Day 95 - Pieta (South Korean)

"
Kang-do is a heartless man who has no living family members and whose job is to threaten debtors to repay his clients, the loan sharks who demand a 10x return on a one month loan. To recover the interest, the debtors would sign an insurance for handicap, and Kang-do would injure the debtors brutally to file the claim. One day he receives a visit from a strange, middle-aged woman claiming she is his long-lost mother.^[18]
Over the following weeks, the woman stubbornly follows him and he continues to do his job. But he is slowly moved and changed by the motherly love expressed from this woman."
An interesting film from an interesting director. There is not my first Kim Ki-duk film nor will it be my last. Kim really knows how to use the medium of human pain, better than any other director I know. His films are always breaking the code of normalcy, his films go beyond what we expect to see.  Lee Jung-jin and Jo Min-so did a wonderful job in this film. I hope to see more work from them!
 I suggest this film to all those that enjoy darker films

2.5/5

Day 94 - Republic of Korea 1% (South Korean)

 

Only 1% of the marines becomes part of the special forces. Staff Sergeant Lee Yu-mi becomes the first ever non-commissioned officer to become part of the 3 teams vying to become part of the special forces. She joins the the bottom ranked team as they attempt to become part of the special 1% marines ...

A film with a very nice concept that I enjoyed but it's execution wasn't all there. I felt like I was watching G.I. Jane, thankfully Lee Ah-Lee didn't shave her head like Demi Moore did. Anyway there are way too many comedic aspects of this film to take it real seriously. There are moments that work but they don't deliver the right impact which causes the film to fail. The characters are interesting but not everyone in this film could act well enough to get me to believe in this film.
This film should have taken a more dramatic approach to a touchy subject, women and the military. I'm sure there are some girls around the world that want to actively be in the special forces. This film doesn't really inspire in the way it should have. It is still a little enjoyable

1/5

Day 93 - The Thing (1982 American)

"The film's title refers to its primary antagonist: a parasitic extraterrestrial lifeform that assimilates other organisms and in turn imitates them. The Thing infiltrates an Antarctic research station, taking the appearance of the researchers that it absorbs, and paranoia develops within the group."

Watched this movie in one of my film classes, I liked it despite the fact that when it was released people called it cr*p. That was due to all the bloodshed that is in the film, that could have gotten the film out of the theater. Sorry, for anyone who speaks Norwegian shouldn't watch the film since it is ruined for you in the very beginning. Any either language is fine!

It stars Kurt Russell and is directed by John Carpenter who created the film series Halloween. You can tell this has the feel of a thriller mixed with a horror/sci-fi film. Though, the film might seem corny nowadays but if we watched it back in 1982 we would think otherwise. I suggest this film to all Sci-film lovers


2.8/5

Day 92 - Commitment (South Korea)

"Nineteen-year-old Ri Myung-hoon (Choi Seung-hyun) never imagined he would become a killer. Born to a privileged life in North Korea, his dream was to become a pianist. But when his father, a North Korean spy, dies disgraced, Myung-hoon and his younger sister Hye-in (Kim Yoo-jung) are sent to a "guilt-by-association" forced labor camp. Their father's superior, high-ranking military official Colonel Moon (Jo Sung-ha) proposes a deal to Myung-hoon: if he goes down to the South as a "technician" (an assassin) and finishes what his father had failed to accomplish, he and his sister will be released from the prison camp. Myung-hoon accepts the deal and undergoes two years of intense training."

I have to say I'm not a T.O.P. fan, either of his rapping or acting. But in this movie his acting was way better than a previous movie did called Nineteen. There are only a few good scenes like when he beats up the bullies but other than that there's nothing here. Slight comedy, some action, little tiny bit of romance, and the same old acting from T.O.P.
The ending was predictable and didn't leave me feeling like it was a good movie.

1/5

Day 91 - Peace Hotel (1995-Hong Kong Film)

"A retired old west killer sets up a hotel for vagrants and wayward souls called Peace Hotel. When a woman with a gang on her tail attempts to hide there the owner of the hotel must revert to his old ways to protect his hotel."- Idmb

Quite an interesting movie from Chow Yun Fat, by the way this is the last Hong Kong film he did before he left for America to do the Replacement Killers.
In this film Chow Yun Fat is the boss, an notorious killer who no one dares to mess with until a con-woman walks onto his land. Chow Yun Fat was excellent, he somewhat tortures this woman he hates as first with slaps when he is frustrated with her. At some points it has comedy, especially when the con-woman tries to seduce The Killer (Chow Yun-fat) but the killer refuses her and bites her lower lip until she lets go.
Not only do we see action but we also see real acting thanks to Chow Yun-fat who made this movie what it is. The ending was not as I predicted which I enjoyed a lot in one way but hated it in another way.
The setting is bizarre as it appears to be the wild west in China but that doesn't ruin the movie at all.
Watch this is you are a fan of Chow Yun Fat or Hong Kong cinema in general.

There's not a whole lot of information about this movie online, so you might have to special order. (I was able to get it through my local library. )

2.5/5

Day 90 - Eye for an Eye (South Korean)

"Veteran police detective Baek Seong-chan is on the verge of retiring to set up his own business. But he is forced to put his plans on hold when ₩1.8 billion is stolen from a bank truck, and then 600 kg of gold from an airport, with the thief having impersonated Baek. The following day he receives a package of the stolen money from the thief, who identifies himself as Ahn Hyeon-min. Baek pursues Ahn, only to discover that he is being used as a pawn in a greater scheme of revenge."

A wonderful thriller of a movie that is quite interesting to see unfold. These two characters match each other it is fun to see the cop fall into the criminal mastermind's game. Cha Seung-won did a great job as a criminal mastermind, it is one of his better roles that I have seen. Han Suk-kyu's character was slightly annoying but he still helped the story.

2/5

Day 89 - 71 Into the Fire (South Korean)

"The film is based on a true story of a group of 71 undertrained and underarmed, outgunned student-soldiers of South Korea during the Korean War, who were mostly killed on August 11, 1950, during the Battle of P'ohang-dong. For 11 hours, they defended P'ohang-dong girls' middle school, a strategic point for safeguarding the Nakdong River, from an attack by overwhelming North Korean forces, the 766th Unit."

A brave tale that I never heard about until I watched this film. I have to say I love it, though there were problems with it. It managed to succeed somewhat about telling the story of some of the student soldiers that fought against the North Koreans. This movie is for those that like history but also for those that like action and war movies. This is not a movie for those that just want to see "pretty boys" no one looks pretty in this film. This is not a TV drama they tried to realistic with the make up and special effects. I don't know how many people know about this film but they should it is also apart of Korean history as well as American history.

2.5/5