Author Archives: kaist455

The Holdovers (2023) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): Stuck together during one Christmas season

Posted on December 2, 2023 by kaist455

Alexnader Payne’s latest film “The Holdovers”, which will simply be released in South Korea as “Barton Academy”, is a dry but humorous character drama which will grow on you a lot for its excellent mood, performance, and storytelling. While it … Continue reading →

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Anatomy of a Fall (2023) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): A rivetingly ambiguous courtroom drama

Posted on December 2, 2023 by kaist455

French film “Anatomy of a Fall”, which won the Palme d’Or award at the Cannes Film Festival early in this year, is a compelling courtroom drama film which keeps us guessing for good reasons. Mainly revolving around one seemingly simple … Continue reading →

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Monster (2023) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): “Who is the monster?”

Posted on November 30, 2023 by kaist455

Hirokazu Kore-eda’s latest film “Monster” seems rather disturbing and frustrating at first and then becomes something much more compelling and powerful than expected. As moving from one viewpoint to another along the plot, the movie gradually and sensitively delves into … Continue reading →

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Withstanding and Existing (2022) ☆☆☆(3/4): Some musicians at one old movie theater

Posted on November 27, 2023 by kaist455

My hometown Jeonju has a certain area in the middle of its old downtown area, which has been the center of Jeonju International Film Festival for more than 20 years. It surely has several big movie theaters even at present, … Continue reading →

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Birth (2022) ☆☆☆(3/4): A hell called pregnancy

Posted on November 26, 2023 by kaist455

South Korean film “Birth” was often difficult to watch for me. Because I saw its trailer a few weeks ago, I braced myself even before the screening was started, and, boy, it turns out to be as grimly intense as … Continue reading →

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Big Sleep (2022) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): His curt kindness

Posted on November 25, 2023 by kaist455

South Korean film “Big Sleep”, which is incidentally not associated with American classic noir film “The Big Sleep” (1946) at all, is a moody social drama which somehow fails to engage me. While it surely shows us well the harsh … Continue reading →

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A Man Who Heals the City (2023) ☆☆☆(3/4): One decent old man

Posted on November 25, 2023 by kaist455

South Korean documentary film “A Man Who Heal the City” intrigues us as observing one decent old man from the distance for a good reason. Although he helped and supported many different people for several decades as a respected local … Continue reading →

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12.12: The Day (2023) ☆☆☆(3/4): That infamous night in Seoul, 1979

Posted on November 22, 2023 by kaist455

South Korean film “12.12: The Day” is an intense fictionalized version of what happened at one terrible night of December 1979 in Seoul. Although I and many other South Korean audiences are well aware of how the story eventually ends, … Continue reading →

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Rustin (2023) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): A gay organizer behind the March on Washington in 1963

Posted on November 21, 2023 by kaist455

Netflix film “Rustin”, which came out in last week, wants to be two different things at once, but I do not think it succeeds as much as intended. On one hand, it wants to present a monumental historical event of … Continue reading →

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The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (2023) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): How he came to rise

Posted on November 21, 2023 by kaist455

“The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” is totally unnecessary but fairly watchable at least. As a redundant prequel to The Hunger Games trilogy in the early 2010s, it will not give you much substance in terms of … Continue reading →

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