Category Archives: film & television

Quick Start Guide to Taiwanese Dramas

film & television February 13, 2014 1 Comment

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These are by no means the best Taiwanese dramas, though some of them would be, but rather some of the more accessible ones. For those unfamiliar, Taiwanese dramas are Taiwanese TV shows with an average runtime of 21 episodes, usually very romance-centered.

1)Meteor Garden– if you’ve already seen Hana Yori Dango and Boys Over Flowers, the Japanese and Korean versions of this story, you’re likely to be disappointed in this one, which is by far the lowest-budget, but Meteor Garden is the original adaptation, and it is amazing. It’s the gateway Taiwanese drama for many people, and the first drama ever for even more people.

Barbie Hsu absolutely lights up the screen as the most kick-ass girl ever(easily the best interpretation of her manga character) and she and Jerry have amazing chemistry and the script is just incredibly well-written and well, it’s just really good and has this magic about it that I can’t quite pin-down. It’s one of those classic stories that draws on some of the most basic ideas and impulses that drive us as human beings.

Shancai(Barbie Hsu) is a poor girl unhappily attending a wealthy school in which she doesn’t fit in at all. The school is led by four boys called the F4, a group of handsome, incredibly wealthy, domineering boys who hold absolute sway over all the school attendees and are headed by Daoming Si(Jerry Yan) the richest of them all. When one of Shancai’s friends is bullied by them one day, Shancai snaps and openly defies them, and immediately finds herself the target of bullying by the whole school. Daoming Si, however, fascinated by her stubborn courage, soon finds himself falling for her…Meteor Garden is a little bit of everything – part underdog story, part tragedy, part comedy, but mostly a Cinderella tale, and one of the original Asian dramas that contributed to the craze. It’s pretty much a must-see for Asian drama watchers.

Watch online

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Top Christmas Films

film & television February 12, 2014 Leave a comment

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1. It’s a Wonderful Life – I admit with shame that I have yet to see this uber-famou classic starring the equally famous Jimmy Stewart(whom I am a fan of ever since The Philadelphia Story) but it is generally considered the iconic Christmas film, and is probably one of a handful of old films which most people have still seen or at least are aware of

2. Miracle on 34th Street– this classic, heartwarming Christmas story about a lawyer who defends a department-story Santa who’s claiming he’s the real thing won 4 Academy Awards and is still a perennial favorite on Christmas film lists everywhere.

3.Holiday Affair – this TV movie about a single mom who falls for the charming stranger(played by David James Elliott for any fans of JAG) she meets while Christmas shopping is a complete charmer and enjoyable for the whole family

4. Home Alone 1 & 2 – I’m not going to bother introducing these as they are ridiculously famous, but they’re endlessly re-watchable, consistently hilarious, and excellent choices to curl up on comfortable couches and watch after Christmas unwrapping or to have in the background while cooking Christmas dinner.

5. August Rush – this lovely, well-acted film about love and music and its ability to bring people together  is so resonant with hope and magic that I can’t help but consider it an excellent film both for Christmastime and the entire family(plenty of grit and Jonathan Rhys-Meyers as a hot-tempered Irish guitarist for the guys)

6. The Holiday -funny, charming, and one of the few films I’ve seen that successfully combines the wit and heart of older romantic comedies with the sophistication of more modern affairs. This tale of two women who exchange homes and continents for Christmas and wind up falling in love and re-discovering life is not nearly as cliched as it sounds, and while it will never be great cinema, somehow it’s a very reassuring film. Note: not necessarily great for the whole family – some sexual content both verbal and visual.

7. Die Hard 1 and 2 – it’s an oft-overlooked fact that these riveting, fantastic action films are both set at Christmas, when all’s fair in love and war and most decidedly unfair in New York cop John McClane’s life(his wife is perenially either about to leave him or being threatened by terrorists. Merry Christmas, John). With plenty of twists and bare-knuckle fights but not too much overt blood and gore, these are family/action classics.

8. A Christmas Story-another movie which I confess I haven’t seen, but by all accounts this movie about a boy who has to convince his parents, teachers, and Santa that a BB gun is the perfect gift for him is an enduring classic

9. The Family Stone – another adult romantic comedy which is somehow very reassuring, The Family Stone is often overlooked because of its odd vibe. Halfway between a traditional romantic comedy and an offbeat indie flick, it somehow manages to pull off the mix without too much awkwardness, and is that rarest of things, a genuinely heartwarming movie. Flawed but lovely, it has an all-star cast including Sarah Jessica Parker, Claire Danes, Diane Keaton and Luke Wilson, and is about a tightly-wound, conservative businesswoman who visits her fiance’s home for Christmas and makes all kinds of sparks begin to fly in his eccentric, loud family. It’s a love story, it’s funny, and it’s got family – what more could you ask for for Christmas? (PS: ignore the offensive cover image)

I’m going to cheat a little and put an Asian drama in 10th place.

10. My Girl – take one down-on-her luck, resourceful poor girl who’s constantly on the run from her father’s gambling debts and in perennial need of money. Add one rich, handsome , reserved young man who needs someone to impersonate his long-lost cousin. What you get is a delightful, tragi-comic, heartwarming, and deeply addicting Cinderella story that should quickly hook the whole family. My Girl has no direct correlation to Christmas, but several climactic scenes happen around Christmastime and snow plays a very important part, so it’s associated for me and many other of its fans with Christmas.

Frozen Stars Perform Live!

film & television February 12, 2014 Leave a comment

Shining Inheritance Episode 20 Recap and Review

film & television February 10, 2014 Leave a comment

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(credit for screencap to sodahands at Livejournal)

You know, Shining Inheritance just keeps getting better:) This episode was particularly satisfying because the romance/shippiness between Eun-seung and Hwan has heated up to “simmering” now – below boiling but above warm.

Synopsis:

As Eun-seung leaves the house, Hwan runs after and demands why she’s not saying anything, then practically begs her to defend herself. Eun-seung cries back, “If I did, would you believe me?…You wouldn’t believe me anyway” and leaves. Eun-seung goes to stay with Hye-Ri. Hye-Ri, being much less forgiving than her friend, rails at everyone involved and wants to go tell the family the truth. Eun-seung refuses, and next day goes to tender her resignation to grandmother. She, having a spine of steel and unable to believe Eun-seung is all bad, refuses the resignation and tells her no matter what her involvment is in what Seung-mi and her mother said, she should complete her remaining time at Branch 2 and prove to her that she can make it successful. Eun-seung agrees but tells her that she’s absolutely refusing the inheritance now. Eun-seung has a tense confrontation with Seung-mi(can’t remember if this was before or after the conversation with grandmother) and challenges her with “What if Hwan likes me?” and “Are you sure that he promised to marry you?”.

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Shining Inheritance Episode 19 Recap and Review

film & television February 6, 2014 Leave a comment

Another strong episode:) You know, Shining Inheritance had one of the slowest romantic build-ups I’ve ever seen in a drama, pulling us through with tiny, teasing, delightful tid-bits and really great characterizations, but now that the romance finally has hit its stride, it was well worth waiting for. After all that Eun-Seung and Hwan have been through, hurting each other, rejecting each other, tolerating each other, occasionally reaching out and showing the other that they’re a decent person, it’s so frelling satisfying to finally see them seeing each other with new eyes, making tiny, hesitant advances toward having a positive relationship instead of a negative, and the once-an-episode, amazing out-and-out romantic, chemistry-laden scenes that are dished out now and then(the bus scene from last weekend! mm!!). Shining Inheritance isn’t one of those dramas that you want necessarily to go shout from the rooftops and tell everyone to watch immediately(ie Coffee Prince). But it is one of the most thoroughly and consistently enjoyable dramas I’ve seen in a long time, and definitely one I’d recommend that everyone see at some point.

Watch ep 19 on Viikii

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Caffeinated Links: Lizzie Bennet Diaries, The Problem with Moffat’s Sherlock, Poverty and Television

film & television February 5, 2014 Leave a comment

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The A.V.  Club on LBD – “Although the basic structure and format of The Lizzie Bennet Diaries is what garnered it media attention and critical acclaim, ultimately its stories are what connected with audiences. Without them, this would have just been an experiment.” RT

David R at Unreality wrote a long article encapsulating exactly the problem with Sherlock, Doctor Who, and Moffat’s writing. “More than anything, this season just felt like one long bit of fanservice. I mean that both in the minor sense — like the recurring gags about phrases to put on a t-shirt — as well as in larger story beats. I’ve never seen a moment more desperate to be put on tumblr than that bit in “Sign of Three” when Sherlock, for no reason and completely out of character, decides to prance about in a bearskin hat. That wasn’t Sherlock, it was Doctor Who.” RT

Russell Brand wrote a startingly articulate and powerful article based on his own history of drug abuse for The Guardian a while back. “The mentality and behaviour of drug addicts and alcoholics is wholly irrational until you understand that they are completely powerless over their addiction and unless they have structured help they have no hope… I look to drugs and booze to fill up a hole in me; unchecked, the call of the wild is too strong” RT

Dustin Rowles writes brilliant pop commentary blended with real life, as usual. “But where Shameless especially gets it right is not in the setting, or even the circumstances, but in the way that bad luck seems to follow you everywhere you go when you’re poor. You’re doubly fucked, not just because you’re without money, but because being poor puts you in circumstances in which it’s almost impossible to succeed. If you finally get a job that pays above minimum wage, for instance, it’s almost guaranteed that your car will break down the next day, and you’ll lose that job because you can’t get there on time. When you’re asked to look presentable for an interview, or a school function, that’s sure to be the day that your sewer line leaks into the water line, and both your bathtub and your shitty washing machine will fill up with sewage. It’s practically inevitable.” RT

All the Videos You Need to Watch Today

film & television, this & that January 29, 2014 Leave a comment

Behind the Scenes of the Mega Huge Game Day Ad Newcastle Almost Made:The BEST of Anna Kendrick – and she’s already quirky and hilarious in everything.

With all the perfectly on-spot, over-the-top humor we’ve come to associate with OldSpice, Jaguar this time revs it up with Britishisms, one-liners, and fast cars and planes.

And of course, The Fault in Our Stars trailer. This John Green story is so much more bitingly funny and achingly raw and um, funny than any Nicholas Sparks story, but if the mainstream turns out to see it, it will be for the acting because this looks like a Sparks film.

Veronica/Logan Episode Guide to Veronica Mars

film & television January 15, 2014 1 Comment

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Once upon a time, a petite, snarky loner who moonlights as a private detective meets a fast-talking, troubled bad boy who stopped believing anyone could love him a long time ago. The rest, as they say, is history…or more specifically, sparked one of the longest-running and most dedicated fanbases in television history, heavily contributing to a feature film produced on donated money alone.

Logan and Veronica were one of my original television ships and, recently revisiting them in light of the upcoming film, I fell in mad, intense love all over again. Some things it turns out you don’t grow out of, and even now, years later, I am still taken aback by the sheer perfect setup of this relationship and the off-the-charts chemistry between Kristen Bell and Jason Dohring.

All of which is to say – what are you waiting for to watch this show for the first time, or delve back in for the second? There is wit, sparks, banter, much delicious rescuing of-and-comforting the other in the face of violence and tragedy, and all-around near-perfection.

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AwesomeBox: Hobbit Sculpture and Princess Leia

film & television, this & that January 15, 2014 Leave a comment

This thehobbitpapersculpture(via)

and also, this

bts princess leia(via)

Doctor Who Illustration

film & television January 11, 2014 1 Comment

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Oswaldz on Tumblr created this gorgeous Doctor/Clara Oswald illustration the other day, with the (accurate!) comment that we really need a running montage with these two set to “London Calling”