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This book is a memoir of a North Korean defector who fled her homeland in order to survive. I think this book is going to be one of those books that everyone has read and it's just going to be around for a very long time, like The Diary of Anne Frank. I could not help but cry when her father died and she had to bury his ashes somewhere in China, a desolate place that was totally unfamiliar to him. I hope that one day, the two Koreas will be reunited so that she can freely take him back to his hometown.

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Pulp Fiction | Quentin Tarantino | 1994

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"Pulp Fiction" Review

Director: Quentin Tarantino

Release Date: May 21, 1994

★★★★★

"Pulp Fiction" is one of the most entertaining movies of all time. It grabs me from the start because all the dialog is witty. It is like a conversation between friends, consisting full of dark humor, silly jokes, rumors that come out of nowhere.

Not to mention the stylish structure of the story. The story consists of three episodes. The first follows hitmen Vincent and Jules who are on a mission to recover a stolen briefcase. The second focuses on an aging boxer who is bribed to throw a fight, and the third depicts Vincent's night out with his boss's wife, Mia. At first, each episode seems unrelated to one another, but they all connect in the end. The moment the whole story makes sense, you will be thrilled with what you have experienced because you feel like all the pieces of a puzzle suddenly fit together.

The casting is also good, especially Uma Thurman as Mia and John Travolta as Vincent. The chemistry between the two makes the movie compelling. One of the iconic scenes is when Mia tells Vincent a silly joke. It is absolutely nonsense but the timing is so perfect that you cannot help but fall in love with her. John Travolta really captures that feeling in that scene.

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Banksy, Pulp Fiction

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”A Taxi Driver” Review

Director: Jang Hoon

Release Date: August 2, 2017

★★★☆☆

“A Taxi Driver” is a South Korean movie based on a true event, a protest by the citizens of Gwangju against a military regime and the implementation of martial law in the 1980s. I learned for the first time from the movie that the regime not only killed so many activists, but also prevented outsiders from knowing what really happened during the uprising. The fact sent chills down my spine, but the movie is actually a human drama between two main characters: a German journalist who is determined to uncover the hidden truth of the incident, and a Seoul taxi driver who accidentally gets involved in the event.

Song Kang-ho and Thomas Kretchmann deliver stellar performances as the taxi driver and the journalist, respectively. I once said in my review of “Broker” that the reason Song Kang-ho is great as an actor is because he can portray human complexity: two sides that people usually have, like good and bad, strength and vulnerability, or light and shadow. He pulled off the feat in “A Taxi Driver” again. Meanwhile, Thomas Kretchmann also impressed me as he seemed to shed light on a hidden German figure who did something meaningful in real life, just like when he played the role of an SS officer who actually saved the life of a Polish-Jewish man in “Pianist”.

Aside from the two actors, the plot is also well-made. It is serious, entertaining, and moves the viewer in the end. If you are interested in South Korean culture and history, “A Taxi Driver" is definitely a must-watch movie.

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Fujii Kaze: Tiny Desk Concerts JAPAN

Release 12 April 2024.

SET LIST "Matsuri" "Garden" "damn" "Kirari" "Michi Teyu Ku (Overflowing)" "Shinunoga E-Wa"

MUSICIANS Fujii Kaze: lead vocals, keys Yaffle: keys DURAN: guitar Katsuya Takumi: bass Kudo Seiya: drums Yo-Sea: vocals nishina: vocals

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I am always blown away each time I see Kaze perform and this low-key, intimate performance, with jazzy interpretations of his songs, is spectacular. He IS a tonic, and kudos to the musicians contributing to this lovely performance.

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Fujii Kaze's Tiny Desk Concert: One of the Greatest Videos on YouTube

On April 12 of this year, Fujii Kaze's live performance was added to the list of Tiny Desk Concerts, a video series of live concerts hosted by NPR. He is a promising young Japanese singer who has captivated many fans in Japan and other Asian countries. These days, I am repeatedly watching this mesmerizing performance. The setlist includes "Shinunoga E-Wa”, a unique song for its wonderful blend of old and new age. On the one hand, the lyrics of the song remind me of Enka, old pop songs written during the Showa era (from 1926 to 1989), like Sayuri Ishikawa's iconic "Amagi-Goe”, but on the other hand, the sound seems contemporary.

Among all the songs in the setlist, “Garden” stands out to me since the harmony of the three vocals is fantastic. Kaze's voice and the other two vocals' (nishina and Yo-Sea) complement each other. The lyrics of the song are also impressive. To me, "Garden" seems to represent our inner emotional sanctuary, where our emotions are born and die, just like flowers grow and die in the garden. This is just my assumption, but I think what he is trying to express is that he wants to safeguard that place until the last flower (or emotion) dies and his garden is completely dried up.

https://www.npr.org/2024/04/12/1244104152/fujii-kaze-tiny-desk-concert

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Babylon: A Chaotic Yet Captivating Film

Director: Damien Chazelle

Release Date: November 14, 2022

★★★★☆

Damien Chazelle’s “Babylon” is mostly madness, but undeniably a magnetic movie. It chronicles the rise and fall of three characters during Hollywood's transition from silent films to talkies.

One of the main characters is Jack(Brad Pitt), a silent movie star who tries to embrace the drastic change in the movie industry. Alongside him are Nellie (Margot Robbie), a drug-addict but ambitious actress who desires to be a star, and Manny (Diego Calva), a Mexican immigrant who dreams of making his mark in the industry. Despite its 188 minutes runtime which may seem long and some scenes, may make you sick, like when the characters have crazy parties, the last moment of each character will move you.

Among the numerous impressive scenes, the most compelling is when Jack expresses his honest feelings to his old friend (Fay) at a hotel party. The way Pitt subtly conveys Jack's insecurities is just amazing.

My initial impression was that the concept has some similarities to the director's previous movie, “La La Land”. Both movies delve into the rise and fall of people who once shared a dream of achieving their respective goals. According to IMDb, the director first had the idea for “Babylon”, but due to various reasons, the idea eventually evolved into “La La Land”. It's somewhat disappointing to me that “Babylon” turned out to be a less impactful movie considering that “La La Land” has a well-established presence, but still, “Babylon has stayed with me ever since I watched it.

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Babylon (2022) dir. Damien Chazelle

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Babylon (2022) dir. Damien Chazelle

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Ford v Ferrari: Great Entertainment

Director: James Mangold

Release Date: August 30, 2019

★★★★★

“Ford v Ferrari” is a sports car racing movie that depicts Ford's struggle to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1966. Le Mans is a famous annual endurance race held in France, testing the skills and endurance of the drivers and their vehicles. Although I am not a big fan of cars and racing, “Ford v Ferrari” is one of the best movies I have ever seen. The racing scenes are amazing, but what I want to praise most is the acting of Matt Damon and Christian Bale.

Carroll Shelby, played by Matt Damon, is the leader of this racing project at Ford. Despite the fact that the management offers him unreasonable demands, he persistently negotiates with them and also with other concerned parties like drivers, and tries to lead his team to victory. He is not a person who is directly involved in the race like mechanics and drivers, yet his persistence is without a doubt the key to the team’s success.

Meanwhile, Ken Miles, played by Christian Bale, is a driver who has to risk his life in the race. In fact, he is on fire during the test drive, but he looks fine and looks as if he had never suffered from the fire. All he cares about is pushing his car and himself to the limit, or to the point where everything fades and his machine becomes weightless. He seems like an eccentric person to me, but his dedication is also indispensable to the project.

You cannot help but be touched by those two characters’ passion for the race, which is what they have in common. I highly recommend the movie to you.

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From Ford v Ferrari

There's a point at 7,000 RPM... where everything fades. The machine becomes weightless. Just disappears. And all that's left is a body moving through space and time.

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The Shape of Water: "A Beautiful Fantasy for Adults"

Director: Guillermo del Toro

Release Date: August 32, 2017

★★★★★

"The Shape of Water" is a fantasy movie that depicts the romance between a mute woman and an amphibian man. Despite its bizarre setting, it is a poignant love story that also portrays the selfish and dark sides of humanity.

The mute woman named Elisa, played by Sally Hawkins, works as a cleaner in a secret government laboratory. One day, she encounters a mysterious creature in her workplace that is capable of understanding emotions and languages. Elisa and the creature both cannot speak verbally, but they get to communicate through sign language. One of the most impressive scenes is when Elisa introduces him to music, while listening to Glenn Miller’s song "I Know Why (And So Do You)". It is a beautiful scene because the lyrics of the song represent their growing attachment to each other.

As for acting, Sally Hawkins delivers a stellar performance. Using only sign language and body expressions, she effectively conveys Elisa’s joy when seeing the creature. The visuals, which predominantly maintain a calm green tone, are also striking as the entire tone of the movie creates an underwater-like atmosphere, making the viewer feel as if they were aquatic creatures.

Although the romance between a human and a non-human creature is unconventional, it is true that, just as the shape of water is uneven, there are countless shapes of relationships in this world. Watching the movie from that point of view, I think the setting is not bad at all.

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The Shape of Water | Guillermo del Toro | 2017