Curse of the Golden Flower

Just got back from The Curse of the Golden Flower which I watched with smartylibrarian.

The long write-up is coming tomorrow, because for one, I am very tired, and for another, I am still reeling, so all I will say for now is:

Wow.

I have never seen a movie this brutal, gorgeous and devastating, all at once. It's like Shakespeare tragedies through an opera lens (and the family makes Lion in the Winter family seem like the Bradies). It's beyond intense and beyond harsh and despairing, and utterly beautiful.

Oh, and Jay Chou, as the 'good' middle son, the only one with real integrity? YUM.

Curse of the Golden Flower

Just got back from The Curse of the Golden Flower which I watched with smartylibrarian.

The long write-up is coming tomorrow, because for one, I am very tired, and for another, I am still reeling, so all I will say for now is:

Wow.

I have never seen a movie this brutal, gorgeous and devastating, all at once. It's like Shakespeare tragedies through an opera lens (and the family makes Lion in the Winter family seem like the Bradies). It's beyond intense and beyond harsh and despairing, and utterly beautiful.

Oh, and Jay Chou, as the 'good' middle son, the only one with real integrity? YUM.

Curse of the Golden Flower

Just got back from The Curse of the Golden Flower which I watched with smartylibrarian.

The long write-up is coming tomorrow, because for one, I am very tired, and for another, I am still reeling, so all I will say for now is:

Wow.

I have never seen a movie this brutal, gorgeous and devastating, all at once. It's like Shakespeare tragedies through an opera lens (and the family makes Lion in the Winter family seem like the Bradies). It's beyond intense and beyond harsh and despairing, and utterly beautiful.

Oh, and Jay Chou, as the 'good' middle son, the only one with real integrity? YUM.

The Curse of the Golden Flower: Wuxia goes Shakespeare

As I mentioned, I saw the Chinese movie The Curse of the Golden Flower with the lovely smartylibrarian last night.

TCotGF deals with the Imperial Family in the 10th Century as they prepare for the Chrysanthemum Festival: all the intrigues, dysfunction, and plotting that surround them, and the wreck they leave in their wake. The acting is all around excellent, with Chow Yun-Fat especially mesmerizing as the Emperor, who scared me even though he was only on celluloid, and the gorgeous Gong Li as his mad, equally scary wife. Jay Chou’s Jai, the middle of the three Imperial princes, was my favorite character though, and the bond between him and his mother was my favorite relationship in the movie.

I am not going to post pics (because miss_dian has already done an amazing picspam here) but I do want to blab about it.

It’s going to be behind the cut, as the labyrinthine plot is too good to spoil, so all I will say outside the cut is: if you like complicated family dramas, or period movies, or gorgeous art design, and don’t mind tragedy, go run to the nearest theater.

( The Curse of the Golden Flower meta. Loooong )

The Curse of the Golden Flower: Wuxia goes Shakespeare

As I mentioned, I saw the Chinese movie The Curse of the Golden Flower with the lovely smartylibrarian last night.

TCotGF deals with the Imperial Family in the 10th Century as they prepare for the Chrysanthemum Festival: all the intrigues, dysfunction, and plotting that surround them, and the wreck they leave in their wake. The acting is all around excellent, with Chow Yun-Fat especially mesmerizing as the Emperor, who scared me even though he was only on celluloid, and the gorgeous Gong Li as his mad, equally scary wife. Jay Chou’s Jai, the middle of the three Imperial princes, was my favorite character though, and the bond between him and his mother was my favorite relationship in the movie.

I am not going to post pics (because miss_dian has already done an amazing picspam here) but I do want to blab about it.

It’s going to be behind the cut, as the labyrinthine plot is too good to spoil, so all I will say outside the cut is: if you like complicated family dramas, or period movies, or gorgeous art design, and don’t mind tragedy, go run to the nearest theater.

( The Curse of the Golden Flower meta. Loooong )

The Curse of the Golden Flower: Wuxia goes Shakespeare

As I mentioned, I saw the Chinese movie The Curse of the Golden Flower with the lovely smartylibrarian last night.

TCotGF deals with the Imperial Family in the 10th Century as they prepare for the Chrysanthemum Festival: all the intrigues, dysfunction, and plotting that surround them, and the wreck they leave in their wake. The acting is all around excellent, with Chow Yun-Fat especially mesmerizing as the Emperor, who scared me even though he was only on celluloid, and the gorgeous Gong Li as his mad, equally scary wife. Jay Chou’s Jai, the middle of the three Imperial princes, was my favorite character though, and the bond between him and his mother was my favorite relationship in the movie.

I am not going to post pics (because miss_dian has already done an amazing picspam here) but I do want to blab about it.

It’s going to be behind the cut, as the labyrinthine plot is too good to spoil, so all I will say outside the cut is: if you like complicated family dramas, or period movies, or gorgeous art design, and don’t mind tragedy, go run to the nearest theater.

( The Curse of the Golden Flower meta. Loooong )

Letters from Iwo Jima

I really want to see Letters from Iwo Jima but I didn't have time to catch Flags of Our Fathers. Do you think LfIJ would work by itself? Or am I better off waiting for DVDs of them both so I can watch them together?

And does anyone know when it's getting a wide release?

Also, The Painted Veil. Yay or Nay?

And also, if I have no interest in the British Royal Family or Princess Di (ugh), is The Queen still worth watching?

Letters from Iwo Jima

I really want to see Letters from Iwo Jima but I didn't have time to catch Flags of Our Fathers. Do you think LfIJ would work by itself? Or am I better off waiting for DVDs of them both so I can watch them together?

And does anyone know when it's getting a wide release?

Also, The Painted Veil. Yay or Nay?

And also, if I have no interest in the British Royal Family or Princess Di (ugh), is The Queen still worth watching?

Letters from Iwo Jima

I really want to see Letters from Iwo Jima but I didn't have time to catch Flags of Our Fathers. Do you think LfIJ would work by itself? Or am I better off waiting for DVDs of them both so I can watch them together?

And does anyone know when it's getting a wide release?

Also, The Painted Veil. Yay or Nay?

And also, if I have no interest in the British Royal Family or Princess Di (ugh), is The Queen still worth watching?

My brain. It is singed with the stupidity

Courtesy of crumpeteer linking to a a hilarious take on a comic, I have just discovered the Anita Blake series of books by Laurell K. Hamilton.

Oh My.

The hilarity!

I knew it boded well when the author and her letter to her mean picky fans appeared on Fandom Wank.

Heeeee.

This is dreadful. It’s like all bad, Mary-Suish, poorly edited, pr0ny fanfic you could desire. With vampires. And, I kid you not, wererats.

YES.

I will not read them, but flipping through them?

Priceless.

Sample quotes:

"I looked up into his eyes to see if he was teasing me, and I couldn't tell. You try reading rat faces."

"I took one more thing to bed with me, a stuffed toy penguin named Sigmund. I don't sleep with him often, just every once in a while after someone tries to kill me."

"As long as he didn't flash that smile at the wrong time and get us molested by nuns, we would be safe."

And those are supposed to be the good ones.

roffle

My brain. It is singed with the stupidity

Courtesy of crumpeteer linking to a a hilarious take on a comic, I have just discovered the Anita Blake series of books by Laurell K. Hamilton.

Oh My.

The hilarity!

I knew it boded well when the author and her letter to her mean picky fans appeared on Fandom Wank.

Heeeee.

This is dreadful. It’s like all bad, Mary-Suish, poorly edited, pr0ny fanfic you could desire. With vampires. And, I kid you not, wererats.

YES.

I will not read them, but flipping through them?

Priceless.

Sample quotes:

"I looked up into his eyes to see if he was teasing me, and I couldn't tell. You try reading rat faces."

"I took one more thing to bed with me, a stuffed toy penguin named Sigmund. I don't sleep with him often, just every once in a while after someone tries to kill me."

"As long as he didn't flash that smile at the wrong time and get us molested by nuns, we would be safe."

And those are supposed to be the good ones.

roffle

My brain. It is singed with the stupidity

Courtesy of crumpeteer linking to a a hilarious take on a comic, I have just discovered the Anita Blake series of books by Laurell K. Hamilton.

Oh My.

The hilarity!

I knew it boded well when the author and her letter to her mean picky fans appeared on Fandom Wank.

Heeeee.

This is dreadful. It’s like all bad, Mary-Suish, poorly edited, pr0ny fanfic you could desire. With vampires. And, I kid you not, wererats.

YES.

I will not read them, but flipping through them?

Priceless.

Sample quotes:

"I looked up into his eyes to see if he was teasing me, and I couldn't tell. You try reading rat faces."

"I took one more thing to bed with me, a stuffed toy penguin named Sigmund. I don't sleep with him often, just every once in a while after someone tries to kill me."

"As long as he didn't flash that smile at the wrong time and get us molested by nuns, we would be safe."

And those are supposed to be the good ones.

roffle

Nonspoilery gleeover Nobuta Wo Produce eps 1-3

I am three episodes into Nobuta Wo Produce (I've decided to finish at least one drama, in order to cut down on craziness. After I finish it, Green Rose is burning holes in my DVD player (This MV makes me cry. Snow Queen would preempt all but computer is being otherwise occupied).

NwP is a very unusual drama for me. In fact, the sole reason I got it was because so many people said it was excellent and because, after Kurosagi, I needed to see Yamapi and Horihita Maki together again in something, anything.

NwP reminds me (insofar as it does of anything) of a romance-less Wallflower. That's right folks, NwP has no romance (there is some UST, but no romance. And no, I am not talking severe OTP levels of UST of Kurosagi which ignited a few items of furniture around my house). It's a story of discovering yourself as you grow up, and friendship, and maturity. Shuji (played by Kame, who won me, body and soul, in Tatta Hitotsu No Koi in a very different role) is the popular, well-liked high school kid. In fact, Shuji just skates through the complicated school environment. It's easy and it's unengaging. That is, until he and a fellow school-mate, the march-to-the-beat-of-his-own-drummer Akira (played by my great jdorama love Yamapi) decide to team up to 'produce' (transform into the most popular girl), the bullied, shy, outcast Nobuko (played by Horihita Maki). And there follows a story about navigating the trickiness of teenage years, finding one's own identity, growing up, and making friends.

You'd think NwP won't appeal to me, right? There is no romance, no tragic past, no complexly haunted characters, no problems that really resonate with me. The characters are realistically teenagers (not manga teens who act like they are 25), and their problems are not something I've had to deal with for a very long time, as it's been over a decade since I graduated from my own high school. There is no melodrama and the visuals aren't anywhere near as gorgeous as kdrama visuals (or e.g. the visuals in Kame's own Tatta Hitotsu No Koi, which I am getting a DVD of later this week, finally, and will binge).

But I do love the characters so. They took time to grow on me, but now I like Shuji and really like Nobuko, and adore Akira. I have to say, huge props to Yamapi for his portrayal. The offbeat, laid-back Akira is miles away from the intense irresistable mess that is Kurosaki. I started out being freaked out by him, but now I eagerly wait for each appearance: somehow his character just won me over utterly. He has no filters or barriers. He feels oddly pure, true to himself, always. And OMG, he totally likes Nobuko a bit 'in that way' you can tell. The looks he gives her, utterly serious for a second? Whoa. Not the scorching levels of Kurosagi but still... (if Yamapi and Horihita Maki ever make a drama where they are actually allowed to kiss, the screen will combust, I swear).

As to Nobuko? I really really like her and feel for her. Her character is also different from the confident,sunny Tsurara of Kurosagi but I like her and want to give her a hug at the same time. She is someone waiting to bloom, on the brink of growing up, and I love that she finds friends to help her. Usually I don't like the female leads in jdorama (I think jdramas aren't very good at making sympathetic/interesting female leads) but Nobuko, together with Tsurara, joins the small ranks of jdrama heroines I love. I think she likes Shuji, doesn't she? I can't help but ship her with Akira because...dude...Yamapi! Kurosagi!

And also because Shuji is my least favorite of the three. Don't misunderstand me, I like him. I like that he a genuinely nice guy underneath the pose, but precisely because he is nice and not messed up and not complicated, I find him less interesting. Kame's Hiroto in Tatta Hitotsu No Koi seriously owns me, because he plays the kind of character I adore: quietly desperate, vulnerable, building walls and falling in love at the same time. Shuji? Not the same thing. Or maybe it's because with Yamapi there, I simply can't concentrate :D (Interestingly, Akira is much less my type than Kurosaki, even though I adore Akira. That is probably why, at least as of now, both Kurosagi and Tatta Hitotsu No Koi are higher on my favorite jdrama list. They are a lot more my thing: impossible love as salvation, and messed up protagonists).

Nonspoilery gleeover Nobuta Wo Produce eps 1-3

I am three episodes into Nobuta Wo Produce (I've decided to finish at least one drama, in order to cut down on craziness. After I finish it, Green Rose is burning holes in my DVD player (This MV makes me cry. Snow Queen would preempt all but computer is being otherwise occupied).

NwP is a very unusual drama for me. In fact, the sole reason I got it was because so many people said it was excellent and because, after Kurosagi, I needed to see Yamapi and Horihita Maki together again in something, anything.

NwP reminds me (insofar as it does of anything) of a romance-less Wallflower. That's right folks, NwP has no romance (there is some UST, but no romance. And no, I am not talking severe OTP levels of UST of Kurosagi which ignited a few items of furniture around my house). It's a story of discovering yourself as you grow up, and friendship, and maturity. Shuji (played by Kame, who won me, body and soul, in Tatta Hitotsu No Koi in a very different role) is the popular, well-liked high school kid. In fact, Shuji just skates through the complicated school environment. It's easy and it's unengaging. That is, until he and a fellow school-mate, the march-to-the-beat-of-his-own-drummer Akira (played by my great jdorama love Yamapi) decide to team up to 'produce' (transform into the most popular girl), the bullied, shy, outcast Nobuko (played by Horihita Maki). And there follows a story about navigating the trickiness of teenage years, finding one's own identity, growing up, and making friends.

You'd think NwP won't appeal to me, right? There is no romance, no tragic past, no complexly haunted characters, no problems that really resonate with me. The characters are realistically teenagers (not manga teens who act like they are 25), and their problems are not something I've had to deal with for a very long time, as it's been over a decade since I graduated from my own high school. There is no melodrama and the visuals aren't anywhere near as gorgeous as kdrama visuals (or e.g. the visuals in Kame's own Tatta Hitotsu No Koi, which I am getting a DVD of later this week, finally, and will binge).

But I do love the characters so. They took time to grow on me, but now I like Shuji and really like Nobuko, and adore Akira. I have to say, huge props to Yamapi for his portrayal. The offbeat, laid-back Akira is miles away from the intense irresistable mess that is Kurosaki. I started out being freaked out by him, but now I eagerly wait for each appearance: somehow his character just won me over utterly. He has no filters or barriers. He feels oddly pure, true to himself, always. And OMG, he totally likes Nobuko a bit 'in that way' you can tell. The looks he gives her, utterly serious for a second? Whoa. Not the scorching levels of Kurosagi but still... (if Yamapi and Horihita Maki ever make a drama where they are actually allowed to kiss, the screen will combust, I swear).

As to Nobuko? I really really like her and feel for her. Her character is also different from the confident,sunny Tsurara of Kurosagi but I like her and want to give her a hug at the same time. She is someone waiting to bloom, on the brink of growing up, and I love that she finds friends to help her. Usually I don't like the female leads in jdorama (I think jdramas aren't very good at making sympathetic/interesting female leads) but Nobuko, together with Tsurara, joins the small ranks of jdrama heroines I love. I think she likes Shuji, doesn't she? I can't help but ship her with Akira because...dude...Yamapi! Kurosagi!

And also because Shuji is my least favorite of the three. Don't misunderstand me, I like him. I like that he a genuinely nice guy underneath the pose, but precisely because he is nice and not messed up and not complicated, I find him less interesting. Kame's Hiroto in Tatta Hitotsu No Koi seriously owns me, because he plays the kind of character I adore: quietly desperate, vulnerable, building walls and falling in love at the same time. Shuji? Not the same thing. Or maybe it's because with Yamapi there, I simply can't concentrate :D (Interestingly, Akira is much less my type than Kurosaki, even though I adore Akira. That is probably why, at least as of now, both Kurosagi and Tatta Hitotsu No Koi are higher on my favorite jdrama list. They are a lot more my thing: impossible love as salvation, and messed up protagonists).

Nonspoilery gleeover Nobuta Wo Produce eps 1-3

I am three episodes into Nobuta Wo Produce (I've decided to finish at least one drama, in order to cut down on craziness. After I finish it, Green Rose is burning holes in my DVD player (This MV makes me cry. Snow Queen would preempt all but computer is being otherwise occupied).

NwP is a very unusual drama for me. In fact, the sole reason I got it was because so many people said it was excellent and because, after Kurosagi, I needed to see Yamapi and Horihita Maki together again in something, anything.

NwP reminds me (insofar as it does of anything) of a romance-less Wallflower. That's right folks, NwP has no romance (there is some UST, but no romance. And no, I am not talking severe OTP levels of UST of Kurosagi which ignited a few items of furniture around my house). It's a story of discovering yourself as you grow up, and friendship, and maturity. Shuji (played by Kame, who won me, body and soul, in Tatta Hitotsu No Koi in a very different role) is the popular, well-liked high school kid. In fact, Shuji just skates through the complicated school environment. It's easy and it's unengaging. That is, until he and a fellow school-mate, the march-to-the-beat-of-his-own-drummer Akira (played by my great jdorama love Yamapi) decide to team up to 'produce' (transform into the most popular girl), the bullied, shy, outcast Nobuko (played by Horihita Maki). And there follows a story about navigating the trickiness of teenage years, finding one's own identity, growing up, and making friends.

You'd think NwP won't appeal to me, right? There is no romance, no tragic past, no complexly haunted characters, no problems that really resonate with me. The characters are realistically teenagers (not manga teens who act like they are 25), and their problems are not something I've had to deal with for a very long time, as it's been over a decade since I graduated from my own high school. There is no melodrama and the visuals aren't anywhere near as gorgeous as kdrama visuals (or e.g. the visuals in Kame's own Tatta Hitotsu No Koi, which I am getting a DVD of later this week, finally, and will binge).

But I do love the characters so. They took time to grow on me, but now I like Shuji and really like Nobuko, and adore Akira. I have to say, huge props to Yamapi for his portrayal. The offbeat, laid-back Akira is miles away from the intense irresistable mess that is Kurosaki. I started out being freaked out by him, but now I eagerly wait for each appearance: somehow his character just won me over utterly. He has no filters or barriers. He feels oddly pure, true to himself, always. And OMG, he totally likes Nobuko a bit 'in that way' you can tell. The looks he gives her, utterly serious for a second? Whoa. Not the scorching levels of Kurosagi but still... (if Yamapi and Horihita Maki ever make a drama where they are actually allowed to kiss, the screen will combust, I swear).

As to Nobuko? I really really like her and feel for her. Her character is also different from the confident,sunny Tsurara of Kurosagi but I like her and want to give her a hug at the same time. She is someone waiting to bloom, on the brink of growing up, and I love that she finds friends to help her. Usually I don't like the female leads in jdorama (I think jdramas aren't very good at making sympathetic/interesting female leads) but Nobuko, together with Tsurara, joins the small ranks of jdrama heroines I love. I think she likes Shuji, doesn't she? I can't help but ship her with Akira because...dude...Yamapi! Kurosagi!

And also because Shuji is my least favorite of the three. Don't misunderstand me, I like him. I like that he a genuinely nice guy underneath the pose, but precisely because he is nice and not messed up and not complicated, I find him less interesting. Kame's Hiroto in Tatta Hitotsu No Koi seriously owns me, because he plays the kind of character I adore: quietly desperate, vulnerable, building walls and falling in love at the same time. Shuji? Not the same thing. Or maybe it's because with Yamapi there, I simply can't concentrate :D (Interestingly, Akira is much less my type than Kurosaki, even though I adore Akira. That is probably why, at least as of now, both Kurosagi and Tatta Hitotsu No Koi are higher on my favorite jdrama list. They are a lot more my thing: impossible love as salvation, and messed up protagonists).