About a Film: The Guest (2014)

What the fuck

(Anna Peterson)

Director: Adam Wingard
Screenwriter: Simon Barrett
Stars: Dan Stevens, Maika Monroe, Brendan Mayer
Origin: USA
Running: 100 minutes
Synopsis: A soldier visited the family of his fellow

Meet me, the guest!

The Guest, seperti judulnya, film ini tentang seorang tamu yang bukan tamu biasa. Dari awalnya, film ini sudah menunjukkan kalau tamu sepertinya tidak sekedar datang untuk berkunjung, tapi film ini tidak serta merta memberikan identitas si tamu dan apa yang akan dilakukannya. Sedikit demi sedikit hint diberikan dan aku diajak untuk mengira-ngira apa yang akan dilakukan tamu ini. Well, di awalnya si tamu bernama David Collins yang diperankan oleh Dan Stevens ini datang mengunjungi keluarga Peterson yang ternyata adalah teman dari anak mereka, Caleb Peterson, yang sudah meninggal di kemiliteran. David pun jadi seperti pengganti anak mereka yang hilang dan kakak yang melindungi Luke, adik dari Caleb. Luke dan Caleb bisa dekat dengan mudahnya, tapi tidak dengan Anna yang merasa ada sesuatu yang membuatnya tidak menyukai David.

Happy day with a new brother

Film besutan Adam Wingard ini punya cerita yang sedikit menggantung. Ada beberapa hal yang left unsaid mengenai David, tapi anehnya, semua itu ngga jadi masalah yang besar. Malahan, itu yang bikin karakter David semakin menarik buat diliat dan icon 'the guest' yang dijejalkan di judul film ini semakin pas menggambarkan film ini. The thing is film ini berhasil untuk menggambarkan karakter David yang terlihat misterius, menawan, dan inhumanely strong. David di The Guest ini sedikit mengingatkanku dengan The Terminator karena kadang dia terlihat emotionless in his own way.

Look at me, Anna

Karakter Anna di film ini juga menjadi penting karena dia digambarkan sebagai 'love interest' David. David keliatan banget sering memperhatikan Anna dan kadang memberikan affection sedikit kepada Anna, cuman ya apa benar kayak gitu? Apa bener aku bisa ngarepin kalau Wingard memang ada niatan bikin cerita romance diantara bumbu-bumbu thriller yang udah ditebar disana-sini?ngarep atau ngga, film ini sedikitnya bisa bikin aku kesengsem sama karakter David yang sepertinya perhatian dengan Anna. Oiya, belum lagi dengan Luke. Perlakuan David yang melindungi Luke dari anak-anak yang sudah mem'bully' Luke, membuat sosok David seperti kakak yang sempurna. Benar-benar pengganti Caleb yang sempurna. Tapi apa benar sesempurna itu? Ini film thriller, after all. Dan apparently, it's a good one. I have faith in Adam Wingard now. Last sentence, the soundtrack is awfully awesome, especially the 'Anthonio' one.

(peek-a-boo)

Credits:

Shauntmax.com for the film poster

Movieclips Trailer @ youtube for the trailer

About a JDrama: Subete ga F Ni Naru/ The Perfect Insider (2014)

Only 7 is lonely out of all the numbers

(Magata Shiki)

Based on novel "Subete ga F Ni Naru" by Mori Hiroshi

Diector: Joho Hidenori, Ogura Hisao, Kobayashi Yoshinori

Screenwriter: Kuroiwa Tsutomu, Koyama Shota

Stars: Go Ayano, Takei Emi, Akari Hayami

Episodes: 10

Broadcast network:Fuji TV

Synopsis: An university associate professor in architecture named Saikawa Kohei teamed up with his rich and smart female student, Nishinosono Moe to solve murder cases

Aku baru tahu kalau JDrama ini ternyata dari novel misteri yang berjudul sama di tahun 1996. Novelnya ditulis oleh Mori Hiroshi yang ternyata juga seorang engineer, ngga heran sih kalau ternyata ceritanya berbau-bau engineering stuff. Novel sih sudah diadaptasi ke anime, manga, visual novel, dan live-action drama. Nah, disini aku mau ngomongin soal live-action drama nya.

God, she looks so evil

Deretan pemainnya, menurutku, bener-bener promising. Gimana ngga? ada Go Ayano sama Takei Emi. Nambah ternyata Akari Hayami. Waduh, aku berharap gede dah sama live-actionnya. Belum lagi, temanya lumayan menarik dan termasuk thriller/ misteri drama gitu. Wah, sip banget dah! Aku nonton episode dengan penuh ekspetasi sampe kelupaan kalo jangan pernah berekspetasi berlebihan sama sesuatu kalo ngga mau kecewa banget and BAM! emang bener, aku kecewa banget sama ini live-action. I don't know what's wrong with the drama, but I keep wrinkling my forehead everytime I watch it. Sampe rasanya torturing banget tiap harus liat per episode demi namatin ini. Oiya, padahal penampakan Shirota Yu juga yang biasanya paling oke kalo maen di genre thriller, tapi tetep aja ngga mengobati rasa kecewa dengan betapa 'lame'nya live action ini.

No, this is not Insidious

I hate this scene

Why is this happening? Wrong director? Wrong casts? Wrong screenwriter? Aku juga ngga ngerti. Kalau untuk ide cerita, menurutku bagus sih, rada ngingetin sama Galileo, tapi ceritanya punya khas tersendiri. Saikawa Kohei dan Nishinosono Moe yang merupakan karakter utama di cerita ini, masing masing punya kelemahan tersendiri yang bikin mereka melengkapi satu sama lain. Terus dengan keberadaan Dr. Magata Shiki yang mengancam ketenangan hidup mereka bikin cerita nambah intriguing. Tapi, mungkin cara wrapping adegan-adegannya yang bikin geleng-geleng. Aku ingat ada satu scene yang bikin aku 'palmfaceveryhard' karena scene-nya sangat 'fake'. Yah, aku tau mungkin itu for the sake of dramatization but, hell no, it won't work that way. Mungkin pengennnya dimirip-miripin sama adegan yang ada di novelnya tapi.....eeerr....no-no. Dan satu lagi sih, aku ngga ngerasain ada chemistry antara Go Ayano dan Takei Emi di film ini. Apa ya? Biasa -biasa aja gitu, ngga ada greget. Aku malah ngerasa Go Ayano sama Akari Hayami yang malah bisa ngebangun chemistry yang baik (lol). Dan untungnya, keberadaaan Shirota Yu masih dikit menghibur lah. Sepertinya biasa, dia bisa memerankan orang jahat dengan bagus (lol lagi).

No, Can't feel it. Gimme more emotion

Cuman ya balik lagi dah, preference orang beda-beda. Mungkin aja ada yang demen banget sama live-action ini. Atau punya pendapat yang samaan sama aku. Tapi, aku bisa belajar sesuatu dari drama ini, yaitu jangan pernah punya ekspetasi segede bagong walopun aktor sama aktrisnya favorit ane. Daripada ntar malah merasa tersiksa sendiri. Ngarepin kalo dramanya bakal bagus di tengah-tengah episode, eh taunya masih aja berasa flat. Okelah, sekian reviewku tentang live action ini. Ini lagi tumbenan pake bahasa Indonesia soalnya lagi malas ngetik bahasa Inggris. Lagian ini post juga banyak unek-unek juga, lol. Sebenarnya sih ngga jelek-jelek amat lah ni live-action, ada Akari Hayami yang keliatan superb jahat disini and I'm waiting for her another evil character because of this live action, ada Shirota Yu juga yang cuman nampang sebentar, ada Yoshida Kotaro juga yang sebenarnya cocok buat meranin karakter jahat tapi jadi baik disini. Aku sih liatnya live action ini malah isinya banyak pemeran-pemeran yang cocoknya jadi orang jahat, kecuali Takei Emi. Aku belum pernah liat dia main jadi jahat soalnya. Ya, mungkin karena itu juga sih. Tapi Go Ayano pernah di Soratobu Kouhoushitsu sama Aragaki Yui dan hasilnya bagus kok. Mungkin ya, karena kurang chemistry aja kali yak. Sayang banget sih tapinya, the drama has a lot of potential things tapi eksekusinya kurang baek.

Credits:

Bagikuy @ image

About a Film: Oculus (2013)

Hello again! You must be hungry
(Kaylie Russell)

Director: Mike Flanagan
Screenwriter: Mike Flanagan
Stars: Karen Gillan, Brenton Thwaites, Katee Sackhoff, Rory Cochrane
Origin: USA
Runtime: 104 minutes
Synopsis: A family haunted by a mirror

Okay, it's just a dream

2 years ago, my friend told me that she wanted to watch this movie so much and after some time, finally I coud watch it. Just me, though. And now, my first impression was 'damn, it was BH production's, must be a good one'. Then, the story started with the scene of a little girl and her brother's hiding from someone in their house. While they tried to get out from the house, the brother saw 'something' and released a bit yelp which made them getting caught by someone. That someone was shooting her sister, but no worries because it was just a dream. Then, the stories went and the dream was actually from the little brother in the first scene. He grew up and had a problem with his mind that made him entering a mental institution.

You can imagine what it is

Okay, it's pretty good opening scene. There was 'something', a brother with mental illness, and ah ya, the presence of a mysterious mirror. For several years, mirror always had associated with horror movies because its unusual reflection. Well, this movie had it, for several, that jumpscare me for a bit. It was a good tension. The thing was the plot of the movie was moving back and forth, that I thought it would be confusing for some people. Well, some people, not me, though. I guess it might be a good way for the director to wrap all this ideas for 1 hour 44 minutes. Now, the story was moving forward when the sister initiated a plan to kill the mysterious mirror and it was interesting to see on how the sister prepared for everything to destroy the mirror. There were cameras, alarms, thermostats, and everything to help the sister to do her plan. It was an experiment to destroy supernatural mirror, after all. Destroying something spiritual with intellectual stuff, well noted.

Let's kill it

I want to tell more about the story, but I'm not that kind of person. So, I just kept the story that way. In sum, the story was about a pair of sister and brother tried to destroy a mirror which was turned out to be a mirror with supernatural thingy. Well, the movie was not about destroying the mirror, but on how the sister and the brother could cope up with the things that happened in their family. It's a good one, won and nominated some awards. It's also so simple, no exaggerating things. But, the tension was good and why the title was 'Oculus' instead of 'Mirror'? Maybe because the story was more about how the sister and brother looked at their problem.

(trailer oh trailer)

Credits:

Movieclips Trailers @ youtube for the trailer

About a Film: Kindaichi Shonen no Jikenbo Gokumon Juku Satsujin Jiken SP/ Kindaichi Case Files Gate of Jail Private School Murders (2014)

Well, as the title said, it's one of Kindaichi live-action series. The story goes with Kindaichi who joined his friend to study in a private summer school to upgrade his grade. Then, as usual, there is Kindaichi, so there is a case. The students in the private summer school is killed, one by one. And Kindaichi need to solve case in order to stop many students lose their lives. Well, the story is....quite simple, but I know there will be many fangirls willing to watch this. This movie has some ikemen, after all. As for me, I watch the movie because I want to see Kindaichi live-action (I also haven't seen the MatsuJun version). Yet, it's quite funny to see Kindaichi becoming ikemen. I mean, Kindaichi that I know from the manga is not this handsome, pffft.

However, I can enjoy this SP a bit because Hiroki Narimiya is portraying a bad guy. He's always good at being a bad guy, so it's a bit entertaining. To see Kazuki Kitamura in here is also quite helpful for me to keep my eyes to this SP. And again, Nickhun. I thought I've ever saw him in another JDrama, but I can't remember the title. And Chun Wu, I recognize him from some TW drama. And that's it. Not really find it interesting, but I can force myself to enjoy it.

About KDrama: The Village: Achiara's Secret (2015)

Finally, it's done! I tried to finish watching it for several times and last night, mission's accomplished! My comment about this drama is it's like watching Game of Thrones and I'm not a fan of Game of Thrones. In fact, watching some first episodes are like torture for me. There are many things mixed in the story. I don't know if the script writer did try to make the drama as complicated as ever, But, no. It doesn't work for me. It's too much for one drama because everything is entangled in a forced plot story. I'm a bit disappointed watching it since this is the first time I saw Moon Geun-Young after A Tale of Two Sisters and I admit I have much expectation for this movie. Also, since this drama is mystery drama, just as same as A Tale of Two Sisters, which is a mystery film. But, there is nothing I can do about it. I know there are some other people who liked this drama, I'm just happened to be one of the people who find it okay, just an okay drama. I'm also aware to create a mystery drama isn't an easy job. I've watched several and most of them are no good. 

The actors and the actresses, I think they put their best in portraying their characters because they succeeded in making me tormented. I mean, I can't believe how innocent and dumb (sorry) Han So Yoon here and Moon Geun-Young can express those unbelieveable traits perfectly. Really, for some first episodes, the story flows in a very slowly pace, so slowly that I want to pull out my hair. The main character is too dumb (sorry again) to figure out some easy things. Fortunately, for several last episodes, the main character's traits improve into a better one. This is one of the causes why I don't like the drama. The main character's dumbness is unbearable, maybe she's supposed to be an innocent girl but, that's not what I feel. Moreover, I like the supporting characters. All of the supporting characters are good, Honestly, the actors and the actresses in here have powerful characteristics and that's why I kept watching it. Last word, I think 16 episodes are too much for the drama because everything is pretty obvious in 8-9 episode; I mean, I figure out the mystery, even before I'm reaching the last episode.