Working through the formula: Kdramas

Best Love: A love story set in Korea’s TV/film industry. The hero, an egotistical actor, figures out he loves the heroine, a down-and-out singer, by measuring his pulse.

I like watching Korean dramas. They’re usually fluffy romcoms, with enough melodrama and separation that drives viewers mad but not away. (I say usually because there is something called A Love to Kill – beautiful to see but extremely tough to watch).

These shows usually work within a paradigm. Most of them are love stories of a rich, emotionally-stunted hero and a poor but heart-warming heroine. Of course, there are usual suspects - the side hero who love the poor girl but has a fatal flow (he’s her brother, is the best of the lot); the side-heroine, who has her agenda but is deep down a kind person. For the pair to get together in the end, there are obstacles like the hero’s stern family, the heroine’s always-broke dad, etc.

 
Gloria: This show had all the familiar trappings of a K-drama. A closed-up hero who only knew how to express himself through getting beat up and a heroine who raised her older but mentally-challenged sister by doing 10 jobs a day.

So within this age-old formula, which works wonders in all cultures, it is always difficult to establish an OTP (one true pairing) that can sustain a) their own character flaws b) family outbursts and machinations and c) ratings! The first one is extremely negotiable, though.

Goong/Princess Hours: A classic trope loved by all, the forced marriage, with the added bonus of being set in a royal household, Goong is much-liked by all. The story is shaky but there are spots of good acting. Mostly, the OTP wins hearts. 

In any case, while the formula is constraining and limited, the possibilities of experimentation are huge. The same story told through different lens, with things changed here and there, just fuels the fancy of viewers. While Gloria added the theme of revenge to the story, Best Love became a story told through metaphors and symbols.

While I haven’t watched many Kdramas, I’m still waiting to see them try some Japanese police/detective shows like Trick. Can someone make that somewhere?!

A week’s worth of films

Here are some of the films I have this new year. Nothing recent and nothing spectacular or off the charts. Some just sounded interesting and some were critically-acclaimed.

1. Dressed to Kill
Last year I finally saw Scarface. I thought another Brian De Palma film wouldn’t hurt, especially one whose synopsis from IMDB read :A mysterious, tall, blonde woman, wearing sunglasses murders one of a psychiatrist's patients, and now she's after the prostitute who witnessed it. 

2. Leon the Professional
This movie is always floating in IMDB lists; so finally picked it up. While watching it, I loved the music, especially juxtaposing it with the continuous massacre in the film.

3. Paths of Glory
I am making an effort to watch war films. I haven’t counted but this might be my third war/anti-war film.
Paths of Glory is an anti-war parable, mostly about how war is not about the macro-picture but just about individual ambitions trumping over the lives of feeble soldiers. I was appalled and shocked at the right moments and Kirk Douglas was a revelation! Also Stanley Kubrick as the director ain’t bad either! 

4. The Social Network
I avoided this film on purpose. It’s difficult to see this film as an objective viewer. I’ll post a very apt blog entry by Filmdr who says that after watching this film ‘two ironies emerge’:
a) A shy, anti-social young man electronically seduces the world by appealing to everyone's social instincts.
b) Goaded on by sexual rejection and class resentment, Zuckerberg invents the ultimate club that establishes its own kind of exclusivity by allowing only members with the Harvard.edu address, but then he gradually lets everyone join. Like a bunch of lemmings, we do.

5. The Bad Seed
What makes a child go bad? Is it nurture or nature? I think the film tried to answer the question by introducing us to a child who acts perfect but is a basket of killings waiting to unravel. The film is a precursor to Children of the Corn, The Omen’s Damien but at a small, household level.

6. The Hurt Locker
In my attempts to watch War films, I came across this Oscar winner. I liked the film; the tension is palpable and loved the first words of the film:  The rush of battle is a potent and often lethal addiction, for war is a drug. There is no rush and there is no fast—paced action. Just the strain of getting out of anywhere alive. The film flowed like a poem, and ended where it began.


7. Winter’s Bone
I had heard a lot about the film but no names had popped up. The film’s story is nothing great, a girl who is hunting for her father; but the cinematography with the bleak and desolate land and a futile search kept me hooked. A thriller story set in the neo-noir country, the film creeps up on you. Just goes to show you that a good film can be made with less resources.

Around the year, again

What’s new about the year?
It’s just figures, ain’t it?
Another number to bear,
Makes me older and you know it!

Under the moonlight and the sunshine,
it’s the blinding beam all over again.
Tired and dead,
We all fall down the drain.

Fighting crime from the ivory tower

I guess when you’re spending a lot of time marathoning The Closer and Law and Order, you also start to notice things like this. I’m not surprised the city isn’t safe – it’s not new. What I am surprised at is things like this:

I thought this was a known fact (or is it just because of television?).


C’mon paper! The headline sucks!! And apart from being sexist, are you saying that one day you’ll be able to say that the city is safe? Is there any city that is??

 

A Breaking Bad break

It’s Jessie and Hector from Breaking bad!

Just LOLed so hard after this!! This guy doesn’t speak a line in the whole series but his character was awesome!

Stolen from here

One Piece beckons

This Sunday was dedicated to One Piece. I had been reminiscing about the series now that I have decided to stop seeing it for a few months (love to let it build up). So the pictures below are from the first ten episodes I saw today. If you haven’t seen it, go see it. If you’ve seen it, you know it’s great!
In the first few episodes, we see a pattern developing:

Ya, if you haven’t seen One Piece, you might think he’s serious, but Luffy, of course, after saying this, bursts out laughing!

Luffy and food! Not Luffy and Hancock, but Luffy and food!

Luffy and Zorro.

I think this was a wonderful meeting. Both of them have
major/life-defining goals, but find each other appealing and crazy (Well, everyone finds Luffy crazy, but here Luffy finds Zorro cool!) We are also introduced to the 3-sword style and Onigiri, but Luffy-Zorro combo is a must-see. I like Sanji as much as these two and he’s as perverted as he is powerful. I also think that the anime builds up on these three guys as the lead. Sometimes it’s just nice to see these three appear when Nami and Usopp are in trouble.

Speaking of her, Nami isn’t half-bad. She isn’t very hands-on in the fighting area, but she sure is logical and clever. Nothing misses her, tricks, tomfoolery or treasure!

Aww, this dog was so sweet!

Of course Luffy loves loyalty and helps the dog! He’s been wearing that hat since so many years (see below) and seeing a dog fight for his late master’s shop needs no further motivation.

This is one of the rare times I’ve seen Luffy angry. I think he’s intense in the Arlong Park/Nami’s arc and in Robin’s arc, he’s just plain right awesome! But that hat is like magic. It’s connecting him, Shanks and Gol D Roger.

To be very honest, I didn’t/don’t really like Captain Buggy. I think I read somewhere that Oda created him very early on. Also found this: Asked if Buggy's penis were also able to split and fly off, author Oda replied "his penis can fly too". – I love you too Oda!

Yes Luffy and food – we get it! Best relation he has had!

Okay, this villain – Jango the hypnotist – walks backward and falls asleep when hypnotising his patients! How Cool!!

I just finished ten episodes and I am so looking forward to Usopp, Sanji and Nami’s battle!

For the love of truth

The Closer is a pure bliss. Love her or hate her, Brenda gets you results.She doesn’t always do it by the book, but her passion and determination are so exhilarating, siding with her is the only way out. Too bad it’s ending! 

I’m a sucker for detective shows and I’ll take them in any form- Detective Conan, Agatha Christie, Midsomer Murders, The Closer, Psych and so on. I like it when there’s rigorous fact-finding, a bit of analysis and maybe a moral or two.


Keizoku 2: Spec: Lazy cop and angry cop solve crimes related to special abilities.

Just to be clear I mostly watch shows that include more investigation/talking and less CSI work. For me CSI work should be limited to aiding an investigation and not being just the investigation. I’m sure there’s more to detective/police work than just blood/spatter analysis and an autopsy.


Detective Conan: One of the longest running manga and a great detective show. Not only is there a new mystery with each episode, but there’s a over-arching mystery that’s just too cool (the villains are named Gin, Vodka, and Vermouth!); Plus having awesome love pairings also helps a bit.

I also dislike shows like Bones, Castle. I think their strength is mostly the pair and the will-they-won’t-they aspect of it. However, there is just one time that something like that actually worked. And it was:


Trick: A perpetually-scared professor and an out-of-work magician team up to resolve what seem like miracles. Not only is this chemistry great, but the plot is wonderful too.

Some other recommendations: The Mentalist, Midsomer Murders, Jonathan Creek, Columbo.

The many faces of Shinichi/ Detective Conan

Yes they are very different!

Of course everyone is out to get me!

Disorder | Rating
Paranoid: Very High
Schizoid: High
Schizotypal: High
Antisocial: Low
Borderline: Low
Histrionic: Low
Narcissistic: High
Avoidant: High
Dependent: Low
Obsessive-Compulsive: Moderate

I take these sort of tests once in a while and as I think, so I receive. Though I think there is some conspiracy here. I would say I’m extremely antisocial and dependent. But if I say I let other people make my important decisions, it’s an oxymoron, isn’t it?

URL of the test: http://www.4degreez.com/misc/personality_disorder_test.mv

A gift from Japan

Of course, despair becomes you Japan.