Warning: May contain spoilers.

I have decided I will make a movie review post after every 5 movies I’ve seen. I’m trying to shorten my to-watch list. Which means, I’ve been slower with my Detective Conan binge. Update on that: Currently on Episode 499. 🙂

The Old Guard (2020)

I was excited to watch this because I love action movies and I love Charlize Theron! She is fucking perfect for movies like this! I understand that this is based on a graphic novel and I totally love the idea of a group of immortal mercenaries living amongst us. So the plot revolves around them getting exposed after thousands of years, at the same time discovering a new member.

I enjoyed the movie, the plot is really simple and I think it’s largely because it’s just the introduction to the film series. I think most of the film was spent on backstories, introducing each character. I must say though that the action scenes were weak. I wasn’t into the airplane fight scene between Andy and Nile. But I loved the Russian / play dead moment, which was also used at the end. And I think that one at the end was the only action scene I actually liked.

Most favorite scene would definitely be Joe and Nicky’s “He is not my boyfriend.” moment. Come on!!! It is the best scene in the movie.

I don’t understand why people are so pressed about the soundtrack?! There are things one can be mad about other than the soundtrack. LOL. Anyway, loved the ending, it sets things up for the next movie and I’m so looking forward to it!

A Nice Girl Like You (2020)

Ok, this was bad. Not hating on Lucy Hale but why do I feel like that most of the things she’s done other than Pretty Little Liars have been a flop? I feel kinda bad for her. Ok, the synopsis on Wikipedia says, “Lucy Neal (Lucy Hale) is a violinist who is thrown for a loop when she is accused of being “pornophobic” by her ex-boyfriend. In an effort to prove him wrong, Lucy creates a rather wild to-do list that sends her on a whirlwind journey of self-discovery, friendship, and new love.” Okaaaaay, what was the self-discovery?! The movie was just a collage of awkward situations she got herself into that were not even that funny. The only scene I actually liked was when he used that “difficult” word (that I already forgot) and she was impressed. Vocabulary is sexy. LOL.

Palm Springs (2020)

I love it and it’s so good. I want to watch it again! It was fun and fresh. I love the concept of time loop movies and this was nicely done! My takeaway from this is that sometimes, it takes one woman willing to study quantum physics to save a stuck hero. Women rule! LOL! Not going to say much, but totally recommend this movie! You’d notice that I don’t usually say much if I really like the movie. I just feel like if I talk more about this, I will definitely spoil it.

Marmalade Boy (2018)

I started watching this in April and I didn’t really like it because it was so boring and dramatic. I was able to watch it halfway through, until before they became a couple. I remember Marmalade Boy as this fun, outrageous manga and even the Taiwanese live action drama starring Ken Zhu was really weird and funny. I mean, it has a plot where two families exchanged partners and lived together in one roof! Making this so much more dramatic as it is was not a good idea. But since they went that way, then that’s how I will take it.

Marmalade Boy is originally a manga that ran from 1992 to 1995, so the topics are outdated for sure. I don’t even remember that Miki’s best friend Meiko was in a relationship with her teacher and they even got married! See how problematic that is? That’s grooming, people! Don’t give me that “they ended up getting married anyway” crap, because a 17-year-old student marrying her teacher is wrong in all angles.

I’m not going to criticize the premise anymore because that’s the whole plot that I’ve known all along and I’m fine with that. Please, mangas have ridiculous plots and I have read and watched their live action versions for many years so I am definitely aware. But then in this movie, you realize that all of Miki and Yuu’s problems were caused by Yuu’s assumptions and his inability to just ask his parents about it. The entire second half of the movie, I kept saying, “These stupid kids. Just ask your parents!” So Yuu thinks that his father is not his real father, he initially thought it was some other architect and then he was proven wrong, so he and Miki started dating and were happy. Then he found a photo of their parents in college, and assumed that his real father is Miki’s father, which makes them blood-related half-siblings. Because of that, he ghosts Miki, and goes to a university in Kyoto. Miki visits him in Kyoto and then she learns why he ghosted her. And then, it even got to a point where they were like, “I don’t care if we are blood-related, I don’t care about morals and common sense, I want to be with you.” Uggggh, seriously, all these could have been avoided if Yuu just asked his parents! There was no need to think of immoral things, if you just asked! Which they did in the end. Like so much time and tears wasted and unnecessary emotions because he didn’t want to ask his parents. So stupid! So yeah, I didn’t like this movie at all. If they just did a silly movie, then I don’t think I’d react this way. I had no issues with the Stella Huang – Ken Zhu Taiwanese drama back then because it was just funny and silly.

I do think though that Yoshizawa Ryo did great. There was one scene at the hotel when he was telling Miki that he’s willing to fight for him and I was like, hmmm, he’s pretty convincing. It’s those eyes, man. I was also familiar with 3/4 of the parents. I have never seen the girl playing Miki before.

I guess, if you really want to see Marmalade Boy, just stick to the anime or the Taiwanese drama, this one is quite bad.

Go Lala Go 2 (2015)

I LOVED THIS! I mean, I’m really easy to please! I don’t look for much, I just want to be entertained when I watch movies.

I was a fan of the first Go Lala Go movie (I reviewed it in my old blog in 2010), starring, written, and directed by Xu Jinglei. She went on to make Dear Enemy, which is a bit similar and also with Stanley Huang. Go Lala Go 2 has nothing to do with the first movie, except for maintaining the characters Du Lala and David Wang. I feel like I need to explain a bit. So yeah in the first movie, Du Lala and David Wang were played by Xu Jinglei and Stanley Huang respectively. In Go Lala Go 2, they are now being played by Ariel Lin and Vic Zhou. And yes, David Wang was a sales director in the first movie, but has now transitioned into a photographer in the second movie and that career change has contributed so much to how Lala and David’s relationship has changed as well. Because see, in the first movie, Lala started out as a secretary and David was a sales director, but this time in the second movie, Lala is the one climbing up the corporate ladder and David had to restart his career as a photographer.

I remember Go Lala Go as being more fun, while this one is more serious and dramatic, I guess, but I liked it just the same. Honestly, I was surprised to see Zaizai in this movie because I’ve had this movie for a while so I might have forgotten. When he was shown for the first time, I was like, “Is that Zaizai?!” I had to do a quick Google search. LOL! I also didn’t know that Nana was in this or that she actually made a movie in China.

I also saw some similarities, like in the first Go Lalo Go movie, there were some scenes shot in Bangkok, while in Go Lala Go 2, they shot some scenes in Koh Samui, which is also in Thailand. So I feel like they are paying homage to the first movie in little ways they can.

It’s also interesting that one of Ariel Lin’s earliest projects was appearing in Zaizai’s Make A Wish MV in 2001. And of course, Ariel Lin and Chen Bolin starred in In Time With You together. I don’t know, I guess it’s just so nice to see them all in one movie because they were some of the OG Taiwanese stars that I used to watch some 10-20 years ago. And it’s so crazy that even 20 years later, Vic Zhou still gives me all the feels.

Lala said something towards the end of the movie that I really liked. She said, “I used to think that marriage was like career – I would gladly accept it when I get the best deal I want.” I don’t know, it just kind of hit me and made me feel some type of way.