Saturday 22 October 2016

Yamato Nadeshiko (2000) - Review

“Yamato nadeshiko” or “The perfect woman” is an old Japanese drama. Frankly I don’t know where I read about this, or why I had it in my hard drive, but I was feeling a bit nostalgic and wanted to watch something older - October blues -, so I thought to watch this. It was unexpectedly good.

What is this about:

Directed by Wakamatsu Setsuro, Hirano Shin. Written by Nakazono Miho, Aizawa Tomoko. Star Matsushima Nanako, Tsutsumi Shinichi. An air stewardess, Sakurako (Matsushima Nanako), is going from one single date to another in order to find the richest man she can find. There she meets Osuke (Tsutsumi Shinichi), an owner of a fish shop, who convienced by his friends, pretends to be a doctor. By some misunderstanding, Sakurako thinks he is a very rich man and sets out to marry him.

My review:

This was an unexpected fluff romantic comedy. Surprisingly the episodes flew by quickly and watched the first two episodes back to back. Even though this isn’t a plot driven drama, it felt like in every episode there were things happening, less towards the end, but still there was progression.
Sakurako (Matsushima Nanako) is the titular character and on a first sight she is truly a perfect woman. She is not a drop dead gorgeous woman, but she has soft feminine feature which she accompanies with soft voice, cute smile and gentle manners. This is the first impression, before she starts teaching her colleagues how to catch a rich man and that money is the most important thing in a relationship. I give much credit to the wonderful actress who took a character that could be so easily annoying, and made it funny. She tried to make the character a little more three dimensional but the writing didn’t help her much. Nevertheless, she was hilarious and perhaps the only reason for watching this.
Osuke (Tsutsumi Shinichi) is the exact opposite from Sakurako. He comes from a poor family too, but he is hardworking, sensitive guy that takes care of his sick mother and don’t much aspirations about the future. However, his lack of ambition comes from his lack of confidence. He doubts himself so much and is so afraid to get hurt that never take the lead to go for what he wants. He gives up even before trying. So it is quite easy to see how these two complement each other.
This drama is so funny because it feels like a live adaptation of a manga. From my search on the web I didn’t find any such indication, but I could be wrong. Their dates and the way they meet accidentally always end up in disaster, but slowly Sakurako warms up towards Osuke while she learns a bit more about him. It is a slow progress but a satisfying one. Also, Osuke's friendship with the other guys is quite realistic, despite their manga-like behavior most of the time.


The only drawback of this drama is that it didn’t have any emotional impact on me. It was fluff, I liked it, but soon I will forget about it. It didn’t have that extra factor to put it on my favorite list.

Why you should watch:

  • It is fluff romantic comedy.
  • Nice performance from the lead actress.
  • Feels like a manga.
  • Quick plot.

Why not to watch:

  • Doesn’t have much depth.
  • If you don’t like romantic comedies.
  • Except the lead actress, the rest of the performances are nothing to write about.

Final verdict:

6/10. This is a nice drama to spend your weekend if you are bored and want something to relax and have fun.

Saturday 8 October 2016

Karn La Krang Neung Nai Hua Jai (2016) - Review

“Karn La Krang Neung Nai Hua Jai” or “Once upon a time in my heart” is my newest addition to thai lakorns. I got interested in it by reading the recaps at Lovefia, which made me addicted into it even before watching the lakorn. When the subtitles were released for all the episodes, big thanks to the neko meow meow for subbing this, I got into it as soon as possible.

What is this about:

Directed by Tietawan. Star Mick Tongraya, Pimmy Pimprapa Tangprabhaporn, Boom Piyaphun. Fahsai (Pimmy Tangprabhaporn) is heartbroken when her boyfriend leaves her for another woman, so she decides to accompany her friend to Japan. There she meets Daniel (Mick Tongraya), a Hong Kong mafia leader who confuses her with his dead girlfriend. And so, their story begins.

My review:

It could have been the perfect lakorn but fell short in the end. The broadcast channel cut it short by two episodes and it’s one of those rare cases where it would benefit more with those extra episodes. Things fell rushed in the end and we didn’t get all the answers we wanted. But, I think, it was best that I knew that, thanks to Lovefia’s recaps, so I adjusted my expectations to like it for what it was and not for what it could have been.

Fahsai
(Pimmy Tangprabhaporn) is your typical heroine, cute, sweet, loyal daughter and forgives easily. What I like about her and what makes her stand out is that, even though she can’t fight back using her fists, when the need arises she will use her mind and put the other person into his/her place with clever words. Also, just because she is weak physically, doesn’t mean she is a weak person. She has perseverance, patience, forgiveness and is willing to do anything to help her parents and her close friends. We can see why Daniel likes and admires her.
Daniel (Mick Tongraya) is your dream guy, at least until the two last episodes where the director decided to change his personality and make him a noble idiot. He was calm, collected, a gentleman but used his hands when he had to, he follows his heart but in the meantime he uses his head to do the right thing. Even though he is a mafia leader, he wants to break free from the illegal activities of the past and live a normal life. If you don’t count the last two episodes, Daniel was a lead man that every lakorn writer should take an example.
Chen Ming (Boom Piyaphun) is the third wheel and walks the line between first and second lead. He was best friends with Daniel, but some tragic events made them enemies. Unlike Daniel, Chen Ming is emotional, he is carried away by his emotions, can’t think clearly and, most of the times, takes the wrong decision. It is apparent early on that he didn’t want to be a gang leader, instead he wanted to be an artist, so he puts his trust to people he thinks are better than him. He starts as the least likable of the three but his progress to become a more matured version of himself is satisfying. 
What I loved and enjoyed the most about this particular lakorn are the strong friendships. On one hand, we have Fahsai with her two friends, Puifai and Nuch, who are best friend material. In many cases they were expressing my thoughts about the situation. Especially Puifai who gets her own love story with Daniel’s bodyguard, Chen Biao, is the exact opposite of Fahsai. When Fahsai tries to use reason or doesn’t respond to other’s mean words, Puifai will use her fists. She is loud and outspoken and wants to live her life to the fullest.
On the other hand, Daniel has two different bromances, one with his former best friend-now enemy,Chen Ming, and one with his bodyguard/right hand, Chen Biao. On the first bromance, it is sad to see their friendship being ruined and Daniel getting accused for things he didn’t do, while he still tries to protect Chen Ming. But it is also satisfying to see their relationship getting slowly back to what it used to be, when the truth gets unveiled. On the second romance, Chen Biao is always there to protect Daniel and help him, feeling gratitude for Daniel saving his life when his family was murdered. He is a no-nonsense and sharp guy that doesn’t waste his time in unnecessary things. And his romance with Puifai is so charming in its own way because she teaches him to enjoy life again.
Even though this is an action lakorn, do not expect Daredevil level of awesomeness. It takes an episode or two to get used to them trying to look cool and mucho, but I have definitely seen worse. For lakorn standards, the action scenes are quite decent, with one or two short scenes being very good.
Regarding the rest of the production, the songs used are nice, easy on the ear, although none of them stood out for me. The direction was very good, with the first two episodes being the best shot, especially the scenes in Japan. I suppose in the beginning of the filming they had more time to prepare.
The only drawback is the direction of the story in the last two episodes. Suddenly, Daniel became an noble idiot and took not very clever decisions, resulting to Fahsai crying and me shaking my head with frustration. If only it had one more episode and didn’t rush things, this would have been my favorite lakorn.

Why you should watch:

  • Nice characters, each with his/her own faults and charms.
  • Two different love stories, both interesting and with great chemistry between the leads.
  • Strong friendships that are just as important as the romance.
  • Nice direction.
  • Pleasant music.
  • Decent action scenes.

Why not to watch:

  • If you don’t like romance.
  • The action scenes are decent by lakorn standards. By different standars, not so much.
  • The songs are repeated more often than not.
  • The bad guys are bland at best.
  • The ending was rushed.

Final verdict:

7/10. I am being harsh, only because it started so well and didn’t hold the level of addictiveness until the end. But knowing what to expect you can enjoy it much more. So I certainly recommend it to those who like romance with action.