Pethushka

While I'm glad that the theme of gender inequality has made its way into Korean cinema, I still have the lingering feeling that it could have been done a little better and more directly. In fact, even the book struck me as a bit of a sketch and at times a bit too cautious in its attempt to open up the subject. But I guess that's fitting. I guess that's how Korean society needs it. Unobtrusively, in slow steps, and yet definitively. It would have been easy to make the husband the villain, but the author took the harder, yet truer, route. Just because something is wrong in a society doesn't mean that the whole society is wrong, and that everyone agrees with it. The scene in the cafe at the end of the film triggered the most emotion in me. This is how I would imagine the "comparison" as a girl from Europe. :) 3.5 stars.

My relationship with the British Royal Family could probably be described as neutral. I don't know their family relations perfectly, I don't buy the dresses Kate wears, I don't fly to London on the occasion of the royal wedding, yet I am fascinated by them in a way, I both respect and pity them. I didn't become interested in The Crown until sometime after the second series aired, and by the time I decided to start watching the series, the third season had been out for a while. I don't know if it's the perfect royal atmosphere, the sets, the costumes, the actors, the cinematography, the editing, the directing, or the music, but basically you could say I'm "properly cooked" by The Crown. I like the alternating emphasis on individual characters and members of the royal family and the ease and enthusiasm with which new characters burst onto the scene. And in the middle of it all stands the young Queen Elizabeth, whose portrayal by actress Claire Foy is absolutely breathtaking and authentic.

Well gee, that was sure something. An emotional charge that made me change my mind about a hundred times, look at marriage and parenting differently, and even question my current attitudes toward infidelity. Until now, I don't know who I was rooting for, if I hated anyone, if this love or that love was right. I wonder if there is only one love, if it can be killed by another love, or if people doing the wrong thing love less. And I could go on and on with these questions. I'm not surprised that some say it's the best Korean series of all time. And I believe that when this series is discovered by Czech audiences, there will be a lot of emotional reviews (not that anyone can top mine, of course). My question is – where are you, Czech viewers? I know you may not see any of today's young favorites in the cast, but that doesn't mean it's not worth watching. Those who are not deprived of information should already know that in Korea this is the most successful series ever aired on cable and praise for it has piled up on Hee-ae Kim and others. So I hereby encourage you, if you want to understand the tastes of Korean viewers, to put this Korean Doctor Foster on your list. (I swear I'll delete my attempt at a marketing ploy once there are a few reviews.) If the show had any minuses, for me it was the soap opera atmosphere and the fact that the script was a bit too over the top at times. There is absolutely no boredom in this show. And with that, I'm back on the positive side, so... This was probably one of the hardest rating decisions for me, so I apologize in advance if the stars in my review here blink on and off in the coming days. And even if I end up opting for a lower rating, I still insist that you see it. Because it's something you definitely haven't seen before. 4.5 stars.

Visually, I really liked it a lot. The cinematography perfectly heightened the tension and brought the viewer all the natural beauty, the ugliness of war, and the fear and harshness of the time. As for the story itself, it looked promising, but I wasn't such a fan towards the end. Still, I'm satisfied, if only because I had Colin Firth there for a while, whose involvement escaped me, and whom I might not have recognized without the sound. But because I'm a sucker for his voice and English, he gave himself away right away. In fairness, my rating may be a little skewed by the joy of finally going to the cinema again after more than a quarter of a year, but the film deserves 4 stars from me.

Sex Education has been recommended to me numerous times from literally every direction. The title didn't entice me much, but I love British English and I have some extra time now, so I gave the series a try. I breezed through the first series at a pace of about one episode every two days, and at the very least, I can say I wasn't bored. On the other hand, the running time of each episode is quite long considering the subject matter. Each character is different, but they are all very distinct in their differences, and in the second season their characters start to develop nicely. I'm enjoying it. 4 stars.

Food is my lifelong passion and one of the things I enjoy most about life. And even more than that I love discovering the differences between cuisine from different parts of the world and trying new flavors and ingredients. Just as someone would spend their excess money on a car or even clothes, I would not hesitate to stuff it into food tourism. Food is joy, food brings people together without needing to know the same language. The feeling when the chef waits to hear what you have to say about his creation, and you smile and give a thumbs up after the first bite to say you like it, is a unique bonding experience. That's why watching people who live for preparing good food, who don't look for shortcuts in the kitchen, but instead don't hesitate to take the most complicated path if it improves the final taste even by a tiny bit, was an absolutely amazing experience for me. It was beautiful to watch different cultures and culinary legends meet in one place. The show is really all about the beauty of cooking, not a cheesy reality show laced with exploitative stories. There is a good atmosphere among the contestants, no one is berating anyone, no one is mad that they didn't win, everyone is just cooking the best they can. And I, who naively thought I knew a lot about cooking, was watching in disbelief, open-mouthed at how creative chefs can be and how much information and preparation techniques they carry around in their heads. 5 stars.

I'll start with praise and the biggest positive of the whole series. And that is Ah-in Yoo. His character is very identifiable and sensual. He's a passionate, slightly hysterical, and exotic artist with a not-so-ordinary haircut and wardrobe that matches his house, dog, car, typewriter, and perhaps everything in his environment. This alone, combined with the great soundtrack, could have been the basis for a number of episodes without the audience getting bored. It's a bit of a shame that they chose Soo-jeong Im as his partner, who sometimes turns in a good performance, but also sometimes doesn't. Her TV comeback wasn't a hit in my eyes. But for me, the most significant problem was that the series ran out of steam towards the end. As naturally and easily as I fell into the storyline at the beginning and didn't have to force myself to watch it at all, by the end I was increasingly inclined to reach for something other than what I had just been watching. I'm not entirely sure it's purely the script's fault, but it's true that even in Kill Me, Heal Me I found the same writer's work a bit erratic. And in The Sun and the Moon I complained about something along those lines too. Although both of the aforementioned shows did much better in terms of ratings. And I don't rule out the possibility that the direction is at fault. Not that I didn't like the 30s, but I enjoyed it a lot more when it was a classic rom-com with promising connections to past lives. Once the contemporary atmosphere went on the back burner and the characters seemed to stop living their lives and instead started dealing with the past in their living rooms, it became more of a chore for me to finish watching. I'm quite surprised by the five star reviews here. I'm joining the Korean audience this time and rating it as just average... 3.5 stars.

Any story about a strong woman who went out on her own and started blazing a trail for us women to fulfill our dreams always moves me at least a little. Watching a time when it was nearly impossible for a woman to stand in front of an orchestra stirs a range of feelings in me. Things may be different today, but it certainly can't be said that all women everywhere can always decide what they want to be. And where they can choose, in some fields they are still not respected as much as men. And not just by the male gender, but by the female gender as well. I myself think of the word "conductor" as a man. That's how we know it, that's how it's presented to us. Now I believe that my perception of the profession will change. I didn't enjoy the romantic storyline, it was quite simplistic. On the other hand, it was probably necessary, or almost necessary, to round out the story. And the fact that at a certain point I didn't sympathize with the heroine makes sense. Love makes fools of us today and every day. I was hesitant, but the feminist in me finally made me incline towards a higher rating. 3.5 stars.

Spanish soap operas are a very interesting topic for me right now, and I'm going to explore it a bit more. And Money Heist is currently probably their best known (and most widely loved) representative. Actually, I'm not surprised at all. The professor's plan is brilliant, and most of the henchmen are sympathetic or nutty and impossible not to root for. Their red jumpsuits are slowly but surely becoming legendary, and I bet a lot of fans outside of Spain will wear them to Halloween parties. And I might be one of them. After the first season, I wasn’t sure whether it was really such a hit. By the third one, I'm clear... 5 stars.

A very good drama, which I'm not really used to seeing in series form. You could say it's unique. I liked the unpredictable script and the depth of relationships the creators managed to create between the characters. A slow and heavy atmosphere, in the best possible sense, with a beautiful soundtrack and sound editing in general. The action in and out of the office feels real, without artifice, and the series still maintains the same high quality once it gets going. Beautiful camera work and wonderful direction, with an eye for detail. For me IU ranks as one of the best actresses in Korea, with her incredible acting that is simply beyond reproach. I would never have believed how well she could play a role so cold and tortured by fate. How is it possible that this girl with the face of an angel can manipulate her surroundings without blinking an eye, stand up to a guy twice her size, and come across as so strong and determined? For a large part of the series, I wanted nothing more than for her to have even the slightest hint of a smile on her face. And then when the tears came or she showed emotion, I got that familiar pang that I can't resist. With Seon-gyoon Lee, in all his roles, I get turned off at first by his voice (which is unusual for a Korean), but I think after this role, the ice is finally broken and I have finally learned to like him. I found his character very appealing and I enjoyed it a lot when he surprised or even shocked me with a reaction I didn't expect from him. Not to mention the character of the main heroine, she was full of surprises. The only ones I couldn't stand for a long time were the two brothers, lifelong losers for whom the pub and football became the only meaningful things in their lives. You can find out for yourself whether they ever make it out of this situation. I didn't get all my questions answered, because I can think of plenty, yet I'm pleased beyond measure with the ending and feel good about it for the first time in a long time. 4.5 stars and I'm going to go watch the special.