Upcoming 2013 Movies

I have way too many unwatched movies in my hard drive to be this excited to watch new ones. But when there are so many movies slated for release this year, I can't help but feel giddy! There are three movies that caught my eyes and I'll present them to you from my least to the most anticipated movie.

Hey, it's not always that I find the myself ranking things because I'm just so awful at ranking. One time, a reader asked me to rank my favorite actors and a month or so later, I still haven't.

I digress. Anyway, here are the movies!

It Takes a Man and a Woman

Here comes John Lloyd Cruz and Sarah Geronimo's third movie a.k.a. the sequel to the sequel of A Very Special Love a.k.a. the movie in which Sarah's wig goes to the pit of hell. Seriously though, the first thing that would come to your mind when you watch the trailer isn't how excited you are for the third installment or how Laida and Miggy seem to have broken up. The first thing that you'd notice is how horrid Sarah's wig is. Third movie, third wig. Definitely the worst wig, too. I don't understand! Why does she have to wear a wig!

However, I think I'll still watch this because it's a John Lloyd movie and I watch all John Lloyd movies. Sarah as Laida is still silly which I like but I suffer through secondhand embarrassment for her and it's only the trailer. It's really intriguing how they are already broken up in this movie since in the previous movie, You Changed My Life, they were fine in the end.

This movie premieres on March 30.

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These girls are ready to kick some ass!

Joseon Trio of Beauties

Korea is in trouble and we need some ass-kicking beauties to save the day.

Here comes another movie that convinces me that I want to be Ha JiWon. She's gearing up to be THE female action star of Korea and she fits the role quite well. This time, Brown Eyed Girl's Gain and Kang YeWon are with her to form the trio of kickass girl that will be the hero of Joseon Dynasty. I cannot wait to devour this movie.

This is the first time that I'll see Gain act and I'm a bit scared? I don't know, I like her a lot, especially after watching her stint on We Got Married. But she's acting next to Ha JiWon and Kang YeWon, whom I love in Ghost Sweepers, so Gain really needs to prove herself in this one! But I won't worry a bit.

Watch the trailer here (without eng subs!).

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Pee Mak Phra Khanong

Tell me you still don't want to see the movie after watching the trailer! Besides being the latest Mario Maurer film, it's a horror-comedy movie and I'll watch anything in that genre. Let's just say that it's my guilty pleasure.

It's a parody of a Thai folktale about how a wife and her child die while the husband is off to war. The wife and child turn into ghosts, and when the husband comes backs he doesn't believe that they're already ghosts. But in the trailer you don't see the child? Anyway, I'm pretty sure that I'd spend more time getting scared than actually laughing. It's more horror than comedy to me!

But you see, the main reason why I want to watch this is because it's from GTH! But really, I noticed that my top 5 Thai movies are GTH films. I have yet to watch a movie from them that I do not like. It's like it's already an assurance that this movie will hit the right note for me.

So yes, I'll definitely watch this one!

The cast of Pee Mak. So cute.

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That is all. I am currently watching Suddenly It's Magic. Mario is so cute in this movie, and Erich is proving more and more why I do not like her. That is all. Have a happy weekend! x

Must Be Love (2013)

Must Be Love (2012)

Watching a movie like Must Be Love is something that you can't easily tell others. So when my friend and I told others that we're watching it,  we got laughed at, which is expected and I take no offense. This is the kind of movie that you don't really take seriously, so I entered the movie house with very little expectations and surprisingly came out with a lighter step and a huge smile on my face.

If you'd judge the movie based on the poster, it's a romantic comedy about two just-got-out-of-puberty teens who are two young to talk about true love and "slowmo" moments with someone. Though the movie is truly about that, it's also about life-long friendship and self love and discovery. It's coming-of-age and RomCom rolled into one. It has its flaws, but I like it for what it is.

Patchot (Kathryn Bernardo) and Ivan (Daniel Padilla) are childhood best friends who both enjoy playing basketball and engaging in petty arguments. With the picturesque Cebu as the backdrop for their summer love story, it's a common plot of best friends falling in love with each other. It doesn't try to be what it's not. It's the big screen debut of the love team that's causing so much noise in Twitter and could attract a crazy crowd wherever they go. The movie banks on the charm that makes the KathNiel love team such a huge hit and it works!

Obviously, it's the romance that the target audience wants to get from the movie, but it's the comedy that made me enjoy it most. Unlike recent Pinoy RomComs who try too hard to be funny and resort to body gags, Must Be Love actually has witty dialogue! Most of the obvious laughs are from the comedians John Lapus and Cacai Bautista. However, it's surprising to know that Daniel Padilla could actually deliver punch lines really well! (He also plays the part of a playboy who knows he can cause any girl to swoon really well. REALLY, REALLY WELL. I wonder if it's still acting!) Yes, I laughed at the cheesy scenes, but I also genuinely laughed at the clever lines thrown by the leads and secondary characters. Or maybe I'm just being incredibly shallow.

Maybe I'm giving way too much credit to the movie, but it's really something that I enjoyed. I guess to enjoy it, you have to like the tandem first, because a lot of screentime are simply devoted to cause kilig to the viewers. I swear I swooned everytime Daniel smiles. So shoo the fangirl in me, I don't really care.

This movie may be tackling the love story of kids who are still too young to take love a bit too seriously, but this movie effectively made me feel like a teenager. I like it for its nonchalant take on teenage love and how it basks on the leads' charm. So yes, I will download this movie once the torrent is released.

Tidbits: That Winter, Tohoshinki's Time, and Other Fangirl Stuff

I've been a bad blogger lately. I've been watching tons of Asian flicks but haven't blogged even one. Not that I've been lazy, it's just that work has been stressful! But I will work on rants and raves about those movies later this week (more like next week, tbh). For the meantime, I decided to start this series in which I talk about the things I'm into. I don't do that much blogging, but I certainly haven't been lazy on the watching part of being a fangirl.

Behind the scenes of That Winter

That Winter the Wind Blows has me captivated. When I started watching this drama, I suddenly shoved Flower Boy Next Door to the side because TWWB is just so compelling. I usually hate spoilers but since I already watched Love Me Not (the movie version of this drama!), I already know what's going to happen in the end. I'm pretty sure my hoping and pining for a happier ending will be futile but I continue to hope and pine anyway.

Jo InSung's first drama after his military service is proving to be a hit in the ratings. It's also the comeback drama of Song HyeGyo and I can say that they made a good choice. The drama has a pretty tight plot, amazing writing, strong cast, and jaw-dropping cinematography. I think KimBum's too strong an actor to play a second lead, though, and I'm definitely not a fan of EunJi here. But overall, this is my favorite 2013 drama so far, not that I've watched a lot.

Also, the last episode I watched (ep. 9!) disappointed me a bit. But it still has my heart and I cannot wait for the next episode.

Tohoshinki's latest album T/ME is amazing! I'm no expert when it comes to music but their album is all I listen to lately. Since I've been a fan of DBSK since their debut, it used to irk me when they promote in Japan more. I wasn't a fan of their earlier Japanese singles. It was only after the split that I had a suddent appreciation for their Japanese songs. And from TONE, I realized that their Japanese albums are really miles better than their Korean ones.

So I had high expectations for T/ME and I'm glad to report that they're well met.

It took me a while to warm up to some songs but after hearing it the third time, I'm hooked! Fated threw me off a bit because it reminded me of Tri-Angle and even O Jung Ban Hap for it's epicness and grandiosity. But after a few more listens, I decided that it's tons better. Somehow, I cannot listen to the album without listening to it first.

My favorite songs are the mid-tempo ones because they make me so darn happy for weird reasons! Aitakute Aitakute Tamaranai has been my LSS for the past couple of days because come on, Aitakute is repeated a million times in the song! But it's really rather catchy. One More Thing is another upbeat happy song that I'd probably listen when I'm down. Some don't like In Our Time saying that it's pretty but boring, but I think just listening to would make you appreciate it more. And I've been listening to it a lot and it's niiiiice. Of the new songs, One and Only One is my favorite, and not just because it's ChangMin's favorite track, too, okay.

But of course, I Know will forever be my favorite ballad of theirs. After they released the PV for the song a couple of months ago, I've been listening to it everyday and I still haven't tired of it. 

Tohoshinki is breaking their own records and making new ones. They're topping the Oricon charts and soon, they'll start their five-dome tour in Japan! I'm so happy with what they've achieved, and I know that they deserve it!

P.S. I cannot wait to get my own copy of the album!

P.P.S. ChangMin is so adorable on King's Brunch! If you haven't seen it yet, watch it here!

Last November, Lee MinHo went to the Philippines as a Bench endorser for some fan meeting and meet and greet. I had a couple of interactions with him and definitely one of the highlights of my 2012! Seeing the amazing Daejang in person is too precious a memory okay!

Recently, Bench  released a DVD of the LMH's visit to country. Though I do not have a copy of the said DVD, someone uploaded a clip online. To my surprise, I was in the video! Though my friends and family are laughing at me for being such a fangirl and getting caught in the act, I am actually quite proud, okay.

Below's my mini appearance. You can see me at 00:53. I'm the smiling girl behind Lee MinHo. It was in the arrival area of NAIA and I have blogged about that little experience over here.

Hohohoho. This reminds me, I haven't written about the Bench Fun Meet and Meet-and-greet! Must work on that soon. Gah, my backlog is killing me.

CNBLUE's Blue Moon Tour poster

It's confirmed that CNBLUE will have a concert in the Philippines on June, and my friends and I have been waiting for the ticket prices to be revealed. All this waiting is killing me because I really have to know how much it'll be so I can start saving! I've seen them perform live last June and I just want to see them again! Though I cannot say that I'm a Boice, I'm a big big big big fan of their music! In the KPOP world, it's safe to say that they're my second bias!

Yes, the exclamation points are necessary because I AM THAT EXCITED!

I will miss you, Prince Shim!

On a sadder note, Moonlight Prince aired their last episode last Tuesday. I am really sad about this because ChangMin's doing so well! It's just a literature variety program isn't something that the general public would like to see, so I'm not surprised with the low ratings.

I've been incredibly happy to see ChangMin doing so well, and I've taken a fancy with the other MCs. I don't find it boring, too! It's just a lot more subdued than other variety shows. /le sigh

But I guess it's all for the better since ChangMin will be busy with their Japan tour this April. But I will definitely miss Prince Shim and the other not-so-young Princes.

Watch his farewell message here.

Wow, this post is longer than planned. I guess I can never keep my comments and rants short! haha. I promise to work on my movie reviews, but it will probably take me a week to post it!

Obviously the best way to end this post x

Flower Boy Next Door (2013)

이웃집 꽃미남 

Flower Boy Next Door is the third installment of TvN's Oh Boy! series. And for the nth time, I cannot help but laud the cable station for continuously churning out quality dramas one after another. Though Flower Boy Next Door, may not be their best, it's still one of the better ones in the land of Kdramas.

It was love at first episode for me. I was instantly hooked over the quirky and eccentric characters. Go DokMi (Park ShinHye) is a recluse, a homebody who has long chosen to stay indoors and avoid human contact. Enrique Geum (Yoon ShiYoon) is a reknowned animator. Though Korean, he grew up and became popular in Spain. Their lives intertwined so adorably that I couldn't help but quickly love these two. They are two different individuals who in the course of our story, brought out the best in each other. It's my favorite type of love story.

Park ShinHye being adorable; Yoon ShiYoon being Ke-geum-ah

There are many things to love about this drama and one of that is the amazing leads that are Park ShinHye and Yoon ShiYoon. I have seen most of Park ShinHye's works but this is my favorite role of her yet. Though I had only seen her as a cutesy actress before, her portrayal of Go DokMi exudes raw talent and depth in understanding her character. This is the first time I see Yoon ShiYoon in action, and I cannot help but just be awe by his interpretation of Enrique's character. He plays a child-like and boisterous character who can be annoying but Yoon ShiYoon managed to make it adorable. I was worried that I'd end up hating his character but the consistency and dimension of Yoon ShiYoon's Enrique is endearing until the end.

With winter as its backdrop, FBND tells an engaging story of a girl who hides herself from the world and a boy who tries to bring him back into it. It's heartfelt, it's emotional, it's heart-warming, it's real. These are what I felt just from the first few episodes alone. The tight writing brought to life by an amazing cast made me love this series. If only I felt this way till the last episode, I would have easily claimed this to be my favorite drama for 2013 despite the fact that it's only March. But the first half of the drama is really solid, almost flawless. I was head over heels in love with the character development of Go DokMi and Enrique. Then we reach the last four episodes and I wonder what happened.

DokMi with the flower boys!

It's not like I have many qualms about the series, but if there's one word to describe the last four episodes, it's underwhelming.

First, we have a secondary lead, Oh JinRak (Kim JiHoon), who seems to have a dark and mysterious past. But when we learn what this past is, we also learn how it is mysterious and it can be dark, but not that relevant to the story. I still don't understand why it's given so much importance from the very first episode when it really does nothing to the story. How it's so easily resolved and brushed over just makes me sad.

Second, I feel like it could have been a better drama if it's a lot shorter. The last few episodes felt like fillers, just so they could reach that 16-episode mark. The growth shown by Go DokMi is enough to make me feel proud like a mother, but the episodes after that really did nothing else for her character, and the same can be said for Enrique. The additional conflict in which Enrique should decide whether he'd go back to Spain or not just seems so forced. The nuance that is the fangirls and fanboys doesn't help.

And third, nothing else really happesn in the last two episodes. It's good that we see what happened with every character, but by that point, I no longer care because I already know that it'll be a happy ending. I also cringe at the last scene because it reminded me too much of Shut Up's last scene.

♚

It's really too bad because it is a good drama but the fact that the ending didn't match with the awesomeness of the first half is saddening. But if I will sum up all the good parts, it'll be like this:

1. Go DokMi and Enrique are two of the best characters in dramaland. Fleshed out characters who aren't perfect but perfectly written and portrayed.
2. The narration in the start and end of every episode gives a good insight on our leads' thoughts. It also sets the mood for quite an atmospheric drama.
3. DongHoon and Manager PD are the bestest OTP ever. Omg their every scene together!!!!!!
4. Still better than most of the mainstream dramas!

So basically, it's still a drama worth watching.