My Top 10 Korean Movies Of All Time – FS

My first Korean Movie that I loved most is “A Moment to Remember” and from then onwards I started watching all kinds of Korean & Japanese movies which I never tried in the past. Korean Movies are either dark themed action/crime/psychological thrillers or Romantic tearjerkers. Their quality of cinema and the script are way different to Hollywood and most of the movies are much better than so called top grossing Hollywood Blockbusters. I was introduced to Korean Cinema by my brother and hence special thanks to him. Since I had made this post a year back, I thought it is better to update the list or reformat them and rank in order. As its difficult to rank them in top 10 I decided to categorize them based on Genre so that it will be easier for me to list according my likeness and repeat viewings. I also expect some good discussion and recommendations on this topic. Your feedback is very important. 

Top 10 Action drama / Spy Thrillers – Korean

infernalaffairs Infernal Affairs (2002) A beautiful thriller, exciting and engrossing with powerhouse of performances that compelled legendary Hollywood director Martin Scorsese to remake it in Hollywood titled “The Departed” starring “A” list actors to repeat the same roles is no less than an achievement. It’s a spy thriller where an undercover cop joins the gangster and a gangster joins the police following many twists and turns that affects all the lead characters of the movie. Even if you have seen The Departed, I assure you that you will fall in love with this film. The pace of the movie is apt with unfolding of layers of mysteries, performances fulfills the satisfaction value of the viewers and engaging enough to miss you your little timely intervals during the film watching experience. One of the finest directed, enacted and produced thriller from Korea.

The Man From Nowhere (2010)man from nowhere One of the best Stylish and Slick action korean movie that I have watched so far. The lead actor is amazing in his performance be it, action, emotional or style quotient, he justifies the act. A person who is leading a low profile lifestyle as a pawn shop keeper is often stunned by the cute little girl living next door. She is the only girl he talks to and one day her mother is being kidnapped by the goons/human flesh traders looking out for the drugs she stole. It also reveals the dark side of the pawn shop keeper who is very well trained in combats and pain infliction. the story doesn’t hold any big surprises, but the sheer force of the characters and action drives it forward with style. You will look for his other movies once you complete this movie because he is will be the one actor you look forward watching in future.

the berline file The Berlin File (2013) A top government agent of North Korea takes a U-turn and turns against its own people and plan an escape to South Korea. He somehow is caught and punished but he leaves a hint to his trusted officer and secret agent about the conspiracy of the people in higher hierarchy of the North Korean Military chiefs. The theme is loosely based on the Government secret agents that are highly skilled in various combats but turn against their own government when they find out the true conspiracy behind their missions. It is similar to Bourne series in terms of theme but execution, screenplay, action and combats are entirely different to each other. It has high octane actions using guns as well as martial art combats and you will enjoy the most of these combats because of strong and aggressive antagonist who is equally capable or little stronger than the main Protagonist. It’s a fast paced action thriller and emotionally impactful on the viewers.

New World 2013 new world 2013 The plot of the movie looks heavily inspired from the other Korean Movie named Internal Affairs 2002 / The Departed by Martin Scorsese but it is a totally different film with different texture and treatment with its own uniqueness. Even if there isn’t much of real action, the movie pumps up the flow of adrenaline in your body along with the pace of the movie with which each layer unfolds with twists and turns. Excellent performance from the lead, his friend and police chief Kang. The psychological gang wars carried out with finesse and the unsolicited events that occurs pumps your adrenaline rush in the body. The attitude of the movie, the psychological game played by the police, the loyalty and betrayal are executed brilliantly with excellent editing, becoming most entertaining Korean film of the year.

war of the arrows 2011 War of the Arrows (2011) It’s kind of a historical film during the times of kings and their crusades over other states, provinces and countries. In one of those times a brother is delegated a responsibility of his sisters protection from a dying father who is overrun by arch rivals for opposing and protesting against the ruler king. That brother grows to become the finest archer in one of the region’s he grew and finds himself in the same situation when one of the legions attach their village only to find his sister being abducted and others killed. He relentlessly chases down the culprits with his great archery skills alone up to a certain point. He is joined by his fellow villagers later on to find and rescue his sister. The film features some amazing archery skills at display followed by stunning chase and other rescue operation shot vividly and choreographed brilliantly.

A Dirty Carnival (2006) a dirty carnival One of the purest and best Gangster Movie from Korea I have seen so far and it’s based on the life of Byeong-du the protagonist of the film. There is a parallel story to it where his school friend is shown as struggling director in the movie and how this friendship takes one to elation of joy and success and other, to extreme depression and betrayal. The realism displayed in this movie wins lot of accolades and appreciation. There is some fight scenes that are gruesome which brings you closer to the real gangster fights and even might relate to your own personal experience, if ever you have been involved in fights or being victimized. The performances by all 3 major characters of the film are just brilliant.

the good the bad the weird The Good The Bad, The Weird (2008)  The story is about the three characters bounty hunter, the thief and the bandit along comes the MAP and its value holds different meaning to each character. To the bandit legend Park Chang-yi, it will help solidify his name in history. To the thief Tae-goo, it means he and his grandmother are set for life. As for the bounty hunter Do-won… well, he wants a little bit of both. The Film has funny moments, sad moments and more over its kind of a comic relief to the viewers. It is engrossing with little bit of comedy, action and over the top bizarreness. You will love all the characters and all of them have done justice to the characters they play.

Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood of War (2004)brotherhood of war A story of two brothers and their coerced journey in the battlefield of War against North Korea, their survival, their bonding, their different opinions, mindset and aims of life. The two brothers were coerced to join the South Korean army due to pre-emptive strike by North Korean army on South Korean Soil. The elder brother shows his bravery, daredevil acts and put his life in danger for the sake of freedom of his young brother from the battlefield and army to put his brother safe from danger and educate him for the better prospects and future of his family. But these daredevil acts by his elder brother changes the views of his young brother towards his elder brother. They get into verbal fights, accusations and kind of a jealousy… The action sequence and the rawness of the war are worth watching. Stunning cinematography followed by good direction.

swiri Swiri (1999) A brilliant Korean Masala flavored film yet slick and stylist; bit of suspense and thrills with an ensemble star cast leaves you with overwhelming experience. It is one of those good feel masala action thrillers that entertain you throughout and keeps you hooked until you find out how it ends. It has a typical storyline in which north Koreans highly trained agents that are not associated with the government enters into  South Korea with some major plans to kill the presidents of both the countries with an aim to merge two countries together. The narration and screenplay is fabulous with brilliant performance from the star casts. It was the highest grossing film in Korea the year Titanic released.

Daisy (2006) daisy-dvd A young girl that runs an antique shop belonged to her grandfather in Amsterdam, paints during weekend to earn extra income for the living. A cop develops a relationship with her due to his frequent visits at the place during the weekends, the purpose of which is not disclosed to her. She is also been watched by one of the criminal who gets intimidated from the cop’s entry into her life. He tries to win her over with various other ways and times come when both the guys had to face off each other. The climax ends with a twist and excellent performances from the star cast. It is a sweet romantic thriller that is filled with some clichés and predictability yet lovable and adorable.

Top 10 Crime / Psychological Thrillers – Korean

oldboy Oldboy (2003) The lead protagonist is being kidnapped and imprisoned in a hotel room. The reason is unknown. Time is unknown. TV was the only sole connection to the outside world and watching it helplessly about her wife death and he considered as the murderer of her wife’s death who ran away from the scene. He trains himself physically and plans a Shawshank redemption type escape from the captivity. As soon as he finds out the way for an exit suddenly he is thrown onto the rooftop of a building with a cellphone and some cash. Now he has only one aim in life i.e., to find out the reason for his abduction and imprisonment for 15yrs. He meets a lovely girl in a sushi bar type restaurant and his journey to find out the truth behind his imprisonment begins which comes with horrifying, shocking and somewhat disgusting (especially to Indian audience) revelation one after the other. Please watch out this movie solely for only one reason – The thrilling end.

Memories of Murder (2003)memories of murder It is a film about the Serial Killer, Mysteries, Suspense, Thriller, Brutal deaths and Murders. It is one of those rare films that meet an unexpected end. A Serial Killer who likes to play the game of Catch me if you can with the police officials and detectives at the same time being a horror to young women especially at nights. Victims are found dead brutally wounded that sends shivers across the village. It has many twists and much guessing goes on till the end. It has amazing screenplay which keeps you engaged throughout and wanting more of it at the end. The performances are really great and the chase to hunt down this mystery serial killer is shot astutely.

confessions poster Confessions (2010)  – It’s about a teacher’s revenge against the two students of her that she considers them responsible for the death of her little daughter.  It’s violent, gritty, dark and full of madness. The film is shot beautifully and intelligently. Cinematography is phenomenal, Editing on par with the best, direction is very good, performance is flawless and script is entirely different but great. Korean thriller movie fans must watch this movie and others too. Film is very delicate as the two main antagonists are the lead protagonists of the film and the main protagonist is the antagonist in the film. The background score is very good and at times pleasing to ears. It tries to evoke the feelings of a devastated mother (who lost her young little daughter and whose husband died due to illness) and the vengeance against the guilty ones. It gets confusing sometimes if you don’t concentrate and it’s a psychological thriller with vengeance.

The Chaser (2008) – the chaser Murder was a shame to be considered as a remake on this gory thriller called Chaser. Most of you have seen the film Murder but watch this film to know the difference in quality, performances and Rawness of brutal killings, chase and many minute details. The story keeps you engrossed throughout the duration of the film and you will be surprised at the end because most of the Korean films have either sad/surprise/chaotic endings with loads and loads of tearjerkers. A thriller with lot of suspense drama surrounding to unsolved cases and mysteries is very rare thing in Hindi Cinema and Bhatt’s have utilized every opportunity to explore the untapped market of Indian Cinema.

A_Tale_of_Two_Sisters_film A Tale of Two Sisters (2003) It is a psychological thriller with suspense and horror that keeps you on the edge of the seat, compelling you to unravel the mysteries behind the events occurring during the movie ASAP. Two sisters after getting discharged from the mental institutions fear for their life from their stepmother and haunted by a ghost in the house of their father. They fail to prove their father about the evil intentions of their stepmother and her torture to one of the sister. It’s intense, horrifying and loaded with mystery, twists and fantastic climax. Performance from the two little girls and cruel stepmother successfully convinces you to think what the director aims. The movie ends with fantastic climax that is unique and one of its kind for its time. There are few Hollywood movies that are inspired from it’s twisted plot that includes a like Shutter Island

I Saw the Devil (2010)i saw the devil It is a thriller that is brutal and gory and puts most of the violent movies in the past to shame. There are so many violent scenes where you don’t feel comfortable at times but at the same time you don’t want miss it. A psychopath serial killer kills the fiancé of a secret agent and to avenge the brutal death of her fiancé he does all he can to make him suffer until his last breadth. There are some twists at the end and flaws relating to police investigation method but the sheer power of the film lies on violence and psychopath killer’s powerful performance. He is absolutely brilliant and the way he carried out his killings makes you hate him more. It is a very disturbing violent movie that I won’t recommend for the women.

confessions of murder Confession of Murder (2012) The most wanted serial killer becomes overnight sensation when he releases his book, an autobiography about the murders he committed, in detail but can’t be held responsible by police due to lack of evidence. The police officer who was nearly killed and had confrontation in an ugly fight denies accepting him as the same serial killer based on his instincts and calling him the impostor.  He develops cult followings among young girls for his looks even though he is accused of raping, killing and chopping off women & children. However during one interview, a caller calls him fake, an impostor and claims to be the real serial killer. Film is excellent and performances are great. You will love it if you have not seen a Hindi film called “Fox” starring Sunny Deol and Arjun Rampal as this looks heavily inspired from it and which off-course is inspired from Hollywood movie called “A Murder of Crows”.

Mother (2009) Mother_film_poster It tells about a mother who is willing to go at any stretch to save her son (little immature) framed against false charges of killing a teen age girl. Mother desperately searches the real killer in order to prove her son’s innocence with the help of her son’s friend. The film is slow but the twist in the end ultimately pays off… The mother’s son is “Bin Won” – remember ‘the man from nowhere”? He is just brilliant and you won’t recognize him as “Bin Won” or the man from nowhere fame unless you have read about him featuring in the film.

JSA J.S.A.: Joint Security Area (2000)  – It’s the story about North and South Korean border security soldiers safeguarding the joint security area (borderline) and about the investigation carried out in the murder of one official (border security official belonging to North Korea) which is shown in the beginning of the film. It has lot of depth and layers to understand the culture of Koreans that also displays the fondness among the people of the country even if they stand divided but doesn’t compromise on their loyalty and patriotism for their respective country. Excellent performance from the two lead protagonist and direction is executed very well to capture the moments, fear and trust among the two divided nation’s army personnel.

Silmido (2003)Silmido-2003-K-Movie It is sort of high octane action drama at the back drop of political conspiracies and shriveling accusations. In 1986, South Korean Government plans to execute or kill North Korean President Kim il-Sung by training death row victims in a secrete unit called  Silmido unit. They are trained rigorously without many breaks, preparing them to be suicidal squad whose aims and vision are nothing but the target set by the Government and in succeeding the mission they get their life back as the citizens of South Korea. As they go hard on the victims during training sessions, witnessing the killings of their fellow companions for failing to stand the gruesome training, they develop a bond that binds them together. All of a sudden the mission is cancelled by the political leaders and the sole existence of the camp is taken away. These leads the prisoners to take drastic steps and move out of Silmido but unfortunately destiny leads them to unfortunate end still they send out the clear and loud message to people of Korea in their last coup.

The movie starts off well but drags a little in between during the training camp then suddenly many interesting things happen that hold your attention till the end.

Top 10 Romantic Movies – Korean

A MOMENT TO REMEMBER A Moment to Remember (2004) Title itself camouflaged as reminiscence of those little moments that are cherished forever.

It is a Story of a young Couple, their love for each other and their battle from the terminal illness called Alzheimer’s disease. It’s a love story – a tearjerker loaded with emotions, romance, trust, betrayal, dedication, determination, discipline and dreams. It is one of the best Romantic movies that I have come across Korean films and it is my top favorite considering all genres. The one who likes Romantic movies will fall in love with this movie and it gives a new meaning for love. The actress is dead Gorgeous and the actor is also likeable. Hope you guys will enjoy this movie…

My Sassy Girl (2001) – my sassy girl On his way home college student notices a young girl in the subway station who appears to be too near the edge of the tracks. Almost drunk to the point of unconsciousness, she barely notices the student moving her back to safety. On the train journey itself the young girl causes a scene due to her drunken behavior and, just before she passes out, she refers to the nearby student as ‘Honey’. Reluctantly taking responsibility for her as the other passengers believe he is her partner,  the student looks after the girl, not realizing that this will be the start of a strange relationship… it comes with doses of suspense and comedy with an ending that you could not have wished for more.

In_the_Mood_for_Love_movie In the Mood for Love (2000) Two families both married rent an apartment in the same building next to each other on the same day. The wife of a businessman finds out that her husband is having an affair with the lady next door and the lady’s spouse realizes the same thing. Trying to figure out how it started, they develop affection and love towards each other and in order to avoid being like their respective spouses, they decide to choose the righteous path and go separate ways. It is a very seductive, subtle, musical and vividly colorful film about extra marital affairs. It is elegantly expressive, highly emotional & moving, charmingly sublime. The background score elevates the film’s experience and expectations to a notch higher, predominantly due to the powerful performances from the lead pairs. Their chemistry is so seductive and magnificence that you will fall in love instantly with the characters and the film. Director has been successful in capturing the moments of temptations, lust and gracefully presenting it on a larger screen.

A Bittersweet Life (2005) – bittersweetlife00 A gangster is asked to keep an eye on his boss’s mistress about her daily activities and inform him immediately if he finds her betraying or disloyal to his love. He is also considered as the most loyal guard and associate of his boss and stands next to his boss drug addict son in terms of admiration to his loyalty. When the gangster spoils the mistress’s coup of running away with her boyfriend he tries to handle the situation on his own without informing his Boss. He then gets punished when Boss comes to know of his disloyalty for helping her instead of informing him about her betrayal. The performance by the lead protagonist is of top notch and you can feel his pain, grief and revenge in his eyes. This film is remade in Bollywood starring our own serial kisser Emran Hashmi named Awarapan.

Il_Mare_film_poster Il Mare (2000) A young woman vacates the house situated on the banks of the river to move into the city in 1999, leaving a letter in the mailbox, instructing the new owner to send any bills/mails to her new residence address. The young architect then takes over the house and when he finds this letter he tries to correct her about the time quoting its 1997 and not 1999 but to his surprise he realizes that they are living in two different times separated by two years. They start to mail each other through the common mailbox and grow affection towards each other. It’s a very beautiful love story at the back drop of time travel and it emotionally connects with the audience.

The Classic (2003) the-classic-movie It has amazing story and the writer himself is a director of this film I believe. The film revolves with two stories, one of the past and the other of the present. The girl starts reading the old love letters of her mother (dead by now) that she had hidden in the box which revealed the real story of her mother and her past life, about her first love, about her dad, the situations that she involved into and the outcome of her love life. But there is a present story that goes side by side along with the past stories of her mother and the end of the two stories come to a “Classic” Finale. The director doesn’t confuse the audience and the cinematography is just awesome. The chemistry between the pairs is what you need to look into.

windstruck Windstruck (2004) –  A film about fearless and proactive cop performing daredevil acts, ensnaring drug traffickers, arresting thieves, gangsters, kicking the shit out of eve teasers and getting involved in ridiculous situation such as arresting people based on just doubts like she caught the opposite lead character of the film. Somehow both fell in love with each other and she acting as the head of the two 😛 anyhow this film gets into situation where the opposite lead dies trying to protect his love and the female cop unable to digest the fact, goes on doing such daredevil acts without fearing for her life. The climax may be bit bizarre but the film makes you smile at the end.

My Girl and I (2005) My_Girl_and_I_film_poster It’s a simple and beautiful romantic tearjerker that is rich in beauty, innocence, pain and emotions. A not so famous teenager starts to date with very popular and most sought after girl in the college leaving many into jealousy. Their love for each other was like eternal until the teenager finds out the tragedy attached to the girl he love most and likes to die with her. Second half is a tearjerker with emotional melodrama all over the place that is sensitively poignant. The actors are very emotionally very expressive and sometimes gives you overdose of excitement as well as emotional joyrides.

250px-A_Millionaire's_First_Love A Millionaire’s First Love (2006) A Millionaire’s son just turned 18 is about to lose his father’s inheritance if he doesn’t fulfill his late father’s terms and condition that says he needs to complete the school at Boram High School, the town dear to his late father. Unwillingly he joins the school and tries to adopt the environment of his surrounding encounters a teenage girl mistakenly as beggar during his first encounter. This girl somehow changes his superficial heart and holds his attention most of the time but the girl is facing some serious problem that is unknown to the Millionaire’s son. Even though it’s another emotional tearjerker with lots of cliché’s and age old romance saga but still very effective in entertaining and emotionally connecting with the audience or viewers. Performance is always good in these flicks and more over it looks like Koreans are born with nature’s gift on emotional quotient.

My Little Bride (2004) MyLittleBride  It’s a Romantic Comedy and it’s about A young School girl Boeun who is coerced and emotionally blackmailed to get married to the Sangmine (her childhood friend) by her Grandfather against her will to fulfill the promise made to Sangmine’s late grandfather and escape from the disgrace (in Korean culture). After some buttering and emotional blackmail by both the families they both agree to marry and sent to honeymoon. Here comes the twist, the girl escapes and avoids to go along sangmine (whereas he happened to go alone without choice as he was deceived by her) and she falls in love with the handsome hunk of her college (which she was already crazy about). When sangmine returns he decides to become the teacher/lecturer of the boeun’s school and one day comes to know the fact abt her inclination towards the other course mate (her boyfriend). You have to watch the movie for more 😉 It is a simple film with some special moments and a small dose of laugh.

Other Movies that I would like to recommend are as follows:

Layout 1 Departures (2008)  – It’s a film about the professional job which is looked down upon as abhorring that involves the person to perform the final rituals for the departed souls or in other words on the dead body of the people. I had different expectations from the film but it turned out be a totally different and unique film. It showcases a very important psychological effects on the people surrounding you and their uncomforting nature or immediate reactions towards you as soon as they are explained about the nature of the job. Initially i felt bored as it was very slow paced but later started kind of liking the film. It will have a deep emotional impact on you if one just imagines the final rites performed on your loved ones. The music in between is soothing, beautiful and pleasurable. Overall liked the movie n performances are great.

Poongsan (2011) – poongsan A man takes not more than 3 hours to cross into North Korea border and bring back the people reluctant to stay in South Korea is hired by South Korean official Government Agents to help cross a diplomat’s lover who is struck in North Korea. He successfully obliges the request but is denied the payment of what was promised. In revenge he abducts the girl and his lover diplomat until his dues are cleared but falls in love with girl during the period of abduction and till the time of his payments cleared. Things change and he gets harassed, tortured & used by agents of both side against the life of the girl he loves. Movie is good and he is the same lead actor who featured in “the Berlin file”.

Speedy_Scandal_film_poster Speed Scandal (2008) A young RJ/DJ living like a spoilt brat suddenly finds him in an awkward situation when confronted with a young girl who has a son claims to be his daughter. Worried of being blackmailed or threatened with a super scandal he refuses to accept the truth and tries everything to throw out the girl and her son out of his house as soon as possible. After succeeding in his intentions, he realizes the mistake and confronts the truth and accepts the daughter wholeheartedly but tries to get involved with the private affairs of her daughter with another teenage boy. Different events takes place in his journey that are sweet, emotional and otherwise normal. It’s a sweet comical drama, well directed, well enacted and well executed.

Mr. Robin kkosigi (2006)Seducing Mr. Perfect It is also known as Seducing Mr. Perfect. A young girl with weird fashion style bumps into the car of the man who turns out to be his next boss. She tries to revive her fashion style and in the meantime falls in love with the young handsome boss of her who happens to be mean to her in the beginning. The boss is also in love with this young girl but shy’s off from displaying his emotions and affections towards her. He is a shrewd business man but also honest and shy.

castaway on the moon Castaway on the Moon (2009) Well these were my views when I watched it first time, “The movie looked interesting in the beginning but turned out lame and stupid later on. He jumps into the river to commit suicide but he doesn’t drown (he doesn’t know swimming) & instead lands up on the shore of the deserted island that is very far from the bridge he jumps. The climax was even more clichéd than Bollywood romantic movies. The girl’s part was much more horrible.” Somehow end up watching it second time and I stand by the lame and cliched parts of my comment but end up liking the movie very much. It is bit silly but engrossing and I guess more you watch the movie more you love it. I failed to understand the lead characters sudden reluctance to his exposure to others in a deserted place but not to the mysterious person across the island. A silly plot is made interesting with higher repeat value from my own personal experience.

Korean Movies that I am planning to watch are as follows;

The secret reunion
The Host
The Thieves
Masquerade

There are so many movies that I am dying to watch but due to time restraint unable to do so. Will update as and when I am able to watch those films and also request you all to suggest some good movies that may belong to Korea, Japan, China or Thailand. Hope you liked my idea to reformat the post and present it better for the referral point of view.

Fearless Soul / FS – My twitter handle @fearlesssoul

 

 

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142 Comments
  1. Author
    fearlesssoul 12 years ago

    Also please suggest me some of the movies that you have liked apart from hollywood/bollywood films 😉

  2. stewie griffin 12 years ago

    my sassy girl is the best korean film imo..rest i like the chaser and sad story which is an overflow of sadness 😀

    • Author
      fearlesssoul 12 years ago

      list out the movies that you have watched and the ones you really liked.

      Also have you seen Redcliff part 1 and 2 as well as Musa which i missed in that list 🙁

  3. sputnik 12 years ago

    Thanks for the timely post FS. I had just added Memories of Murder, The Man from Nowhere and Chaser to my Netflix account to watch just a couple of days back. I have seen only Oldboy among the movies listed here and loved it.

    I saw Shutter Island this weekend and liked it a lot. I thought Inception which released after this is very similar to Shutter Island. Both movies have Leonardo and in both movies the dead wife keeps coming in dreams. I have to say I liked Shutter Island more and Leonardo was excellent in the lead role.

    The movie has a ambiguous ending so as expected there is a lot of debate going on about whether Leonardo’s character is right or not.

    Have you seen Shutter Island?

    ——————-

    Anyone else who has seen Shutter Island? Did you guys like/dislike it and what do you think about the ending?

    • Author
      fearlesssoul 12 years ago

      @Sputnik – I have seen the Shutter Island and was numb for a moment at the end and could not digest the fact what the doctor claimed. So I too listened carefully as to what doctor said to leonardo and tried to grasp the situation which i was going through 😛 Finally I was rejuvenated at his decision to let go his wife. It is way better than Inception but Inception idea is better than suspense of Shutter Island 😀

  4. Ritz 12 years ago

    Oldboy and Memories of murder are wonderful and left a deep impact.
    Loved My sassy girl as well.

    Havent seen other mentioned here. Thanks FS

    I loved My wife’s a gangster as well (saw part 1 – havent seen other parts).

    • Author
      fearlesssoul 12 years ago

      You are welcome Ritz.. I am yet to see that movie you mentioned. My wife’s a gangster…. Does it have beautiful story or is it just the action film?

  5. John Galt 12 years ago

    Believe it or not, Shutter Island is my favorite Scorsese film. Its a shame, that movie wasn’t nominated for any awards. Inception was great at its screenplay but Shutter Island was a much, much better film. I also consider leo’s performance in it the best of that year.

    • sputnik 12 years ago

      Yes its a shame that it was not nominated for any Oscars. Hugo was nominated for so many Oscars but I did not like it at all.

      Leonardo was excellent too and definitely deserved a Oscar nomination for Best Actor. Mark Ruffalo and Ben Kingsley were very good too.

      Inception had a great idea as FS said but when I saw him trying to come to terms with his dead wife and his dead wife showing up everywhere I had a feeling of deja vu. It seemed that the similar scenes in Inception were inspired from Shutter Island especially with Leonardo playing the husband role in both the movies.

      • John Galt 12 years ago

        @sputnik,

        I don’t suspect any inspiration there, considering both movies came out the same year that too within a few months, although shutter island is based on a novel.

        Anyhow, I find the screenplay of inception a class apart- especially just the effort required in coming up with such a screenplay is congratulatory.

        But movie wise, Shutter Island was an even more engaging film and it was made even better by LEO’s acting.

        I loved Hugo too. It was a great experience watching that film.

  6. cr7 12 years ago

    have seen only few Korean movies . i liked memories of murder a lot..one of my all time fav.. seen it long back.loved the open ending. Amazed me back then. Old boy and jsa was good too. didn’t like chaser and yellow sea..

    about shutter island. I liked it ..one of the better movie of that year. but it is di caprio’s performance which made the film very special to me..

  7. Serenzy 12 years ago

    Scorcese is Near God to me… And, I am Crazzyy abt Di Caprio ..!!!!

    …….

    As a Movie & Direction, I wud say Nolan/Inception was Better then Scorcese/SI.

    As far as Di Caprio’s Acting is concerned he was SUPREME in SI .

    …….

    I was able to predict/guess the Ending of SI(partly I had guessed that Di Caprio suffered with some ailment), but Still I have Loveeeeeed every bit f it.

    I wud say, SI deserved Nominations and Inception
    deserved to win some Oscars.

    Taking nothing away from Firth in TKS but Black Swan is one of the Crappiest,Dumbest,Worst Movie I have ever seen(except the Portman-Kunis makeout Sequence 😉 ).

    Inception & SI pawns Black Swan anyday.
    ……

    I was able to Predict the Ending of one of THE BEST MOVIES of All Time,
    ‘Psycho’

    But that dint Stop me from looking in Awe at Master Hitchcock’s Work, dint stop me from gtting Terrified wid dat ‘Norman Bates’ Gaze.

    Psycho still gives me Goosebumps.

  8. stewie griffin 12 years ago

    @johngalt-wen did leonardo dicaprio act in korean movies 😀
    fs-guess main kaun hu?

    • Author
      fearlesssoul 12 years ago

      Joey aka Dennycrane aka Stewie griffin 😀 😀 😀 😀

  9. stewie griffin 12 years ago

    four keane hell 😀

  10. sputnik 12 years ago

    @FS,
    I just read the story of the first movie A Moment to Remember on wikipedia. Looks like U, Me Aur Hum was inspired from this movie. It was also inspired from The Notebook partly.

    I was recommended The Notebook by a Vietnamese colleague and at first I thought it is a chick flick and I won’t like it but I liked it a lot. The Notebook is a 2004 film starring Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams but it is based on a 1996 novel and A Moment to Remember is a 2001 movie. I would recommend this if you have not seen it.

    • Author
      fearlesssoul 12 years ago

      Sputnik – I have seen Notebook and loved the film but i liked Moment to remember more than Notebook, may be coz i liked the heroine of MTR more than heroine of Notebook 😉 😀

  11. John Galt 12 years ago

    I did not like The notebook much. It couldn’t engage me. I liked the second half of U Me aur Hum more than the entire duration of The Notebook

    • sputnik 12 years ago

      For me its the other way round. I did not like U Me aur Hum at all. The comedy scenes on the cruise were horrible and Ajay completely sucked whether in the comedy scenes or as a old man. I hated that stupid baby in bathtub scene and the whole show off cinematography.

  12. Milind 12 years ago

    I like Sweet November.Infact it is a heartbreak in silence!

    • Author
      fearlesssoul 12 years ago

      Thanks milind… Just read the story of sweet november… Keanu Reeves and Charlize Theron’s heartbreaking end… 🙁 🙁

      • Milind 12 years ago

        You can watch:

        1. My Best Friend’s wedding

        2. Sleepless in Seattle

        3. You’ve gotta Mail

        4. Pretty Woman

        5. Serendipity

        6. Frankie and Johnny

        7. Breakfast at Tiffany’s

        8. Roman Holiday

        9. He is Just Not That Into You

        10. When Harry Met Sally

        These are just some. Watch ESOTSM and Before Sunrise/Before Sunset/500 days of Summer too.

        • Author
          fearlesssoul 12 years ago

          I have watched all except 5,6 and 9

  13. Serenzy 12 years ago

    ^

    Love Actually

    About A Boy

    Four Weddings & A Funeral

  14. Serenzy 12 years ago

    Not to forget a certain DDLJ is Superior to all those 10-12 Movies Milind has mentioned.

    DDLJ cannot be created ever again…Not even by Adi,YRF,SRK, Kajol…Never ever!!

    😉

  15. Baba Ji 12 years ago

    downloaded old boy on fs and sputniks reccomendation .skimmed through it,looks like a masterpiece!

    FS – i will try to see all films in this list now.

    • Author
      fearlesssoul 12 years ago

      i missed I saw devil which is also brilliant but gory, brutal kinda flick. on love stories i missed seducing mr. perfect.

      • sputnik 12 years ago

        Just finished watching I saw the Devil. Agree with you that is “gory, brutal kinda flick” but I did not like it that much. The violence is Saw territory and is almost like torture porn.

        The Korean police looked like a joke to me – similar to our Bollywood police.

        Choi Min-sik (Oldboy hero), who played the serial killer was excellent.

        I did not like Lee Byung-hun who played the lead that much. I think his acting was bad and why was he wearing that stupid jacket all the time. And it also seemed so silly to me that he can get anywhere that he wants so easily.

  16. Baba Ji 12 years ago

    One of the best fight scenes ,shot in one take from old boy.amazing BG music:

    • sputnik 12 years ago

      @Baba,

      When I first showed you this scene you dismissed it off 🙁

      • Baba Ji 12 years ago

        you made me see that scene out of context sputnik.Yes it does seem a bit awkward seeingwhy some of the men just staying away waiting for their chance to hit him.But It has to be seen in the context of the film.Also it is shot in a single take and same camera angle is maintained throughout the scene.So 100% realism cannot be achieved.

  17. Baba Ji 12 years ago

    i realised, after watching, old boy that a slick intense thriller is anyday better than a regressive masala film.Thing is we dont know how to make slick intense films.Thats why bw struggles in this department.bw only knows how to make masala.even that they have to borrow form south many times 😀

    But a kickass modern intense thriller will always be more sutble,less OTT ,more realistic and less foolish than a masala movie on any given day.

  18. Serenzy 12 years ago

    “Thing is we dont know how to make slick intense films.
    Thats why bw struggles in this department.bw only knows how to make masala”

    Yeah…Agreed a Lot.

    “But a kickass modern intense thriller will always be more sutble,less OTT ,more realistic and less foolish than a masala
    movie on any given day”

    Agreed BUT that doesn’t make the Slick Film BETTER(in Content) then the Masala One Either just bcz it’s Slick(That’s Pseudo Mentality)…
    Both shud be Given Equal Chance.

    ……..

    “Oldboy”

    Quite a Nice Movie but a Tad bit Overrated…I like the Supreme Acting by almost Everyone Involved but the Movie in itslf is Not Greatness but Not Bad Either.

    I Saw the Devil,Chaser,Memories of Murder r Better IMO.

    See “The Usual Suspects” if u Haven’t Till Date

    ……

    FS Bhai,

    Have u seen any Anime Movies??

    • Baba Ji 12 years ago

      serenzy – do u prefer subtlety or OTT on any given day?There is 90% chance that a slick thriller will not be totally wtf bcos mostly such films dont have “heroes”.You are aware what cinematic liberties are taken in masala films 🙂

    • Author
      fearlesssoul 12 years ago

      @serenzy – Yup and i guess i have watched almost all good animation movies of today’s..

      Toy Story 1,2 & 3
      Cars 1 & 2
      Kumfu panda 1 and 2
      Rango
      Despicable me
      the adventures of Tintin
      Rio
      Smurfs
      Happy Feet 1 and 2
      9
      Stuart little 1 and 2
      Megamind
      Tangled
      Ratatouille
      the lion king
      how to train your dragon
      finding nemo
      akira
      Christmas Carrol
      UP
      Madagascar 1 and 2
      Ice Age 1, 2 & 3
      the incredibles
      wall e
      Alice in Wonderland – 3
      Monsters
      Shrek 1,2,3 & 4
      Puss in the Boots
      Bolt
      a bugs life
      the princess and the frog
      tarzan
      aladin
      Beauty and the Beast

      hmm… thats too many… now people might call me kid 😉

      • Baba Ji 12 years ago

        I dont like animation films much but i saw kung fu panda on someones recommendation and liked it.

    • narad_muni 12 years ago

      champu,
      Oldboy overrated???????????????????
      It’s epic by all means!
      If u c mdb forums, its already achieved cult status n more! U might nt hv liked it but tht does nt make it overrated! Even afteer so many years after its release, the movie is still remembered, discussed n often regarded as one of the best movies ever made in this genre…

      It is the best Korean movie I have seen followed by memories of murder.

      • Baba Ji 12 years ago

        yes shilac,old boy is IMO one of the best films ever made.this review on imdb is best :

        If only we were all living in Asia….
        19 December 2007 | by nils meester (Netherlands) – See all my reviews
        Too start off; This is the one and only film that kept me quiet for a whole 5 mins after seeing it. I literally couldn’t close my mouth, and yet there wasn’t any sound coming out of it. Oldboy had such an impact on me that words are too little to describe that impact. Therefore this film is definitely in my top 3 film ever made. It belongs there because it has a massive ingredient that a lot of films seem to miss out on; a divine plot. Even though the acting and screenplay are world class, the plot is really the cherry on the cake.

        When it comes to screenplay Park Chan-Wook is unique (at least for western standards) in his way of filming. The colours are so vivid and it seems like he wanted every shot to be a piece of art. One tip: If you like the shooting in ‘Oldboy’, have a look at ‘Sympathy for Lady Vengeance’, the third part in Park’s revenge-trilogy. It’s even superior to the camera-work in ‘Oldboy’. Don’t, however, expect a story like Oldboy’s, because you would be very disappointed.

        When it comes to acting and the music, this film is also one of the better films ever made. The music sticks in your head and every time I put in my Oldboy-DVD and the theme-song comes up, I’m just flooded with good memories (eventhough the plot doesn’t have a single reason to be happy about). The characters are also presented very well by the outstanding cast. Especially Choi Min-Sik and Yu Ji-Tae set a very convincing performance.

        I really appreciate this film being respected as it should be, by having a place in the top 250. If, however, it was up to me it would be even higher in the ranking. I don’t see why films like ‘The Usual Suspects’ or ‘Memento’, which are fantastic pieces of film-making and which without a doubt deserve a place in the top 250, are higher in the top 250 than ‘Oldboy’. They serve the same cause; a fantastic plot. But those plots can’t stand in the shadow or even come close to the plot of ‘Oldboy’. The one and only reason is that those two films are better known and from a western production company. If we were all living in Asia, no doubt ‘Oldboy’ would be in the top 20 of all time.

        My advice to people who haven’t watched this film yet: Go see it! This is definitely a must- see. If you have a weak stomach, pull yourself together and still watch it. Don’t be as shallow as a lot of people here tend to be. Look beyond the violence and see the things I mentioned before: world class acting, cinematography, music and last but certainly not least the plot. Once you’ve opened yourself up you’ll find a whole new world of cinema. Enjoy!

        • Baba Ji 12 years ago

          Old boy had everythign i expect from a film.Great plot,characters,outstanding BGM,action,sex,violence and not to forget artistic touch all blended brilliantly.

          chek this scene from 1.35.this is what I am talking about!The way the brother closes his fist and it seems like he is pressing the trigger and then next shot he shoots himself as adult.

          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKec_W2pdlQ

      • Author
        fearlesssoul 12 years ago

        Some don’t like old boy only due its climax (to some it may be disgusting) which could be difficult to digest.

        • Baba Ji 12 years ago

          The director never takes a moral stand against incest relationship.May be he doesnt see it as a problem.He sees the lie ,that she is a slut ,as the problem and the revenge is about that.

  19. Serenzy 12 years ago

    Baba,

    – I prefer both tbh.

    – It also depends upon the ‘Mood’ too a lot of Times.

    I see Inception for it’s Cinematic Brilliance but till date I haven’t Cringed while watching HAHK & DDLJ bcz I know what their Sensibilities are, where those Movies come from & they Connect with me…
    I still Enjoy watching them.

    Just yestrday I saw HAHK fr 2hrs on TV and today I saw ‘A Walk to Remember’ and liked both Equally inspite AWTR being more Subtle, Less OTT.

  20. Baba Ji 12 years ago

    Been watching old boy everyday almost.what a cinematic masterpiece!

  21. Serenzy 12 years ago

    Baba,

    If anytime intrested in Animation, Ping me fr Sure but Problm is u don’t take me Seriously Enuf(I don’t know why though).

    🙁

    Please do c ‘I Saw the Devil’, Chaser, Memories of Murder also.

    I hv heard a lot abt ‘Chungking Express’ too.

    Any1 here seen it?

    • Baba Ji 12 years ago

      i take u as seriously as others serenzy which means i dont take anyone very seriously 😀
      yes i will watch memories of murder next.

    • Author
      fearlesssoul 12 years ago

      @serenzy – i haven’t seen chunking express but do watch daisy n sweet scandal – u may like it 😉

  22. Serenzy 12 years ago

    Thnx for d Reccos FS Bhai.
    🙂
    Keep them Coming…And it was Nice to c a Big Animation Fan in u.

    ……..

    Arre yaar Shilu, I found the Whole Damn Revenge Concept f Oldboy a bit Crazy.

    And many a Times there were Certain Goof Ups thruout the Movie.

    See, I like the Acting, Slickly Shot Action and all but as a Movie it doesn’t work much fr me much as say Memries of Murdr.

    The othr day FS calld ‘Clockwrk Orange’ Crap and I was like ‘What the F is Wrong with him?’ but ab aisa hain ki apne apne Opinions ki baat hoti hain.

    Ppl Cringe wen I mention DDLJ, but I Unabashedly declare it to be ‘Beyond Rating’ naa?
    😉

    You will be Shocked to know dat I din’t like ‘Silence of the Lambs’ as a Movie much at all.

    But, Hopkins ka Acting was Splendid,Superb,Awesome,Mindblowing,Classic.

    I love those 3 Scenes(20Minutes) of Hopkins a Fuckin Lot but the Movie is Average.

    Not in the Leagues of Usual Suspects,Sixth Sense,Zodiac,Se7en.

    • sputnik 12 years ago

      Yes opinions differ from person to person.

      “I found the Whole Damn Revenge Concept f Oldboy a bit Crazy.”

      If you think logically that someone will imprison someone for years and then make him have incest might seem crazy. But as that quote used in a Quentin Tarantino movie goes “Revenge is a dish best served cold”.

      I can’t speak for everyone out there but when I first saw Oldboy I was thinking why was he imprisoned and even the hero wants to find out the same. But he does not think why was he suddenly released now? I did not think why was he suddenly released too. And to me that’s the genius of it.

      I liked The Others too. According to me the twist is brilliant. It just shows how our minds think. We always see from one point of view.

      I liked Memento a lot. It is Nolan’s best according to me. I absolutely loved the ending.

      On the other hand I hated The Usual Suspects ending though it is considered a classic. The whole thing of Kevin Spacey making up stories from stuff in the room and something underneath the cup is ridiculous to me. When the movie ended I did not know what part of the movie was real and what was not. I did not even want to go back and watch it again.

  23. Serenzy 12 years ago

    “The colours are so vivid and it seems like he wanted every shot to be a piece of art.”

    Agreed…This & the Superior Acting.
    That’s abt it.

    I don’t even Like Memento much but I need a Rewatch of it(Unike Oldboy,SOTL) bcz I watchd it wen I was 15 and din’t Undrstnd it much back then.

    Infact, I liked Ghajini more den Memento.
    😉 😛

    Incest/Climax of ‘Oldboy’ is NOT a Problem with me bcz Clockwrk Orange is one of my Fav and I hv seen My Share of Gore/Slasher/Shocking Movies.

  24. Serenzy 12 years ago

    Btw, apna Desi B’wood Remake of ‘Oldboy’ is Zinda(Dir: Sanjay Gupta) with Sanjay Dutt,John Abraham,Lara Dutta.

    Total Piece of Garbage Shit…Utter Crapness!

  25. Serenzy 12 years ago

    ‘City of God’ is One Recco I wud like to make to those who hven’t seen it.

    Now, That’s a Near Classic.

    ……..

    I got to see ‘A Separation’ ASAP.

  26. narad_muni 12 years ago

    Champu,
    what is wrong with u – “Infact, I liked Ghajini more den Memento”

    I know opinions can be different but still yaar ……………………..
    Its an insult to Memento to be compared with Ghajini.

    Looks like we have very different tastes… Silence of the Lambs, Memento,Oldboy are amongst my all-time favorite movies… And its just not only my opinion. These movies have stayed in the minds n hearts of movie lovers till date and continue to do so… all these movies are regarded as classics

    I will advise u one thing – u r still young, I guess just crossed 20! Plzzzzzzzzzzzzz re-visit these movies once you are a little older, say around 30:)

    I like ur passionate comments, keep ’em coming

  27. Serenzy 12 years ago

    Yup Shilu…Tastes Differ frm Person to Person and that’s the Magic of it or Else it wud hv been sooo Boring.

    As I Mentiond bfr, I watchd Memento @ 15 and din’t get it as to Why it was Hyped and frm dat Point Onwards, Memento stayed in My Mind as the WEAKEST MOVIE of Nolan(Otherwise, he is GOD anyways).

    But I seriously need to Re-watch it bcz a Rewatch does change many Perspectives.

    But Similar Rewatches of Oldboy & SOTL(Except Hopkin’s Part) cudn’t make me like the Movie at all…Maybe 8-10Yrs down the Line as u say!
    🙂

    These Movies r Classics fr sure but I don’t get Bogged Down by it…Always Speak out ur True Opinion(Hamesha Apne ‘Dil’ ki Suno).

    😉

  28. Serenzy 12 years ago

    Watching ‘Oh Darling Yeh Hain India’ on TV.

    I don’t know what Message they are trying to Convey?
    Wether they r making a Comedic Spoof or a Musical Satire??

    But whatever it is, Full On Chugiri chalu hain.

    I wud just sum up by saying that it’s the *Biggest SHAME* in the World dat ODYHI Released in the Year 1995 in the Year of DDLJ!

    Horrendous!

  29. Serenzy 12 years ago

    Now want to watch Guddu,Gaja Gamini, Chahat, English Babu Desi Mem & Zaamana Deewana!

    😀

  30. Serenzy 12 years ago

    😀

  31. Baba Ji 12 years ago

    Saw Old boy again.and I am just in awe of the exemplary neutral stand of the director on such a controversial topic.

    In that suicide scene of villian’s sis,she says “i know you have always been afraid,so let go off me”

    Here the director wants to say or rather question the society that -does incest relation justify the kiling of a person? and second – is such an amoral revenge justified for it?i think the director took a great stand for such a controversial subejct,he has largely been neutral to it.

    :hatsoff: definitely an outstanding film in all respects.

  32. fearlesssoul 11 years ago

    Watched Daisy – another romantic cum action movie. Pure bw stuff… I liked it but some may not like. Also will be watching Silenced and Blind… Both have generated huge buzz and great appreciation among non koreans audience… Will be watching it soon.

    • Baba Ji 11 years ago

      downloading memories of murder. hope its worth it.

      • Tulmul 11 years ago

        Re : hope its worth it
        It Depends on You 😛 …

        MOM, at most parameters is far better than Zodiac, se7en .. IT’s CLASSIC .

        A suggestion .. Just watch it in close room, very attentively and without any disturbance ..

        Allow yourself to soak in MOM… unlimited pleasure and inquiries guaranteed 😀

        Ps: When i used to say about Oldboy on Sb, you ppl used to laugh at me then 😛

        Waqt waqt ki baat, mere dost 😀

        • Baba Ji 11 years ago

          tulmul – dont remember about oldboy but i remember you said tsn is good when i bashed it after first watch.i was so wrong 😀

      • Suprabh 11 years ago

        Memories of murder is a great entertaining piece of cinema.

  33. sputnik 11 years ago

    @FS,

    Watched The man from nowhere and liked it. Completely agree with you on it being “One of the best Stylish and Slick action korean movie that I have watched so far. The lead actor is amazing in his performance be it, action, emotional or style quotient, he justifies the act.”

    • FS 11 years ago

      Glad you liked it because yesterday in a chat in SB, the person who liked “moment to remember” didn’t like it.

      Watch sweet scandal if you haven’t watched it yet. Its nothing special nor great but very simple story with good performances. Watch it when you are free or bored and you may end up liking it. Same goes with “daisy”.

  34. Baba Ji 11 years ago

    just wasted 2 hrs on the crap called memories of murder. What is the point of making such films? Its based on some real life incident and the case is unsolved! Direction is also not very good. Too many redundant scenes. Editing is bad.

    • FS 11 years ago

      Read the title n if it has managed to piss u off then it has justified its role. Even i was pissed off at the end but it makes u think so much about the case that it keeps u haunting for few days trying to think who actually did it or trying to detect some mistakes out of it or discuss it with few who have seen it after all they are “memories of murder”. There are very few films which has such open ending.

      • FS 11 years ago

        Zodiac is another movie with such climax but mom is much better.

        • Baba Ji 11 years ago

          FS – what can you discuss when you are not even sure if even one of the suspects is even remotely associated with the case? One so-called witness said he saw the whole thing in a dream!Another boy with scarred face looked to be mentally disabled person himself. Nothing that he said could be taken seriously.

          • FS 11 years ago

            “Another boy with scarred face looked to be mentally disabled person himself. Nothing that he said could be taken seriously.”
            ———- I think you haven’t watched it properly. Watch it again from the begining. That scarred face boy confesses during the start of the investigation.

            About discussion – Its been very long since i watched the movie but i had very long debate with “tulmul” about the incidence. For example – the letters should reach the radio station to play the song but it cannot reach within the minutes of raining… One point that confuses me…

            Also while watching many inquiries bound to occur about the case and how you think or how the case should be taken. These are like unsolved mysteries but have happened in real life… Watch Zodiac on similar line and then you can understand about this film much better.

            But certainly it pisses you off with an unsolved mystery…Remember he almost had killed that guy…

      • Ritz 11 years ago

        Its not about open ending etc. The film is what these events do to the 3 investigators and how their life changes during the course of investigation and after that – hence the name “memories of murder”

        • Baba Ji 11 years ago

          whos life changes? One of the investigators later becomes a businessman. It is not shown what happens to the other one. Only thing is that murder place continues to bemuse them as shown in climax.

          • Ritz 11 years ago

            Not only the life after that. But even during the course of investigation how they become so possessive about it – they lose all their peace of mind even mental balance – one guy loses his leg etc. Liked the way the screenplay goes and shows the graph of these 3 characters.

          • FS 11 years ago

            Ritz – as viewers, we too get involved into it, seeks our complete attention and play with our mind as well…

            @baba – seems like you should move on with another film. This type of films doesn’t suit your taste i guess.

  35. Serenzy 11 years ago

    Don’t Empty MoM from Your Recycle Bin, Baba..

    It is a Better Movie than ‘Overhyped’ Oldboy 😛 and You Need to Rewatch it 1-2Years down the line.

    • Baba Ji 11 years ago

      Serenzy – what if oldboy had kept it a mystery as to why the old man was kept in that room for 15 years? One could always praise the movie for its cinematography,photography,sets, realism of characters and what not.But the movie would have become pretty much pointless.

  36. Baba Ji 11 years ago

    directors who dont have a great story to tell keep the ending open bcos they are themslevs confused how to end the film. a nice pretense is to make it open end so that the movie looks intellectual. MoM cannot be called even open ended. it just ends randomly. No creativity at all.

    • Tulmul 11 years ago

      Baba True what you said, No creativity”

      But its 2 way street, There should be creativity in Films as well as in those minds who experience the movie also…

      Rest i stand by what you say that you didnt like Mom, even though I may disagree as Mom is Classic movie IMO and have visited it many times and enjoyed everytime.

      • Baba Ji 11 years ago

        “There should be creativity in Films as well as in those minds who experience the movie also…”

        Yes. infact i prefer when a movie allows the viewer to get into the psyche of the characters.I told fs in another thread that i liked Never Back Down 2 because of that. MoM also allowed it. May be i saw it with expectations of a suspense film.its a completely different type of film.

  37. RAJ 11 years ago

    Fearless Soul,

    A very good list indeed..Seen some of them….Thanks…

    • FS 11 years ago

      Thanks… Watch “Confession” if you haven’t… the best of the lot but had seen it only after i made this post.

  38. Author
    FS 10 years ago

    Suggestions needed Sputnik… I am planning to update this post by including other 10 – 12 must watch korean movies and the movies I loved most. Since the count go up from top 10 – top 20 or 22, should I change the title of the post as well? I like to continue the post with best of the best Korean movies but I can also create a new post as well but it might sound repetitive, so your suggestion or any idea?

    • sputnik 10 years ago

      Its up to you but I think it would be better to create a new post (My Favorite Korean Movies – Part 2 or something like that) instead of updating the post and changing the title. May be you can give a link to this post in your new post so that people can check out this post too.

      • Author
        FS 10 years ago

        Thanks Sputnik… Good idea and I never thought about it but problem is the movies in previous post are no longer My top 10 favorites. at least 5 movies will be replaced.

        • narad_muni 10 years ago

          FS,
          Eagerly looking forward to it. So whatever you like but bring it on ASAP 😀

          I saw a Moment to Remember – good movie but overdose of emotions IMO. its a decent one for me but not among the best.

          Watched My Sassy Girl – superb entertaining movie with gr8 repeat value. Definitely one of my best Korean movies ever.

          Watched JSA – did not like it, got bored.

          So far what I have seen – Old boy, MoM and My Sassy girl are the best IMO followed by Chaser.
          Will watch The Man from nowhere soon.

          • Author
            FS 10 years ago

            Shilac – JSA is not for all… It is less on entertainment but more on the depth of Korean’s culture of differences in opinions, their instincts and hidden fondness towards each other even though they are divided yet they are loyal and patriotic to their country in the wake of danger.

            Moment to Remember – Did you like the Notebook and Walk to Remember?

  39. Author
    FS 10 years ago

    Sputnik – I will update this post without changing the title. that must resolve the issue and one can always comment/suggest/recommend back here regarding Korean movies as a reference thread.

    • sputnik 10 years ago

      That’s fine as this post has some very good discussion about Korean movies.

      I had to remove the font tags that you added in the title as they were breaking the share buttons below the post.

      • Author
        FS 10 years ago

        But I can make changes in the post right regarding the color, font or whatever? I mean if it affects you sharing or interferes with website’s layout or security please let me know. Because I am investing lot of time on these little changes to make it more attractive and providing links to all the movies mentioned.

        I could see you have not changed anything in the post apart from title.

        • sputnik 10 years ago

          I changed only the title part because that was messing up the share buttons. I did not change the content of the post.

          Yes you can change the content of the post. If you see anything is not working correctly (messing up the look or something) then revert your changes or let me know.

  40. narad_muni 10 years ago

    FS – may be I lack depth 😀

    I liked Notebook, better than A Moment to Remember. May be it depends on which one you saw first.
    Did not like A walk to remember much.

    Normally, I used to like romantic movies a lot but I am noticing lately that I am not liking them much.

    • Author
      FS 10 years ago

      I like almost all types of movies other than “Gunda” type of movies…

  41. Author
    FS 10 years ago

    I hope you all will like the new reformat version of this post. I tried my best to come up with different presentation this time and hope you all like it. I have also listed top 10 korean movies in different genres that is famous for. I will once again update the post later as I forgot to include in the list Red Cliff part 1 and 2 that are historical as well cinematic marvels in Korean film industry.

    PS: I have made easier for the readers to visit IMDB site for more information about film just by clicking on the title.

    • sputnik 10 years ago

      It was already a very good post. Looks like you put in a lot of effort in updating and reformatting the post and making it even better. Added some of the movies from your post to my Netflix queue.

      I had to remove the font face that you added in your post as it was showing the comments with the same font and color.

      In the Mood for Love is not Korean. Its a movie from Hong Kong in Cantonese. Infernal Affairs is also from Hong Kong in Chinese I think. Had recently added Departures to my queue. It is Japanese. So your post is now technically not Korean but may be North East Asian 🙂

      • Author
        FS 10 years ago

        It’s OK Sputnik and thanks for the info regarding the origin of those movies. after watching few listed movies in it, I will add those and make a seperate post for Asian Movies particularly Chinese and Japanese flicks. I have seen a lot of chinese movies but 80% of them are based on Martial arts. Japanese has some good horror flicks and most of the korean movies i listed above are the remakes/inspired from the Japanese flicks.

  42. Tulmul 10 years ago

    FS :

    Nice compilation

    There was time when I watched only korean movies and neo realistic scvandian movies..

    I dont even remember now names of movies seen… But there are some missing.. If I recollect or I have to parse my list ( too lazy) to jot down here..

    Still Moods, MoM, Oldboy, Sissy girl are must watches as all belong to different genre yet are best of respective genre…

    • Author
      FS 10 years ago

      Thanks Tulmul… Why don’t you provide a list, you sound like Reggie, are u reggie? 😛

  43. sputnik 10 years ago

    @FS,

    Watched Daisy and I felt it was more of a romantic drama than a action thriller. My comment about the movie.

    “Movie was very beautifully shot and is very leisurely paced. Did not like the ending. After all the drama in the climax the movie should have had a happy ending. The twist also looked good at that point. But then the director decided to ruin it by going for a unnecessary tragic ending and a final shootout scene.

    Performances were good by the three main leads.”

    https://tanqeed.com/movies-you-watched-this-month-october-2013/#comment-130309

    • Author
      FS 10 years ago

      I know it is more of a romantic movie than thriller but since I was short of Good thrillers, I added it to the thriller tag 😛

  44. narad_muni 10 years ago

    Watched the man from nowhere…found it a decent watch.
    The movie is superbly shot, the performances are damn good, its fairly engrossing but what killed the movie for me is such a predictable story line.Even the screenplay does not offer much twists and turns. Its an well executed action movie with an absolutely predictable story line.
    The main reason I got attracted towards Korean movies is due to the unpredictability factor along with great raw action, among other things. This movie lacks the unpreditability factor.
    MOM,Oldboy,Sassy girl n even Chaser r better movies in my opinion

    • narad_muni 10 years ago

      There was a movie starring Big B called ‘Ek Ajnabee’… was that inspired from this one?

      • Author
        FS 10 years ago

        Ek Ajnabi was a remake of”The man on fire” starring Denzel Washington. Now if you are looking for unpredictable stories and end then watch in the following order of the list;
        1. The tale of two sisters – you won’t be able to guess it for sure.
        2. Confessions – I bet you have hardly seen such movies. Watch carefully as it may get confusing Sometimes.
        3. I saw the Devil – it’s is quite unpredictable at times but it is sheer violence that you won’t expect much from the movies.
        4. Shutter – it’s a Japanese Horror movie and if you haven’t heard of it much then you surely gonna like it.

        • narad_muni 10 years ago

          Ya ya I remember that movie..good masala one.. Demzel Washington as usual was good in that kind of role.

          I will watch those movies you recommended above. Already put Confessions for download.

          Just to be clear about my point, I am not asking for totally different stories but the screenplay needs to have some unpredictable twists and turns to keep the viewer engrossed or there has to be a strong emotional undercurrent which will keep him into the movie… I mean for a thriller/action kind of genre. The main from nowhere did not have either of them IMO.

          If you look at the Bourne series, the story is as pretty much on the predictable lines but the screenplay is just awesome.

  45. Author
    FS 10 years ago

    The Host 2006 – I thought it’s a serious movie in which the city gets attacked from some creature but it turns out to be a comical movie with an emotional end. It is the highest grossing film of Korea and so is Chennai express in India.. Film is partly good and partly over dramatic with slapstick comedy and unintentional funny. Overall a good one time entertainer.

  46. dwnpiyush 10 years ago

    This post motivated me to watch some oriental films… have seen three now, two of which are in this list.

    1. My Sassy Girl: Absolutely loved it. Both the actors were fantastic. And so many terrific and novel moments. The entire narrative was bitter-sweet. Really entertaining.

    2. In Mood for Love: Man… This movie was so slow, apart from the first 10-15 minutes, I thought the entire movie was in slow motion. Like still art. The story wasn’t great shakes. Some scenes were good. But mostly, I thought this one is a classic example of showy, pretentious, art-house cinema. I would put it at par with ‘Lost in Translation’ in terms of how much effort it took me to finish viewing this, despite it being just about 90-95 min in duration.

    3. Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter, and Spring: Another slow movie… but I thought it was really beautiful and thought provoking. And one of its kind. This is one movie I won’t forget easily. Highly recommended for all those who are interested in oriental spirituality. The cinematography is stunning too. Wonderful setting for the plot, and amazing camerawork. Must watch.

    • sputnik 10 years ago

      I liked In the Mood for Love a lot and have watched it twice. Liked it more on the second watch.

      Watched may be 30 minutes of Lost in Translation and stopped it. It was very boring.

      • dwnpiyush 10 years ago

        Maybe I saw a different film but that’s all right 🙂 The leads were great though. I thought the lady was extremely pretty. It is a pity their names are so tough to remember for us Indians.

  47. Anjanpur685Miles 10 years ago

    @dwnpiyush

    My Sassy Girl is my fav too. Fantastic movie.

    I am surprised you didnt like In the Mood for love – its one of my most fav ones. The pace of it is just fine and engaging and so it the aura/cinematography. Especially the ending is very nice. You have to understand that “slow” is not a bad word afterall.

    • dwnpiyush 10 years ago

      @Ritz, I never said that ‘slow’ is bad. In fact if you read what I have said about the third film in the comment, you will take back your words 🙂 Maybe I just wasn’t in the mood for the kind of love ‘In the mood for love’ reflected upon, way too ponderously. What was the need for that Columbian political footage? Why didn’t he whisper the secret to a tree on the top of a mountain? Why Angkor Vat? And why did the camera linger upon the remarkable corridors of Angkor Vat for about 5 minutes even after the deal was done? I thought it was too pretentious.

      I don’t take to films that have nothing much to say and yet are made as if they are seminal works. It is the ‘Lost in Translation’ genre.

      • sputnik 10 years ago

        ” Maybe I just wasn’t in the mood for the kind of love”

        I think that could be the reason.

        Actually I found my first comment where I said I had mixed feelings 🙂 I liked it more on the second watch. The background music is great.

        “Watched In the Mood for Love. Have mixed feelings on this one. Liked the movie initially and loved the whole ambiance and the acting by the leads but after a point it became too slow for me and it could not keep me engrossed. ”

        Movies You Watched This Month – December 2012

  48. Anjanpur685Miles 10 years ago

    @dwnpiyush

    Well, I havent watched either “lost in translation” or the other third movie you mentioned in your comment.

    The thing I loved about In the Mood for Love was its its ingenuity and pace. Apart from its music which was great IMO.

    ” And why did the camera linger upon the remarkable corridors of Angkor Vat for about 5 minutes even after the deal was done?”

    Now that is hilarious. We can ask same question to every memorable scene we remember in cinema history 🙂

    Btw, have you seen the alternative ending to the movie?

    PS: No offense, I can understand why you did not like the movie. You being a Salman fanatic I can understand your choice 😀 :p 😉

    • dwnpiyush 10 years ago

      No I just saw the movie today.

      “We can ask same question to every memorable scene we remember in cinema history”

      I would love to know some examples.

    • dwnpiyush 10 years ago

      Salman Khan waala point add karke ho gaya mann khush? Apne ko kya hai… do whatever you want to do man. God bless.

  49. Anjanpur685Miles 10 years ago

    @dwnpiyush

    For example, why was the “Jhoola” still moving when Gabbar came onto the scene? Actually Gabbar’s men had killed all adults on the scene long back – but the Jhoola is still in full swing – why? with that kid in front of Jhoola..and its swinging as if someone has just left it …

    • dwnpiyush 10 years ago

      Come on you can’t compare these two scenes, for one thing the jhoola wasn’t the focus for five minutes.

  50. Anjanpur685Miles 10 years ago

    Well, the Gabbar killing the child scene (jhoola waala) is exactly 2mins 40 seconds – just counted it.

    Salman point was a dig – hope I don’t have to explain everything ! Sigh ! (do take it in good spirit man ! )

  51. John Galt 10 years ago

    Jhoola was swinging because of the wind or because one of the daakus of gabbar gang (whose childhood was ruined becaue of joining gabbar’s gang) took a ride on it before that scene.

  52. Anjanpur685Miles 10 years ago

    @Sputnik and ALL

    See the last 10 mins. I hadnt seen this ending of Sholay:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNNLMhgWw3c

    • sputnik 10 years ago

      Have watched it before. I never liked that scene of a hand less Thakur jumping in the air and fighting with Gabbar.

  53. narad_muni 10 years ago

    My thoughts on the above movies –

    In the mood for love – This movie creates such a sensuous, mysterious and visually stunning ambience with the mundane settings is absolutely amazing. I think it’s a lesson in cinematography and camera angles.I was engrossed to a certain point..I was totally into it. The lady was amazingly pretty 🙂 BUT, somewhere after the half way point, I started to become bored, and then I became restless, and then I was praying for the movie to end. The climax scene was going on and on…I breathed a sigh of relief when the movie ended. My wife had similar feelings as well.

    Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter, and Spring – Oh man, what a boring movie. In the mood for love kept me hooked for the first half or so…This one was boring from the start. I mean, after lots of efforts, I could see only 20-25 mins. On another day, another effort, I watched the next 15 mins or so..Then I gave up – not my cup of tea! This has to be one of the slowest movie ever made. May be, spirituality is not my thing. My wife still curses me for making her watch this movie on a Saturday night when there was some other TV show coming up which she wanted to see.

    Ritz – I agree, slow is not bad.Sometimes, it is required. There are plenty of slow movies I have liked but not the above 2.
    I plan to revisit in the Mood for Love sometime in the near future. But the other one – no way!

  54. Author
    FS 10 years ago

    Dwnpiyush – I am really Glad to know that 🙂 … Please watch other movies as well…

    The Summer winter spring – I have watched it in fast forward mode and liked just two scenes that happens near the mountain and on the boat. I have a slight idea about the movie but I will definitely watch it sometime for sure.

    • dwnpiyush 10 years ago

      @FS, Sure bro will try to watch some more. The thing is that I don’t have a high speed connection these days, though I do have some movies on my hard disk. Spring Summer Fall Winter and Spring is strictly for those who appreciate (or can tolerate) spirituality and abstract ideas. And from that also, the movie depicts just one of the many ways of life (or philosophies)… basically Buddhist/Oriental ideas about life and finding oneself…

      @Rest, thanks for sharing your views.

  55. Anjanpur685Miles 10 years ago

    Thanks FS for this great thread. I saw Mother today. Was nice – more on it I mentioned in another thread.

  56. cr7 9 years ago

    Watched No Mercy recently .Gem of a Korean thriller.Looks like no one here seen it .I would highly recommend it .

    • Author
      FS 9 years ago

      I have already downloaded it. Watch Suspect if you haven’t. Excellent Stuff

      • cr7 9 years ago

        Sure . I have downloaded quite a few korean movies and using your post as reference . Thanks again for this awesome post .

        • Author
          FS 9 years ago

          Thanks, Need to update this post with 4-5 brilliant Korean Movies. No time and the format is such that its pain in the ass to edit the post

    • Author
      FS 9 years ago

      Watched No Mercy – Brilliant film and brilliant performance from everyone except one loud mouth inspector. The film has surprisingly very shocking and depressive end and as you said the last half an hour is outstanding. The last 10 mins are unforgettable for quite sometime. Thanks Cr for the recommendation. Highly Recommended!!!

      • cr7 9 years ago

        You’re welcome .Glad that you liked it . Agree with what you said . The movie had very strong emotional content which I liked a lot . And last half an hour was too good .

  57. Rajyog Singh 7 years ago

    I saw Speed Scandal (2008) . It is amazing. I watched it again and again. I never fade up watching this movie. I love the child artist in this movie. His expressions are so cute and innocent. I would suggest everyone to watch this movie.

    • sputnik 7 years ago

      Thanks for the recco. Will check it out if it comes on Netflix here.

      • saurabh sharma 7 years ago

        Can anybody recommend movies which have theme of unrequited love like A dil hai mushkil or devdas kinds..
        here I am not asking about movies like Ek duje ke liye.. but movies like 500 days of summer which is about one sided love or devdas which has this theme of sadness and anger about failure in love..

        Overall movies which make u feel the pain about love..

        • sputnik 7 years ago

          hmm…interesting

          Had made a post on Jilted Lover Songs from Hindi Movies some time back.

          Ek Duje Ke Liye was not about unrequited love. Did you mean Sadma?

          There is Muqaddar Ka Sikandar where Rekha loves Amitabh who loves Rakhee who loves Vinod Khanna.

          There is Saagar where Kamal Haasan loves Dimple but she loves Rishi Kapoor.

          There is Saajan where Sanjay Dutt loves Madhuri who is initially in love with Salman because she is told that he is the poet she loves. The ending is good for Sanjay but its unrequited love for Salman.

          Part of JJWS has unrequited love where Ayesha Jhulka is in love with Aamir who is in love with Pooja Bedi.

          Baazigar had a small track of unrequited love between Sidharth and Kajol.

          Well there was Darr in which Shah Rukh is in love with Juhi who doesn’t love him.

          And there is Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa in which Shah Rukh is in love with Suchitra who doesn’t love him.

          There is the comedy Deewana Mastana where both Anil and Govinda love Juhi but she doesn’t love them.

          And there is Dumb and Dumber which again was a comedy and kind of inspiration for Deewana Mastana.

          Earth 1947 – Aamir loves Nandita Das who loves Rahul Khanna.

          Tere Naam was also about unrequited love.

          Even HDDCS can be said to be about unrequited love for a while for Salman and Ajay’s characters.

          Raanjhanaa was also about unrequited love.

          You can say Fandry is also about unrequited love too.

          There is Malayalam movie Premam which has one story of unrequited love and the second one is also partially about unrequited love.

          I love 500 Days of Summer.

          Forrest Gump is also partially about unrequited love as Gump loves the girl who doesn’t love him.

          The Notebook is also about unrequited love for a while.

          • saurabh sharma 7 years ago

            Thanks for the comment..
            I actually wanted to say that not the movies like ek duje ke liye.. since some people think that is a sad love movie..

            I actually was looking for devdas and e dil hai muskil kinda which has this anguish love theme..
            KHKN, Tere naam and 500 days of summer can be said to be such movies.. where the central theme is unrequited love.

            HDDCS becomes such a movie only at the end where you get connected with ajay.

            Raanjhna was supposed to be such a movie but for me it never became that movie.. as in first half is comical, second half is politics and his guilt.. for a very less time we see pain in Dhanush’s eyes.. [when he started crying before his own marriage].

            All the other movies have other themes going on which never let you be serious about the unrequited love of the hero/heroine.. i mean you don’t feel the sadness once the movie is done..

            I think we can keep Rockstar’s 2nd half’s some part in the same plate where character goes into anguish mode..

            I am not sure where to keep Dil Se.. It can be said a movie dealing with unrequited love but then from the start of the movie you can sense a mystery around Manisha and Srk’s character expressing his love at every instance. [whether in sad love situation the situation is different]. Moreover Dil se has sufism as a theme.. [though people may think that movie is about terrorism in north east, but to me, that is just surface or external surrounding].

            thanks for the comment, i feel my question is lil stupid as there will be very less movies in this specific genre..

          • saurabh sharma 7 years ago

            I forgot about Dhadkan.. Suneel shetty portions are excellent..

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