Keep Going South

It took me a while to write this because I was angry. This film affected me to the point of wanting to reach through the screen and punch Young. Tae should have been the one with the rock above Young, smashing his skull in. Yes, I was that angry.

Perspective:
It's 2012 and homosexuality is still considered a crime. So it's understandable that Young would be hesitant to continue a relationship with Tae for everyone to know. It's 5 months since Young was discharged and Tae still has some time to complete his service. On his last leave, he visits Young. Young, driving Tae back to compound, tells him coldly, "Don't contact me again." Tae, hurt and grappling with the change between them, decides to drug him and desert. It is revealed through a series of conversations and tussles, that Young had sent a letter telling him that he liked him as a "person". How much more humiliating could he have been? Young was the one who approached Tae. Enticed him and encouraged him to have sex. Young was the one who told him he liked him. Tae believed. He fell deeply in love with him. During the 5 months they were apart, Young is denying his homosexuality, their relationship and has a girlfriend. He says to Tae, "he feels nothing for him, it was the army." Here, he as heartless as they come. The denial, selfishness and cowardice Tae endures, finally rips through him. He has a point to prove. He asks for sex for the last time, in exchange for the letters Young had wrote to him. Sitting on top, Tae rides him and as he senses Young about to ejaculate, he reaches for his small camera and snaps Young's face. He has his proof. He would not have enjoyed it, if he did not feel anything for him. After another hard to watch scene of them fighting in the mud for the camera, Young gives up. After all this, he still chooses to be 'straight'.

This is what causes the anger. Had he taken the time to break things off properly with Tae, rather than discarding him like dirty rubbish, Tae might have had a better chance of handling it. The film ends with Tae
telling Young to get lost. Dancing defiantly and more than a little drunk, with the music glaring, he chooses himself. It's as if he's saying, I know who I am. I will live true to myself. You didn't break me. Young, continues to walk in the opposite direction. Going back to the army would only remind him more of Young and what he thought they shared.

Tae's anguish and emotional ride he took us through was felt. Kim Jae Heung shines. He carries the film. Jeon Shin Hwan had the easier role and I'm still left wanting to see when he would show up to fully deliver. He seems flat against Kim. His true rage only evident when he raises the rock to hit him. Here, Kim steals again, crying in the mud, controlled by the betrayal and pain he feels, he cries out, " Don't treat me like I'm invisible. You had a hard on!"

The short is good and worth a watch. At least once.

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Taboo or To be

Gay teen goes to a bar, mutual attraction occurs, later it turns out to be his homeroom teacher. No hook-up was implied, just eye contact. In the light of day, teacher Hoon sets boundaries but over a year, teen Woo sees every act of sparce kindness as Hoon's continued attraction for him. Woo stalks him. Hoon's job is to interview the parents at home of all the students. Finally, Woo forces the situation to come to a head by physically inserting himself in Hoon's care and doesn't leave. Woo wants an admission from Hoon. Does he remember their previous encounter? Will he admit that he is attracted to him? Will he give in and let Woo into his life? I should mention here, Hoon is 35 and his pursuer Woo is 18.

Before 2020, the legal age of consent in South Korea was 13. The film was made in 2012.

Hmmm, gray area or no?

Woo doesn't take no for an answer. He relentlessly pursues Hoon, blackmailing him into spending time with him with pictures he took of Hoon in the gay bar. Hoon is searching for another teaching position to escape as he recognizes that Woo will not give up. He knows that Woo is forbidden fruit. Woo knows himself. He is gay and he wants him. He understands the position well as his mother knows his orientation. Hoon viciously rebuffs him, and Woo hurt by his words, leaves the car in anger and cries. Finally, Hoon is free. He looks down, finds Woo's forgotten headset and carries it home. He sees Woo enter before him and on his steps he waits.

Gray area:
Though legal, what can an 18 year old teen bring to the table?
Should Hoon resist further as Woo is still in school?
Can 18 form a stable relationship?
2012 gay relationships were still no fully accepted, what would they endure as a couple, being gay, age difference and social status?
If Hoon gives in, how will his job be affected?

The film brings these thoughts to mind and only answers one. You will have to watch the entire film to get it. The actors did a commendable job with their roles. Hoon's frustration with himself and Woo is believable. Woo's dogmatic focused attitude towards the situation is dealt with an 18 year old fervor. I will recommend this film for the questions posed and the actors themselves. Though I liked it, more could have been done. Rewatch - maybe not. In 2024, this comes across more like a period piece from 2012.

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Worth the watch

Firstly, I watched this after a few fluff bl so was pleasantly surprised.

The spark that Youchi feels stems from Sakurai on meeting him immediately understood his art. Those around him took care to keep him safe but did not understand his expression on canvas. Youchi feels drawn to him. Sakurai, himself, burnt out by his uneventful life, welcomes the attention though struggles to understand why he is attracted to Youchi as this is his first male awakening.

Their conversations are always introspective. At times the age gap is glaring and sometimes not. Yoichi, blunt and direct, forces Sakurai to acknowledge who is creating the distance between them. I should mention that Youchi's immediate family and cohabitants all welcomed and encouraged the relationship as this was the first person that he had opened himself up to.

Then enters Fujimoto. School mate and age appropriate sees Sakurai as a threat. He doesn't waste any moment to remind Sakurai how obscene a man of his age looks when pursuing a boy half his age. His sole purpose to win Youchi fails as he cannot compare to the clarity and bond they share. He cannot see the unfinished painting as flowers which Sakurai readily saw on their first meeting.

Youchi, after a break period between them, understands that Sakurai was waiting for him to come out of his cocoon, come to terms with his past and truly form a stronger bond if they are to be together. Sakurai realised that conforming to other perceptions of their relationship (gay, older man, lover) would not bring the happiness he craved.

Pros:
Pacing was slow which allowed the story to evolve.
The family members, rather than having unnecessary interactions, was used as a vehicle for clarity as Youchi barely spoke.
Main actors embodied their roles.
Scenery suited the mood.
Non visual sex scene was alluded to by the lowering of Sakurai's hand. Perfect for this movie.

Cons:
Fujimoto rushed brashness felt out of place. Probably used to make the viewer like Sakurai more.
Sakurai appeared older than 37 in body movements. Who would get angry at 37 with being caught in a water fight?
At no time was it shown that his family had a chat with Youchi about his living outside of the bubble and the expectations that may be imposed by the public upon viewing their relationship. Their stance was Youchi seems to want this, let's make sure it happens. Except, for Takeo who questioned Sakurai's motives but still pushed for it to happen by supplying Youchi's number.
The subdued mood of Youchi throughtout did nothing to help the lack of chemistry between them. Not even with Fujimoto.

Beautiful moment:
Y: Flowers must be watered everyday
S: I'll call you everyday

Y: This flower will bloom right?
S: Yeah, this time it will bloom. It will definitely bloom.

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Love what exactly....

It was a nice calm series and I was truly disappointed.

Six skilled actors delivering the most placid performance I would say for 2024. A nice concept, poor writing, uneventful episodes with little to no engagement. These couples didn't fall in love, they both eased into it. Their grief overshadowed everything else and made the story so subdued that I was left wondering what happened. They're all very likeable with no real drama. The healing from loss and abandonment was dealt with by all but without the bang. Where is the passion for living? The storylines were tied up at the end but very very very peacefully.

Reese finally agreed to go to Thailand with Orca. Sea finally tells Neil about their meeting years ago and how it saved him and Neil confessing how Sea empowered him to be brave. All done very quietly. Standout was Mei, working anonymously in the background to bring them together. 1 point for the casting team for choosing the actresses for Mei and Sea's blonde classmate. They brought their characters to life and relieved the boredom.

Too many flashbacks of the same scene. Magnet's one song religiously played for 9-10 episodes. First Note of Love was more like a lullaby. Charles, Michael, Jame and Min Ting were nice to look at but was expecting more. They did act well but just too quietly. Jame, blonde 1980' mullet - why, was the most engaging of all.

Watch if you've had a hard day and just want to relax without too much brain activity. Rewatch - pass.

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Aaaah no...... There is paint to watch dry.

This is not it. Definitely not it. The entire production team should be fired and be hired in a butcher shop. I actually cannot believe, a series as important as this, was left to be cut in so many parts, that nothing resembles each other. It was pure determination that I endured to the end. At this point A Secretly Love could be a masterpiece compared to this and that was baaaaad!!!!! After watching A&H, it would have been easier to be on a small boat during a storm in the middle of the ocean with one paddle.

Cons....
1. Poor script
2. Poor translation
3. Choppy scenes
4. Why place an adult with a minor to make a film with adult themes and can not do adult scenes? I'm not speaking of nc scenes. Attraction / passion / desire. Casting was horrible.
5. Main actors could have done more workshops. Infact, the entire cast.
6. Terrible direction.
7. Inconsistent storylines.
8. The distance between main and second leads are oceans apart. Pop and Hero look college age and Tiger and Only look like babies. How are they in the same class? How were they connected again? Never mind, that's one brain cell I saved. Not worth knowing.
9. What was the purpose of Poppy's mother marrying Hero's father, when he treated her like trash? He could have just bought a watch to put on his hand if he wanted to feel something hanging on. Even they, didn't have any chemistry.
10. What is the purpose of having a special episode and season 2 when the first one was so horrible. There are enough starving children in this world, give the money to them, rather that creating a greater abomination.
11. So no reasonable conclusion for Tiger and Only. Poof....disappear ?‍♀️
12. Putting two good looking people together do not make chemistry. How well you interact and feed off of each other, makes the chemistry. Pop's father had more chemistry with his second wife and child than they did. Again, because of the limited interaction.
13. Uncut means what exacly? That Hero can use the word sex in a sentence? That his father can shoot at him? Not once but twice?
14. Mac's / Poppy's nasal monotone delivery was not doing anything to his presence. 16 is relatively young so he has time to get better.

Pro:
1. The scene where Pop goes to apologizes outside Hero's condo and Hero quietly walks up to him and holds the food with him. ??
2. Ep 10 when Hero is in the attic and Pop says he will starve with him and sleep on the grass for him. ??
3. August and Mac are good looking.
4. Whatever they paid Poppy's father wasn't enough, he actually made it better. Pop and his father delivered in this role as parent and child.

Yup, that's it. I was hoping with each episode they would capture some charm like the original or even SWM but no, this complete mess should NEVER be visited again. And when I say never, I do mean never. Can't help but feel with a better cast and production team this could have been magical. Sigh.

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Ok I guess

Straight off the bat, it's an okay watch. It's like a calm stroll down a no name street where you observe no name people doing no name things. Where was the eccentric romance? It could have been a suspense drama with an electric romance, sadly it wasn't. I watched to the end just to see who the murderer was and the reason behind it. It was great until it wasn't.

I really don't like people who don't know if they like someone or not. Jay has know and been a friend to SH for far too long for him not to know if he has feelings for him or not. After the reveal, it was a bit disappointed by his response. Jay's behaviour is childish at times but you get through it. Leading up to this point the series was nice. After this the eccentric romance had no zing to it. I'm reminded of Dangerous Romance where the only danger was the script and 'someone's' inability to act like they were in a romance.

The plot of the murder was a nice addition. JU as the suspect and their mapping of his actions brought some humorous moments which added to the okayness of the story. This I liked. What was a deterrent, the music did nothing to enhance the suspence. Even at the end with the revelation, it really felt a little flat. Where was the shock factor.

JW was another good addition but with a limited script, she was not utilized more. SJ and his ally, made the series tags a reality. The unrealistic final end of their plot made the comedy part true. Filming it to put out for likes. Seriously? Yes, heavy on the comedy.

As I stated it was an okay watch and I will recommend it. Even if it's just to see Jay's lips and SH declaration to protect him. But who's going to protect him? Go watch. Re-watch, maybe.

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Worth every second

Very rarely have I a seen a drama that pulls the water works out. Every story within the main story was brought to an expected end. None were rushed or left open ended. Which I loved.

Nut and Plan brought out their best work without relying on nc scenes to make their story believable and complete. Phob and Phat's timely meeting set the tone and pace of the series. Every nuanced expression and emotion was felt. The ending was expected because a love like that just isn't forgotten.

The imagery, costuming and ghostly effects were great without going over the top. The three main shooting locations did become tedious to see but budgets to consider was acceptable. Only peeve, Phat's mother seemed invisible until needed. It seemed days would pass without seeing each other.

I would recommend watching over a period of days to truly enjoy the story and everyone's performance. In a era where fast food is easily accessible this was like a nice meal.

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