Category Archives: Movies

Humint (2026) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): A slick but bland genre product

South Korean filmmaker Ryoo Seung-wan’s latest film “Humint” is a slick but deficient genre product. While there are a number of well-executed scenes to entertain us, the movie also feels a bit too trite and bland in terms of storytelling … Continue reading

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Marty Supreme (2025) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): Timothée Supreme 

Josh Safdie’s new film “Marty Supreme” is an ambitious mix between absurd comedy and intense sports drama. Quite willing to go all the way along with its increasingly obnoxious and incorrigible hero during its rather long running time (150 minutes), … Continue reading

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Hamnet (2025) ☆☆☆(3/4): Shakespeare in Grief

Chloé Zhao’s latest film “Hamnet”, which received the People’s Choice Award at the Toronto International Film Festival in last year and then recently garnered 8 Oscar nominations including the ones for Best Picture and Best Director, is a curious mix … Continue reading

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Song Sung Blue (2025) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): The story of a singing couple

Craig Brewer’s latest film “Song Sung Blue” is a bit too conventional to my little disappointment. Probably because I am already familiar with its dramatic real-life story, the movie often felt to me like being no more than a merely … Continue reading

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The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): The end of an ambitious trilogy

Peter Jackson’s 2003 film “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King”, which was re-released in selected South Korean theaters a few weeks ago, did almost everything it was expected to do as the end of its ambitious … Continue reading

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Mr. Nobody Against Putin (2025) ☆☆☆(3/4): A little but defiant personal chronicle from Karabash, Russia

Documentary film “Mr. Nobody Against Putin”, which won the Special Jury Award when it was shown at the Sundance Film Festival early in last year and then received an Oscar nomination a few weeks ago (It was also the Danish … Continue reading

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The King’s Warden (2026) ☆☆(2/4): A king comes to his village…

South Korean film “The King’s Warden” often tries too hard for laughs and then tears, and I do not like that much. Based on the real-life relationship between one plain common man and a tragically deposed king of the Joseon … Continue reading

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Eternity (2025) ☆☆☆(3/4): A choice for eternity

“Eternity” is alternatively amusing and touching as a human comedy about afterlife, eternity, and love. While surely reminiscent of several other movies ranging from Albert Brooks’ “Defending Your Life” (1991) to Hirokazu Kore-eda’s “After Life” (1998), the movie distinguishes itself … Continue reading

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Us and Them (2018) ☆☆☆(3/4): Now and Then

Taiwanese filmmaker Rene Liu’s 2018 film “Us and Them”, which is currently available on Netflix, is a bittersweet romance drama between two different people looking back on their flawed but precious love in the past. At first, their past seems … Continue reading

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The Housemaid (2025) ☆☆☆(3/4): Her tricky employment

“The Housemaid”, which was one of the two films from Paul Feig during last year, is a slick genre film packed with enough pulpy fun to compensate for a few glaring narrative hiccups. As your average seasoned moviegoer, I instantly … Continue reading

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