Reviews by Asiana

Hong Gil Dong is a legend in Korean history, many tv dramas has been made in the south of this great hero, only this film is North Korean, made by a South Korean director that got kidnapped to make this film.



Born with a mother as a peasant girl and father as a noble family emperor, Hong Gil Dong is forced t live as a servant boy with his mother. Until one day a group of bandit try to kidnap him and his mother. Luckily they are saved by a skillful and powerful old man, who take care of Hing Gil Dong and his mother, Hong Gil Dong beg the old man to teach him to become strong as the old man. The old man agrees, and years goes by and Hong Gil Dong has become a man, and he swear by his power he will protect his people from any harm, and protect a noble woman he love most even if he is not allowed to marry her.


How does this movie hold up as an martial art movie?
It's equal as any martial art, descent stunt choreography same as Hong Kong movie (but better) and exiting as a Japanese ninja movie. However somtimes the fight feels a little too friendly (except in the end, that was a little brutal) and as an audience you can feel it's safe for the hero too comfortable, however it's exiting as ordinary, 3/5 points


How does it hold as a plot movie?
Little mix feelings, it start like a family friendly film then it turn to kid film somtimes, then in the end it become a little too brutal when the Japanese ninjas arrive, and that takes away the movie a little, why are the Japanese ninjas so brutal while the North Korean bandits are kid friendly? That's odd, but it still is a descent story about love and betray and fight for what's right, so 2/5 points


How is the movie all in all?
If the ninjas weren't so brutal in the end then I would give it 6/10, but for the morale, I'm forced to give it 5/10, a good film that lost it touched when the North Korean morale kicked in (which seems to happen a lot with Chinese movies too) but still a good film, 5/10

If I told you that Rain the Kpop idol can act, would you believe me ? Well I have a good proof for you, R2B or Black Eagle or Soar Into The Sun (or whatever title it has) is flight action comedy similar to Top Gun.

Taehoon is a cocky show pilot, who got himself into trouble after trying a crazy maneuver at a demonstration simulation. Later he get transferred to combat unit where he will be trained with the best South Korean pilots. One day some North Korean freighters enter the sky border of the south to defect, and Taehoon is recruited with a friend to escort the NK pilots. But one of the pilots turned out not to be a defector and shoot out his teammate and go manhunt after Taehoon and his comrade. After the NK pilot shoot down Taehoons friend, it becomes personal vendetta for Taehoon.

Is R2B better then Top Gun?
It depends, as a plot, maybe not, but as a thrill yes absolutely, because when the action starts, it's a full throttle all the way, and when the NK pilot vs Taehoon is thrilling specially when they fly through Seoul and near the golden tower. But as a plot is too much comedy that feels unnecessary, the whole plot feels like a drama but then bozo the clown comes in to ease up the mood when he is not needed. So a plot Top Gun is better, but as an action, R2B is better.

As a plot?
Only 1/5 sorry

As an action flight?
5/5 right on!

How is the movie all in all?
It's a descent entertaining action drama flight movie that could have been more if they had skip the comedy, total score 6/10

Normally I'm not into horror gore films, but when I saw this film I couldn't help liking it a little, and felt it had somthing going there until the end that made me feel nothing but question marks..... Sucide club is a 2001 horror thriller about how dangerous it can be to follow a kult.


Detective Kuroda is investigating an unusual sucide commit, made by 54 school girls in a train station. Later that night 2 nurses commit sucide by jumping of the window. The day after doesn't get easier for Detective Kuroda when another 11 school kids commit sucide, the witnesses tells him the kids were all cheerful and happy, those words puzzles Kuroda. Later Kuroda get a phone call from a woman who call herself "the bat" and reveal to him all the sucides are connected to a kult called sucide club, and that club is also connected to a kid girl pop group called "Dessert" by their songs performing live on tv sending out codes of when it's time for the next sucide, but who is controlling the kult and why? And how many people are involved with this kult? And worse of all, Kurodas own family are fans of "dessert", could they be the next victim of sucide club?


How does it hold as a horror movie?
Horrible, and this is typical horror movies no matter what year it's from, the trust in blood and gore, to make a good horror is to create the situation for the character, the blood can be used somtimes but don't let it take over your movie because it will only be disgusting and horror feeling goes away. As a thriller this movie do well but when the horror scenes starts it become too much blood and gore and I think it didn't need it, so I'm sad to say it's 1/5


How does it hold as a plot movie?
Very interesting in the beginning, and I feel it could have gone further but somehow it got lost in the end. What it does best is reflect kult life to today's society, for example Facebook, youtubers, Internet critics, and movies and pop cultures like Hollywood can take over your thinking, for example this movie is great because Hollywood says so. And another good reflect is the kid pop group "Dessert" who also reflect today's pop kult like for example Justin Bieber when he was 14, not only was he marketing for girls at his age but also mature women as well, as we call it a victim of pedophilia media marketing, and that's what "Dessert" reflects, in the movie everybody follows the group "dessert" including the detectives family and adults even though the group is membered by five 10 year old girls singing pop songs. But what the movie doesn't do right is the ending, I mean the whole build up about the bad side of kult and when the main villain is revealed is amazingly done but then it's just.....end, just like that. The whole build up with the villain of how evil the villain is by creating the sucide club is strong but when the villain get caught then it ends just like that, a big build up for nothing, it feels very disappointing. And also the build up with the Dessert pop group also ends quickly, so much build up with the group but it just ends without knowing what just happened, and also the leading role Kuroda turns out not to be leading role when it's 20 minutes left or so, so why why are we follow him and his family then? And there is another character who is named Mitsuko, a girl who lost her boyfriend because of the sucide club kult, but she also is unused, she is one scene the whole movie then she come back like in the end of the film as the main character, and there is no build up for her, it doesn't make any sense, for plot it get just 2/5

Why was this movie made?
I have a theory, even though the director said his reason during an interview but I think it's more then that. On the paper and IMDb it says the movie is from 2001, but if you look at the quality of the technology in the film and also the lifestyle it's looks more like mid 90s or at maximum late 90s. If you look at the phones and computers and other technology in the film, it's definitely before 1998 or 1996 so it's possible it was filmed in 90s but wasn't finished til 2001. My theory is then that the director wanted to teach the youth not to follow any cult or anything that can hurt you, because during the 90s there was a lot of problems in the youth society in Japan, a lot of kids turned to criminal kult gangs to do bad things, the director properly made this film to educate people not to follow anything just because it looks cool, because it might be your doom. That message is clear what he wanted at the end of the film when Mitsuko is in a theatre and a bunch of kids asking her who she is and she answer she is who she is and she is want to continue be that way, and also in the ending the "dessert" group talks to the audience and give their final message "live your life as possible", if that was the purpose of the film to teach people to no follow any kult, then I lift my hat to him and give one extra point, but could have been a better if it wasn't for the mix of bloods and gore and and the unbalanced ending for some characters.


Final result of the movie
I can't complain to much, I was exited at the beginning of the film and it was thrilling to follow the detective when he try prevent the kult of sucide club, but the unbalanced ending leaves me with a lot of questions eventough I can understand the movie but the ending could have been done better and it shouldn't have mixed with blood and gore, final point is 4/10

It's the year 2008, it's time for our favorite blind Samurai Zatoichi to have a rest from the movie industry and allow a female version of him to save ancient Japan from bad guys, and who could be more appropriate then his own daughter Ichi to take over his hero part? Well she would if the movie knew where it was going.....

There is no doubt in my mind that Azumi is a movie that will live forever, a samurai classic made in early 2000s and is here to stay for many Generations.

Buenas noches signores, now it's almost Christmas and now I'm going to make a review of my childhood hero Zorro, my first toy I ever got was Zorro, my first tv series I saw was Guy Williams zorro, and this was the tv serve I grew up with, and I have a lot of memories with this as a child, but now I'm viewing with adult eyes and find it still great but not master piece as I remembered it.

Satomi Hakken Den or The Legend Of The Eight Samurai is a beautiful classic master piece that somehow got overlooked, not many people mention it so it's a broken Jewel that the world forgot, but not anymore thanks to Internet and people like me who will now give you a helpful review as I can for this great film.


Princess Shizu manage to escape an evil witch and her soldiers, since Shizu is soul survivor of her family she must find help to destroy the evil witch. On her way she encounter a robber named Shinbei. When Shinbei find out Shizu is the escape princess he try to arrest her to claim the reward but she is rescued by a ronin named Tadatomo. Tadatomo tell the princess a story about the legend of eight samurais that lived in a heart of an ancient princess that released them in glowing marbles, each samurai that has this marble is in destiny to destroy the evil witch and protect the princess. Tadatomo show her his marble that glow she now knows she must fine the other warriors that has a same marble, they are the only ones who could rescue the world from evil. Meanwhile Shinbei returns to his home and he finds out the witch he is working for has destroyed his village and killed everyone who lived there, now he join forces with the princess and Tadatomo to the quest for the other samurais, but can he be trusted? And is it possible that he could be a samurai as well?


How does it hold up as a fantasy movie?

Beautifully, it has aged well, you feel strongly every scene, some scenes might feel a little dark but it's so intense and exiting and beautifully done, I give this movie 5/5


How does it hold as a plot movie?

For a fantasy movie, you never feel lost, and that's good, most of the fantasy movies are concentrated on the environment instead of the characters, but in this movie do it both beautifully. Every character is like able, the witch is scary as she is beautiful and the action is spot on, with a lot of monsters and soldiers and action and explosion, also a 5/5


One little bonus notice

There is a song for this film called "I don't want this night to end" sang magesctly by English singer John O'Bannion, great song that fit this movie.


The movie all in all?

I don't know why this film is overlooked! Maybe because it was made in 1983 and at that time most of the world was occupied by Hollywood (and why not? At that time Hollywood wasn't so much crap as it is today, for example the old Star Wars movies and Blade Runner) but still I think the world should have notice more of this film, a total 10/10 this movie is a masterpiece.

Gojira from 1984 is not a sequel to other Gojira films from the 60s or 70s, it's a sequel to the first Gojira film from 1954, and same as the first, when it came to out to America the movie was changed for the American audience by adding an extra scenes with an American actor as pretending to be leading role, but I don't recommend that crap version, it only remind us how rasist hollywood use to be back then (and maybe still is) now I'm gonna focus on the original.

Antarctica is a classic survival film based on a true story of two dogs Taro and Jiro who were abandoned in Antartica but the two dogs manage to survive, with orchestra score of the legend himself from Greece Vangelis

This review is not gonna be easy, sure I liked this film at first, but then after rewatching it 5 more times the anti of the plot start show its true colours.


2009 Lost Memories is a South Korean action what if ? Film from 2002 that's about a changed future if the Japanese emperor had won WWII.


Story begins at 1909 in Korea when it belonged to China, where an assassin failed to kill an important diplomat, and because of that failure history as we know it has changed, it's only one country now that controls the world. Sakamoto and Saigo are two detectives at the year 2009 in Seoul that is now Japanese. During an investigation of a attempt terror attack by an Korean resistance group in a museum, they discover clues what they are after, exactly what they don't know. But when Sakamoto investigate more he discover his true roots that he tried to hidden for so many years, Sakamoto is a Korean and when investigate more, he finds out the history has been changed in wrong direction, and Seoul his beloved city should belong to a country called South Korea and not Japan, but South Korea doesn't exist in this time line and he must find a way to save Korea, but what can he do? And can he betray his old friend Saigo?