Love Me Tender

***SPOILER ALERT - DON’T READ AHEAD IF YOU LIKE SURPRISES***

Sorry that I’ve been away for so long. I have been starting to catch up on the piles of dramas that have been thrown my way by different people. So far I’ve finished watching Hana Yori Dango 1 & 2, and Last Friends. Hana Yori Dango was a pretty big hit in Japan and with its cute characters and fairytale storyline, I’m not surprised as to why. It was a nice brainless drama to watch to get away from the stresses of life. There is a Korean version coming out in 2009 that will star Kin Hyun Joong (leader of Korean boyband, SS501) as the lead male role of Hanazawa Rui. My sister wasn’t sure if he could pull off the rich, arrogant, jerk character but I think it’s pretty close to his previous image (minus the rich part) that he shouldn’t have too much trouble. He is pretty hot so even if he can’t act or the drama sucks I will probably watch it for the eyecandy. I still need to watch the Taiwanese version.

Last Friends was an amazing drama. It’s like no other I have every seen (Japanese, Korean or Taiwanese). It dealt with many serious topics in a more realistic way than any other drama I’ve watched. For once domestic violence wasn’t portrayed as a result of the evils of alcohol, but rather it showed the underlying psychological issues of domestic abuse such as why women keep going back. It is not because they are stupid and don’t know any better! It shows the psychological manipulation and the difficulty in walking away from someone you love. I was impressed. I mean, sure it was a drama so it can’t be TOO realistic (otherwise the dramatic effect is lost), but for its limitations, it was pretty good. The other topics that were also dealt with were great as well - questioning gender identity, child molestation, extramarital affairs. The ending was another fairytale, but I’m still happy that the drama wasn’t cotton candy bullshit like so many others. The opening to the drama was great too as it showed the complexity of the characters’ lives and relationships. Oh! And I can’t forget how perfect the song Prisoner of Love by Utada was. I was so impressed.

I had read about this a while ago but I remembered that I had wanted to post about it after reading a recent post on Asian Fanatics. Gackt will be playing *surprise surprise* a samurai named Yoshi. The movie will also star Josh Hartnett and Demi Moore. I’m not sure what the movie is about, but does it really matter? It has Gackt. That’s all that counts. =P

The Asian Fanatics article also stated that Gackt was born in Okinawa on July 4, 1971. Up until now I knew that Gackt avoided telling people about when he was born so I’m not sure how accurate this info is. But I still squee a little inside knowing that I finally know how old he is. Haha…oh cheap thrills.

References:
1. Asian Fanatics: Who Is Gackt?
2. Jrock Revolution: Gackt to be in a new movie: BUNRAKU with Josh Hartnett

When I watched Hanazakari no Kimitachi e (花ざかりの君たちへ), I couldn’t help but lust at Mizushima Hiro. Sure his hair was horrible, but him looking hot even with it says something. Now he’s going to be in the upcoming drama Absolute Boyfriend. Assuming that it will be subbed, I will watch it just for him. Yum. ^_^

Name: Absolute Boyfriend/Zettai Kareshi / 絶対彼氏
Cast: Aibu Saki, Hayami Mokomichi, Irie Jingi, Maya Miki, Mizushima Hiro, Nakamura Shunsuke, Sasaki Kuranosuke
Description: Izawa Riko is a temp worker in search of a boyfriend, and she ends up in possession of a “robot” known as Night Tenjo, who is programmed to be the perfect boyfriend. However, this creates a love triangle with a distinguished young man at her company who has feelings for her.

References:
1. Crunchyrolls: drama info

I have been hearing rumours for a good two years now about the an American remake of the mega hit South Korean movie, My Sassy Girl. Well it’s true and it’s finally here. It will star Jesse Bradford as Gyeon-woo and Elisa Cuthburt as the girl (Jun Ji-hyun). Do I really care? Not really. I didn’t think the original was all it was hyped up to be. I think I was the only person who thought the girl was a complete bitch, the guy was a pathetic pushover, the plot was extremely predictable, and the scene which is supposed to be the most gut wrenching and heart-warming scene (where he lists off all the things that is good about her to a guy she is on a date with) was just…ok. I did not cry for it, unlike the men sitting around me *cough*. It’s not that I didn’t like the movie, but I really did not see why it was so great.

Maybe it was significant compared to all the Korean movies that portray women as docile women waiting for a strong, rich man to take charge and sweep them off their feet. I guess My Sassy Girl can get brownie points for that, but I’d still only give it a 3/5. Anyway, I don’t have high expectations for the American version just because I didn’t think the Korean one was that great to begin with.

Trailor time!

For those of you who want to know more about the movies, here are some resources for you.

1. PopSeoul!: Hollywood remakes My Sassy Girl
2. Wikipedia: My Sassy Girl (Korean)

My sister and I have been watching My Boss My Hero whenever we get time to see each other (we got to universities in different cities). We only have two more episodes to go! Well, she’s seen it before so it’s not that big of a deal for her. The drama is quite enertaining. You know…stupid high school teenager humour. There are a lot of singers in it too. Well…not A LOT, but three (that I know). One of them is Nagase Tomoya (長瀬智也) who plays the main character Sakaki Makio. Tomoya has the most humorous expressions I’ve seen in a while. I love his demon face (that’s what I call it). Anyone who has seen this drama will know what I’m talking about. At first it scared me, but it’s just so ridiculous that you can’t help but laugh. I’m laughing right now…hahaha. *cough* So anyway, in his wiki profile he looks similiar to Mithra Jin from Epik High. See!

Nagase Tomoya

Mithra Jin

I know they’re not the best comparison pictures, but I really don’t want to look around for a better pair. But does anyone else see it? I DO!!! Haha. Anyway, this post doesn’t really have a point…other than I’m almost done watching the drama. =P

P.S. I just found a blog by a fangirl living in France. I’m going to try reading it to improve my French. =P