Author Archives: kaist455

Special Delivery (2022) ☆☆☆(3/4): She must deliver this kid to the end

South Korean film “Special Delivery”, whose theatrical release in South Korea was incidentally delayed for around 2 years due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, is a competent genre product to be appreciated for its taut and efficient handling of story … Continue reading

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The Tragedy of Macbeth (2021) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): A sparse but striking version of that Scottish play

Joel Coen’s first solo film “The Tragedy of Macbeth”, which was released on Apple TV+ a few days ago, is a sparse but striking version of that ‘Scottish Play’ which is incidentally one of the best works of William Shakespeare. … Continue reading

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The Tender Bar (2021) ☆☆(2/4): So he grew up to be a writer…

George Clooney’s new film “The Tender Bar”, which was released on Amazon Prime early in this month, often bored me without leaving much impression on the whole. It is supposed to be a warm, tender, and intimate coming-of-age drama, but … Continue reading

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West Side Story (2021) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): An exhilarating musical film by Steven Spielberg

Steven Spielberg’s latest film “West Side Story” is an exhilarating musical film which I gladly watched after one particularly exhausting day. I must confess that my physical condition was not that good when I watched the movie during last evening, … Continue reading

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House of Gucci (2021) ☆☆(2/4): A brand to kill for

Ridley Scott’s “House of Gucci”, which is another new film from Scott in last year after “The Last Duel” (2021), is neither classy nor pulpy to my disappointment. While it is too superficial to be a serious drama about ambition … Continue reading

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France (2021) ☆☆(2/4): An inane satire on media and journalism

Bruno Dumont’s latest film “France” works best whenever the camera focuses on its leading actress’ undeniably beautiful face. I must point out that the movie itself is limp and hollow as a satire on media and journalism, but its leading … Continue reading

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That Day, on the Beach (1983) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): Edward Yang’s first feature film

During last several years, I and South Korean audiences were lucky to watch several works of Taiwanese filmmaker Edward Yang including “A Brighter Summer Day” (1991), which I belatedly watched in December 2017. Although I initially braced myself for the … Continue reading

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Sing 2 (2021) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): They’re back with a bigger task…

Animation film “Sing 2”, which is incidentally released as “Sing 2gether” in South Korean theaters, is as effective as its predecessor, and that is all I could say in this review. Just like “Sing” (2016), the film is simply all … Continue reading

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Sing (2016) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): It surely serves you lots of familiar songs

It is hard to be cranky about animation film “Sing”, which uses a bunch of various good songs like linoleum to cover up lots of its notable shortcomings on the floor. Sure, I could see through its many clichéd and … Continue reading

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Mogul Mowgli (2020) ☆☆☆(3/4): A Pakistani British rapper in double crisis

“Mogul Mowgli” is a curious piece of work which alternatively baffled and intrigued me. While this is essentially a familiar tale of personal/artistic crisis, it dynamically swings around many different elements including professional integrity and cultural identity, and the result … Continue reading

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