Jaane tu ya jaane na (2008) - Review

“Jaane tu ya jaane na” is one of my all time favorite Bollywood movies. This is a friends-to-lovers movie done absolutely right.

What is this about:

Jai Singh Rathore, a.k.a. 'Rats (Imran Khan), the most non-violent Rajput ever and Aditi Mahant(Genelia D'Souza), a.k.a. ‘Meow‘, a highly aggressive, impulsive girl are college students and best friends. Their group of friends consist of Rotlu, Jiggy, Bombs, and Shaleen. Despite saying that they are only best friends, it is apparent to anyone who is beside them that they are in love with each other, but they don’t realize it. Until the day Rats meets his dream girl, Meghna (Manjari Phadnis), and the balances inside the group suddenly change.

My review:

As I said earlier this is one of my favorite Hindi movies. I was looking something like the equivalent of comfort food for movies and this movie came straight to my mind. I think the biggest draw is that, while remaining distinctly Hindi, its well characterized leads give it a more international appeal.

Jai Singh Rathore (Imran Khan) is one of the best male lead characters you will see in Bollywood. He was raised by his mother as a peace maker that hates violent due to the violent death of his father. He is very clever and always finds a way to solve his problems. He is obviously in love with Aditi, but he hasn’t realized. It is very apparent that all he wants is to see Aditi happy. Imran Khan was exceptional in this role. Even though this is the first time I see him, he gives a warmth and makes his characters an everyday guy you would love to hang out with.

Aditi Mahant (Genelia D’Souza) is a rare female character. She is feisty, she knows what she wants and she isn’t afraid to say what she thinks (not always when it comes to Rats). Usually female leads veer towards more traditional personalities, but Aditi is a breath of fresh air. Genelia D’Souza was a revelation in this movie. I haven’t seen her too in any other of her work, but here she was phenomenal. She brought a unique energy to the role and was undeniably lovable. 

The rest of the group is really charming. Each one has his/her personality and funny moments where they shine. It was especially nice to see the different dynamics between the friends and see different aspects of their personalities. 

The director is also the writer and I cannot begin to complement him for his handling of characters. He didn’t have just stereotypes (many Bollywood movies are guilty of that), but he created full characters. His directing was also full of youthful energy and colorful. From the beginning of the movie he set the tone and the overall feel, which he maintain throughout the movie. Also, the twist in the story is a highlight itself.

The soundtrack was by A.R. Rahman and fit the story like a glove. This movie has some of my favorite songs that I keep listening, for example "Tu Bole Main Boloon" a beautiful jazz song sang by A.R.Rahman himself. 

Why you should watch it:

• A romantic comedy that is both romantic and funny
• A friends-to-lovers movie done right
• Charismatic actors and likable characters
• Skilled direction and writing
• Great soundtrack

Why not to watch:

• If you don't like romantic comedies
• If you don't like Bollywood movies

Final verdict:

10/10. I simply love this movie and I highly recommend it to anyone, whether they like Bollywood movies or not.

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Boss and me (2014) - Review

Shan Shan comes to eat, aka Boss and me, is my very first Chinese novel (I read it here) and my very first Chinese drama. This was easy and breezy and I loved every bit of the novel as well as the drama.

What is this about:

Feng Teng (Hans Zhang) is a rich heir and the president of a giant conglomerate. He has a younger sister, Feng Yue, with a very rare blood type. Therefore, he recruits Shan Shan (Zanilia Zhao), who shares the same blood type as Feng Yue, into the company to be a blood donor. After Shan Shan gives blood for Feng Yue, Feng Yue feels indebted and has the unique idea to send lunch boxes with pork liver to Shan Shan everyday. But the collegues in the compan think otherwise about all these lunch boxes.

When Feng Teng's childhood friend, Yuan Lishu (Li Chengyuan) returns to the country, she is dismayed to discover that Feng Teng is in love with Shan Shan. She tries to compete with Shan Shan for Feng Teng's love. Together with Feng Teng's best friend, Zheng Qi (Huang Ming), the two tries to separate the couple by inciting conflicts. Nonetheless, the misunderstandings only serves to strengthen Feng Teng and Shan Shan's relationship.

With her preservation and hard work, Shan Shan not only manages to be victorious in love, but also in her career.

My review:

It was love at the first sight and it remains a strong love with this one. Since this is the first Chinese drama that I have watched till now, I cannot really comment if this is a typical drama (according to other reviews this is more original than the norm), but as a viewer of asian dramas I can say that it took the Cinderella story, gave it a twist and added endearing characters. 

Shan Shan (Zanilia Zhao) is a small town girl that came to the big city to find a job and earn money. This description fits to so many asian female leads that she could have been so easily boring. But instead of making her a poor girl that overworks, is positive, but cries at the injustice of the world in the night, Shan Shan is more similar to an everyday person. She is very optimistic and has big dreams but, alas, she is not very clever or very capable. She recognizes that, but she has faith that her good character will yield results. Love her! One the funniest aspects of her personality is that the ladies of the company think that her sunny face is manipulative and consider her more clever than she is. And, of course, she has no idea of all these. The actress is honestly perfect. She is so spot on her characterization that I cannot picture any other in her place.

Feng Teng (Hans Zhang) is the owner of the big company. He is far cleverer than Shan Shan and the actual manipulator. As expected, his clever ways confuse Shan Shan who reacts very differently to how he is used to, which confuses him in return. In the book it wasn’t so clear how and when he fell in love with her. In the drama I could see him being charmed by her cute personality. When it comes to the actor, he is not what I pictured while reading the book. I was thinking someone more masculine. However, the actor really owns the character - quiet, clever, perceptive and with dry humor. After I finished the series, I loved his portrayal.

My third favourite character is Feng Teng’s sister, Feng Yue. She is even better than how I pictured her in the book. She is not as smart as Feng Teng, but more smart than Shan Shan. She is the excuse (cough lunch boxes cough) for the romance to start between Feng Teng and Shan Shan. At first she wants their childhood friend to marry her brother, but once she sees what Feng Teng likes in Shan Shan, she becomes a shipper. I really enjoyed her chemistry with the actor, they seemed to me like real siblings.

Then, there are Shan Shan’s cousin, Liu Liu, and best friend, Suang Yi, who a very welcome example of sisterhood. They have their own little stories, but they always are strong supporters of Shan Shan and they always give her solid advice. I would love to see more depictions of friendships between girls like this in more dramas.

The second big story revolves around Li Shu, who is Feng Teng’s childhood friend, and Zheng Qi, Feng Teng’s best friend. I didn’t care as much about them, but they didn’t annoy me at all. I think they created a nice parallel story-wise and showed a different kind of romance.

Regarding the scenario, I believe that this is one of the best book adaptations I have watched. Sure, they inserted more stories that are not that interesting. Sure, they missed the characterization in a few places. Sure, they added a bit more drama toward the end. However, the writers maintained the cute and funny feel of the book, and any drama they inserted didn’t take too many episodes to resolve, which is a huge win for me when I watch a romantic comedy. 

The direction feels more like a Korean drama, but not too much. The director has inserted these cute comic book scenes to show us Shan Shan’s thoughts, a highlight for me. The editing could use some work in a few episodes, but nothing too serious. In most episodes the flow is so easy that I didn’t realize when they finished and immediately I began a new one. Also, I heard that the production wanted to be sponsored by some clothe industries, but the actor refused and even bought clothes himself to give the wealthy feel of Feng Teng. I was really impressed with him and admire his dedication to his character.

Why you should watch:

• A cute and funny story of Cinderella with a twist. It feels very fresh.
• Endearing characters – even the least likable ones are either funny or human.
• Fast pacing and romance – always a wining combination.
• Skilled directing.
• Very good acting from the actors, especially the leads.
• Not too much drama. 

Why not to watch:

• If rom coms are not your thing.
• The editing needed work in a few places.
• Toward the ending they inserted some storyline that weren’t that interested and felt like a long epilogue.

Final verdict:

10/10. I should have written 9.5/10, but I loved it so much and had so much fun that I could easily overlook the faults. Definitely recommended.

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Aum Rak (2006) - Review

Another collaboration between Ann and Ken, a pairing I loved in Sood Sanae Ha. This is three years prior to Sood Sanaeha, so both the leads are younger and a bit less refined, but they remain charming. This is a more funny and easy lakorn, exactly what I needed in the summer time.

What is this about:

Pat (Anne Thongprasom) is a beautiful but head-strong model. During Pat’s first magazine photo-shoot, she meets a fast-mouthed photographer, Chen (Ken Theeradeth), who predicts she will never be famous in the industry. However, despite Chen’s “prediction”, Napat turns out to be a huge success. In their econd meeting, due to a drinking competition during the party, both Chen and Pat get badly drunk and end up in bed together. It isn’t long before Pat realizes that she is pregnant.

My review:

Pat (Ann) is a famous model, who is arrogant and a bit childish and wants to focus to her carrier. The last one doesn’t go as planned after the accidental one night stand. Her attempts to get rid of the baby are funny because it is obvious that she doesn’t really want to, that she actually wants a family despite what she says. Since, she and Chen have started on the wrong foot and she believes him to be irresponsible, she decides to keep her baby but she will find another father to raise it with. However, she is quite famous and all, the news spread so she was forced to marry with Chen – insert cohabitation shenanigans. Her biggest flaw is that she thinks she can manage everything on her own and she doesn’t accept help from anyone, especially Chen. It takes her a while to realize what a great guy she accidently found on Chen – to her credit his childish ways half of the time didn’t help  -  but she sees the light in the end.

Chen (Ken) is a photographer who likes to flirt with the models. He seems like a playboy and irresponsible and childish (the last one is partly true), but in reality he is sweet and sensitive. By lakorn standards he is quite unique, because from the first moment he realizes his mistake he accepts the responsibility. This is not something we see often in lakorns, so we much cherish it when it happens. Not only he doesn’t shy away from his responsibilities, he actually wants to have this baby and be a father (!). Chen’s character is hot-tempered and childish, the exact opposite of Din in Sood Sanaeha, and the actor brought a lot of physicality into his role.

Anna is Pat’s best friend. Basically she is the only person Pat allows to help her. She is much more sensible that Pat and secretly she helps Chen win over Pat. Firstly, she wants the baby to be with both its parents and sees that Chen wants the baby. And secondly, she is in love with Pat’s old flame and Chen’s adversary. 

Mark is Pat’s old flame and current father nominee. He is absolutely bland, both the actor and the character. He took a turn to the dark side but not too deep and not for long. The only thing that I remember from him is that he looked like Korean. 

Jasmine is another model that hates Pat just because. She is very typical lakorn second lead, therefore forgettable. Only her makeup and general styling can make your eyes hurt.

And last but not least, Chen’s aunt is the same actress as Din’s mother in Sood Sanaeha. How much I love her cheeks. Here she is less sweet, since is determined to have a grandchild and becomes very rude sometimes. 

The scene where they wake up the next morning is hilarious

This lakorn had a very progressive storyline for its time and when it broadcasted it made a huge splash. Honestly, this is the lakorn with the most sexually active couples I have seen so far. Granted, the couples are married and they want to have children, but still, this is new. Meanwhile, it draws a parallel story with these couples that want to have a baby and they can’t, whereas Pat and Chen accidently got one. Even though, the story feels refreshing for a lakorn, it follows several standard points like the over the top humor, childlike behavior, annoying second leads. So, if you thought Sood Sanaeha too silly or over the top, I wouldn’t recommend this. 

This is what I mean by over the top humor

 Why you should watch:

• Ann and Ken pairing.
• Lots of comedy.
• A storyline that is not usually seen in lakorns.

Why not to watch: 

• Over the top humor.
• If you don't like lakorns.
• Early 2000's fashion - it can get ugly.
• Not enough romance between the leads.

Final verdict:

7/10. Nice comedy, with a winning pairing – they really can’t go wrong – and a semi-fresh story. But I wanted a bit more romance and the silliness to be dialed down. I don’t complain though, because I had fun.

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Dropped like a hot potato - Damo (2003)

I would love this to pieces. It would enter the hall of fame of my favourite dramas. But the director had to constantly move the camera in the fighting scenes and as a result destroy this drama for me.

Honestly this has everything to become a classic and timeless story, and for many it is a classic. The story revolves around a woman who works for the police office to help investigate crimes that involve women. She has a tragic past where her family was killed and was separated from her older brother. Her commander takes her under his protection and they grow closer to each other. She then meets the leader of the outlaws who is her older brother, but they don’t know it. I know I didn’t describe it really well, but this is a compelling story about duty, love and betrayal, where the writer has crafted three dimensional characters and a full world. And it feels very Korean. Nowadays, dramas tend to be very polished and modernized, but this is has so many details that make it so Korean and it is charming. 

Ha Ji Won was great here

I heard that this is the drama that catapulted Ha Ji Won to stardom and, after seeing it, I can say rightfully so. She was rough around the edges, but she emitted so much raw emotion. This is one of her finest performances. I think that she hasn’t surpassed her performance here in many of her later works. Of course, the rest of the cast did an excellent job too. The two leading men were convincing and the supporting cast had also their charm.

The commander

And the brother

The sole reason why I didn’t enjoy this drama while I loved certain pieces is the directing. I think the director tried to be very contemporary – this is one of the first fusion sagueks – but he didn’t have either the skills or the budget or both. After a point his style became very tiring and I didn’t pay attention anymore. So this is not dropped per se, I let it play in a corner while I did work in my laptop. But it equal to being dropped in my book. 

It is a miracle I managed to snapshot a scene where it wasnt blurry

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Dropped like a hot potato - Successful story of a bright girl (2002)

This is a new series of posts, for all the dramas I dropped recently and don’t indent to finish watching. 

It is one of the classic Korean dramas that made more or less Jang Hyuk and Jang Nara famous. I was prepared for the awful early 2000s fashion – I haven’t watched a series/movie that has escaped from that - and more predictable story line. I’ve watched old movies and dramas and if they had that extra factor to make them timeless, I loved them to pieces. And this is where the problem lies with this case. Successful story of a bright girl didn’t age well. 

It sets the tone and expectations from the first minutes, where a girl dreams of fighting school boys to protect her prince while the swan lake music plays in the background. Try to picture that. We have the standard jerk male lead, Ki Tae, and the standard country pumpkin female lead, Soo Ki. Their first meeting is with him falling with a parachute into the bathtub she is washing herself outside the yard of her house. He certainly knew how to make an entrance. Anyway, her parents have a huge debt so she agrees to work as a housemaid to repay that, because her bold and brave parents run away. So, we have several shenanigans between out hot-tempered hero and the equally hot-tempered heroin.

One of my biggest complains is the lack of chemistry. In the reviews I read, they compiented about the chemistry between Jang Nara and Jang Hyuk. I didn’t see it. At all. I could have watched this drama despite all the other misgivings, if the chemistry worked. But it didn’t. I understand that this is an older drama and things were less explicit then than now – if you can say that now they are explicit in comparison. For me, the body language didn’t show that. 

Here the actors were pretty much newbies, so the acting is the strongest, however the direction isn’t doing anyone any favors. And when we have the fashion and the music combined, well then, my eyes hurt a bit. When it comes to writing this isn’t a very eventful drama. An episode can pass by and almost nothing that moves the plot or the characters happens. And the characters are one dimensional and not that charming or winning. And in the second half it went to corporation drama territory, which was blah.
I think I wrote too many words for a drama I didn’t even like. If you want to watch it proceed at your own risk.

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