Featured Music: Dumb Dumb cover by Jane Jang, GIANTPINK, PERC%NT

Hey!

I'll be perfectly honest, I have never listened to any music by any of these artists ever. Heck, I have never even heard of them. But, I came across this song when I was looking up what the Snowball Project was, and I enjoyed both the Rebirth remake and the Dumb Dumb remake.


Perhaps because I am familiar with Red Velvet's Dumb Dumb, this cover really struck me as cool and suave, and was a rather different vibe from the original. 

I recommend you check out this cleverly crafted rendition of Dumb Dumb. All the artists did a great job! I will keep an eye out for more music from them, and also more music from the Snowball Project.

The Dumb Dumb cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDq2dr70sC8

Review: Reply 1997/ Answer Me 1997

If you're above a certain age (I mean, old enough to be mature about sex, and understand enough about love and growing up), this drama is a must-watch.

Awesome cast, awesome actors, good fit for their respective roles

Whether you are or aren't into it, this really isn't a school drama (Look for the School kdrama series for that one lol). It deals with growing up, in a nutshell. 
The director skillfully portrayed relationships: romantic, familial, friendships, and the complications that play into it when these relationships get in the way of others, or start blurring. It's about heartache, pangs, frustration, anger, and everything that usually enters the picture when it comes to teenagehood. 

This drama does in fact keep you anticipating, and reveals information little by little through its format of switching between the past and the present. There are many spoilers, so keep watch for the spoiler tags and don't read the spoilers if you seriously want the full experience. 

I loved the job that the actors did. I've never seen anything else in which they were principle actors, but they were such naturals in their roles. Jung Eun-ji played Sung Si-Won and was so natural and relatable and did not try to overdo anything. She was not a delicate flower that needed a man by her side all the time, nor was she fake. Her maturation was well-portrayed and understandable, her emotions raw and believable, and her positivity was contagious. Seo In-Guk played Yoon Yoon-jae, and he basically embodied and defined our inwardly emotional and struggling male lead that has been used in so many dramas and has found few truly capable of the it, and he brought his own twist into it as he portrayed a boy - every schoolgirl's cold but popular crush, and a little in-love, but at the same time awkward and young and naive. Can I live in Busan please?

Our side characters did a great job as well - notably Hoya (from INFINITE), who did such a good, believable and mature job of playing his role as someone with a secret he can't tell the person to whom it matters the most. Beyond this is a spoiler. And the addition of Sechkies leader Eun Ji-Won was plainly hilarious as there is a focus on our two female cast members' favorite bands - H.O.T. and Sechkies throughout the majority of the drama. As someone who deals with my own love for fandoms, I totally related to this fact and enjoyed the ensuing humor from the over-dramatization of fanwars. 

Cutie <3

The romance: amazing. The characters stuck in our strange love triangle had great chemistry and the romantic scenes were truly romantic - hilarious at times, make you blush at other times. And there's a special magic that surrounds the idea of a first-love - almost like a rite of growing up of heartbreak and confusion and butterflies. I think the true charm of the drama was its simplicity. The way in which our characters were portrayed was raw, genuine, earnest, and simple. There is no simple answer to love, whichever form it comes in, and that's the magic that this show shows so well. We truly feel for the characters as an audience, cheering on kisses, crying at heartbreak, anticipating reactions. Simple and sweet. Makes me melt.

The great thing about the side romance plots in the drama is that they are all sweet, heartwarming, believable, and make us love and understand all the characters. This is not true of side-character romances in most cases, and it does not detract from the main story, but feeds to the development of the characters, and the way they handle their relationships with each other. 

Rude asf *sigh*

One of the main themes in the drama is that of maturation, which hits everyone at some point, and it involves moving out of childhood fantasy. And it's a little sad to watch, but a real truth that we will all feel while growing up. It's the kind of thing that you remember suddenly when something sparks a memory in your mind of a time more innocent and genuine, which gives you an insight into who you are. Perhaps that is why the drama is aptly named to ask for a reply from that age of innocence. And growing up, moving beyond that time, it is inevitable, but was still beautiful to experience for our principle characters.

In addition to being a coming-of-age and romance drama, the director did a great job instilling a sense of nostalgia that even I, someone who has never experienced the 90's, especially not through South Korean culture, could relate. If you truly want to immerse yourself in understanding every joke and reference (such as the identity of one of the principle actors), read the entries and try to look up the references on the Special Appearances category of the cast or Google anything suspiciously sounding like an inside joke for 90's teens, because it probably is. 

This drama will not have any fantastical elements, nor any ridiculous unlikely happenings that would render it an unbelievable mess. If you are into a classic sexy cool hunk falling for a delicate princess of beauty and envy, this drama may not be for you. If you are not into realness either (which is understandable), then this drama won't satisfy that for you. This one is meant to hit the feels, make you think, make you cry a little, smile a lot.

Often low-budget translates to low-quality, but this drama is not particularly special in its production. Its story is worth watching, its characters worth falling for and relating to, its plot tied together well. That is what makes Reply 1997 one of my favorite dramas of all time. Watch it. 10/10 in my eyes.

Review: Passengers

I finally watched the movie (I had wanted to for a while because of the cast), which I put off because of the poor reviews, and I can finally see why they were justified.

My dad watched the movie a while ago, and he has a nasty habit of spoiling movies. After watching the movie, I realized that there was nothing he really could have spoiled. It was predictable and bland. 

Me as I look out the window: "Where did the plot go?"

I'll spoil from the start - it's a love story of sorts. Or at least, it's supposed to be. Additionally, from what I saw in the trailer, I expected a high action, intense, fast-paced space thriller, all of which I only got about... 15 minutes? Romance is space is a big bang (as in it was a sad explosion of elements. Sorry.). And they did in fact... you know.

But it is unfortunate because I did not feel any emotion towards their relationship because it was so random and sudden, and it made no sense (especially the ending).

Such good actors, such bad chemistry

The themes that should have been presented include the sheer vastness of space, as well as the sheer LONELINESS of it. The loneliness that drove Pratt's character to making the decisions he did. Because the plot did not portray that struggle sufficiently at all. There was never a moment of just pure silence, pure lost-in-thought moments, and I think it might have been a better plot for him to stay alone and pang for someone he could never have or wake because of his moral reasoning - and that his love story was tragic. 

When the romance took hold of the plot, it was rather rushed, and our characters suddenly fell in love. There was little consideration of the fact that the two of them were alone, together. For the rest of their lives. That's daunting, and undesirable. I would not want to live in a world where the only person I know is my romantic partner. I thought there could have been a Huis Clos-esque plot in which "Hell is other people", but it did not take that path, and I am a bit disappointed with the direction it took.

The ending was ridiculous. One miracle after another, I was expecting everything to go wrong and stay wrong in order to nuance the plot more, but no - since this is a romance movie it has to end a certain way, right? Spoiler Alert: Them getting and staying together was as unfortunate as their sudden romance. Would you really give up everything you've worked for your whole life for a man you knew a bit too intimately for a year, who also happened to have screwed you over without your consent? Not a moral question, but a practical one. End Spoiler.

To conclude, I did not particularly like this movie (I do like the actors!), if that wasn't apparent yet. The plot was stale and could have been more creative, more refreshing. If you want to watch a cool space movie, I suggest Gravity or Interstellar. Passengers fell a little short of expectation on this. But hey, I look forward to the next X-Men and Guardians of the Galaxy! Marvel to the rescue! 😄

Original Poem: Scale Things

Scale Things
by Ritika Roy Choudhury

I woke up one morning and thought to scale my perspective,
"look at the big picture" well shit, I have for a while,
and it's not pretty, we can all see it,
mother, who panics by nature, father, who's always a little snide,
and a three-year-old who looks at the world with big mouth,
and me.

and the folds, the grotesque folds spill over,
to everything else. No problem is too big to solve,
until you can't solve it. 

So? Why should you shy away from a challenge that has trailed you,
since you were two?

Because, you littlest dewdrop lining my crown,
I only shine in my element, when it's handed to me on a plate.
Why take up the challenge and fail to start and stop what I ought?
Why not simply give up from the start?
Why does my shell slowly spread its rot?

The three-year-old says "ugly" and I believe it.
The inside too is ugly, I believe it.

Perhaps the flower burnt and wilted after a storm and a fire,
ripping out any hope or desire,
but was once a plump fresh bud in the breeze,
perhaps ungrateful of the comfort, the plenty, the ease.
but it set the spark and without warning the flame consumed
and consequences lined a decision made which turned to ten choices
to ten years, to a thousand, to ten thousand tears.
the tears become scars
that snake down like rivers and mark
my mark, a taboo, my life.
It's a story you can read in an instant,
a tragic story that repulses secretly and silently,
and you think I can't see but no scars run in my eyes or heart,
and I could always see and that's what ripped the flower apart.

And I try, I'm always trying, a battle in my head that doesn't quite connect with the digits,
and the bigger picture is always there, and I try and I try.
How dare you mock, how dare you assume.
I've been trying ever since I realized that the bigger picture was always there
in a mirror.

And apparently, it's just never enough.



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_____________

Poet's Note: Haha I wrote this one in 5 minutes at a time I was feeling particularly down. But I think I liked it enough to post it because it represents exactly how I feel sometimes, and I suppose, underlying all the time.
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Oct 14: On second thought, this is a terrible poem, I'm surprised I haven't deleted it.

Review: Fight My Way/ Fight for My Way

What can I say? I'm very pleasantly surprised!

Right from the start, I ought to say it's rare that I see a non-main couple with a love story that is engaging enough for me to care (sadly, those in Boys Over Flowers, Coffee Prince, Secret Garden... sometimes got annoying and pulled away from our main pairs). But this drama, while not blowing anything to ridiculous proportions with romance, and keeping the secondary couple down to earth and relatable, did more than any possible romantic rivals/flashy playboys/bitter exes ever did. I'm impressed, and I found myself genuinely rooting for all four of the leads.

Anyway, the actors did a great job. I'll be honest. Hwarang (Seo-Joon's previous drama) bored me, and I thought Ji-Won's role in Descendants of the Sun was a little flat. I also have never seen Song Ha-Yoon before, and never seen Ahn Jae Hong in a serious role, and he was possibly the most serious in the friend group (he was hilarious and lovable in Reply 1988 though). So this group of actors was almost underdog just like their underdog roles in the show.

The beginning of the show made the characters pitiful, relatable to anybody who has had a bad day, and underdogs we definitely want to see winning in the future. What a setup! Ae Ra always dreamed of being an anchorwoman on TV, the mic is her dream. Dong Man was a promising taekwondo artist who quit the sport. Seol-Hee and Joo-Man have dated for 6 years, and now go through a period of turbulence. 

The romance in the show was very cute from all the characters involved, and even though they were a little frustrating at times (why is he so obsessed with his ex and thick-headed? Why does she cry so much?), there were plenty of cute moments for our two lead couples that the story was an exciting one. Potentially sequel-worthy (very few dramas are)!

A pervasive theme in this drama was that of "it's not too late to pursue your dreams", which was pretty striking, and spoiler alert, everybody more or less achieves what they dream of, and in a way mature to have a better understanding of both themselves and their dreams, which do take on new forms. The romance did overwhelm the dream part at times, which I did not like, but was not enough to put a damper on the drama's merits. Dong Man's character valued money, and for good reason. We are exposed to the sacrifices people make for money, not simply because they want to roll in green, but because they always strive for the better - a better life for themselves, their kids, their families. And I completely sympathize with the realness that this aspect of the drama brought out. 

It's a truly refreshing take on a modern world where our opportunities seem more boundless than ever, and yet we are still tied down in a society of dependencies, responsibilities, and fear. One of the lines I really liked was "If growing up means that I have to give up my dreams, then I don't want to grow up!" I relate 😅😆 And yeah - they were 30 year olds who embarked on a journey to be happy in life. 

Don't be timid! Have self-confidence!

My favorite theme in this drama was that surrounding Song Ha-Yoon's character, which was feminist and practical and fresh in its point of view. I, for one, have never "dreamed" of marrying and having kids. My dreams lie more on the "let's never settle and focus only on work" side. Seol-Hee (played by Song Ha-Yoon) was of the former. Her dream was to be part of a family, to be loved, to cherish and be cherished. And what's wrong with that dream? Absolutely nothing. Feminism is the idea that no matter what anybody wants to do, gender of all things shouldn't be a hindrance. But our Seol-Hee does become more independent, which is a necessity in today's world, regardless of how much you love the person you depend on entirely.

This drama had several points of tension and suspense that kept it interesting throughout. There was this one secret regarding the landlady of the four friends, and the journey to finding out the truth was really funny and exciting. However, the actual execution of it (in the very last episode) felt a little rushed (you don't have to tie up all loose ends that neatly, guys). Perhaps that was the greatest flaw of the show. It just progressed towards a situation in which everybody got exactly what they wanted (in a way very obvious for the audience) and there was a distinct lack of loose ends in the show. But if you like happy endings like that, then hey, this drama did damn good.

I would rate it a 7.5/10 because of how refreshing this drama was. Not the sappy type that would include an all-star cast and become crazy successful, but a nice drama telling us more about ourselves. While I feel that the self-discovery idea was a little overshadowed by the romance at times, this drama was still a sweet one to watch - I'd recommend it!

Featured Music: Dinosaur - AKMU

'Sup kids, 

I really like AKMU - fresh, refreshing, cute, sweet, thoughtful, they've got it all. And they're a sibling duo, which is kind of adorable. Plus, Suhyun is close to my age, and I feel like we would be friends (wishful thinking...). 

Anyway, the first time I heard Dinosaur, I was a little weirded out (who names a song Dinosaur?). But give it a chance. Not only do both Suhyun and Chanhyuk's vocals impress any ear, the concept seems creepy yet intriguing, and has a simple but deep representation of a naive idea of the world's problems, representing all that is going wrong by a "monster under the bed" idea of a dinosaur, that the siblings try to search for.

A plus is that the teasers totally looked like a Netflix original series trailer!

The feel of the music is super... vibe, which doesn't make much sense, but you might feel it if you give it a listen. It feels like a breezy day song. 🙂

Here's the M/V: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Oz7DG76ibY 

And as always, they do an awesome job live. This is a special live version by 1TheK: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_Pil-lMgZk

Review: Jab Harry Met Sejal

Watched the movie yesterday - couldn't miss a King Khan-focused movie for anything, after all. 

Though I was apprehensive, since I haven't been particularly impressed by his string of movies in recent years. I liked Fan, I thought Raees was passable. Dilwale? Please no. Plus, my dad taunted me with reviews of how poorly the movie was made. 
But! I got loyalty, boi. I wasn't gonna pass a judgement on the movie before actually watching it myself. So, I did - and I wasn't really disappointed. 

Have I ever cried about Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi to you before?
Once I start, I never stop; I will cry forever. 💓

Anushka Sharma and Shah Rukh Khan have a lot of onscreen chemistry (hah! With the king of romance, who doesn't... Sorry, I'll stop fangirling now). Did it all come out in the movie? Not quite, no.

At first I thought, why the heck would someone name the movie so similarly to a prior superhit and one of my faves, Jab We Met? And as I watched the movie, I realized... why would the director even include themes so similar to Jab We Met? And later I was awakened to the (apparently common knowledge) fact that they have the same director. So... Imtiaz Ali, you played yourself? On purpose, it seems? Oh well. I would have ranted more about that had the directors been different because of the seeming cheap imitation attempt made. Now I know that there was some attempt to reawaken former romance film glory. Anyways, on to the review. 

Okay, so the film starts off with SRK in a stylish outfit looking slick and chic - a surprisingly athletic and buff tour guide with a very edgy chest tattoo. I loved it. But, as the film progressed, I wanted to pull my buddy (and number one idol since childhood *sigh*) and chat with him about how he is not a slapstick humor guy. When he does humor, it's suave, it's sassy, (it's sexy) - but never just silliness. 

Do you know who can pull that serious but slapstick act off easily? Akshay Kumar. But unlike Dilwale and Happy New Year, Shah Rukh Khan did stray from the very few attempts at slapstick humor, and I had a few good laughs from his interactions with Anushka Sharma.

It's a typical "travel, escape, be free and find love" that was present in Jab We Met, but executed a lot less interestingly. There was a bit of suspense regarding Harry's past which was never addressed - the hype was there, the delivery was disappointing. 

Also, can I be honest? Unless your movie is literally Room - about two people in a goddamn room, why did these two actors get 99.99% of the screen time? This movie could definitely have benefited from the presence of a couple of supporting actors (anyone, I'll be honest) that helped establish that line drawn between reality and the dream world that the two characters were straddling at times.

"I love translated subtitles" said no one ever.

Regardless, the movie had some sass, some crazy (though not as believable or well-crafted as Jab We Met). The characters did not feel real enough for the movie to be "good". I blame the script and the lack of thought put into crafting a meaning. The attempt was present and implied, but it was not fleshed out enough. The themes most present were those of the freedom that Sejal was experiencing away from the direct influence of her parents and fiance. 

The conclusion we got to was - you should know who you are and what you want, and follow that. At least I got that. Also one of the main lines in the movie was "If you look for something hard enough, you'll find it", which needed a bit more oomph. Were the characters physically looking for something? Clearly. Emotionally? That was a little less present, but there nonetheless. I think those scenes lacked a little of the seriousness they warranted. Khan's gaze was plenty serious to make the romance scenes very nice, especially if you enjoy romance plots like I do.

Then, perhaps the problem was that this movie lacked the seriousness that made Jab We Met, Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi and others truly strike its audiences. The romance was believable, however, which was more than can be said for most onscreen chemistry attempts in film. Sometimes I wish Bollywood didn't shun its older actresses. Then perhaps SRK could have amazing onscreen chemistry without looking like a creepy uncle (please, Bollywood, wake up). 

At certain points in the movie I was a little bored because of how slow things were progressing. I grew to kind of like Harry, Sejal was never serious enough, and she never matured, beyond maybe her sexual desire for Harry. That being said, Anushka Sharma did a phenomenal job portraying the Gujurati character and her values and her decisions (however random they were), and I think she nailed her role more than Shah Rukh did (I keep coming back to the slapstick) - but which was also partially a problem with how much the actors were convinced with their roles, probably. I dislike the "save me" trope of tough, broken men and sweet non-slut women, but I suppose that's exactly what this was. Why SRK was broken? I will really never know. It was all pushed onto Harry being "lonely"... I don't buy it. His behavior warrants a darker past (SPOILER: seriously, who randomly breaks down and starts talking to/consoling themselves while crying and hugging a pillar? SRK, sure, but only when he's got cancer [Kal Ho Naa Ho]).

My least favorite part of the movie was the way it was wrapped up. Not necessarily ambiguous, but lacking any practicality or sustainability in their relationship. Any such relationship displayed in a movie ought to have ended more unconventionally. The two characters getting together was so impossible. And the pressure of others, society, family, was implied, hinted at, but honestly not present. I would once again venture to claim that a personification (by that, I mean a person) of this truth the characters had to return to would have been helpful. 

TL;DR, long story short - if you are a rom-com person, go ahead, watch this movie. If you're looking for freshness, you might get some. Hey, it's honestly not a bad rom-com. If you just want to stare into SRK's eyes and wish there were more SRKs in the world, go ahead; this is a good movie for that kind of stuff. If you have never understood Shah Rukh Khan's lover boy image, a) do you even exist? b) don't watch the movie - you'll be disappointed. 
I for one, enjoyed it - a decent way to spend 3 hours of my day. Is it worth paying movie theater money for? Nah. Does Shah Rukh Khan still got the ability to make hearts beat rapidly worldwide? Yes, I glimpsed it in this film, in the few lines that made me melt a little. So, SRK, pls, choose a better script for next time, or a better role, or something. Even if you do still do romance, please work with a script that'll enchant us all with your acting. (Heck, my fanfiction scripts are pretty good - can I write you a movie?) I'd rate the movie a 4/10.

Also, is this a good place to rant about SRK's body? Okay, seems like I Khan (HAH I'm hilarious). You work on your body, we get it. Thank GOD there were no unnecessary fighting scenes in this movie, but as has been the trend, while you want to show off your body subtly, it is not the be-all end-all make-or-break aspect of the film. I've been a fan from before you buffed up, and it is kinda cheapening to give up deeper aspects of your films for the sake of showing off your bod. The older ladies out there may be thirsty (I'm 17, so ew), but I think there's a separate category of film-making for that entirely. Or they'll stick to Salman Khan, so please, choose better!

This chick who wants to be cool like you so bad, 

Ritika 💜

P.S. Do tell me what you thought of the movie and/or the review below!