Dating The Enemy

The characters in Secret Garden have switched back to their original bodies and I must say that it's a tad disappointing because very little has been achieved. Yes, now Joo Won knows that his mom is a meddler and some weird things have happened with Ah Young thinking that Joo Won likes her, the incestuous kiss, Joo Won getting confirmation that Jong Soo likes Ra Im and other stuff but very little has occurred in terms of Joo Won becoming any less of a jackass. Oh well, I guess I'll just have to wait to see what else the writers have for us.

Anyway, that ended up making me look for a body swap movie where much does happen which led me to Dating The Enemy. It's a 1996 Australian romantic comedy about a couple that swaps bodies on the night they break up. Synopsis from imdb.

One messy science journalist (Tash) and a neat television host (Brett). Two very different people whose relationship is nose diving to get the opportunity to experience life in their partners shoes when they wake up one morning in each others bodies. Valuable lessons are learned by each as they both have to adjust to very different lives.

It's a pretty good movie, IMO. There's a sexual aspect to it and while I think that as a woman, if I switched bodies with a man, I might be curious about what sex is like as a man, I'm not sure that I'd choose a woman to test this out on. Not that I think I'd choose a man either. Or maybe I'd just become a monk. LOL. Anyway, it's on youtube.

Easy A

Truthfully, this trailer pretty much tells the whole story



Basically, Easy A is the story of a 17 year old girl, Olive, who's pressured into lying about losing her virginity by her best friend. Word gets out and she's branded a slut. Then being the kindhearted girl she is, she pretends to have slept with a bunch of losers and a homosexual to help "improve" their reputations at school.

As I mentioned, the trailer really gives it all away and given that, there's nothing unexpected that occurs in the film. But these days, more often than not, we don't watch teen movies, romances or comedies to see unexpected turns. Instead, we watch them to see how a familiar or predictable tale is told.

Olive, who's played by Emma Stone, is a pretty engaging character. I'm not familiar with Emma Stone's work but I'll say that she did a good job in this movie. Since Olive is not one of the "cool kids" or an outright loser, she's one of the "invisibles" in High School. But she's not the kind of girl who's depressed about it. Instead, she's the kind of sarcastic girl who finds humor in her situation. She also has some crazy parents whose main purpose in this movie is to spit out great one-liners.

In fact, this movie is filled with witty dialogue and that's what makes it interesting. We know that she would be okay with having the bad reputation till it stopped being fun and she'd have to tell the truth. We know that she'll have a love interest (played by Penn Badgley of Gossip Girl fame) and they'll end up together. But you make her a kind, smart, self deprecating character and him smart, mature and into her and it becomes an entertaining story.

And speaking of romance, I won't go as far as calling this a romantic comedy. There's some romance in it but they got away with not having to focus on it by making it a delayed romance - in other words, both characters already had feelings for each other prior to the start of the story. And they kept him in our consciousness by making them have very short conversations (like less than a minute) every now and then.

Like most teen movies that attempt to rise above the usual crap we're fed, there are themes of hypocrisy, groupthink, cliquism and eventually individualism.

All in all, I found it to be a fun, interesting movie. For those who like smart comedy and witty dialogue, Easy A is not a bad way to kill 90 minutes.

Flipped

Aww... I just saw an adorable little movie. It's called Flipped and is adapted from a Young Adult novel of the same name.

It's just a very simple teen coming-of-age romance story told from the POVs of both characters. It's a simple boy-meets-girl story with a very common plot but told in a very sweet and endearing way. There's nothing out of the ordinary here, loads of cliches and it's quite predictable. But none of that makes it less enjoyable - it's just like a very comfortable warm blanket you use on a cold winter's night.

The story starts off when the boy, Bryce, moves into the girl's (Julie) neighborhood when they are both seven and ends when they are around thirteen. It's the typical story of one falling hard first and the other falling when the first is no longer interested. Then it also lightly delves into their families' histories and relationship with each other.

My only issue with this is that she kept talking about wanting to have her first kiss with him and in the end, they didn't show it. A little sweet kiss would have been a nice end to the movie.

Oh... and something else is that it was a bit short. It was less than an hour and a half and since we were being told the same tale from two different POVs, it made it feel even shorter because half as much plot was explored. I think it would have been better even longer. But all in all, not a bad way to kill time.

Bahara - I Hate Luv Storys

I guess I'm catching up on my Bollywood movies because I just saw I Hate Luv Storys. It's the typical story of a man uninterested in love who finds love. The film was set in the movie industry (he's an assistant director and she's an art director). He hates every thing "filmi" so he spends his time cringing at the dialogue, sets and characters in the movies he works on. She loves every thing "filmi" and at the start of the movie, she's practically living the life of a Bollywood heroine. The movie was predictable and I thought it was pretty okay at first till we got to the second half (and the angst) and it got quite boring. Overall, I'll say the first half is good enough as a time pass (good enough for killing time) but the second half...  uhm.... Anyway, I finished it and the ending wasn't too bad. What I liked about it were the references to other hit movies both in song and through clips.

What I once said about kdramas applies to Bollyood movies too. Even if the drama (or in this case, movie) sucks, you're bound to find at least one song that you like. And this is one:


A much better film to watch the male star Imran Khan in is Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na, which is an overrated but still charming story of longtime friends-turning-lovers. And no, this isn't the only romantic plot that I like. lol. That movie was quite refreshing because it was set within an ensemble cast of friends. However, it has some rather annoying and silly parts with the older characters that IMO, took away from the movie. Nonetheless, that one is still worth a watch.

Dae Mul

So I was looking forward to this drama mainly because the premise was a gigolo ending up with the president. I find that combo too hilarious for words. However, it looks like it's been revised to be a former young playboy who becomes a lawyer, ending up with a president.

I kind of rolled my eyes at the beginning especially as I don't like movies or dramas that get so deep in the political mumbo jumbo. Not that I don't like politics but they are always so biased against other countries that it's a huge turn off. So for this drama, I am going to choose to ignore the parts where they are so obviously negatively biased against other nations.

But when we got into the main characters' pasts, it was quite enjoyable. I like the chemistry between Go Hyun Jung and Kwon Sang Woo and I like that there's a fun vibe to this drama. Kwon Sang Woo and the actor playing his father also have a nice chemistry. I read some spoilers about the plot (which I really hope changes) and I immediately began to dread later episodes. The drama does get over the top at times but it's a kdrama after all. I just hope it doesn't get too melodramatic in later episodes.

So for now, I am watching Dae Mul.

3 Idiots

3 Idiots is a Bromantic comedy that was released on Christmas day, 2009. The movie was both a commercial and critical hit so early this year, I was all set out to watch it. But the DVD took ages to be released so in the end, I lost interest.

Anyway, since I was in a Bollywood kind of mood today, I decided to finally give it a try. 3 Idiots is about three roommates at the top (fictional) engineering college in India. Raju is from a poor family with a sick father and other than his interest in engineering, also chose the field to get a good paying job so as to shoulder his family's financial burden. Farhan is an amateur photographer from  a middle class family whose profession was decided for him at birth. So he attends ICE because it's what he was told to do. Rancho is from a rich family and lives and breathes science. He attends ICE because he wants to learn. He is the central character who challenges people out of their comfort zones and urges them to follow their hearts and not society or a system. The movie starts off 10 years after their freshman year with the two friends (and their nemesis) searching for Rancho, whom they haven't seen since graduation. So the story floats between the present and the past.

I think a lot of people from all over the world can relate to this movie because it challenges the educational system of cramming and competing just to get good grades so that you can get a good paying job. Not that there's anything wrong with working hard for good grades but it critiques the practice of cramming and studying just to pass exams, and not to learn. And picking fields like medicine and engineering, for example, not because one has an interest in them, but because the jobs pay well. The moral of this movie is to follow your passion and success will follow.

When I saw the first half of the movie, I thought it was pretty damn good. I love bromance so it was right up my alley. The comedy worked on both an emotional and a cerebral level. However, in the second half, when it started getting melodramatic with the plot going to Crazy-land, I began to give the movie the side eye. But it ended nicely and overall, was entertaining.

The chemistry between the three men was great, even though I don't get how 40+ Aamir Khan still gets to play a college student. The movie had only one romantic side story between Rancho and Pia and they also had nice chemistry. I liked that theirs was just a cute story with no over the top cheesiness.

I'm not sure that I'll watch 3 Idiots again in its entirety, but like I do with most enjoyable films, I'll probably rewatch a few hilarious parts... and the cute ending.

Watch here.

Outnumbered

So over this weekend, I started watching this BBC series called "Outnumbered." It's a sitcom (with no laugh track) featuring a family of 5 where the two youngest kids shine brightest.

I watched like maybe one episode from Season 1, another from Season 2 then five from Season 3 (I couldn't find the last episode). Apparently, it's a scripted show particularly on the parents' side while the kids are improv.

I think it takes a minute to warm up to it since it's very "real" but after a while, it's quite funny and sweet. The children say the darndest things. And the fact that it's improv adds another layer to it. I must say that watching those precocious and unruly kids is fun and entertaining but raising them can be a different kind of hell. lol. And I don't say this lightly at all. Kids like those can send a parent to an early grave.

The eldest kid is kinda normal and does play a rather "straight" character. The middle child is very unruly and stubborn and the little girl has no tact (but she's young) so she has no "appropriateness filter" and can't stop asking questions. lol.

I'm going to try to find the last episode of Season 3 and I think I'll go back and watch the other two seasons. Not a bad way to spend a boring day.

I guess boredom makes me post in a blog no one reads?

2010 kdramas I've watched so far:


Pick the stars/Wish Upon A Star: Started off well. About a materialistic girl who ends up having to take care of her siblings after her parents are murdered. Fun and cute till it went bad. However, they gave us a nice ending. It's a shame that they ruined the drama but I didn't feel like I wasted my time... it was on to the next drama.


Birth of the rich. About a poor guy who believed he was the son of a rich man and was on a quest to find his father. Got some negative comments on dramabeans (but who cares?) but I really enjoyed it at first. It got extended because of the good ratings and to be honest, because subs were kinda slow, I won't say I completely finished this drama... it didn't end as well as it began but it was alright. It was on to the next drama.


Oh My Lady. Had an interesting looking couple and seemed cute and nice enough. About a spoilt brat idol and the ajumma who lives with him and takes care of the daughter he never knew he had. The first episodes were boring to me. But I liked both actors and stuck it out. It got a little better when they kissed in episode 6 (lol) but extremely slow with very slow progress and they forgot there was a romance till the last episode. No pay off in this drama. A waste of time. BAD!


Prosecutor Princess. I watched half way through and lost interest. I didn't mind that she was very materialistic and such but I didn't like the main guy (and whatever secret he was hiding) so one day, I just lost all interest. LOL. It happens like that sometimes.


Coffee House. About a crazy writer, his publisher and a girl who becomes his secretary. I was entirely addicted to this drama and it ended the way I wanted. There are things that the writers should have handled better. For instance, he left because he needed to deal with issues he had with his past. When he returned, there was no mention of them at all. He didn't even say, "Now, I'm okay." Sure he was back and his actions showed he'd moved past them (driving, cell phone) but I would have loved him to vocalize it. A little clarification on if his wife committed suicide or if it was an accident. It looked like suicide but I would have liked to hear them say for sure. Also it would have been nice if the characters had told us if they really had liked one another "10 years ago" or not. It looked like he might have but we don't know about her. Also far less time on the secretary and more time on the final couple. All these things probably should make me like it less but I absolutely loved the chemistry between the main couple -that's what kept me hooked on this drama. Not the plot but the chemistry.


2010 twdramas:
Down With Love. I didn't expect to like it but I enjoyed it. It was not an addiction for me (CH was the only one) but it was simple and cute. And the couple had chemistry.


PS Man. I just saw like two middle episodes. I planned on watching but boy was it dragging. Not going to bother with it.


Zhong Wu Yen. I like Cheryl after My Queen but the characters in this drama are really annoying - especially the guy so I lost interest real quick. Only saw 1.25 episodes.


2010 jdramas:
Yankee-kun to Megane-chan. Haven't finished it yet because I chose to wait for subs but fun and silly so far. Will probably finish it.


Natsu no Koi wa Nijiiro ni Kagayaku. So far so good. About an unsuccessful wannabe actor and a single mother. One thing I like about jdramas is their stories are often about average people. Unlike kdramas (and twdramas) where some rich guy and poor girl hook up. 


Tsuki no Koibito, I saw the first episode and it wasn't bad. But the reviews are terrible so I've been turned off big time. Maybe I'll try it for myself later on. 

I am absolutely and totally in love with Nodame Cantabile

Nodame Cantabile is a Japanese drama based on a similarly titled manga. From what I understand, the drama only spans the first 9 volumes of the manga so I suppose there's a lot more story left. Apparently, there are 18 volumes and it's yet to be completed.

The drama is set in a music academy where the title character, Noda Megumi, is a 3rd year student and her love interest and the love of my life, Chiaki Shinichi is a 4th year student.

So why do I love this drama so much? It's freaking adorable. Like the other dramas based on mangas I've seen (It Started With A Kiss, Hana Kimi), the male lead is very straightlaced while the female is quite psycho. In many respects, I found this drama to be quite similar to ISWAK although they tell entirely different stories.

Chiaki is a genius pianist who follows the rules but not his heart. He's got the technique down and is quite a brilliant player but doesn't add much 'life' to it. Even though he's talented in both the piano and the violin, his dream is to be a conductor. This character is played by Tamaki Hiroshi and I must stay that he makes my heart flutter. I ended up watching another movie of his (Heavenly Forest) because I just needed more and even though he was cute in that, it was nothing like he was in Nodame Cantabile. I think it was a combination of his haircut, lighting and just the character he played. Yum.



Technically, he isn't as good looking as say, Wu Chun or Won Bin. Plus I think he looks at least 5 years older than his actual age of 27, but there's something so damn HOT and sexy about him. Plus his lips are just to die for.


Nodame is also a genius pianist but she lacks organization. She plays her piano with feeling but no technique in the sense that she never follows the sheet music but instead, lets her emotions rule. So in the end, she plays very sloppily. Anyone listening to her can tell that she's extremely talented but lacks discipline. In addition, she isn't ambitious and even though she attends a music academy, dreams of becoming a kindergarten teacher. I found her character quite sweet and not as annoying as I would have expected. She wears her heart on her sleeve and makes her feelings known like most of these characters normally do but it was quite endearing in her case.

So the story is pretty much about how these two different characters meet, interact and change each other for the better. Yeah, typical but it works.

I remember trying to watch Devil Beside You but I found it so animated that I got turned off. This drama is also very animated but for some reason, all the exaggerations really worked here.

I don't know why but I think a lot of it had to do with the actors and how much they appeared to enjoy playing these over the top characters. For example, the lead female character in My Girl was technically less over the top than Nodame was, yet, she appeared less natural to me. It might have a lot to do with the fact that the characters in My Girl were regular people unlike the all around craziness in Nodame.

In addition, even though Chiaki was the most normal of the main characters, he was also quite crazy. In shows like Hana Kimi or even in a story like David Copperfield, the male protagonist is pretty much boring while all the surrounding crazy characters make the story alive. In this drama, Chiaki also brought a lot of life to the storyline. The actor, Tamaki Hiroshi, as I already mentioned was beyond gorgeous on screen but in addition to this, the anime features like the way he twitched his cheek when something was awry, the way his eyes rolled back and he started to shake whenever he remembered his near-plane crash from childhood and even the way he tilted his head and 'fainted' when something nuts happened, cracked me up endlessly. And boy, did I mention he was so cute? From their NGs, they seemed to really enjoy their roles. I really loved how the entire crew would burst into a chorus of "aye" whenever an actor messed up.

Other characters in the drama cracked me up. Stresemann who was supposedly German but obviously played by a Japanese actor was beyond hilarious. I don't even know how the other actors managed to keep a straight face around him. His accent and manner of speech were beyond hilarious and his dialogues were virtually priceless. Even though he was such a creepy, dirty old man, I found his character the most memorable. I just loved his NGs:

Ryutaro was a character I grew to love. He started off as the stereotypical bleach blonde rocker dude uninterested in classical music but turned out to be one of the most responsible and caring characters in the entire drama. It was cliche in the sense that he eventually grew to respect classical music but his storyline was very well done. His was the character I would love to be friends with in real life.

Masumi, the gay guy with an afro and a freakishly weird moustache was also a sight for sore eyes. Other than his 70s clothing and platforms, he was so hilarious in his quest for Chiaki's love. One of my favorite scenes was when Chiaki walked into Nodame's apartment while Ryutaro and Masumi were there. This was early in the series when Nodame and Masumi agreed to a duel for Chiaki's love (lol) and when he (Chiaki) walked in, Ryutaro informed him of their fight. Chiaki said, "I can never be attracted to a woman like Nodame (whose face had been badly painted by her opponent)." Then he pointed at Masumi and said, "And... and, isn't this one a man?" Masumi's reaction to that comment was killer.

I thoroughly enjoyed the music (even though I have no ear for it) and orchestra (created by Stresemann featuring all the misfit underachievers at the academy) and the storylines about friendship were great. If I could change anything, I would add a lot more romance between Chiaki and Nodame. Even though their hug was touching, I would have loved to see more romance than this:



In addition, even though it was quite obvious that Ryutaro was going to hook up with fellow violinist, Kiyora, their storyline wasn't very well developed. It went from sexual tension to him saying he loved her to them waking up in bed together. Yes, there were other scenes in between but it would have been nice to see some real development between them.

There will be a two-hour sequel airing in January 08 and even though I doubt Ryutaro/Kiyora will appear, I hope it focuses on Chiaki and Nodame's romance.

All in all, I loved Nodame Cantabile :) I love this so much that I seriously considered writing a fic sequel like I did for MNIKSS but since this is a manga, I guess there already is a continuation to the story. But hey, I might still do it.

People often ask me why I enjoy Asian Dramas so much and Nodame Cantabile is a very good example why: they can be so delightful.