SeoulFire

I’ve always been a fan of films that have that “hey, it could happen” feel. Yes, your Sally could one day meet your Harry. Yes, you could go the distance.And yes, you could find yourself easing on down the road with a scarecrow, lion, and a tin man. Ok. Maybe not that last one. But you get the idea.

"I'll have what she's having."

"ADRIAN!!!"

Maybe not so real

A perfect example is Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist. I must warn you that I was a bit biased before I saw the film. I finished the book in 1 day. It was so clever and real. I wish I could tell parents that kids don’t cuss like sailors and do things that border illegal when they are together but I hear lying is something we shouldn’t do. Plus I’ve got to make up for the all the things I should have gotten caught for when I was younger and lying would not be helping my cause. Sorry to tell you this but any cuss words I learned when I was younger I learned from reading the bathroom stall doors at school.

(General info about the film is here.)

CERA!!!!

Yes, Michael Cera is in this. Yes, that should make you ridiculously happy. But viewer beware……if you’re looking for the “Michael Cera” we all have fallen in love with you might be disappointed. What’s the difference? Well we all know Micheal Cera as the guy who has perfected the art of being funny by trying not to be funny. Micheal Cera’s “Nick” in the film is funny when the script wants him to be. Which is not a bad thing. We’re so used to Micheal taking those subtle yet effective liberties with scripts that we forget that sometimes the script can be good enough that taking those liberties might ruin the entire movie. I can’t claim that all the characters we know him for are the same but they all have that underlying “wink-wink” he’s known for. I’m pretty sure that’s just Michael being Michael though.

We're not in Superbad anymore!!

The music, the ever-moving plot, the reluctant but destiny driven lovers,  the disgusting gum habits……they all come together to make a great movie. What’s better is that this is a totally plausible situation. You could have your own adventure while looking for some band or some drunk friend. You could (and do) run into all the people you do and don’t want to see while having a night out. You could meet someone who could very well be “the one”. Is it rare that a night like this happens? Yep. It is impossible? Nope.

In conclusion, I have every intention of getting everyone I know to see this film. I also have every intention to count down the days to its DVD release so that I can obsess over it in the comfort of my own home. This officially sits between “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” and “Goodfellas” on my fav films list. Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist, (Insert Blog Title here).

Next time on “Just Nonsense Really”: Of the Asian Persuasion #6!!!!!

I’m just going to jump right into it. I feel like I’ve built up the momentum for it in the last two posts and it’s just not right. It’s the equivalent of a show’s cliff-hanging season finale or Ryan Seacrest going to a commercial break 20,000 times before announcing the winner of American Idol. So here it is: “OF THE ASIAN PERSUASION” Number Four!!

1. BAD FAMILY: I finished this show in three days!! That’s a record for me! Especially with my sorta-kinda busy schedule. I must
   

   This...

   admit that I have felt a sizable hole in American television since Fox pulled a rather heinous “My So-Called Life” move and cancelled “Arrested Development”. I have been itching for another dysfunctional family…..besides my own. While it is missing some of the brilliant writing we found in “Arrested Development” (which is hard to find anyway) it is still extremely clever and entertaining on so many levels. A well produced show with complex characters, actors with

   

   plus this....

   great comedic timing, and great writing. You know you’ve got a winner when you take the dysfunction found in “Arrested Development” and mix in the heart found in a episode-ending sentimental moment shared between Danny and Michelle Tanner on “Full House”. Complete with the warm, acoustic guitar playing in the background.  

...equals that aka Bad Family

    2.  Winter Sonata: If you know anything about Korean dramas then you know “Winter Sonata”. You basically HAVE to know about Winter Sonata but for good reason. It’s a well known fact that it practically started this whole ”Hallyu” trend. Everything that a Korean drama should be “Winter Sonata” is: Great production, great actors, great script, a lot of crying, and that one song they play over and over again to the point that you start humming it yourself (“My memory……”). That being said can we just take a moment to recognize Korean actors and their sheer dominance of the single tear? They should have a category at all of their award ceremonies just for this talent.

    3. The First Shop of Coffee Prince: Let me just start off with saying that the lead actor, Gong Yoo, is the cutest actor I have ever seen in a

So Cute!!

drama. He took his character, Choi Han Kyul, to a place where the writers didn’t even think it could go. He was cute at every turn even when he was supposed to be a jerk. I appreciate the show as a whole just because it was more adult themed as opposed to most Korean dramas where a very chaste picture is drawn of relationships. There’s nothing wrong with that but when you’re dealing with two young adults in a serious relationship is it realistic to portray them as a couple that simply kisses and gets excited when they hold hands? The show was hyped up before it came on air because the lead actress hit it big with

Me watching Coffee Prince

another show called “Goong” aka “Princess Hours” (More on that in another post) but “Coffee Prince” stands on it’s own as a great show without having to rely on one particular actor and that’s pretty exciting. Not only was Gong Yoo great but the other actors were honest with their characters and the most important aspect of all of the characters was their vulnerability that only showed through the honesty each actor put to their character. While you may not think the actors’ honesty would be important you have to consider that in many ways this “As You Like It”  slightly fraternal twin has a tendency to be ridiculous but that honesty makes it believable. Which I appreciate because there were many times I had to remind myself to breathe while watching and I would hate to know I had that reaction over something that was through and through ridiculous.  

    4. Que Sera Sera: I list this one but I have to say I was a bit biased before I even started watching it for many reasons so there was a good chance I was going to like this one even it sucked. First, the guy that produced My Lovely Kim Sam Soon produced this. Second, Eric is the male lead in the show. Who is Eric? Well, Eric is a member of the longest running boyband, Shinhwa, but now he mostly does acting. I’ve been a fan of him since the hilarious ”Super Rookie” (More on that in a later post). While a singer turned actor may sound scary he is actually pretty great. Plus…….he’s freakin cute!!! And lastly, it’s got a more mature theme to it which, as you can tell from the last title, I LOVE!! I think this is a perfect example of why I love Korean dramas so much. They are influenced so much by ”Pride and Prejudice” and reminds us at their allotted times that you cannot judge a book by it’s cover. If you do, your inner Elizabeth Bennet could miss out on your Mr. Darcy. I must warn you that it can be absolutely heartbreaking for the majority of the show. But between the tears, happiness, regret, jealousy, true love, true hate, breakups, breakdowns, and the stubborn parents to make things more difficult you can’t help but have a good time watching this. Plus the clothes they wear is completely on point. I’m sorry I had to say that……afterall I am still a girl. What girl doesn’t notice great style? 

So great!!

totally worth it. “Meteor Garden” is a modern classic as far as Asian dramas are concerned and sometimes you just have to take time to appreciate the classics. This came out in 2001 but it feels just as fresh today as it might have felt when it first came out. Honestly, I’m actually surprised that I loved it as much as I did. It has all the characteristics of a show I would try to get away from as soon as possible: bad acting, inconsistent couples, over-the-top characters, ridiculous plots, and rather frustrating storylines that keep the main couple in an on/off relationship until the very end. While all of these factors should have had me running back to my beloved Korean dramas they became the reasons I stuck around. I constantly found myself wanting to know what would happen next. This was even after I took a break from the show for a few days due to the annoyance I felt from Shancai’s (the lead female character) constant indecision and Dao Ming Si’s (the lead male character) over-the-top temper. I recovered quickly though. It’s popularity is on par with High School Musical. And just like High School Musical the studios milk it for all its worth. As it usually goes studios are still trying to copy the success of this show by doing remakes. And I love it!!!

Hana Yori Dango....Here we come!!

I’ve made the executive decision not to write some long drawn out paragraph about who I am and what I do in my “free time”. That’s corny. Really corny. It reminds me of those getting-to-know-you exercises we used to have to do on the first day of classes. I hated them then, I hate them now. Plus I always ended up with someone I ended up really disliking or I never spoke to them again after that day. Cut to 3 years later, 9:47 pm at Wally World (looking for tampons), look up, look up again, accidentally make eye contact with said person, begin weighing the options (Should I wave?Should I duck behind the super absorbents? Should I keep moving my eyes past theirs like I was searching for…um (searching)…some cheap looking faux fur coat?), and then decide to say hi if they say hi and to ignore them if they ignore you. That’s been my experience at least.

But that’s not why I’m here. I’m here to talk about my love of the movie Juno….AND THE UTTER DISAPPOINTMENT I FEEL THAT IT DID NOT GET ONE GOLDEN GLOBE!!!! WHAT IS WRONG WITH HOLLYWOOD?!

Firstly, let me just say that I was not bothered at all that there wasn’t some big whoop-te-doo about the whole thing. No fancy dresses, no speeches (You like me, you really like me!), no bragging rights that are usually good for oh…….5 seconds!! I mean let’s face it, the Golden Globes are basically a self constructed way for Hollywood to masturbate to themselves. But I do watch it so I can’t say much…but I will. I have wasted 3 hours of my life once every year to hear results that should only take 5 minutes!! So, again I say, thank the Lord for striking writers!! Who I completely support BTW.

 Ok. Juno. Juno is one those movies where right in the middle of it you think, “……..Wow. This is REALLY good!!!” Ellen Page was AMAZING!! And some of the best lines were spoken (“That ain’t no etch-a-sketch. This is one doodle that can’t be undid, home-skillet”) Also, is there anything better than Jason Bateman and Micheal Cera on the same bill again? Arrested Development  reunion!! Even though they don’t have one scene together…at all. But I can say that it would have been great if they did (Perfect example down below). Last but not least they used the cutest song by The Moldy Peaches “Anyone Else But You”. Not only for the lyrics (Here is the church and here is the steeple, We’re both pretty cute for two ugly people) but the last scene of the movie involving this song makes this movie better than it already was.

Now with all that….. WHY DIDN’T IT WIN ANYTHING?! Oh well. We’ve still got the Oscars.