Shim's Family (좋지 아니한가 /Johji-anihanga -2007)

AKA: Skeletons in the Closet

Starring:
Ho-jin Jeon
Hie-kyung Moon
Hye-su Kim
Ah-in Yu
Bo-ra Hwang
Yu-mi Jeong
Ki-woo Lee
Hyeok-pil Lim
Hae-il Park

The Shims would be in the top five for being indifferent and apathetic for each other and in the top three for lack of love in a family. The five members of the family have absolutely no common ground. The family consists of the cheap, stubborn mom (MOON Hee-kyung) and the father (CHUN Ho-jin) who is down because of her, their son Yong-tae (YOO Ah-in) who thinks he was a king in his past life and their daughter Yong-sun (HWANG Bo-ra) to whom existence itself is a mystery, and the out of work comic book writer aunt (KIM Hye-soo). Because they share the same blood, they all live awkwardly together in one house. And they wonder time and time again…why they have to live together when they don’t even love each other…

One day, the Shims come face to face with calamity. Mom falls for a guy at the karaoke shop (LEE Ki-woo), Yong-sun meets a teacher (PARK Hae-il) who is more of a mystery than she is, and Yong-tae falls in love with the worst girl (JUNG Yoo-mi) in the universe. But most shocking is Mr. Shim, who is second to none at being cautious and straitlaced, and his most obscene incident! To make matters worst, Yong-gu their playboy dog gets a pure pedigree pup pregnant and the Shims fall in a calamity that could almost make one die from embarrassment….


This was a very good, down-to-earth slice of life (sort of) movie. Ingenioius!

I related to the entire family. Especially the parents. I've been married for a long time and understand how sometimes family life just sort of takes over and married life sits back on the shelf and collects dust. It just happens. The kids rule your everyday life. It's not like you love your spouse less, but sometimes sex justs cools down. I totally understood where that couple was coming from.

Then there was the kids. LOL! I related to them also. LOL! My life was just like theirs growing up.

Being not to overly funny, to downright serious, to not to overly funny again, you would like this movie. I'm sure there is at least one character you can relate too. With just enough class and humor, it's enjoyably fun to watch. And, maybe if you thought your family was insane, this movie might make you think about it again. LOL!

Tazza: The High Rollers (타짜/Tajja -2006)

Starring:
Seung-woo Cho ... Go-ni
Yun-shik Baek ... Pyung Gyung-jang
Hye-su Kim ... Madam Jung
Dong-hun Choi
Jong-ryol Choi
Yeong-min Ha
Sang-geon Jo
Jin-mo Ju
In-gi Jeong
Eung-su Kim ... Kwak
Jeong-nan Kim ... Se-ran
Kang-woo Kim
Kwang-gyu Kim
Kyeong-ik Kim
Sang-ho Kim
Yun-seok Kim
Tae-won Kwon
Jae-gu Lee
Su-kyeong Lee ... Hwa-ran
Jeong-eun Lim
Hae-jin Yu

Tazza: The High Rollers is director Dong-Hun Choi's glitzy, fast-paced spin on a popular comic book about Korea's gambling subculture and its assorted denizens, replete with an innocent all too eager to be corrupted, his wise mentor and the no-good woman whose main occupation is betrayal. All the familiar pieces are there but the filmmaker upends them, refreshing the conventions of crime/con films and turning his material into something of an epic journey where everyone appears to be interconnected. Tazza kicks off with a creative and virtuosic use of split-screen to showcase a game of hwatu, a card-playing session. In this tour-de-force sequence, the overlapping images are shuffled breathlessly like a deck of cards. The young hero, Goni, loses his money to a tazza, a high roller, and throws himself into a search of gambling dens to find the player who took his money. Along the way he meets the veteran tazza, Pyoung, who teaches him the tricks of the trade, and the formidable Madam Jung (the fabulous, scene-stealing Kim Hae Soo), a classic femme fatale who lures foolish men into losing games. In keeping with the material, the film looks like it's been backlit with neon, a touch that contrasts brilliantly with occasional monochromatic imagery.



That was a pretty good movie. I wasn't really going to watch it but Cho Seung Woo was cast as the lead and damn if he didn't impress me in the Classic and Marathon. So I broke down even though the synopsis wasn't my thing.

I was pleasantly surprised and amazed at how smooth and well the movie flowed. I love me a good Texas Hold'em so the game they played sort of reminded me of it. Maybe it's the same thing. Not sure.

It was really hard to see Seung-woo cast as a tough and rugged kind of guy since all the movies I've seen him in have been sweet and innocent characters. And dang if he didn't look good. I really like this guy. He's an amazing actor with major abilities in changing his character. Marathon was probably the best because playing an autistic person has got to be emotionally draining to do.

This was a fun movie. Oh, and hey......he was naked! Great butt shots. LOL!

Cho Seung Woo


Ju Jin Mo

A Good Day to have an Affair (바람피기 좋은날, Baram-pigi joheun nal-2007)

Starring:
Hye-su Kim - Dew
Jin-seo Yun - Small Bird
Jong-hyeok Lee
Min-gi Lee
Supporting Cast
Eun-pyo Jeong
Yun-hong Oh
Sang-Myeon Park
Eun-pyo Jeong

Two bored housewives have affairs with two different men they meet in online chat rooms. As their relationships developed into offline relationships they often pass each other unwittingly in the hallways of the motels where they meet their lovers.

One day, the lady known as “Dew” is in a room with her aged college lover. Suddenly, her husband bursts through their door, along with police officers that he brought. The other lady known as “Small Bird” is in a adjacent room listening to what’s going on in the other room. Small Bird whispers to her lover to be quiet, because the police officer in the other room is her husband. -- Lunapark6



Okay this movie was disappointing. Eergh! First off, they made "my man" into a jerk. At first, he comes across as a deprived, frustrated, first timer in sexual affairs. Kind of endearing at the beginning. Then "poof!" WTF! Then he just dumps her and takes on another chick. In the end, it was all about the sex. Then they take his "Tweetie" and make her a scared pussy cat into a caged up tiger at the end. Uh-wuh?

The connotations of this movie can lead some of those whose hearts are teetering on infidelity to believe that it's okay. NOT!

It was supposed to be a comedy and it was funny at times as "Fox" tried to get into "Tweetie's" skirts. Or "Dew" and college boy and their sexual romps and playtime. But the real moment of this movie showed that their was no real consequence to what breaking the marriage contract can do to the other halves and the children involved. Sad. *pouts*

And this had my "Fox" and he was all that and then some.........*sigh*

Lee Min Ki

Kick the Moon (Shinlaui Dalbam, 신라의 달밤-2001)

Starring:
Sung-jae Lee ... Park Young-jun
Seung-won Cha ... Choi Ki-woong
Hye-su Kim ... Min, Ju-ran
Jong-su Lee ... Min, Jin-seob

Ten years ago, a legendary fighter named Choi Gi-dong and a timid straight-A student named Park Young-joon leave for a high school field trip to Gyeongju city. But during their journey, fate befalls on them as they experience an unforgettable incident that would change the course of their lives.

One night during a school gala, Gi-dong leads his entire school to a huge brawl against a local gang while Young-joon chickens out and stays behind at the party by himself. The streets turn out to be a battlefield with blood gushing, heads bashing and bones breaking, but the gruesome fight nonetheless becomes history in the making. Gi-dong becomes admired for his brevity, while Young-joon gets ostracized for his fear.

Ten years later, Gi-dong and Young-joon coincidently meet each other at a club in Gyeongju. Surprisingly, Young-joon turns out to be a big time gangster while Gi-dong becomes a daunting phys ed teacher who transferred to a high school in Gyeongju. They feel glad about their unexpected reunion, but the mood gets tense as they rekindle old yet not-so-fond memories.

Before they bid farewell, both Gi-dong and Young-joon suddenly find a pretty damsel named Ju-ran in distress. In an instant, they fall headlong in love with her as Ju-ran's gleeful smile sweeps them off their feet.

Gi-dong makes his claim on Ju-ran, but Young-joon calls it a fair game. Young-joon planned to make his trip to Gyeongju a short visit, but he extends his stay to win Ju-ran's heart and to get back at Gi-dong for old time's sake. Gi-dong gets infuriated over Young-joon's decision since he won't listen to him like the good old days. Even though fighting over Ju-ran becomes a grueling test to their friendship, the situation gets worse when they practically get the whole city involved. It's a fight to the finish to win one girl's heart, even if it takes a few bones to break.



This was a pretty decent movie. It started out a bit slow though but picked up at the end.

The premise of the movie has you believing this was all about two guys fighting over a girl. Not in actuality. Once we graduate, most of us, will lose contact with best friends in high school. This is a story about two good friends who meet up and who are totally not what they were in high school. This story is about how we reconnect as friends and maintaining that friendhip. So don't let the trailer fool ya or the plot.

This was a good movie to rid you of the boredom doldrums.....

Lee Jong Su


Cha Seung Won


Lee Sung Jae