Good Will Hunting

Gwang's rating: 10.0/10.0

Hello everyone, what's good!

I am sorry to tell you that Titanic 3D turned out to be not as good as it was supposed to be according to what James Cameron said, but I, being a fan of Titanic, will put a judgement away. It's totally up to you to watch this movie but I have to say it goes over three hours so be ready!

I might have mentioned earlier in this blog that I am a huge fan of Leonardo and this awesome guy whom I've been blogging about for this semester. Moreover, I think I told you that I would blog about other movies in which he was not in it but, eventually, I came to conclusion that he was invincible in a way that I can't stop blogging about him. The king of the king whom I would rather lose a year of my life to talk to him for five minutes! His name is.... Matt Damon. AND the last movie that I am about to blog is... Good Will Hunting (Just in case you might have not read the tile of this review)!

I was sitting at a desk in the library to watch this movie for two hours and I did not even think of other things or look at any gorgeous girls walking by me (maybe little). That two hours just passed me by like a second. So appealing and touching movie that I would watch again.

Since I would rather not spoil the story of this movie, I will skim it over little bit. This movie is about a genius guy who is very defensive to other people because of his memories of people whom he deserved love from but didn't seem to receive any. He is also a geniter working at Harvard university and that was the cause of his smartness got revealed by a math professor. And the story starts to get going when he meet with a therapist and we see the way he heals himself through the conversations he has with the therapist. Such a great movie that has a rigid story with great performances of best actors of the U.S. and I can assure you that you wouldn't want to miss every single word that's been spoken in this movie. It will inspire you teach you, and challenge you.

I can't believe my last semester before my Korean military obligation is near to the end. It certainly went quicker than the last semester did. Anyway, i totally recommend you to watch this movie if you haven't done it. It's not fair that i didn't watch this movie until today but I'm so glad that I finally got a chance to watch this movie. Truly truly truly amazing movie.


have fun! :)

Gone (2012)

Gwang's rating : 0 /10.0

Good morning everyone! My clock tells me that it is 2:30 am in the morning. As a proverb goes, an early bird catches a worm. I am that early bird. Today, I would like to share a recent movie, Gone (2012). I went to College 9 Theater with friends. Just to mention, Gone was not my optimal choice. I wanted to watch "the Vow" but two others turn down my suggestion. Gosh, that was harsh and the payoff of watching "Gone" was more harsh. Anyway, so three of us went into the theater and watched a movie. Then,


What in the world?


The first impression I got when I finished watching the movie. Being an optimist, I prefer not to be harsh on the work that people have worked hard on it, but it is time to speak up because I am the movie samurai! I have a responsibility to protect your eyes, brains, and times from being wasted!

The story is about a woman who is being chased by a kidnapper. One day her sister got disappeared but the police wouldn't believe her because she was sent to a mental hospital before. Then, she decides to go find her sister by herself and found her. That's it.

There were some actions scenes in the movie, but the movie could've been better without those action scenes. Those naive action scenes just prove the point that the producer didn't spend enough money on this movie, such as, in a timing when a police car and another car were supposed to hit, they don't hit and stop in a far distance. The reason why I give a negative impression on lacking of violence could be because whether I am exposed to Hollywood movies too much or the movie didn't really spend enough money on it. I'm not asking for more invest but asking for higher quality of scenes. Moreover, there are some major flaws in the story plot which I do not have enough time to mention! If you want your two hours to be wasted for nothing, I highly recommend you to watch this movie!

Have a good day all!

Titanic (1997)

Gwang's rating : 10.0/10.0

Hey, everyone! How are you doing!

I hope you had a wonderful week and are ready for a coming weekend! Since it is supposed to rain during this weekend in State College, I shall enjoy some extra hours of sleep even more!

One of my best movies of all times was born in 1997 and now it is about to be new-born in 6th of April, 2012. I am so excited for it since now it will be on the screen with a 3D technology. It is even more exciting that I will be able to see Kate Winslet's early 20's on the screen again (plus, young Mr. DiCaprio)! Titanic! How long have I been waiting for you to come out again! Thanks to James Cameron.

You guys might wonder why I love this movie so much. So, I must tell you why this movie is so great. Get ready to be convinced!

First, have you ever fell in love with someone in a split moment? I would call it a destiny. It is hard to fall in love with someone whom you have not known for awhile; because they do not know about each other and what they think of each other. It requires a courage to follow an instinct. In reality, we might get charged for a sexual assault or harassment if we try to be romantic with people whom we just met. In this perspective, I was attracted to Titanic because it illustrated a romance that I always long for. I guess it could be the reason why many people watch movies because movies makes impossibility to be possible in them.

Second, I love how Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio) appealed to Rose (Kate Winslet) in the movie. Kate is from a high class family and Jack is from a working class. Jack get stuck on Rose at the first sight and he wants to impress her. It would've been hard for me to talk to her in this situation but Jack did it boldly and he even told Rose that he only has ten dollars in his pocket and that's it. Furthermore, when Jack invites Rose to his pub party, I was so fascinated that Jack is not ashamed or embarrassed of what he had and then he shown himself truly to Rose in the movie. Think of you dating with a daughter of Prime Minister or a duke of York. Would you be comfortable showing all of yourself to those people? I think it would be pretty hard for me if I must impress a woman to love me in a short time. Titanic becomes more attractive at this point.

Last, I just love the theme song, My Heart Will Go On by Celine Dion. Some men say they don't like this song, but I think they do. They just pretend not loving this song because they are afraid of being a fan of romantic songs. I think that is wrong and I love this song. The wonderful lyrics marinates the movie to be great from being cool.

I just can't wait to see Titanic 3D on 6th of April. I'm not sure whether State College theaters are going to get this movie so I really hope they do.

I definitely recommend you to go watch this movie with your romantic partner. We might not be as good looking as Leonardo DiCaprio or Kate Winslet, however, our romances should never be undervalued!

See you next week!

The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo (2009)

Gwang's rating : 8.7/10.0

Hi everyone,

How was your spring break? I hope you had a great time! Whenever I have a lot of time, I usually watch a series of movie, such as, the Lord of the ring, and Harry Potter. Since those movies are quite familiar to you guys, I am going to introduce some unique movie series called "The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo". You might have heard of this movie because the remake version came out in the last year in English version but the original version was made in Sweden and I think the original is better than the new one. So here it is, The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo!

The story line is quite simple. A financial journalist and a hacker gets hired by a person who is trying to find a girl that was missing for 40 years. The combination of the journalist and the hacker is quite a peice and those two faces some threats and obstacles given by the people who try to stop them from the investigation.

http://localmoviereview.com/girl-dragon-tattoo-2009-movie-review/

Though story line is simple, the character of the hacker makes the movie so special, she is described as an anti-social individual who is also illustrated as an ugly woman (but the actress was gorgeous so that the writer's intention wasn't portrayed well). The fight between the girl and the society becomes a big issue at the end.

So the big plot is about the finding the missing girl, but the real story is about how the girl with the dragon tattoo finally recognized as a normal person and stay away from many social injustices.

This movie have shown some good aspect of the media. This movie reminded me of the influence of the media to the public and how important it is for journalists to be honest and brave to scrutinize social injustice.

Overall, the movie creates some gloomy atmosphere, however, that atmosphere makes the movie to be more attractive.

One of the Must Have Watch movie!

Enjoy!

White Collar (2009- Cont.)

Gwang's rating : 9.1/10.0

Hi folks,


Today, I am going to review a Television series, White Collar, which I started watching about two weeks ago. In short, I'm watching this series everyday night (even when I have to sacrifice my sleep hours) and I almost finished the season 1, and it gets just better. I know my blog is supposed to introduce movies to you but I have a strong feeling about this TV series today, White Collar.

http://lamisaraziz.wordpress.com/

White Collar is a police-procedural drama that gives you the fake-glimpse of what FBI agents are doing for their jobs. Though some might say it is just another typical type of FBI, CIA TV series, I guarantee White Collar is something special and here are some reasons.

White Collar scenarios heavily depends on the main character, Neal Caffrey, who is a white color criminal,works with FBI instead of serving his years in a prison. He is illustrated as a genius guy in the story which may lessen some people's interests, but the drama gets so interesting when Neal speaks up and solve the people. My most favorite part is whenever Neal is trying to flirt with girls. I always wish I could talk as well as he does. So I would say, for me, White Collar is not just entertaining but educational as well (I see boys are already looking up on Google).

 http://www.fanpop.com/spots/hilarie-burton/images/17844805/title/hilarie-burton-on-white-collar-photo

I wish I were like him sometimes.

http://funkybeardecor.com/man-cave-the-beginning/

http://www.malecelebnews.com/2011/08/25/matt-bomer-sighting-6/matt-bomer-filming-on-the-set-of-white-collar-looking-as-handsome-as-ever-11/

There is another main character, Peter Burke, a mid-age FBI agent, who is in direct-charge of Neal Caffrey. Neal and Peter always work together but it seems like Peter doesn't trust Neal and check on him all the time, though Peter worry out Neal's safety sometimes. White Collar illustrate an invisible fight over people and draws some distrust atmosphere around Neal that creates some uncertainty and curiosity from the people. I like this concept since it wouldn't make sense that FBI trusts Neal Caffrey completely, who is a white color criminal.

 http://www.fanpop.com/spots/white-collar/images/18307407/title/peter-burke-photo

I have more to say, but I will let you watch the series and tell me how it was. Everything is better to experience than overhear from someday. Experience is everything. I strongly recommend you to watch White Collar (especially boys who would like to learn how Neal plays his game).

Have a great spring break everybody & Enjoy!

 http://www.entertainmentwallpaper.com/download/20019307/

Turtle: The Incredible Journey (2011)

Gwang's rating: 8.8 / 10.0


She only knows to keep swim... to stay in her course.


Hi everyone, welcome back!
About 10 minutes ago, I just finished watching the greatness of the nature we always take for granted. I know it may not be a kind of a movie you would pick right away from Redbox or Netflix, I certainly enjoyed it therefore I will try to broaden your cinematic safety zone.

 coveringmedia.com

'Turtle: The Incredible Journey' documents the loggerhead turtle's life from the birth to the reproduction. This documentary movie not only narrates the incredible journey of a turtle, but also guides us to explore the hidden beauty of the sea-creatures and the ocean. Unlike the Hollywood movies, this movie creates a sentimental and awe inspiring atmosphere throughout the movie. The uniqueness of this movie is definitely its chronological plot that inspires people to think about the meaning of our life. As the loggerhead turtle starts a journey, she knows where to go by instinct. Though she faces lots of difficulty on the way, she overcomes and moves on. Somebody could say the loggerhead turtle doesn't mean anything; however, her bold journey left me a question at the end of the movie:

'What is the ultimate goal in your life? Are you ready to sacrifice yourself to earn it?'

coveringmedia.com

Last, the harmonic combination between the beautiful scene and the orchestra assists the life of the turtle to be more interesting and dynamic. Without the orchestra this movie wouldn't be as appealing as it is now. Its sounding reminds me of Black Swan (2010) in which the orchestra describes the delicate changes of moods and emotions of characters. Addition to that, I like the way the producer illustrates how the turtle becomes stronger by facing those difficulties. I dare to say it is better than many of the Hollywood action movie (I couldn't breathe when the baby turtle try to escape from a vicious crab).

coveringmedia.com

Overall, this movie is definitely worth watching it. You will journey with a cute turtle throughout the wide ocean. You will be overwhelmed by the courage and determination of the turtle in the movie. It will inspire you, and challenge you. Could be a great movie to watch with family or by yourself!
Have fun with the loggerhead!

 coveringmedia.com

Syriana (2005)

Gwang's rating: 8.1 / 10.0

Hey Guys! How are you?

It's been a week and I can't wait to share another movie with you guys! Since I haven't gotten any chance to watch a movie during the week, I would like to share the movie I watched over Christmas break. Don't worry, my memory is as clear as a glass of water.



By the way, starting from this one, I decided not to go over the story of the movie unless it is necessary. Since you can find a story line from other online resources, I would rather spend my time on observe the theme of the movies and spend more on finding the interpretation of the movie than tell you the story.

Syriana (2005) was one of the political movie that I have watched in my life. Let's not count the movies of Tom Cruise, Matt Damon, or other Hollywood stars. I know George Clooney is a Hollywood star too, but this movie is something different from other CIA movies and FBI movies. First time I read the title of the movie, I thought the story line was going to be the CIA versus a group of terrorists from Middle East but I was totally wrong. It was the U.S. corporation versus Pakistan presumably.

This movie accuses the United States for being a king of the world. I assume you already know the behaviors of some infamous U.S. corporations,You will still be amazed how the United States appoints the king of the countries in Middle East, and control all the information and geography of other countries. This movie visualizes the behind story of all the global issues in which the United States is always involved indirectly. The movie meets the sad-ending (sorry for the spoiling!)but it is so powerful to be ended like that.

George Clooney played both a main character and an outsider. No doubt on his performance. And I hate to tell you but Matt Damon was in the movie too! It was a great combination! However, because of the nature of the movie they weren't major parts of it. The movie was so big and enormous that I didn't pay attention to the individual actors.
 

If you are going to watch this movie. Go for it. But I would like to warn you that the first half of the movie is quite boring to be honest. However, it is necessary to be like that in order to build the story up. I enjoyed it and I have no doubt you would enjoy it!
 

The Departed (2006)

Gwang's rating: 8.8 / 10.0

Here we go "The Departed"! I feel guilty because this is the second review of Leonardo DiCaprio's movie already(and there are only three reviews so far).  BUT! I thought it was worth discussing this movie for your own benefit. AND! Matt Damon is in this movie as well! What a great movie it was even before I watched it. Some people say 'Don't judge a book by its cover,' but I think sometimes you should when choosing movies.

I love the choices of the movies that Mr. DiCaprio films. His movies always makes me think while watching the movie, and after the movie is over; his choices are not like a typical Hollywood movies that makes you feel guilty after watching them. Anyway, here we go The Departed.

The Departed was a spy movie but not like James Bond 007 series. Two undercover men from opposite sides play their role within the Massachusetts State Police and the Irish Mafia. Billy (Leonardo DiCaprio), a undercover cop, tried to be a police but his family record didn't let him be an elite police officer instead be an undercover cop. Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon), a undercover from the mafia, works for his boss, Frank Costello (Jack Nicholson), who runs the Irish Mafia. As the story goes on, each sides sense the existence of rats in their groups and gets wild to find out the identities of those rats.

Billy (Leonardo DiCaprio, left) and Colin (Matt Damon, right)

From the Titanic to the Inception, Leonardo DiCaprio has never failed to portrait the character that directors wanted him to; and this movie wasn't the exception. Being an intelligent guy with a good morality, Billy suffers throughout the whole movie with a fear of getting caught, and an uncertainty of his future. The movie gets cathartic whenever he escapes from all the traps and questions from Frank Costello with his witty responses and high intelligence. He was a good example that shown how a life would be so much better if I were smart.

 Billy is being asked to answer the questions by Frank Costello

While our good guy, Billy, was getting all the nasty jobs done, Colin was sitting in the police department building and had a cup of coffee. By showing the contradiction in their life, the movie illustrated the irony of our society. Matt Damon certainly portrayed Colin's personality well throughout the movie. And the movie gets so interesting when they knew the existence of each other without knowing who they are.

The fantastic team play made by those actors created one of the best movie in my personal list. If you like a high-pace, thriller movie, this is movie is just for you. I didn't give 10 /10 rate only because of the language used in the movie (I guarantee that you will hear four letter word least hundred times). BUT! The language is what makes this movie so good to describe the emergency of the story.

Go and watch! Have fun!

True Grit (2010)

Gwang Lee's rating : 7.2 / 10.0

I hear you're a man of true grit.- Mattie Ross speaks to Rooster Cogburn


A U.S. Marshal helps out a smart young to avenge for her father's death. That's a basic story line of this movie. I heard that it is based on the novel but I haven't gotten a chance to read the book, so this review is just about the movie. No judgement upon how well it reflected the novel.

First of all, I couldn't resist not watching this movie, since Matt Damon was in the movie. It could be TMI, but I watch almost every single movie of him. Yet, he has never disappointed me. You must be a spy from North Korea if you haven't heard of Bourne Identity. Therefore, I had a big expectation on this movie, too. Too much.

We love western style movies. A real man riding a horse to the endless horizon where the sun sets at. In that perspective, True Grit, somehow, satisfied me. True Grit released me into a vast field of Western, and it displayed some classic sceneries and costumes from the nineteenth centuries.

I just love how the people dressed up in the nineteenth centuries

However, I was disappointed at the lack of vivid personalities of characters. I think Mattie Ross was supposed to be a girl who was eager and bloodthirsty to find out a man who killed her father; however, she was illustrated as just a young girl who was extremely intelligent. Her intelligence was quite a distracting point throughout the movie. However, I give an applause for the effort of a young actress. 

Mattie Ross seeks for avenger of her father's death

Then, LaBoeuf, a Texan officer, disappointed me again (I say it was the first time Matt Damon disappointed me). Until the end of the movie, I couldn't figure out the importance of LaBoeuf in the movie. He was illustrated as a man who consistently quit in conflicts instead of trying to solve the problem. Consider LaBoeuf was shown as a determined, brave officer, his character was dramatically changed throughout the movie. However, I could see Matt Damon has worked hard to visualize the personality of LaBoeuf. It was just too hard and vague

Officer LaBoeuf (Matt Damon)

However, Rooster Cogburn, saved this movie and all the staff from making less money than they invested. Thanks to Jeff Bridges for his effort! Rooster Cogburn, a U.S. Marshal, was a main assistant for Mattie's avenger and he cared after Mattie throughout the movie; and this image appealed some different aspect of Mr. Cogburn in this movie. Though his external personality was a man who was careless and cold-heart, Jeff Bridges displayed Rooster's internal personality, such as his carefulness, thoughtfulness, so well throughout the movie. 

Overall, there was a disappointment in the personalities of characters, and the ending was creepy as well.  However, I do not discourage you from watching this movie. It certainly is a classic movie, and you will find some sentimental moments between the scenes. I would call it for a family movie over break, but not a good movie for a dating! Enjoy!

Shutter Island (2010)

Gwang Lee's rating:   8.5 / 10.0


It is never a pleasure to be ended up in a mental hospital. Why? Because no one will pay attention to what you are saying. It doesn't matter who you really are, but it only matters what a doctor tell about who you are. Shutter Island lead us to the deep, dark side of the mental hospital, the Ashecliffe Hospital.


Teddy Daniels (Leonardo DiCaprio), a brilliant U.S. Marshals, travel to the Ashecliffe hospital to figure out the criminal who escaped from the hospital. As soon as he went inside of the hospital, Teddy senses uncomfortable feelings from the patients who look abnormal and desperate. He goes into the office to see Dr. Cawley (Ben Kingsley) and Dr. Naehring (Max Von Sydow) to hear about the criminal and they visit places where Teddy would get some clues. Keep having an uncomfortable gut feeling, Teddy thinks Dr. Cawley and Dr. Naehring are trying to hide something from him about the criminal's escape. At the same time, he gets a three letters message from a patient during the interview: 'RUN'

One of the  patients at the Ashecliffe Hospital

Though he keeps thinking that he wouldn't be able to find the clues out for this case, he decides to stay in order to do his private investigation, finding a murderer who is a suspect murderer of Teddy's wife. However, as the days go, Teddy gets more headache, fainting, and nightmares; but he doesn't know what's going on and keep investigating. 

Teddy Daniels (left, Leonoardo DiCaprio) and Dr. Cawley (right, Ben Kingsley) arguing over the evidences

As his investigation seems to go father, he is more convinced that the two doctors are experimenting on the patients. Accidentally, Teddy meets the escaped criminal while finding his partner, then he realizes that he is exposed to the danger of being hospitalized without a consent. In order to find out the truth, Teddy decides to go to the lighthouse where the truth is or is meant to be. AND, the story starts heading to the climax.

The lighthouse where the truth is meant to be

Shutter Island will make you keep questioning the validation of the truth. Since the movie ends with open-ending, the answers are varied from person to person, it is certainly worth of watching movie and try to figure out who is right by comparing with other people's opinions.


If you've watched the movie "Inception," and you liked it, I strongly recommend you to watch this movie. This movie will make you think and it will challenge your sixth senses to figure out the answer.




Enjoy!