Tag: Hong Kong

Peninsula (South Korean Zombie Film Review & Summary)

ASIA FILM KDrama, JDrama, TwDrama, ThDrama, FDrama, CDrama, HKDrama SE ASIAN FILMS West

South Korean Film 2020

Peninsula (South Korean Zombie Film Review & Summary)

Peninsula Poster

  • Genre: Horror, Zombie Movie, Thriller
  • Release Date: 2020
  • Origin: South Korea; Sequel to Train To Busan
  • Film:  116 minutes

 

Cast

  • Gang Dong-won as Jung-seok (Marine Captain)
  • Lee Jung-hyun as Min-jung (Mother of the Two Girls)
  • Lee Re as Jooni (Eldest Girl – driving genius)
  • Ye Won-lee as Yu Jin (Second daughter genius with remote-controlled cars)
  • Kwon Hae-hyo as Elder Kim (Stand-in grandad for the girls)
  • Kim Min-jae as Sergeant Hwang
  • Koo Kyo-hwan as Captain Seo
  • Kim Do-yoon as Chul-min
  • Lee Ye-won as Yu-jin
  • Jang So-yeon as Jung-seok’s elder sister
  • Moon Woo-jin as Dong-hwan
  • Kim Kyu-baek as Private Kim
  • Bella Rahim as Major Jane (Works for the (UN)

Reviewed by Peter Morton

This is one excellent & exciting movie. We watched the enjoyable first movie ‘Train to Busan’.  It is said that sequels rarely if ever are as good as the first movie, this is one is as good if not better. Costing $8 million (£6million) it has so far made  $100 million (£77 million). This sequel movie is set four years on from the zombie apocalypse devasting the Korean peninsula. Whilst zombies play a lesser role, the action and suspense are palpable. The hero is a south Korean Marine army captain (Jung-Seok), adept at martial arts, who tries to lead his family out of the beleaguered country on a rescue ship that ends up in Hong Kong.

He & his brother in law become part of a small ex-pat group treated with suspicion as plague carriers in HK. Criminals probably Triad & US criminals enlist this group to return to Busan in order to retrieve an abandoned lorry which has $20 million (£15 million) stashed in it. Despite being told that they would share in the money when it is retrieved, the possibility of betrayal is all too real.

The comradely ex-pat group returns to Busan armed & using satellite phones. They find the city devasted and zombies still running amok. They finally locate the lorry and are about to drive it to the port to meet the ship that will pick them up.

This where the real action and adventure begins.  A rescue unit of the South Korean army remaining in Busan has gone rogue in the four years. The unit has set up a fortified camp for survivors which is run in the style of the Mad Max movies. The unit sees the lorry moving through the city streets and thinking it contains food, hijacks it, and returns it to the camp.  Some of the group escape but face the violent army unit. The army captain Jung-Seok is rescued by a  very resourceful family who had escaped the repressive army camp in this dystopia & has hidden away. Ironically, the mother (Min-Jung), of his rescuing family was originally refused rescue with her family by Jung-Seok four years before, when he was fleeing Korea with his own family.

Jung-Seok feels guilty at this and offers to take the family out of Korea in the lorry after they have to retrieve it from the army and its psychopathic leaders (Sergeant Hwang & Captain Seo). Their plan is to use the lorry &  get to the port then meet the pick-up ship. Their plans to infiltrate the hostile camp and journey is one of tense action as they do this. Jung-Seok seeks to redeem himself and tries to help the family to escape.

I can thoroughly recommend this movie. It is well-acted, exciting, frantic, thrilling, sad at times, and keeps our nerves on edge as you hope Jung-Seok &  the family can succeed. Like the first movie and other excellent  South Korean zombie etc, horror movies, the movie gets directly to the plot and action without the sometimes frustrating & seemingly slow build-up lead into the story as in many western movies & TV, which is refreshing.

I can envisage this may become a successful movie franchise.

 

 

Destined to Love You – Chinese Drama

KDrama, JDrama, TwDrama, ThDrama, FDrama, CDrama, HKDrama

Destined to Love You

Destined to Love You – Chinese Drama

  • Genre: Romance, Love Triangle, Action, Comedy, Republican, Military School
  • Release Date: 2015
  • Origin: China
  • Cdrama: 40 Episodes

Cast

Source: wiki addict.com

  • Joe Chen as Qian Bao Bao
  • Jia Nai Liang as Xiang Hao
  • Bosco Wong as Shen Wen Tao
  • Zheng Shuang as Xiao Han
  • Zhang Ya Han as young Xiao Han
  • Benz Hui as Li Ji Zhou
  • Zhang Yun Long as Gu Xiao Bai
  • Gao Wei Guang as Du Feng
  • Zheng Long as Han Xu
  • Li Zi Feng as Gao Mei Ren
  • Shaun Tam as Ouyang Fei
  • Ye He as young Ouayang Fei
  • Xu Qi Feng as Li Tian Hao
  • Liu Tian Ru as Shen Wen Yu
  • Zhao Jiu Yi as Su Rui
  • Wang Yang as Xie Tian Jiao
  • Zhang Ning Jiang as Liu Tian Yu
  • Liu En You as Xue Shao Hua
  • Wang Xiu Zhu as Xue Shao Qi
  • Chen Liang Ping as Xiang Shao Da
  • Yu Dong Jiang as Shen Guoshun
  • Lu Ling as Qian’s mother
  • Li Ji as Zhou Jie
  • Gao Ze Ming as Zhao Hu
  • Ruan Wei Jing as Assistant Commander He
  • Hu Chun Yong as Ma Yi Yan
  • Ze Hui as Er Dang Jia
  • Yang Xiao Xin as Axe Sect Leader
  • Tong Xiao Hai as Wu mother
  • Liu Ruo Gu as Xiao Yu’er
  • Deng Tian Qing as Female spy

 

This drama is very underrated.   Destined to Love You has the potential to be popular internationally, if not globally, if only all the episodes are given English subtitles, allowing a wider audience to enjoy it fully.

It has the charm comparable to those massively loved British Carry On films, sophisticated intelligence of the Monty Python and satirical comedy of Mel Brooks, The Producers.

The drama is corroboration of China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.

I fell in love with Destined to Love You the moment I saw the first episode.  It was so engaging. I wanted to see more.

There was great chemistry between the love triangle played beautifully by Chen Qiao En (aka Joe Chen), Jia Nia Liang and Bosco Wong.   The chemistry was such that you would be happy that anyone of the two leading men will get the girl (Joe Chen).

Apparently Jia Nia Liang really wanted to make the drama that he willingly had his pay cut.  He was so good in the drama.  You just fall in love with his antics which are sometimes excruciatingly funny. I have never laughed so much watching a tv program.

Below is a synopsis I cut and pasted.  I just could not put into words what the story is all about from my own point of me; there just too many ‘choice’ scenes that I would like to include and therefore would probably curtail your enjoyment if I give too much away.

Qian Bao Bao is on the run from creditors with her sick mother. She meets Xiao Han on the train, who offers her hope for curing her mother. But when an assassination attempt results in Xiao Han falling off the train, Bao Bao feels she has no choice but to take her place. Thus she assumes the role of a psychology instructor at a prestigious military school, and becomes entangled in a in a love triangle and some dangerous politics while trying to hide her true identity.

Please Chinese translator, kindly complete the rest of the subtitles for the dramas, please, please, please!

Dramacool needs translation from episode 22 – 41.  Please

 

 

Flying Cathay Pacific

Uncategorized

Jean Photo by Peter Morton

Peter Photo by Jean Morton

The news regarding Philippine Airlines’ plan of resuming service to Europe, beginning 4 November 2013, reminded me of our flight to the Philippines via Cathay Pacific.

Due to the long flight we decided to opt for Business class.  It was really good from Heathrow to Hong kong.  At Heathrow there was a lounge that you can chill at whilst waiting for the flight to be called. At the lounge a buffet breakfast/brunch was served.  Eat as much as you like and drink as much as you like as well, for free.  There were magazines and computers as well.  It was really good.  And when the flight was ready to go, it was announced and we were led first on the plane together with the first class passengers.  Before we could even sit down, we were given a glass of champagne and drink as much as you like – we like!!!

It was therefore quite a shock when we got to Hong kong. It was actually stressful, the flight for the Philippines was ready to leave and we were still trying to make our way to the departure lounge because our flight from Heathrow was slightly delayed.  When we finally boarded, we found the business class nothing but ordinary, perhaps just a little bit of leg room, nothing special. We also found out that Peter and I were seating on separate isles.  I went mental.  I started on a half scream and berated a couple of stewardesses brandishing our airline tickets showing our adjacent seat numbers to their vacant faces!  They apologised profusely and they let us seat together while a Filipina lady vacated one of our supposed seats.  She was probably a friend of theirs!

They then gave my husband a glass of champagne and forgot to give me one.  Of course I did not let them get away with that.  I screamed again.  A nice Chinese stewardess gave me the champagne and an orange juice as well.  When I calmed down, she gave me a survey to complete.  What a stupid thing to do knowing that I was not having the best of time.  I supposed I got to keep the Cathay Pacific pen.  LOL

The return was not much better.  Peter was so ill.  And I was so tired.  We just both wanted to die.  Then we got home and everything was ok.

Despite our experience, we can’t fly economy on such a long journey, so we will probably have to do this again in a couple of years time, hopefully with Philippine Airlines (PAL)