Gal Circle (ギャルサー -2006)

Starring:
Fujiki Naohito as Kitajima Shinnosuke
Toda Erika as Saki
Suzuki Emi as Remi
Aragaki Yui as Nagisa
Iwasa Mayuko as Rika
Yaguchi Mari as Yurika
Satsukawa Aimi as Shizuka
Natsuko as Sumire
Furuta Arata as Geronimo
Yamauchi Nana as Momo
Namase Katsuhisa
Nukumizu Youichi
Oshima Satoko
Kamiwaki Yu as Yayoi
Miura Rieko as Akiko
Sato Ryuta
Kawamura Yosuke
Watanabe Tetsu (guest)
Kato Yoshika
Akita Makoto
Kishi Hiroyuki
Takase Yukina as Youko
Kobayashi Kinako (ep9)

Kitajima Shinnosuke, a cowboy from the USA who goes to Shibuya to find a group of girls to dance Para-Para. Along the way, he becomes a new type of hero, helping to solve problems that afflict Shibuya-Gals

It started out really funny. I loved seeing Naohito-kun in cowboy gear. I, living in the bible belt of cowboys, really appreciated this even though his character was totally way off and over blown. But that is okay. Just the thought of him in chaps was a glorious sight indeed. Oh, my only thing that really bothered me.....that patch of hair on his chin......had to go. I couldn't stop looking at the little thing. It draws focus away from his handsome face.

From the first few episodes it was really funny but then it started getting boring since the episodes were repetitive in nature. The last episode saved the show. Why did I finish watching this? F-U-J-I-K-I N-A-O-H-I-T-O!! He brings me glorious dreams........

Sad but as I was doing a photo search, I came across a sad read. HE'S MARRIED! Aaaaagh! Okay, I am too, but damn that ruined it for me! I actually felt my emotional, happy balloon deflate. *sigh*

Anyway, this was a pretty good show but senseless through some episodes. They did have morals at the end of each episode but I won't go through them. Too many. This was a good time waster if you are bored. But I definitely got full on the "eye candy".

Musa (무사 -2001)

Starring:
Woo-sung Jung ... Yeo-sol
Sung-kee Ahn ... Jin-lib
Jin-mo Ju ... Choi Jung
Ziyi Zhang ... Princess Bu-yong (as Zhang Ziyi)
Yong-woo Park ... Ju-myeong
Jeong-hak Park ... Ga-nam
Hye-jin Yu ... Du-chung
Seok-yong Jeong ... Ha-il
Du-il Lee ... Ji-san
Yeong-mok Han ... Dan-saeng
Jae-ho Song
Hae-jin Yu
Rongguang Yu ... Rambulhua, Yuan General

In 1375, China was in a state of chaos because of fighting between the Yuan and Ming Dynasties. The korea dynasty, one of Korea's ancient kingdoms, sent a delegation of many diplomats, soldiers and a silent slave as envoys to make peace with the new Chinese government, Ming. However, this delegation was accused of spying and sent in exile to a remote desert. On the way, they were attacked by Yuan troops who killed all the Ming soldiers, leaving only korea warriors. The head envoy General CHOI Jung of the Royal Guard decides by himself that they must return to korea. Vice Envoy LEE Ji-hun dies from the strain of the march, and tension builds between LEE's bodyguard slave Yeosol and CHOI Jung.

After overcoming countless obstacles, the Korea warriors arrive at a peddler's inn in the middle of the desert and run into Yuan cavalry who have kidnapped Ming's princess Buyong. CHOI Jung falls in love with Buyong the moment he sees her. Meanwhile, Yeosol arrives later, dragging vice envoy LEE Ji-hun's body. He cuts off the head of a gypsy who spits on the dead body. Yuan general Rambulhwa sees Yeosol decapitate the gypsy with one strike. Princess Furong also looks on from her wagon. Yeosol is eventually taken captive by the Yuan cavalry. CHOI Jung picks up a note from Buyong written in her blood that says 'Help', and he decides to rescue her so that they can get a boat bound for Korea. CHOI Jung's aide Ganam and a warrior from the Commoner's Army, Jinlip, oppose the idea, saying it would be futile. However, they end up proceeding with the rescue with Jinlip shooting the first arrow. Buyong is rescued, but only at the expense of many korea warriors' lives.

Princess Furong and the Korea warriors, whose destination is Nanjing (the old southern capital of China), arrive at the Yellow River Valley where they find all the ferry boats burnt by Yuan soldiers. There they run into a group of Han tribe refugees. Furong feels empathy for her people and promises to give the warriors a boat to Korea if they take the refugees to the coast next to Mud Castle. They arrive at Mud Castle after even more trials, only to find the castle in ruins and no Ming soldiers. By this time, the Yuan soldiers have caught up with them and the Korea travelers become increasingly nervous. The underlying conflict between CHOI Jung and Yeosol over princess Buyong also deepens. Now they must choose. Give up princess Buyong or fight to the death together. The moment of truth approaches Can they return to Korea safely?

This was a pretty good movie. It wasn't what I thought it would be. I guess more dramatic would be the interpretive word. The copy I saw lots of blank areas for subs so a lot of translation was missed but the idea was still there.

I was a little irritated with the Princess. I had to agree with the guys to drop her off with the Yuan army and leave for Korea. But no.....General Choi Jung believed that saving her was more beneficial for them seeing as she promised them a boat if they got her to the "mud castle". Eeeergh!

Then we have Yeosol. I really loved his character. He was awesome with the lance! Totally cool choreograpy! But damn what is it with the Princess. She was all nice in the beginning but then her "niceness" was getting them all killed! Then she got all hoity-toity! Yeah, should have just fed her to the Yuan army. The whole movie would have ended quickly but then there would have been less dead people!

Then I cried when a particular member of the envoy was killed. I won't say who as to not ruin the movie for everyone else. But that was such a sad moment that I was all weepy. Then from that point on.....I was waiting for the guillotine to drop. I knew this had a sad ending but I wasn't sure how it would go down.

Now on a good note...even though his character was a little messed up was...Ju Jin Mo was so damn hot in period clothing. Oooh-la-la! And speaking of eyecandy, yo!............Jeong Woo Seong was looking all fine with the long, straight black hair. Kind of reminded me of another particular Korean in the Duelist! I've seen other JWS movies but this one he looked totally the best!!

Iljimae (일지매 (一枝梅) -2008)

Starring:
Lee Joon Ki as Iljimae / Yong / Lee Geom
Han Hyo Joo as Eun Chae
Lee Young Ah as Bong Soon
Park Shi Hoo as Shi Hoo / Ja Dol

Extended Cast
Lee Moon Shik as Swe Dol (Yong's adopted father)
Kim Sung Ryung as Dani (Shi Hoo's mother)
Lee Won Jong as Byun Sik (Eun Chae's father)
Ahn Kil Kang as Kong He / monk (Bong Soon's adopted father)
Moon Ji Yoon as Dae Shi (Yong's friend)
Kim Chang Wan as the king
Kim Roe Ha as Sa Cheon (chief assassin)
Kim Moo Yul as Shi Wan (Eun Chae's brother)
Do Ki Suk as Hee Bong / Slick (Castor Oil gang boss)
Kim Hyun Sung as Heung Kyun
Jung Jae Eun as Sim Seok
Suh Dong Won as Eun Bok (Hunter Jang's son)
Lee Won Jae as Hunter Jang
Kim Kwang Sik as Geok Doo
Yang Jae Sung as Shim Gi Won
Jo Sang Gi as Moo Yi (Sa Cheon's follower)
Lee Il Hwa as Lady Han (Geom's mother)
Son Tae Young as Lee Yeon (Geom's older sister)
Jo Min Ki as Lee Won Ho (Geom's biological father)
Yeo Jin Goo as young Geom
Kim Yoo Jung as young Eun Chae
Jung Da Bin as young Boon Soon
Ahn Ji Hong

Set during the Joseon Dynasty, Ryung acts as a useless gangster in the marketplace by day but at night he is a chivalrous robber who robs corrupt government officials to give to the poor. After each robbery he leaves behind a wooden branch from a plum tree at the site of the robbery to take responsibility for the robbery. The poor citizens only know him as Iljimae. Bong Soon is a hilarious girl with good martial art skills and lives as a swindler. She only loves Ryung and sacrifices her whole life for him. Eun Chae is a government official's daughter and is good in nature and usually helps miserable people. She meets Iljimae once by chance, and their sweet love story begins. However, her love puts Iljimae in a dangerous situation because an Imperial Guard also loves her.




Wow! I loved this drama. My kids would get sick of me every Thursday or Friday when crunchyroll.com would submit the newest episode. "Iljimae!" I'd yell, scream and/or cry. LOL!
Okay, seeing Lee Jun Ki lookin' his awesomest with that pretty, long dark hair gave me the lovely willies. LOL! I love his hair long. But enough about how cute he is....y'all can obviously see for yourselves......

I'll admit the first few episodes bored the living daylights out of me. I understood they were setting up the story. It took a lot out of me to watch that part. But once Geom/Yong-ee/Iljimae grew up......it got livelier and exciting. I'll admit I was routing for Yong-ee and Bong Soon. Eun Chae was just toooooooo nice. Kind of made me sick to my stomach to how sweet she was. Bong Soon was lively, funny, and a spit-fire. Perfect for Yong-ee.

The fighting scenes were fun to watch and as the story progressed my stomach got the twitters because I didn't want the episode to end. Again, as the week was ending, I was all over the internet looking for the latest episode. And, yes, I'm downloading the entire series per bittorrent.

Now let's talk about the ending. In perfect Korean fashion, it wasn't all that. Don't get me wrong, the series was freakin' awesome but I knew that once the ending came I wasn't sure sure how it was going to end. Well, it wasn't sad or a happy ending.....really, I think they set it up for another season. I didn't feel there was a conclusion to the story. Now if they did another season, I don't think Lee Jun Ki would come back because of his popularity and awesomeness. LOL! Ah, but if he did....well, I'd be on the Iljimae train wagon all over again.

This was so much fun......and it finally ended. *sigh* What am I going to do now? I still have 2 perfectly good series I'm watching now but they are also about to come to a close. *sigh*

Park Shi Hoo

Okay, I had to put him in here. He's such a cutie in the show. I hope to see more of him in the future. He might have been a little bit of an ass on the drama but he made up for it well in the end.......

Heaven's Bookstore (Tengoku no honya - koib / 戀火 -2004)

Starring:
Yuko Takeuchi ... Shoko/Natsuko
Tetsuji Tamayama ... Kenta
Karina ... Yui
Hirofumi Arai ... Satoshi
Teruyuki Kagawa ... Takimoto
Yoshio Harada ... Yamaki
Akashi Takei


KENTA (Tetsuji Tamayama), a young pianist who has just lost his job, is drowning his woes at a bar, when he meets a man in a Hawaiian shirt named YAMAKI (Yoshio Harada). He invites Kenta to work with him, and the next thing he knows, Kenta wakes up to find himself in a room he has never been in before. It is a strange room that seems to have no connection to life. He descends a staircase to find many shelves of books. Yamaki appears once again, and tells him that this is Heaven's Book Service and Kenta is going to start working a short-term part-time job here. In addition to selling books, this bookstore, owned by Yamaki, provides a service of reading aloud to customers. Although he is unsure of his new surroundings, Kenta follows their actions and starts to work in his new part-time job.

One day, Kenta meets SHOKO (Yuko Takeuchi) who had been the pianist that was the inspiration for him to first to start playing the piano. She was a gifted pianist whose promising future was destroyed when an accident caused her to have trouble in hearing.

Meanwhile, back on Earth, KANAKO (also by Yuko Takeuchi), the daughter of a Japanese patisserie store, is planning to bring back the fireworks show, which used to be held until 14 years ago. Everyone who watched the fireworks would look forward to the last piece, the "Loving Fireworks." It was told that couples that watch it together would be forever united in true love. However, the fireworks shows were discontinued when TAKIMOTO (Teruyuki Kagawa), a young fireworks technician had an accident that caused his fiancee to lose her hearing, and the tragedy lead him to disappear. The pianist, as it turns out, is Shoko, Kanako's aunt.



Okay, this was my second try at this movie. I watched maybe 15 minutes of the first time and was bored. I came across it again and realized that "Dang it!", Tetsuji-kun (my love) was in this and that I needed to finish it. Just because it bored me at the beginning didn't me it wouldn't pick up, right?

Wrong.

It was still slow...not as boring...but it wasn't heart-poundingly exciting either. There were a few moments of "ahh"ness to it. Yui and the realization of why she was in Heaven. Satoshi falling in love with her. *so sweet!* And then when Yui got to "meet" her brother. *sniff, sniff*

The ending was actually quite predictable so it wasn't like I melted or had to wipe away tears. Nope. It was nice but not awe inspiring. But it was nice to see "watashi no koibito". *sigh* That man has never, ever, ever, ever looked bad....EVER!

Can't Live Without Robbery (도둑맞곤 못살아 / Dodookmatgo motsala -2002)

AKA: Steal It If You Can

Starring:
Sang-Myeon Park - Kang Sang-tae
Ji-seob So - Choi, Kang-jo
Seon-mi Song - Hwang Ma-ri
In-mun Kim - Father-in-law
Chang-suk Kim - Mother-in-law
Mu-hyeon Lee
Kwang-jung Park
Byeong-chun Kim

Gang-jo, a charismatic game programmer becomes weary about his successful life, and transforms into a thief equipped with hi-tech devices. One day, he sneaks into Sang-tae¡¯s home and Sang-tae, a happily married man who considers watching TV together with his family his biggest happiness finds out three 10,000 won bills, a TV remote and pig-ear sushi rolls disappears. Few days later, Gang-jo visits Sang-tae¡¯s house once more and Sang-tae¡¯s family become trembling in fear. Sang-tae, eager to protect his family, does anything possible to calm their fears, but in spite of his efforts, he loses his faces and dignity in front of his family when he lets the thief slip right under his nose. Sang-tae now becomes desperate as the confidence as a father and husband is about to collapse, but he has some surprises hidden under his sleeve.



This movie was so cute! I really didn't get into until the end but the end was the best part of the movie other than So Ji Seob (Sup).

It started out really well. The cuteness factor set in. Then it got kind of dull. I sort of wanted to smack Sang-tae's kids. Their rudeness and obvious disparity towards their father was evident but it really was far beyond respect.

The dull factor came when Kang-jo kept breaking into the house to eat Sang-tae's wife's food that was obviously gross. I didn't really care for that.....it was sort of like a courtship between Kang-jo and Sang-tae's wife. Something that wasn't really necessary...but then.......

Kang-jo stole Sang-tae's diary and from that point on.....the movie was back together again and the fun began. Let's just say I '"ahh"ed when Kang-jo sent neckties to Sang-tae! From that point on, you knew they had some sort of twisted friendship.

It was fun! Gotta watch. Hang in there past a few dull parts because it does come together in the end.

So Ji Seob

Yama Onna Kabe Onna ( 山おんな壁おんな -2007)

Starring:
Ito Misaki as Aoyagi Megumi
Fukada Kyoko as Mariya Marie
Oikawa Mitsuhiro as Okuzono Masayuki
Koike Eiko as Oyama Haruka
Tanihara Shosuke as Tamura Takehiko
Nishijima Hidetoshi as Iguchi Shohei
Kawata Hiroki as Matsubara Tetsuhito
Miura Rieko as Koroita Rika
Uehara Misa as Yoshino Kanako
Yazawa Shin as Toyokawa Misato
Nukumizu Youichi as Kazunuma Tadashi
Wakabayashi Go as Okuzono Goemon
Komoto Maki as Nagashima Masumi
Yonehara Kosuke (米原幸佑) as Morita Goro
Tokui Yuu as Harada Kenji
Suzuki Sawa as Harada Yuko
Matsuoka Kanon (松岡佳音) as Kuwata Ryoko

Guests
Washio Machiko (ep1)
Masako (雅子) as Jinguji Sayoko (ep2)
Ogura Hisahiro as Tominaga Shigeo (ep2)
Iwahashi Michiko (岩橋道子) as Tamura Miyuki (ep2,5)
Sasano Takashi as Aoyagi's father (ep2-5,7&8)
Yamanaka So (山中聡) as Uenohara (ep2,3)
Yoshimura Tamao (吉村玉緒) as Swimsuit saleswoman (ep3)
Kasahara Orito as Mariya's younger brother (ep3-5)
Hasegawa Jun as Herself (ep3)
Maro Akaji as Ijuin (ep4)
Matsumoto Jun as The pickle merchant (ep4)
Muramatsu Toshifumi as Sasaki workshop manager (ep4)
Enjoji Aya as Nankota (ep5)
Oka Mayumi as Mariya's mother (ep5)
Hida Keiko (樋田慶子) as Mariya's grandmother (ep5)
Minami Miho (南美穂) as Nana (ep5)
Megu-chan (メグちゃん) as Marie (ep5)
Suzuki Kosuke as Komiyama (ep5)
Taguchi Kazumasa (田口主将) as The custodian (ep5)
Kinoshita Hoka as Midorikawa (ep6)
Takemoto Satoko (竹本聡子) as Takoko (ep6)
Seki Keisuke as The doctor (ep6)
Suzuki Shohei (鈴木昌平) as Sleepy man on bus (ep7)
Akaza Miyoko as Aoyagi's mother (ep7)
Sato Jiro as Kazuo, Aoyagi's cousin (ep7&8)
Yatsu Isao as Doctor Oyabu (ep7)
Oshima Yoko as The angry customer (ep7)
Takasugi Ko as Kokubo (ep7)
Yamaguchi Makiya as Sawada (ep7)
Ono Haruko (小野晴子) as Makihara Masato (ep9)
Sato Kazuya as Kuzunuma Daisuke (ep9)

Megumi is a top sales person at the handbag section of a department store. Many people admire, and sometimes even envy, Megumi for her beauty and outstanding skills to sell products to customers. However, Megumi secretly suffers from a complex: she is flat-chested and was once nicknamed "kabe onna" (wall woman) by her former classmate. One day, a new sales person named Marie joins Megumi's department. Unlike Megumi, Marie is extremely busty as if she's carrying mounds (yama) on her chest. On top of her great bosoms, Marie also has her own special way of effortlessly selling the products to the customers. Though feeling a little threatened by Marie at first, Megumi soon realizes that they have more things in common than anybody else: they both take pride in their career and dedicate themselves to helping their customers. Through numerous obstacles, Megumi and Marie foster special friendships with each other. --groink

Okay, I was prepared to say this was one of the funniest, light-hearted, romantic shows on. Then I got to the last episode. That got so F'd up that I wanted to throw the computer through the window. This is a Japanese drama..it's not supposed to end up like a freakin' Korean drama....damn it to hell!

Okay, she chose the guy I hoped she would at the end but then.......well, she ended up with him but yet...didn't.

Okay, okay, okay....it was hilariously funny with the "boob" jokes. Then you had the idiot puns and physical comedy included. I won't lie that it wasn't funny because it was damn funny.

I wonder what Tanihara Shosuke looks like in everyday clothes. He's always in a business suit and dressed up to the "nines". I'd like to see him in some old, faded jeans and worn t-shirt. LOL!

I really loved this drama until the very last second when the drama failed me. They had to play dirty tricks. EVIL!

Ai no Kotodama (愛の言霊 -2008)

Starring:
Hidenori Tokuyama - Ootani Shinya
Yasuka Saito - Tachibana Miyako
Rinako Matsuoka - Mizusawa Yuki

Ootani and Tachibana have been inseparable since high school. Now that they're in college, they live together, they're happy and everything seems prefect. But their little world is disrupted when they meet an old high school friend, Yuki, who seems to have a crush on Tachibana, making Ootani feel jealous and insecure. Will Tachibana really choose him over a pretty girl?




Omg! Do I love yoai movies? Let me count the ways........

This movie was so wonderful. Gay relationships also have inferiority complexes of their own. This movie showed us that before the two main leads started their relationship that they had other lives as well. Meaning? Before they understood their new found love of the same sex, they once had male/female relationships.

Oonori is insecure of his relationship with Tachibana. Tachibana was once a popular, happy-go-lucky guy who was liked by the girls. Oonori is a silent, tough guy who is in love with Tachibana. Both men have known each since elementary school but have been lovers for at least 4 years.

This movie touches on jealousy, trust, and betrayal issues but the most important factor......true love. This totally touched my heart. I couldn't help but feel for Oonori who had trouble expressing his feelings other than jealousy. This really seemed like a genuine find in how hard it is to keep relationships fresh and alive.

Okay, the kissing scenes were a freakin' real turn on. Two fine guys loving each other. There wasn't any sex scenes or inuendo (well, slightly) so it wasn't a put off. The scenes were sweet and........fascinating! Sugoi!!

Oh! Brothers (오! 브라더스 -2003)

Starring:
Jung-Jae Lee - Oh Sang-su
Beom-su Lee - Oh Bong-gu
Mun-shik Lee - Jeong
Seung-su Ryu - Heo Ki-tae
Yong-jin Ryu - Mr. Park
Won-jong Lee - Mr. Hong
In-yeong Yu
Hyeong-jin Kong
Yeong-gyu Park
Ji-Yeon Park
Su-jeong Eom
Hyeong-ja Kim

Oh! Brothers stars Jung-Jae Lee as Sang-wu, a jaded paparazzi photographer who deals with the less-than-moral side of life. Squeezed for money by a crooked detective, Sang-wu is forced to become a debt collector, a profession he finds little success in.

His problems become exacerbated when his estranged father dies and leaves him with a surprise: Bong-gu (Beom-su Lee), his 12-year-old half-brother who looks to be in his mid-30s due to a rapid aging disorder.

This is a freaking top-notch movie. I loved it! Loved, loved, loved it! From the very beginning of the movie...(OMG! It's hilarious!) to the end. It was exquisitely made for a comedy.

From the beginning when Sang-woo extorts money from the couple who are having an affair, he gets $200,000 (won) for bogus pictures the couple think of them. Nope. They are pictures of pigs and a pig farm. As Sang-woo runs out of the restaurant, the expressions on their exposed faces was priceless.

To the end, when Sang-woo sends his brother a picture, but it wasn't just that but the feeling of satisfaction. Some Korean endings leave you either in disgust or unfulfilled. Rarely do they end the way you want or happily. This one was worth every minute of this movie. Satisfied? Yes. Gratified? Yes. Am I happy? Deliriously so.

Lee Jung Jae

Hit Team (Chung chong ging chaat -2001)

Starring:
Daniel Wu (Ng Yin-Cho)
Alex To Tak-Wai
Jo Koo
Samuel Pang King-Chi
Monica Lo Suk-Yi
Ruby Wong Cheuk-Ling
Chin Kar-Lok
Alan Moo
Joe Lee Yiu-Ming
Tony Ho Wah-Chiu

Routine actioner from Dante Lam succeeds thanks to attention to detail and believably human performances. Another in the “cop soap opera” genre, Hit Team details the clash between two groups of cops. One is the special “Hit Team,” designed to go after heavily armed bad guys, and the other are a group of rogue cops robbing underground banks.

Alex To leads the rogue cops, who are actually stealing the money to fund an operation for their crippled buddy Chin Kar-Lok, who was shot by evil triads and hung out to dry by his superiors. The Hit Team is led by Daniel Wu, who manages to show a surprising intensity as the serious squad leader. Right off they suspect that the robberies are done by cops, and as the truth comes to light things get a bit complicated. Of course Daniel disagrees with what Alex and his pals are doing, but he agrees with their purpose. Ultimately, decisions are made and things are explained through action rather than words.



Typical HK cop movie. It was fun, lots of action (not of the kung-fu type this time around), and lots of drama.

This movie actually questioned the morality of the police department. An undercover cop gets shot in the back, becomes paralized and the department turns their back on him. Morals? What is the understanding of it? So his friends break free of the department except for one and take on an underground banking group to steal the money that was "stolen" from the injured cop who needs the surgery so he doesn't stay paralyzed.

Investigating their actions is another department section of the police department who realize that their own are breaking the laws and are determined to capture them but as time goes on and the investigation becomes more intense do they realize the understanding of the rogue cops.

This was a pretty fast paced movie. Some character descriptions were left by the wayside but the story didn't become overly tainted.

A fun ride to watch.....and Daniel Wu's character was surprisingly calm, cool, and smart compared so some of the characters he's played before. Very nice!!!

Scout (스카우트 -2007)

Starring:
Chang Jung Lim - Ho Chang
Ji-won Uhm - Se-Young
Dae-yeon Lee
Cheol-min Park - Gon-Tae
Il-seob Baek
Hie-kyeong Yang
Hui-won Kim
Won-yeong Jang
Kook-huan Chun
Won-yeong Jang
Cheol-min Park

Set In 1980, Ho Chang works as a staff member for a college baseball team. He’s planning a dream vacation but his plans get derailed by a new assignment. He’s ordered to scout Sun Dong Eul, the most sought after high school baseball player in Korea.
Ho Chang goes to Kwang-Ju to scout Sun Dong. He finds it more difficult than expected as rival scouts from other universities are hindering his plans. Furthermore, he meets his ex girlfriend and her low-life boyfriend who starts threatening Ho Chang.
To make things worse, the baseball player’s parents do not appear to be on Ho Chang’s side. Rumors also say that Sun Dong was already scouted by rival teams. Ho Chang is unable to even get a meeting with Sun Dong, so Ho Chang takes matters into his own hands. He decides to kidnap him! -- Lunapark6


Hmm? Not so sure about this movie. Yeah, it had some comedic moments. Yeah, there were some tears. Yeah, some action too. But there was just too much going on. I didn't realize this film would have historic moments in Korean history. I'm still learning this stuff myself. But I haven't read anything about the Korean Martial Law enforcement in any review yet. I'm sure there are some out there but I just like the short and sweet ones because some of those reviews give out toooooooo much and the movie then becomes ruined.

In this case, though, I thought I would be seeing a typical Korean comedy and that wasn't so. All of the sub stories within the main story were falling apart. The "love" story, well, that was messed up. Did she love him or not?

Anyway, it was alright but I was looking for the typical comedy, romance thing and got a history lesson instead. Damn! This wasn't a dud like the previous movie I've already mentioned but I was looking for a happy and bright...not reminiscent and meloncholy. Errrgh.

Uniform (Zhifu-2003)

Starring:
Hongli Liang
Hua Qin
Kai Han

Clothes make the man in this compact, Chekovian feature shot on digital and set in present-day small-town China. Laid off when the two local factories merge, Wang Xiaojian (Liang Hongli) is pressed into service at his family's laundromat. When a customer leaves a policeman's shirt behind, Xiaojian starts to impersonate a member of the authorities, discovering that power is a combination of appearance and self-confidence. Along with using the uniform to rip off unsuspecting pseudo-lawbreakers, he allows it to help him score with a shop girl, who wears a mask of her own.

Wang Xiaojian is a young man in deep shit at the time he impulsively decides to start impersonating a cop. His father is running up medical bills. His only income comes from the family's modest laundry and tailoring business. And, because he was in the wrong place when angry workers raided an accounts office, the neighbours think he's a stool-pigeon. He starts off wearing a police shirt uncollected from the laundry. Before long, he's knocked up a complete uniform for himself. Wearing it not only gives him the 'status' to extort bribes but also lends him the confidence to start dating Shasha, who sells pirated CDs. Like him, though, she has a secret other life ...

This movie got rave reviews for it's Indie feel and depiction of mainland China, modern day, with economical problems. I, for one, wasted a good hour and a half of my life. It bored the living hell out of me. The story could have been fascinating but they spent every 9 out of 10 minutes of visual footage (him smoking, standing, watching the girl, sitting, etc.....) So you guessed it...maybe only 9 minutes of talking or action or both. That's it.

This is not for those of us who were wanting a possible romance or something. The synopsis had me thinking this might be a little revealing. Nope. Boring!!!! Even the ending was uneventful. Okay, he was being chased by cops....two footmen and he on a bike. The girl sits on a rock ledge type thing. The end. WTF? Shoot me in the head.............

I could have watched more of Strongest Chil Woo or something that I just started today......damn!

Oh! My God (Guseju / 구세주 -2006)

Starring:
Seong-guk Choi ... Im Jungwhan
Yi Shin ... Eun-ju
Il-seob Baek
Won-suk Park
Jun Gyu Park
Sang-ki Jo
Su-mi Kim
Won-jong Lee
Bu-seon Kim
Hyo-eun Hwang

After nine years in college, Im Jung Hwan (Choi Sung Kook) is still nowhere close to graduating - and that's just the way he likes it. He is more than happy taking it easy and living his playboy lifestyle, preying on young innocent college girls. Go Eun Joo (Shin Yi) works as a prosecutor. She is tough, independent and seemingly all the things guys don't look for in a potential girlfriend wife. However, when she lays eyes on Jung Hwan, she can't help herself and falls madly in love with him, and persistently pursues him until she gets what she wants.
Eun Joo ends up with more than she bargained for as their one-night-stand leaves her pregnant with twins! Jung Hwan does the honorable thing and the couple gets married, but he can't give up his old lothario ways, so Eun Joo is forced to take drastic action, and puts her "husband-taming project" into action!


This was quite funny at the beginning. LOL! Eun-ju was a riot. I don't know if I would go that far in trying to get a man....but hey...if someone is willing to do all those crazy shenanigans...GANBATTE!

I have to say that I don't know if I like Choi Seong Guk or not. The character portrayal was really good but there is just something about him that leaves a dead taste in my mouth. Though, his character was seedy, I really don't think a person would be like that.

In all, the movie wasn't all that great even though it was pretty funny. I couldn't really get into it. It was just too farfetched to be believable and Eun-ju was more crazy than a woman in love with her man.

Water Boys 2005 Natsu (WATER BOYS 2005夏)

Starring:
Eita as Tanaka Masatoshi
Koide Keisuke as Uehara Kensaku
Hiraoka Yuta as 名嘉尾悟
Emoto Tasuku as Koma Shunichiro
Konishi Manami as Uehara Kyoko
Sakai Ayana as Kakihara Rena
Takizawa Nonami as Buritani Michiru
Ukaji Takashi as Koma Toshimichi
Matsushige Yutaka as 名嘉尾大悟
Masuoka Toru as Uehara Kosaku
Watanabe Misako as Kakihara Haru
Kubo Akira as the head teacher
Mori Yoshiyuki as the principal
Nagumo Yusuke (南雲勇助) as Hotta Zenjiro
Tonesaku Toshihide as Hatori Manabu
Kashii Yu as Hanamura Kyoko
Ishii Tomoya as Ishizuka Futoshi
Tanaka Kei as Yasuda Takashi
Manabe Kaori as Sakuma Megumi
Nakayama Katsumi
Sekiguchi Kimiko
Nakajima Ben
Kanbe Hiroshi
Kumabe Youhei (隈部洋平)
Fuwa Hisashi (不破央)
Hiraizumi Sei
Ishihara Yoshizumi
Yajima Kenichi

Synchro Participants
Pe Jyonmyon (ペ・ジョンミョン)
Sano Yasuomi
Fujii Atsunori (藤井貴規)
Kawagishi Ginji (川岸銀次)
Sugiura Yugo (杉浦由悟)
Tashiro Koji
Tomikawa Kazuhito
Nakano Shintaro (中野真太郎)
Takahashi Mitsuomi
Taketani Atsushi (竹谷敦史)
Yanagibashi Tomonori (柳橋朋典)
Ueda Shinsuke (植田真介)
Kawasaki Ryuichi (川崎龍一)
Tamaari Yoichiro (玉有洋一郎)
Iwato Hidetoshi (岩戸秀年)
Sato Yuki
Kora Kengo
Kan Yuta (菅雄太)
Okada Yuki (岡田雄樹)
Takeuchi Tomoya
Nokubo Naoki (野久保直樹)


Tanaka Masatoshi is having troubles getting into medical school, something he blames on all the time he spent on synchro two years earlier. While on a research trip to a remote southern island of Japan, he is forced into coaching a newly formed three member boys synchro team. Tanaka has to come to terms with his past and begins questioning his future, while the three boy synchro team dream of life off of the island.



Can I be any more in love with Hiraoka Yuta? I'm not joking here. He is soooooo cute. OMG! I was in heaven watching this film. Yuta-kun in really, really, really skimpy speedos. I can't keep my tongue in my mouth. Let's just say the pause button was used tremendously just so I could get really good visuals of him. OMG! Yeah, Yuta-kun is now in my top 5 "I gotta have" list. Why does he have to be so young? I wonder if he likes older women....LOL! Okay, okay, okay....I'll stop dreamin'.



This film, other than eye-poppin'-candy galore, was just another Water Boys film. Same story, different time, with different guys other than Eita. The only difference in this movie was that not only did they have to save the festival but the town as well from land grubbers. Of course, there was a little bit of romance.....poor Yuta-kun didn't have a girl....and great choreography in the water. The ending sequence, to me, was just a little bit more risque than the last few series and movie. But nothing rated "R" about it.



Just a fun movie but nothing to get overly excited about (well, other than Yuta-kun in an overly skimpy outfit).



If I lived in Japan, I would be his #1 stalker fan. LOL! YUTA-KUN!!!!!!!!!!!

Water Boys ( ウォーターボーイズ -2003)

Starring:
Yamada Takayuki as Shindo Kankuro
Moriyama Mirai as Tatematsu Norio
Eita as Tanaka Masatoshi
Ishigaki Yuma as Takahara Go
Ishii Tomoya as Ishizuka Futoshi
Miyaji Mao as Onishi Asako
Kashii Yu as Hanamura Kyoko
Tani Kei as Mr. Ozaki
Fuse Akira as Mr. Yamaoka
Sugimoto Tetta as Mr. Sugita
Manabe Kaori as Miss. Sakuma
Kikuchi Maiko as Miss. Onogawa
Emoto Akira as Mama (of a bar)
Tokui Yuu as Chi-mama
Takenaka Naoto as Mr. Isomura
Yashima Norito as Isomura Kiyomasa
Tamaki Hiroshi as Sato Katsumasa
Takahashi Hitomi as Shindo Miwako
Asano Kazuyuki as Shindo Kanichi
Ikari Yukiko as Shindo Hitomi
Nishida Naomi
Katayama Reo as Kitajima Daichi
Aibu Saki as Hayakawa Atsumi
Hiraizumi Sei as Mr. Tatematsu

Synchro Boy Group
Hojo Takahiro
Fujisawa Yosuke
Arakawa Yu
Kato Koki
Nozaki Tenma
Tanaka Kei
Shiozawa Hidemasa
Isaka Tatsuya
Hamada Hiroyuki
Abe Atsushi
Ebata Hiroki
Ichitaro
Chikada Shintaro
Takeuchi Taiyo
Kawamoto Takanori
Sekita Atsushi
Hyuga Takashi
Namiki Nobuyuki
Washizu Isanori
Shin Shinichiro
Wakizaki Tomohito
Watanabe Dai

Two years ago, five high-school boys brought fame to a small town in Japan. What was so unique was that they formed a "men's synchronized swimming club." Their involvement and struggles while learning synchronized swimming - known to be a sport for girls - brought much attention to their school and town.

Two years have passed since that summer, and the boys of Tadano High School are still in the club. The Fuji Television drama "Water Boys" shows how these young boys fight to learn synchronized swimming, fall in love, and enjoy friendship with one another.

I cannot believe I put this show off for so long! I watched the movie (actually I think the movie was the first Asian movie I saw for the first time. I'm almost positive because I did a Tamaki Hiroshi search and that came up. I'm STILL looking for Rockers! Errrr)

Okay, I loved this. Oh yeah, Eita in a speedo! Hello!?!! Ishigaki Yuma in a speedo. Oh yeah baby! LOL! This is probably the only drama where I thought Yamada Takayuki looked decent. Yeah, he's a great actor. Really great! But his looks don't give me the.....*sigh*. Ya know?

This was a great family comedy/drama. I loved the end with all the choreography and stunts. The music was cool too! This wasn't the greatest of all dramas go but it was really fun to watch. Oh and Moriyama Mirai didn't disappoint in his comedic role. His facial expressions crack me up. He, also, isn't a "looker" but he too has that "somethin', somethin'", aura, appeal.......whatever that draws your attention to him. Love him! I'm never disappointed in his roles whatsoever.

Have fun. Sit down. Grab a soda. Watch the show.

Hojo Takahiro


Tanaka Kei


Tamaki Hiroshi


Eita

Blood and Bones (Chi to hone / 血と骨 -2004)

Starring:
Takeshi Kitano - Joon-pyong Kim
Hirofumi Arai - Masao Kim
Tomoko Tabata - Hanako Kim
Joe Odagiri - Takeshi Park
Kyoka Suzuki - Yong-hee Lee
Yuko Nakamura - Kiyoko Yamanashi
Jae Baxley - Fight Spectator
Mari Hamada - Sadako Toritani
Atsushi Ito - Yong-il / Young Joon-pyong
Shuuji Kashiwabara - San-myung Jang
Kazuki Kitamura - Yoshio Motoyama
Jun Kunimura - Yong-sang Jo
Yutaka Matsushige - Nobuyoshi Ko
Naoyuki Morita - Young Masao
Mami Nakamura - Sanae Otani
Takashi Nishina - Yong-su Kim
Kozo Sato - Tae-su Kim
Sansei Shiomi - Sung-ki Kim
Miako Tadano - Chun-mi Kim
Susumu Terajima - Hee-bom Park



Blood and Bones painstakingly describes the life of infamy lead by Kim Shun-Pei, an unskilled laborer from Cheju, an isolated island in the far South of Korea, from his arrival in Osaka in 1923, full of dreams and ambitions, for lack of more distinctive qualities, to his unmourned death in North Korea. Expatriated into Japan during the era of its colonial rule over the peninsula, he seems to be seeing/seeking (as do his compatriots) a land of opportunities for fortune, fame (to a lesser extent) and prior to these fantasies, work.

But unlike his fellow immigrants, Kim is a man who knows no law but the one dictated by his own iron will, and hardly any other means of expression than his two fists and his rage, with which he will establish his authority over the small community of his peers, a silent diaspora scattered in a few alleys that will remain their horizon for the rest of the film.


This was an excellent movie! Kitano Takeshi was awesome as the abusive, controlling father.

I've read that this movie was critiqued for the "abuse" towards Koreans in Japan during Japan's occupation of Korea. I didn't see that in this movie. What I saw was a normal reaction to how ANY ethnicity would react if a father who was the way he was would respond. Black, White, Asian, Mexican, Persian, etc...if were put about in those types of conditions, I would believe, would react the same as the Koreans did during that time.

I didn't even see a "Japanese" person depicted (even though the Koreans were actually Japanese actors) in the movie. It was all about the Koreans and how a family and the people involved in that family lived, loved, and learned and reacted to the man who took what he wanted and gave nothing back.

It was definitely a sad movie. There wasn't a single happy moment during the whole movie. I would hope they would have a part two of the movie because I'd like to see how the rest of the "children" became and how Masao lived after his father moved back to North Korea.

Oh yeah, Odagiri Joe was in it!! His part was quite big for the only 20 minutes he had in the whole movie. He was the first born son who was conceived out of rape. He was actually the most loving of the children especially towards Masao.

I wouldn't recommend this movie to everyone. Some serious mature scenes in this movie (yeah, I mean sex!) that was kind of gross since it was of the "old man". Ick!

Arai Hirofumi

I cannot believe I have not a single picture of Hirofumi-kun in any of my other previous posts of his movies. WTH? So here I go. He doesn't have the classic idol looks but he's cute in his own right. That Korean in him gives him a distinctive look that I really like. He can play tough guy or sweet guy...it works both ways for him. *muah!*

The Legend of Speed (烈火战车2：极速传说 /Lit feng chin che 2 gik chuk chuen suet-1999)

Starring:
Ekin Cheng - Sky
Cecilia Cheung - Nancy
Moses Chan -
Stephanie Che
Mary Hon
Sau Leung 'Blacky' Ko - Black Tone
Jerry Lamb
Sammuel Leung
Kelly Lin - Kelly
Patrick Tam - Paddy
Simon Yam - Tang Fung
Wai-Ho Yung

Sky lives only for his passion for racing and his girlfriend. After his rivals frame him for drug possession and murder his girlfriend, he must get revenge in a street race to end all street races.

Sky (Cheng) is the Dare Devil of Hong Kong — He's the best at drag racing sports cars from one end of the island to the other. He takes all wagers, including side bets that, if you win, you get to break the loser's leg.

He's got a loyal gang around him, including his girlfriend Kelly (Kelly Lin). Except that one of his group of admirers, mousy Nancy (Cecilia Cheung), thinks she's the girl who will love him truly.

Sky's life is complicated by the release from prison of the Dare Devil of the 1980s, Fung (Simon Yam of cult favorite "Naked Killer"). Seems that way back when, Fung defeated Sky's father, known as Black Tone, who since has disappeared to Thailand. Depressed after Kelly's death in a drag-racing accident, Sky goes to Thailand looking for dad.

This was an interesting movie. It wasn't the best drifting or racing movie but it had an interesting edge to it.

I didn't like the flow of the movie though. The characters weren't given time to tell their story. I didn't get to know them well enough to like them or not like them. It was a bit confusing.

We didn't learn how Paddy and Nancy came to know each other even though they called themselves brother and sister. We did learn Kelly and Sky knew each other for quite sometime but yet after her death it didn't seem to take long for Sky to start to show some sort of affection for Nancy even though you knew it would sort of happen.

Action wise it was filling enough to keep me interested. But since this was an older model of a movie I'll give it a chance since modern technology has overpowered the cinematic age.

Ekin Cheng was awfully "hunkish" in this movie. *saliva runs down my chin* He was one fine hunk of burnin' Chinese man! Uh-huh!

Ekin Cheng