dorama - Gold

official website:
http://www.fujitv.co.jp/GOLD/index.html

drama title:
Gold

main cast
Amami Yuki as Saotome Yuri (tiger mom)
Nagasawa Masami as Nikura Rika (Yuri's PA)
Sorimachi Takashi as Hasumi Joji (Yuri's head coach)

synopsis:
Saotome family has a history of sports excellence. hence when her brother died in an accident, Yuri went full steam ahead to rear her children as potential Olympic gold medalists.

along the way, she built a company that promotes her 'tiger mom' principles, and trains her children as well as others

however, all that is just a show. there are many dark family secrets and they are revealed over time as events cause a change in Yuri's original plans.

my score: 7 out of 10.
interesting parent-child relationship studies are expoused by Yuri. however, the best part of it is the secrets and how they changed that perfect family concept. Rika, Yuri's PA, provides light relief. "Son.... na!" (pronounced as So... Nah) is her favourite phrase. it means "No way!" or "That can't be!"

why you should watch it:
the interrelationships of mother and children, the awesome acting skills of Amami, her interaction with her PA, Rika (mostly very funny) and if you still like Sorimachi (despite him having married Matsushima Nanako at their peak of their careers)

kdrama - mary stayed out all night

official website:
http://www.kbs.co.kr/drama/mary/index.html

drama title:
매리는 외박중 / Maerineun Oebakjoong
oso known as Marry Me, Mary and Mary Stayed Out All Night

main cast:
Moon Geun Young as Wi Mae Ri (Mary, geddit?)
Jang Geun Suk as Kang Moo Kyul
Kim Jae Wook as Byun Jung In
Kim Hyo Jin as Seo Joon

synopsis:
it's an oddball story. it's conventional in that it's about a love triangle between 2 guys and a gal. however, one of the guys is officially married to her while the other is unofficially 'married' to her. so there's a 100-day contract between her and her husbands to see who she will eventually end up with.

my score: 8 out of 10.
i like Jang Guen Suk and he fits the bill here as an indie rock band singer. however, in terms of story line, it's a bit of a downer compared to his previous (and perfect) drama, He's Beautiful. still, there's an interesting storyline and it's well worth watching.

why you should watch it:
2 handsome guys. the girls are not exactly eye candy, but i guess the point is - the guys! i guess for me, i like the twists and turns of the plot as the lovers vie for each other's affections.

dorama - Yankee-kun to Megane-chan

official website:
http://www.tbs.co.jp/yanmega/

drama title:
Yankee-kun to Megane-chan [ヤンキー君とメガネちゃん]

main cast
Narimiya Hiroki as Daichi
Naka Riisa as Adachi
Hongo Kanata as Izumi
Kawaguchi Haruna as Rinka

synopsis:
story of a yankee (label for rebel) that got into a good high school, with original intent of doing well, then found that no one expected him to, and so he decided not to bother either.

however, there was a persistent girl in his class who wanted to excel in everything. and to be class monitor, then school president. and somehow he got dragged into it, and put in his own contribution

and along the way, got out of his isolation, self-pity, and got to work on his attitude and also changed how others view of him as just a yankee. made friends and studied harder.

my score: 7 out of 10.
i guess most of the score is due to the 2 lead actors, Hiroki and Riisa. Riisa is just so persistent, and Hiroki is just so laid back. literally. on the school building rooftop. the 2 of them are a joy to watch.

Hiroki is a versatile young actor, from way back when he was this pervert dork in "Stand Up!". of course, the one who made it big in that drama was Arashi's Ninomiya, but as you can see, Hiroki has slowly but surely made his way up.

why you should watch it:
lots of yankee fights! lots of high school issues brought up that should really give teachers, parents, kids, lots of thoughts. some really fun stuff that students get to do. and some secret yankees are exposed along the way!

dorama - scandal

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movie - die hard

IMDB:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0095016/

movie title:
die hard

main cast:
bruce willis as john mcclane
alan rickman as hans gruber (his nemesis)
bonnie bedelia as holly gennaro/mcclane (john's wife)

synopsis:
john's wife made a career move to LA, with the kids, and john came over during christmas to try and patch things up.

before that could happen, a terrorist team holds up the entire corporation building during the christmas season. since john is in it, he has to do something. like die hard.

my score: 8 out of 10.
first of the series. bruce looked his best here. he's gone downhill since. his action sequences are also the most physical. a lot of 1-on-1 situations.

why you should watch it:
it's a action blockbuster. fistfights, gunfights, explosives. and you see bruce spends a lot of time hiding, he's not actively asking to be shot. and lots of relevant humor to break the intensity of the film.

movie - live free or die hard (die hard 4.0)

IMDB:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0337978/

movie title:
live free or die hard (die hard 4.0)

main cast:
bruce willis as john mcclane
justin long as matt farrell (computer hacker)
timothy olyphant as thomas gabriel (his nemesis)
mary elizabeth winstead as lucy (john's daughter)

synopsis:
as usual, something horrible turns personal for john. frankly, i dont see the need for the personal aspect. just do it for the country!

this time round, terrorist is ex-FBI who wants revenge from the FBI after he was kicked out for telling them the nation's computer security sucks. so he goes and hack into the govt as well as send teams to take over locations that need onsite intervention, to create total chaos - a fire sale.

john was assigned to bring in a hacker, who turned out to have unintentionally sold code to the terrorists who now wants him dead. john saves his ass, and then goes after the bad guys.

my score: 6 out of 10.
jaded with the series. too much unbelievable action. car can hit helicopter? john can drop onto a advanced fighter jet? he escapes death from an exploding gas plant by taking cover in a van?

why you should watch it:
if only to see how much john's daughter has grown up? lol.

or if matt can be the new die hard franchise hero? nah. he dont have the action chops.

the only reason is cos willis is still john.

movie - clear and present danger

IMDB:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0109444/

movie title:
clear and present danger

main cast:
harrison ford as jack ryan
willem dafoe as john clark

synopsis:
Columbia drug lords vs the USA govt

1st salvo: drug lord escobedo kills american businessman cos he stole the money he was supposed to launder

2nd salvo: american was close friend of USA president. so he declares drug lords as a clear and present danger and authorises FBI to use black ops. john clark is the black ops leader. jack ryan is kept out of the loop cos he is seen as a non-player. john sends a light infantry team into Columbia to wreak destruction on the drug production chain.

3rd salvo: drug lord's advisor find out about the black ops and make a deal with FBI - black ops location in exchange for escobedo. that would make the advisor the new future drug lord

4th salvo: black ops is eliminated. john goes after FBI who puts the blame on jack. at the same time, jack finds out about the black ops and confronts FBI. he then goes to rescue the team and meets up with john, who initially wants to kill him. then he realise that he was betrayed by the FBI and then cooperates with jack to rescue what is left of the team.

my score: 7 out of 10.
it's good but it's not as good as Patriot Games in terms of the storyline. this is more like any other combat movie involving some elite team in action. but better, cos it's a jack ryan movie.

why you should watch it:
cool action of a black ops team, dirty politics, jack ryan and john clark. makes you wish they would make a movie for Rainbow Six (another Tom Clancy novel)