Author Archives: kaist455

Sewol: Years in the Wind (2023) ☆☆☆(3/4): The chronicle of their long plight

Posted on April 15, 2024 by kaist455

I still remember how shocking the sinking of MV Sewol incident was to me and many other South Koreans. When there came sudden news reports on the incident during the morning of April 16th, 2014, it did not seem that … Continue reading →

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Life Goes On (2021) ☆☆☆(3/4): As they hold up

Posted on April 14, 2024 by kaist455

South Korean documentary “Life Goes On” is often sad and heartbreaking in its intimate presentation of several different persons who have tried to go on despite tragically losing their loved ones to some of the most traumatic accidents in the … Continue reading →

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Girls State (2024) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): Girls can do anything indeed

Posted on April 14, 2024 by kaist455

Documentary film “Girls State”, which is currently available on Apple TV+, observes a bunch of American female teenagers going through a well-known week-long leadership and citizenship program. While they sometime find themselves limited by gender bias and inequality, these young … Continue reading →

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Vengeance (2022) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): An offbeat comedy mystery drama set in Texas

Posted on April 12, 2024 by kaist455

“Vengeance” baffled me with some amusement and disappointment. Languidly driven by a little investigative reporting process on the mystery surrounding one seemingly plain incident, the movie attempts to make some barbed points on the current social/cultural gaps and divides in … Continue reading →

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Soft & Quiet (2022) ☆☆☆(3/4): Tense & Disquieting

Posted on April 12, 2024 by kaist455

“Soft & Quiet” is a small but striking genre piece you will not easily forget. As it pulls no punch at all in its increasingly tense and disturbing presentation of racism, you will probably wince more than once, but the … Continue reading →

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Kung Fu Panda 4 (2024) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): Enough is enough…

Posted on April 10, 2024 by kaist455

Animation film “Kung Fu Panda 4” is a passable product not bringing anything particularly new or surprising to its franchise, which was started with “Kung Fu Panda” (2008) and then continued in the two following sequels during next several years. … Continue reading →

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The Goldfinger (2023) ☆☆(2/4): Murky and tedious

Posted on April 10, 2024 by kaist455

Hong Kong film “The Goldfinger” did not engage me despite lots of happenings during its 2-hour running time. While it wants to be a grand financial crime drama not so far from “The Wolf of Wall Street” (2013) on one … Continue reading →

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Steve! (Martin): A Documentary in Two Pieces (2024) ☆☆☆(3/4): He did all…

Posted on April 10, 2024 by kaist455

Documentary film “Steve! (Martin): A Documentary in Two Pieces”, which was released on Apple TV+ a few weeks ago, shows us how Steve Martin has contained multitudes. At first, the documentary, which consists of two episodes as reflected by its … Continue reading →

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The Beekeeper (2024) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): They mess with a wrong beekeeper…

Posted on April 8, 2024 by kaist455

“The Beekeeper” is an oddly uneven action thriller flick. While its action scenes are uttermost serious and intense just like its tough guy hero with a particular set of skills, it is also often so ridiculous in case of story … Continue reading →

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The First Omen (2024) ☆☆☆(3/4): A spooky prequel to enjoy

Posted on April 7, 2024 by kaist455

To my little astonishment, “The First Omen”, a prequel to Richard Donner’s well-known horror film “The Omen” (1976), is more entertaining and interesting than I expected. As a matter of fact, the movie is one or two steps above “The … Continue reading →

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