Siel_O Reviews

Beautiful Thing (1996)

a surprisingly sweet and interesting movie..

[8/10 · 30 April 2013]

i've heard about this movie for a long time but never got the will to try it, now it caught me on TV and i must say i was pleasantly surprised. i think it depicts a tale of coming out in a very truthful manner and also it is very sweet, romantic and exciting. at the beginning the mother's story is sort of towering the whole movie and it's a little detaching and uninviting but since the tension between the two boys start to rise it really lures the viewer in. the two male leads are adorable and ste is so handsome! sad he didn't get a breakthrough after this release. there are some very touching moments between two of them and the movie manages to be intimate and sensitive. other than the main romantic story there are several background characters that are also really sweet and are flashed out neatly and get respectively developed. very recommended as a movie about gay characters or even a sweet romantic drama.

The Host (2013)

a brilliant gem. do not let the critics send you away.

[9/10 · 28 March 2013]

i've just got back from the screening and the critics must be out of their minds, and completely blind by what can only be explained by me as prejudice. i can't agree less with the rotten current review average - i found the script to be the strongest aspect about this movie, and one of the best i've heard lately in the sci-fi and drama departments. the story is brilliant by any standard, characters are amazingly developed and relatable. about the effectiveness of the drama i was on the edge of my seat more than one time during the screening, and from different states of emotion - fear, happiness, sadness and more. i almost got to tears in more than one scene and again - on different story lines - some that dealt with family, some with self acceptance and some with finding your place in society. the story's message is so sensitive and humane, i really can not see how can anyone alive crush this amazing movie so much. but it's not the first time i completely disagree with the standard viewpoint about cinema. all i can hope is that stephenie meyer and the likes of her will not be put out by the common viewpoint, i believe there will come a time where she will be rewarded for what she is. till then i can only thank her for what she have accomplished here and elsewhere. my honest recommendation.

Japan Japan (2007)

interesting and enjoyable

[7/10 · 27 June 2008]

the movie is fun, fresh and sweet. the main character is absolutely adorable (i think i'm in love, gotta learn more about him), the photography and editing is great, the story is interesting (and convinces that a movie does not have to be in a dramatic structure). i loved the visual freedom the creators allowed themselves, i don't think it had any of a shock value, but only to portray the main character's world. i'd love to see the movie again, i'd be very pleased had it been longer (there were moments where we're lead to believe the film is over and i was always glad it didn't). i'd also love had they shown more porn, anime and yaoi. the movie inspired me, usually i escape from anything titled "documentary", i might just be a little more open minded next time after a film like that. :)

Someone to Run With (2006)

bad movie.

[3/10 · 22 December 2007]

that's a really bad movie, and what's sad is that it holds a great story, which is adapted poorly to the screen (i have not read the book and i'm not comparing the two, only the movie for itself). the story is interesting, with great ideas, surprises and suspense, but the characters in the script are incredibly shallow, feeling less and success very little to bring the viewer to care for them. they're not interesting and have nothing beyond their little plot-driven purposes. the acting also produces that problem, the actors read the lines with no heart (except for maybe Shelly) and even more with out referring to timing and reacting. camera work was also bad by having burned out photography and very little-detailed sets and frames. editing didn't manage to save the movie. all in all it's not the worst, but it's bad, and it's very sad that it could've been more, much more.

A Cold Day in Hell (2007 Video)

poor, but worth a try for its main subject.

[2/10 · 4 July 2007]

the best compliment for this movie is for the script's main subject which is wildly ignored in popular/Hollywood cinema. from the title and cover art you'd expect the movie to be anti homosexuals and anti transsexuals but in reality it presents them in a pretty acceptable way. it's a comedy, sure there is some gay bashing, but the jokes were all in good mood and along with them were also jokes about the straight guys so it didn't just praise heterosexuals. the transsexual girl was presented in a loving way and i thought her to be sweet. overall the script is very nice by its ideas, pace and characters but what really wrecked the movie is the incredibly low quality of sound, video, direction and editing. the photography is absolutely terrible and the sound is so distorted i couldn't understand a word at a certain scene. the actors did the best they could with those production values. had this script been produced in a higher budget i think they could've pulled something very nice and enjoyable and a several levels of intelligence higher than the usual romantic summer comedies. the biggest complain about the script btw is the last minute, even if the idea was nice (and it wasn't) it was done very badly. recommended if you don't mind sitting through a d-movie and you're interested in gay romances. personally i liked it better than the horrible gay comedy Another Gay Movie back a year ago. i have no idea why it's called A Cold Day in Hell btw.

Gakuen Heaven (2006)

a complete waste of time, don't get near it.

[1/10 · 1 June 2007]

it's so sad that until there's finally another TV shounen ai show it has to suck this much. music and animation are the usual low budjet but they could've been easily forgiven had they got a descent story. instead, there's an idiotic, flat, unsolid, annoying characters, the most boring settings, with no new ideas what so ever, no plot or meaning until episode 12 (out of 13) which then makes up a very uninteresting side story, very dull. the episodes' stories and ideas were so silly all i thought was "who cares??" and wait for the episode to finish. i was not amused one bit, the only reason i watched the whole thing was to see if it goes anywhere, by the time i realized episode 8 still has no goal i knew it's done for but i kept going and now i don't know what makes bothers me more - the fact i watched it all or the fact it was even made. not recommended at all, a shame for the shounen ai genre, i have simply no idea why was it licensed for an American release. hoping for a better shounen ai next time, till then i'll rewatch sukisho again. :D

Click (2006)

1 of 10, unbelievably AWFUL!

[1/10 · 27 August 2006]

i have no idea what everyone liked about this movie (or why does it have a grade higher than 3 on IMDb - probably because people who'd give this movie a low grade got it from the start and didn't even try watching it) but damn this movie is BAD!!!!!!!!!!! I don't know where to begin the script is awful, acting is bad, the plot is so dumb and so many plot holes and the jokes aren't funny at all the characters are amazingly flat, the visuals are very boring, so are the visual effects, very dull, in short i really don't exaggerate with grades usually but this one's a REAL 1 of 10.

PLEASE KEEP AWAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sukisho (2005– )

Very recommended gay-romance mixed with great suspense and comedy! (8/10)

[8/10 · 1 February 2006]

Sukisho (the title of the American release), 12 episode (plus bonus episode 13) Japanese animation show of the Shounen-ai genre (boys-love). The show's first half is a light comedy while the second half is much darker and very intense.

i really like and enjoy the show, i think from the shounen ai genre it's one of the best up to date. the story in the later episodes, though sometime may seem somewhat unattached, is very interesting, thrilling and surprising. the main couple is very sweet, it's beautiful to watch the way their love grows - you learn to love both of them even as individuals. the art is beautiful but the animation itself is not so good, so is the background music. voice acting is excellent.

recommended, obviously if you're interested in gay romances. 8 out of 10.

Days of Love (2005)

Not a movie.

[1/10 · 8 January 2006]

this movie doesn't deserve to be called a movie. it doesn't deserve a grade at all and certainly doesn't deserve your time or anyone's: the story is stupid, cliché, unrealistic, abrupt. the script is AWFUL. the actors CAN'T act. the video quality and colors are bad, the shots and frames aren't structured or composed in any way - visually looks worse than a television drama. the editing is a joke - they don't know when to cut and where to. the soundtrack is BAD (a pop song loops in background for 5 minutes while the characters have a "heart to heart" conversation). if all this isn't enough the movie is sexist, the characters are stupid and yet the script isn't "smart" enough to criticize them.

ZERO out of 10, watch for torture.

Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas (2003)

Better than every Disney movie...

[8/10 · 1 September 2005]

I found Sinbad a very beautiful animated piece from USA which I usually *HATE* the animated movies from there.

The movie is funny, fast, entertaining and interesting. It succeeds in every aspect - wild action scenes or quiet sensitive dialog scenes. The romantic story is also beautiful and develops well.

The animation is STANNING, the music is amazing, voice acting is excellent, beautiful character design, I love it all.

It's the kind of movie I can watch again and again and not get bored, several scenes are just a masterpiece in my opinion - the perfect combination between visuals, sound and content.

It's probably one of my favorite American animations... (along with Disney's the little mermaid)

The Wolves of Kromer (1998)

Beautiful little film.

[8/10 · 4 May 2005]

I really enjoyed The Wolves Of Kromer, more than I expected even. It's a small and heart warming film which takes the werewolves as an allegory for young gay men who search their place in the world. The film had a lot David Lynch feel to it, it was comedy and romance combined with creepy undertones and unique-dark-bizarre shots using special lightning techniques. several shots were truly a masterpiece and got me staring for a while. The scenery was beautiful and very pleasant to look at, so were the actors. The acting was very good, the characters' lines felt like each is actually saying what they are feeling (I actually felt a bit like i'm watching a play at some of the parts). I loved the implementation of a modern fairy tale (seeing the couple once boating in the calm river and on the other hand riding a bike). I loved the atmosphere. I even loved the fluffy tales! it was so sweet and original!! (reminded me of anime cat boys) I loved everything about this film, it's not very common for me to give such a high grade but this movie deserves it. :)

A Very Brady Sequel (1996)

I loved it!!

[9/10 · 26 January 2005]

it was very funny and light. what i found really unique and i really loved was that it had so many undertones containing really messed up stuff like sex, violence, drugs, the corrupt society of our time, homosexuality, incest and more. i LOVED that Marcia and Greg were attracted to each other - it was very cool! (i'm only sad we didn't get more information about what really ended between them *hopes they got married as well* XD XD XD) also the conflicts Carol had regarding the return of her "real" husband. i loved the combination of CRAZY humor with a touch of serious issues. the jokes were very funny and i loved the gags they entered which involved the original show and other shows from that time (Gilligan's Island, I Dream of Jeannie and more(?)). most importantly the actors were beautiful to look at (*loves Greg*). XD

loved it.

------- edit: (censored version, spoilers) i now found out that there are two versions of the movie one which is censored so beware in the real ending marcia and greg kiss!! in what i saw before writing this review they didn't but i saw the un censored version some time ago so.....