis’ character learns who his future in-laws are…hehe! What a fate! The ending is unexpected because of what we see in the beginning so there is a little surprise. Don’t know if I should be happy or sad…

Remaining unfinished...

Is my love for Korean dramas dying or what? I started 2 dramas starring male leads that I'm fond of but for some reasons I just don't have the motivation to go beyond 2 episodes. I'm suddenly very afraid of watching Korean dramas because the episode length is getting scarier…75 minutes for an episode…errr…

- Who Are You? => I like Yoon Kye Sang and his character is a blast from what I've seen BUT I find Go Ah Ra’s character very annoying. The story is unusual but still...

- Why Did You Come To My House => I like Kim Ji Hoon, he has a lot chemistry with Lee So Yeon and they should be a fun bickering couple to watch but I'm smelling some dramatic twist of events coming up later. I don't buy Kim Ji Hoon and Oh Yoon Ah as a couple in love in the beginning; they look like a noona taking care of a little brother instead.

** Meanwhile, I'm starting to get hooked on a drama, which I'm not revealing its title now, that is still airing. I made a BIG mistake for starting it and then having to crave for new episode every week. I told myself not to be crazy anymore since I had that experience with My Girl and now I'm repeating the same mistake again. Sigh…

An Empress and the Warriors

An Empress and the Warriors Synopsis: (from Yesasia)
The story is set in ancient China before its unification, during which countless kingdoms battle for supremacy. Yen Feier [Kelly Chen] is thrust onto the throne when her father is killed in battle. Feier and her loyal Muyong Xuehu [Donnie Yen] unite to defend the kingdom. But her ambitious cousin Wu Ba [Guo Xiao-dong] sends assassins to kill her. A mysterious man Duan Lan-Quan [Leon Lai] saves her. Feier falls in love with Duan who offers her another life. With the fate of their kingdom in the balance, Feier must choose between her duty and her dreams.

My comments:
Yeah, another movie with people in the shining armor, how exciting! An Empress and the Warriors offers nothing new but a fresh cast, who you would normally not see in a period movie. Story wise, it’s still the same stuff about kingdoms at war and that there is always someone ambitious in the troop; therefore, they kill each other. Right, expect a dramatic ending. I think this movie is very empty, I really couldn’t connect with the characters as you really have little background about them. At the end, I just don’t care. Decent action though.

Kelly Chen did the best she could, you can see she put a lot of effort in the fighting and looking tough but she didn’t do well overall. She’s really not suitable for a period movie, so is Leon Lai. I felt like laughing everytime Leon pops up on screen and I have the feeling that he was sleepwalking and he was bored in the entire movie. Their courtship/love story is just so cheesy and “modern” that is so out of place in the ancient context. Now Donnie Yen, he’s a cool guy and all but I always had some problems with him as an actor. A lot of his previous movies, he modeled more than acted. Here, he still fights cool and poses cool, even at his final moments, he still has his hair flying floppily...haha!

Playlist of early June

- 那些女孩教我的事 - Victor Wong (aka Pin Guan) => I was attracted by the title and I instantly liked it when I first heard it; easy to listen with a feeling of sadness.

- Love In This World - Khalil Fong => I’m very proud of soulboy having the honor for being one of the 12 international artists creating a track for the Cartier LOVE campaign. Very relaxing and very smooth track, which you can download here for free and you get a to see a little interview with him speaking English! Isn’t it great?!

- 喜歡一個人好累 - Vincy Chan => A capable singer but I never liked her songs or her singing techniques. This song is surpringly good and she sings it lighter, in a less show-off way.