Progress Report: Battlestar Galactica, Season 3, Episodes 1-5

Progress Report provides ongoing impressions of serials I view them.

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Season Three opens up as darkly as I've seen on a television program in a long time. Furthermore, I have to give the producers props as they had the steel to dare to put insurrection and terrorism into the hands of none other than our protagonists and asked the audience to view such behavior sympathetically even while the core audience of the series in the US watched as their sons and daughters took the role of the occupier in Iraq and Afghanistan. Again, I'm definitely not one to point at BSG as an supreme example of subtlety in television fiction, but it's certainly brave.

For some reason, I have aversion to the parts of the show that are particularly angsty, especially when they involve Starbuck and Gaius Baltar. I still didn't have much appreciation for the story involving Starbuck this time around (as well as the first time that it happened on Caprica) because I don't really see it doing much for the character besides engaging in angst overdrive. On the other hand, I actually liked some of the more brooding moments with Baltar in this section, at least during the portion of the show they were on New Caprica, because you could see the man breaking apart and even going against his oft-selfish nature at times.

At the end of this segment, we find the whole show in a very different position than the first two seasons, where the pursuit aspect has been radically changed. Part of me is concerned that the changed dynamic will loosen the narrative threads that keep the humans and Cylons interacting and cause the writers to have to stretch even more to keep driving the plot. But we'll see whether that's true or not. I do like that we spend a little more time with the Cylons and see more into that supposed "plan" that the opening credits keep talking about. On the other hand, I feel like delving in as much as we have really hurts the threat aspect of the Cylons, so it's a mixed blessing.

We'll see if these developments are able to hold out. Part of my biggest concern is that the show will have to develop distractions to keep the story going and bloat with anthology stories and risk the show jumping the shark. I hope I'm worrying without cause.

Replay: The Monster Squad

Replay revisits moving pictures that I have seen in the past.

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I generally don't like watching movies I've loved in my youth because my adult brain will inevitably spoil those much cherished memories by seeing how ridiculous all those extra-cool moments were. This is what happened when I rewatched The Monster Squad. On the plus side, I did find a way to enjoy the film in a different way, just soaking in the loads upon loads of over-the-top theatrics and laughing at it. But that didn't stop my precious memories of this being a remarkably cool movie from getting utterly obliterated in the process.

The story is one that makes young fanboys (and possibly fangirls) squeal with glee (they call it squeeing, right?). Check it out: Dracula, the Wolfman, the Mummy, Frankenstein's monster and the Creature from the Black Lagoon Gilman, join forces to take over the world and only a handful of kids, the titular Monster Squad, can stop them.

Okay, call me a joyless stick-in-the-mud, but the story is so full of logic holes, you could argue that it was a giant logic hole that just conveniently has bits of story covering it. My brain was blown multiple times over the course of the film, and not in the good way, and I was completely taken out of the willing suspension of disbelief almost from the start. I cannot express how absolutely ridiculous this film is, which does, admittedly make watching it in a group amusing, so long as everyone's willing to entertain zingers. However, I can't say that you can appreciate this film straight, except as a very young child. The only problem with that is, and I didn't realize this at the time, was the degree of cinematic violence (plenty of merciless killing as the film goes on, although the gore is limited) as well as the straight up homophobia in the dialogue and ruthless mocking of the Fat Kid Horace (Brent Chalem). Granted, this was and still is how many children speak, but it's offensive sensibilities are best left to more mature viewers who are able to think more critically of what's being said and done.

At least I can happily say that the effects, costume and make up teams should be congratulated for their excellent work. The Gilman in particular is so wonderfully rendered using classic techniques that it remains believable to this day and the CGI-less transformation scenes for the Wolfman/Dracula are still pretty good as well. The child actors more or less handle their parts as well as you can expect for child actors. They're as believable as the rest of the madness they are engulfed in. The adult actors aren't necessarily as consistent, ranging from over-the-top camp, like the extremely talkative Detective Sapir (Stan Shaw) to more natural, like Sean's mother (Mary Ellen Trainor), which doesn't really help keep the overall tone consistent. The music and score is decidedly 80's and does engage in a touch of cheese (like the end credits movie-specific rap song), but it's otherwise workable.

The biggest problem with Monster Squad is that it just doesn't pick one direction and run with it. If it's going to be a family picture, than it should have done that. Likewise, if it's going to be a straight up horror campfest (like the same-year-released Evil Dead II), it could've went there too. But, it chose neither, which makes the film seem like its trying to do it all with a reasonably straight face, which doesn't work for the degree of unbelievability built into the flimsy story. Less critical viewers (like very young children) will probably still find it enjoyable since it puts their audience surrogates at the forefront of the heroism, as will 80's nostalgia hounds and sarcastic hipsters. Me, I tried. But, it's hard for me to do anything more than laugh at the implausibility that is strewn about The Monster Squad, since it's too earnest to hate. But, unless you're one of the three main groups laid above, this film probably isn't for you. Another childhood memory ruined. 5/10.

Links:

• Available at Amazon (Blu Ray) / (DVD)

Progress Report: Battlestar Galactica, Season 2, Episodes 18-20

Progress Report provides ongoing impressions of serials I view them.

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Interestingly enough, I actually happened to catch the second season finale out of context previously, which spoiled a lot of what was to pass. However, in retrospect, it's really obvious what's going to happen at the end of the season and the show doesn't really try to make it a surprise at all, but rather lets the characters stew in the problems of humanity. And I think that's actually a good thing.

"Downloaded" is actually one of the more interesting episodes in the season because it's largely spent with the Cylons and we get a rare glimpse into their society and see a lot of development in the characters on that side as well as get a glimpse of what the writers are up to on a grander religious scale for the series. The series also somehow manages to get bleaker at the end of the season, which means that, like a character says in the show, we're in for some dark(er) times ahead.

One nice touch in that during the time jump forward, we see a lot of the characters looking like they put on a couple pounds, which was a nice touch. I can guess where season three is going to go, but I hope I'm proven wrong on some accounts, because it almost sounds like they're trying to stretch the story out. That broke Lost and I hoping that it doesn't happen here.

Progress Report: The Bourne Ultimatum

Progress Report provides ongoing impressions of serials or sets I view them.

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I think The Bourne Ultimatum has one thing going for it that the previous two Bourne films didn't have, as can only be done in a final film of series--completeness. It ties together loose ends, completes Bourne's personal story, and reaches back to bring the trilogy into a complete work, rather than merely being just another sequel. Yet, outside of that, Ultimatum is still a Bourne film and ultimately still has the same strengths and flaws.

This time, we continue right were the last film left off, with Bourne (Matt Damon) trying to evade Russian authorities, but that's just a prologue and the real events of the film don't begin until that ends and we run into UK Guardian reporter Simon Ross (Paddy Considine), who uncovers a little info about the top secret black ops agency that Bourne was a part of... and more! Obviously, this sends the agency and Bourne on his trail which ultimately leads to things going crazy and Bourne deciding to get to the root of this mystery, for his own identity's sake. Along the way, we meet some old frenemies and a whole lot of government secrets.

Like previous Bourne films, this one also involves unraveling a mystery and getting out of some dangerous scrapes along the way. Some of the entertainment comes from watching Bourne outwit his pursuers and his prey, but after a couple films, it borders on predictable, which reduces the impact somewhat. Also, I think I find the "hunt for the truth" a touch anti-climactic because all the information is already locked in Bourne's brain, which means that his hunt for the truth doesn't necessitate the actions he takes. Fortunately, there are other people at stake, but I feel like Bourne is just a touch wedged into this mystery this time. Not enough to be unbelievable, but just enough to see the seams in the story. But, I really do like that the story gets deeper into Bourne's own personal story, which we only brushed upon in Supremacy, which makes the character more interesting and the decisions he makes show some level of development, which is also good. I feel like much more is made of Nicky Parsons (Julia Stiles) than is really warranted and the film leaves us with an anti-climactic end to her substory--while also seeming just a touch too convenient for her to get drawn in this time.

With director Paul Greengrass back in the chair, Ultimatum looks and feels much like Supremacy, which is a good enough thing. It's immediate and the editing is very tight. I don't really see any significant upgrades in visual or aural style or value so, I don't have a lot to say. Performances are competent across the board and the action is kinetic, although at times echoes too much the previous Bourne films. If it was meant as a homage, it's too soon and if it's to keep with tradition, I think more inventive scenes would've been better. I spotted some references to other thrillers as well, which was cute.

Ultimatum is the most satisfying of the Bourne trilogy just because it provides the deepest look into the character of Bourne. Shadowy conspiracies are all fine and good, but watching the decisions that Bourne makes and has made and watching him come to terms with his past was interesting, even if not particularly deep. Still, I felt like a lot of this film was dancing too close to the Bourne playbook and therefore predictable, the last thing we want in a action-mystery-thriller. It's still a good amount of fun, mind you, but it doesn't really rise above its predecessors, while still closing the story up in a mostly satisfactory manner. 7/10.

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Progress Report: Battlestar Galactica, Season 2, Episodes 14-17

Progress Report provides ongoing impressions of serials I view them.

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I get it. There are only so many main characters to go around on the show, so we have Lee Adama and Starbuck doing everything on the show, from interrogation, leading marine squads and investigations, etc., despite the fact that they are primarily pilots. Still, it's sometimes clear that the show is stretching so that it can keep its main characters in the spotlight and keep the rest of their vast cast involved somewhere and somehow on the show. But it does peel away some of the immersion of the show that I can see it.

Another thing that's becoming a little too obvious and a little too clean is how the show is moving on these characters. There's a little buildup--and you can see a relationship developing to take the place of a certain character who's on the receiving edge of a dropped bridge--but it still makes it all just a little too neat. Just like the promotions and the characters that are seemingly introduced for just one episode only to vanish to give a place for other main characters to grow. Something about it just strikes me as artificial and tidying up loose ends too neatly.

Still, there is some character development, at least for Lee and Kara in this, so I'm not going to complain too much and I like that they do have to make some hard choices or deal with the consequences of their actions, so there's something there, but in these episodes, it almost feels like it's becoming the Apollo and Starbuck show and while the show is still building bigger story issues in the background, I kind of miss the more ensemble action from before.

At least there are some interesting (although somewhat hamfisted) buildups towards the end of the season involving Baltar and Roslin. But, I suppose subtlety isn't something I necessarily credit Battlestar Galactica with--at least since it's going the really obvious route it also brings a good amount of drama and character development, and I'm happy for that much. Bring on the season finale!

Seen: The Karate Kid (2010)

Seen examines the shows that I see.

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I have fond memories of the original Karate Kid, because when I was growing up, there weren't many Asians on TV or on the movies I could look to and so, maybe just due to the lack of presence, I always relished it when an (actual) Asian person showed up on screen, which did lead me to like several films that if I were to watch now, I would be aghast at. But, I wouldn't say that my taste was too sophisticated back then overall either. Following the regular Hollywood routine, the Karate Kid gets remade, but rather than just a simple update, the film actually makes a lot of significant contextual changes to the story while still keeping its core.

The biggest shift is that The Karate Kid now deals with Dre (Jaden Smith) who moves with his widowed mother (Taraji P. Henson) from New York to Beijing, putting the kid in a vastly different context than merely that of a new school. Also, the Karate Kid is a misnomer, and merely a winking salute to the original story, as, being set in China, it's going to be Wushu (Kung Fu) that's actually going to be the martial art at play. Dre makes a couple friends early on, including the violinist Meiying (Han Wenwen), but in process also makes some enemies out of the local martial arts student tough guys, led by Cheng (Wang Zhenwei). It's only when things get touch that the apartment's handyman Mr. Han (Jackie Chan) shows up after a run in with the martial arts school, takes on Dre as a student. Bonding and training montages and tournaments, of course, follow.

The remake is really just that. I think the film actually might be a touch more interesting due to the more immense fish-out-of-water scenario of a New York boy moving to Beijing. But, largely, the film's story fits the original's very closely, with changes adapted for the change of scenery. And despite race and culture being largely different here, it doesn't really come into play for the most part and is (possibly willfully) ignored with the one exception of Meiying's fascination with Dre's hair. There are some shout outs made to the original film, but the remake makes sure to focus on its own world. It's story is a straightforward tale of lost and lonely people connecting and it works for the most part, but, like the original, isn't particularly challenging nor subtle. I did find it strange to introduce the white boy as a new friend at the very start only to have him basically vanish as the film went on, which just left me wondering what happened to him.

The film is Hollywood nice, with good production values (although some of the scenes at the top of the mountain training session seemed just a touch over-the-top check-out-this-exotic-stuff) and the direction does well in keeping focused on the story. Little Smith proves to be surprisingly capable both as a young actor and for his physicality and Chan does fine as the old master. There's neither much to complain about nor to laud in this film.

And maybe that's its one real weakness--the film is nearly unremarkable. I mean, it was certainly enjoyable enough to help me get through a couple hours on the airplane, but after I got off the plane and was recounting what I did on the flight, I could not actually remember that The Karate Kid was one of the films that I saw, despite remember all the other details of the flight and even the film (Letters to Juliet) that I chose not to watch. Again, it's not a condemnation and I'm sure that, like the original Karate Kid, this one is bound to have its share of fans. I guess I just found it to be no more than a modest diversion. So you can take it or leave it if it sounds like the movie for you. 6/10.

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Progress Report:Replay: The Bourne Supremacy

Progress Report provides ongoing impressions of serials or sets I view them.

Replay revisits moving pictures that I have seen in the past.

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Unlike The Bourne Identity, which renewed and reinvigorated the action-spy genre, The Bourne Supremacy largely provides more of the same. That said, it does succeed largely in providing the same thrills and action that the Identity did, but it still doesn't really stretch anywhere beyond it and so it's merely a satisfactory film. But, whoever said satisfactory was a bad thing?

We catch up with Bourne (Matt Damon) who is hiding out in India with Marie (Franka Portente). Of course, being a Bourne movie, a hit is made on Bourne, sending him right back on the trail of those that pursue him, putting him in the middle of a mystery where he is framed, but further leading into a mystery involving his own forgotten past with Treadstone.

Like the first film, the film isn't merely action, but lives on suspense and mystery as Bourne unravels the Treadstone conspiracy while in turn pursuing and evading government forces. The plot isn't terribly complicated, especially since the MacGuffin actually sits locked in Bourne's memory and so the overall impact of the story never feels as grand as the globetrotting chasing and hunting going on. On the other hand, it's kind of appreciable because we get to deal with Bourne's own past and look just a tiny bit deeper into him as a character. While I don't think this film's story is as tight and focused as Identity, it carries a better character arc for Bourne.

Everything that was right with the first film continues to work in the second, even though Paul Greengrass takes over the director's chair this time around. The film surprisingly feels less European than the first as it doesn't really seem to soak in its locales, which was a nice change of pace for the first film. Still, the action remains tight and the actors keep their worry on. Suspense is well handled and the timing and rhythms of the film's editing really helps that, along with the robust sound and score. So, all in all, everything that was right with the first Bourne film remains right here.

Ultimately, whether or not you will like Supremacy can easily be discerned by how much you liked the first and how much more you want of it. You can get away with watching Supremacy without having seen Identity, but I wouldn't recommend it because there's a lot of backstory that's touched upon and it makes Bourne's character's deeper to have seen the previous film. This is a fun, action packed and enjoyable thriller, but like the first, it's lacking a touch in the overall story department to take it to the next level. 7/10.

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Seen: Toy Story 3

Seen examines the shows that I see.

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I had my doubts about Toy Story 3 when it showed up on my airplane's monitor. The first two films are hallmarks of Pixar's ability as storytellers and animators, but I was concerned that the franchise had said all of what it needed to say through these characters. And I kept watching the film, waiting for that moment that my fears would be confirmed, but somehow, they were instead allayed. Toy Story 3 didn't just cave into the commercial demands for a sequel, but managed to find a story that had some heart and tied it together with the technical advancements in computer animation to make that hour and a half of my airplane ride painless and even fun.

3 starts off in an unexpected place, but over 10 years since Toy Story 2 was released, Toy Story 3 has almost followed suit with real life time and has aged Andy old enough to go to college. The toys themselves haven't aged, although the few of them that remain spend their days waiting in Andy's trunk. And then an unexpected sequence of events results in the toys being donated to a day care. And to say any more would stumble into spoiler territory, but loyalties and friendships are tested once again and the toys are faced with reevaluating what their lives mean to them.

I think the biggest doubt that I had was that the story wouldn't be able to avoid treading over old ground, and to some extent, both of the themes from the first and second Toy Story films, but the film actually grapples with the relevancy of those themes in the twilight of the toys' relationship with Andy as well as bringing in a new story (albiet related to Jessie's story) via the toy denizens of Sunnyside Day Care. Some of the story twists, like what happens to Buzz (Tim Allen) are less inspired and Ken's (Michael Keaton) change of heart doesn't seem adequately motivated. I also like many of the characters get to come full circle and how the ending is able to make a subtle statement and, yes, even move me.

The technology for computer animation has come a long way since the original Toy Story and some of the effects we see in 3 are complex and impressive (especially the surprisingly dark scene towards the end of the film), however, the film largely stays true to the look of the prior films and so the visual improvement is subtle (most noticeable on plush toys and toys with a lot of texture). The actors all perform their parts well and the newcomer characters are given plenty of life via the acting and the artistry. Randy Newman, seemingly a constant with Disney/Pixar these days, brings back his charming music into the series that brought him into the Disney/Pixar world, sound more classic than tired.

Toy Story 3 exceeded my cautious expectations. It shows that the folks at Pixar can revisit their characters and worlds even a third time and create magic out of it. There are moments of joy, laughter, concern and genuine heartache and to instill so much humanity into these toys for three movies in a row is a feat. Toy Story 3 is held up by a strong story that actually goes back to its previous films and incorporates their themes into the new situation and comes across a stronger story for it as well as a fitting finale. Top that off with the strong visual and aural artistry we've come to expect from Pixar and their collaborators and you have yet another tremendous entry into the Pixar canon. 9/10.

Links:

• Available at Amazon (Blu Ray) / (DVD) and iTunes

Inbox: 날아라 펭귄

Inbox features items that I have recently purchased or received.

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Fly Penguin is one of the many human-rights oriented film projects funded by the Human Rights Commission of Korea, most of the previous projects being omnibuses, including a pair of animation omnibuses, that featured a mix of indie directors as well as high profile names. As the latest project, Fly Penguin is unique because its theoretically a single feature. But, in all honesty, it's still very similar to watching an omnibus because there are multiple independent stories that are very slightly woven together by a shared world and some shared characters.

The first story follows ambitious mother Heejung (Moon Sori) who sets up her son with a dozen after school classes and pushes him to work ahead of his grade, much to his and his father's consternation and to her frustration when he doesn't pick up as quickly in English as she is aiming for. Heejung works at a little company who picks up a pair of new employees including Juhoon (Choi Gyoohwan), who is unlike his peers because he's a vegetarian and is allergic to alcohol, which causes friction in the work place because of the tacitly required corporate activities of eating together, drinking together and partying together. The boss of this office, Kwon (Son Byungho), himself is a "wild goose father", which is a father who lives and works in Korea while sending his wife and children abroad for their education and finds the resulting life lonely, but this is amplified as he discovers when his family decides to spend a summer in Korea with them, he's even more isolated from them because of the distance. Finally, Kwon's mother (Jung Hyesun), tired of her husband's (Park Inhwan) constant disrespect and patriarchy starts to go about life on her own, leading to conflict since he doesn't want anything to change and continues to expect her to serve him.

The movie is mostly predictable and hardly daring. I did appreciate the somewhat open-ended nature of the first segment and the resolve in the second, but we're talking about the kind of problems that I think most Koreans are aware of and choose to do little about because they feel either helpless to overcome the enormous inertia of society or are afraid to risk their own place in the pecking order. However, I suppose these vignettes would actually be illuminating to those who are only somewhat familiar with Korean society, but this film is aimed at a Korean audience. It's like sitting with your friends and complaining about the ills in society--nothing happens. Only the second and fourth parts really try to show an "out" to the problem. But the whole talk of parts brings up another problem. The transitions between the segments aren't really smooth and because these different stories are told as "segments", they don't really create a larger collaborative effect, like Babel or Love Actually would nor is there an overarching theme to make a larger statement like in 가족의 탄생. Consequently, there's little to gain in creating a single feature of this except that we have one director in charge of it all.

And that director, Im Soonrye, is talented, having several strong artistic films as well as one popular film under her belt. Her command of actors is great, drawing good performances overall and her overall style is natural, without any flourish, which keeps the attention on the mini-stories. Very appropriate since it's about the social issues and not about the director's awesomeness. The actors themselves, largely veterans, but including some good performances by children as well, also do a predictably solid job. The production values are wonderful and the film looks good.

But for all the strengths of the film, again, I find that the stories themselves don't do much for challenging the social problems it presents. Furthermore, the film feels disjointed because there's nothing significant to tie together the segments and it might have been better off being an omnibus so that each part could have maximum impact in itself without the expectation of some kind of overall unity. Yet, despite all of its problems, it does seem to be sincere and in some of its moments, it actually connected with me, due to similar situations, so it's not something I actively dislike. I suppose I just expected more from such a talented director and the potential to make a meaningful and challenging statement about social problems in Korea. 6/10.

Links:

• Additional Reviews: Seen in Jeonju
• Available at YesAsia

Seen: 시라노; 연애조작단

Seen examines the shows that I see.

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I have mixed feelings about Cyrano Agency, which I saw during its original theatrical release in Korea, as it has a number of strong comedic moments, but slips a little in narrative tightness and believability and can get a little indulgent at times. Ultimately, I think its sense of comedy and its interesting, if problematic story, is what keeps it engaging enough to merit a viewing.

Obviously, the story takes some cues from Cyrano de Bergerac, the stage play about an ugly, but gifted writer, a handsome, but foolish, young man and the woman they both love. Well, in this film, there's a company by the titular name, whose service includes assisting their awkward or timid clients in capturing the hearts of the women they like, but are intimidated by. Kind of like Hitch, but going all out to create scenarios, write dialog, and more. They are a successful little unit, until their latest client, the naive and timid-around-women Sangyong (Daniel Choi) shows up requesting their services in courting Heejoong (Im Minjung). The company's President Byunghoon (Um Taewoong) falters because Heejoong was his previous ex with whom he shares a yet-unresolved end to their relationship. However, bound to the contract, the Agency is on the case and Byunghoon finds himself helping and hindering their attempts at getting Heejoong interested in Sangyong.

Okay, this film is funny. I found myself cracking up frequently in part because they really do well in writing the awkward male characters in need of help, but also in how they play the agency's crazy scenarios as well. I also really like the underlying story about resolving misunderstandings and selfishness in relationships and how the Cyrano de Bergerac conflict was woven into the story, which also owes a little to Hitch. On the other hand, the film takes a lot of time to get into its main story, because we spend what I think is an excessive amount of time with a prologue showing just how these guys their their job done. Sometimes, I also got the feeling that the film wasn't certain of how it revealed Byunghoon's previous relationship with Heejoong and so I wasn't always certain of why a part I was watching was relevant. And the hardest part of the film to accept was that the Cyrano Agency or its clients could really afford the tremendously elaborate scenarios they create (complete with props, extras, special effects, etc.) in order to grease the wheels of love. That little detail kept sticking in my head whenever we saw the crew in action.

Still, director Kim Hyunsuk does a good job of making this whole world seem glamorous and attractive in that Korean way, perfect for a romantic comedy like this one. The film is prone to a little excess here and there, most obviously in the dandelion moment in the cafe, which seems to go on forever and without much overall impact in terms of narrative, emotion or anything other than gee-whiz-look-at-how-pretty-this-is. The actors all show their gifts for comedic timing and while they do sometimes ham it up, I don't think it was ever inappropriate and I thought the music selection and scoring was also appropriate without being too overblown and melodramatic. Sometimes with the editing, like with the writing, the narrative can get a touch confusing, especially with all the flashbacks to the past, but also even with some of the flashbacks that happen in the present and imagined scenarios.

Still, I think the sheer likability of the overall film manages to (just barely) outweigh the issues in the narrative and storytelling. This is not going to be considered a great film, but as far as a late summer romantic comedy is concerned, it's fun, attractive, and has some great comedic moments. I like that its story uses both the Cyrano and Hitch stories to explore some actually interesting elements of relationships, both failed and successful and while it's not particularly original because of its obvious influences, it does still manage to craft an original story nonetheless. I can't love this film especially because of the gaping logic hole that still irks me, but I think that there's still a lot of fun to be had here for most audiences. 7/10.

Links:

• Additional Reviews: Far East Films, Hanguk Yeonghwa, Koreanfilm.org
• Available at YesAsia

Inbox: 도둑맞곤 못살아

Inbox features items that I have recently purchased or received.

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Steal It If You Can (aka Can't Live Without Burglary) is a movie that actually has an interesting premise and a large amount of promise in the premise. Unfortunately, the story and execution are about as good as most Korean comedies, especially from the late 1990's and early 2000's, which is to say haphazard, unfocused and fail to take advantage of what the premise promises.

We first meet the antagonist, the slick successful video game producer Choi Kangjo (So Jiseob) whose hobby is high risk theft of rather low value items. He decides to perform a less difficult burglary on the house of Kang Sangtae (Park Sangmyun), a hapless civil servant who married into money. He lives with his wife, Hwang Mari (Song Sunmi) and children in a house way out in the boonies and his family doesn't exactly respect him. Anyway, when Kangjo decides to steal some sushi that Mari made, he gets hooked on her bizarre cooking (she lacks a sense of taste due to a hereditary disease) and steals from the house again. This gets the family riled up and Sangtae goes on a quickly escalating mission to stop and/or capture this highly competent thief.

Okay, there's actually a decent amount of potential for comedy in the setup and it's not as though the film actually lacks in attempts at comedy. It's just that the film doesn't get the majority of its comedy from the principal setup, but rather goes endlessly on "funny" tangents, as Sangtae meets a bevy of quirky characters as he tries to build up his house. It'd be fine if the jokes were quick one-offs, but we spend notable chunks of time on these vignettes, taking the focus away from Sangtae's mission. Furthermore, the characters are poorly defined. Sangtae, being as hapless as he is, just isn't the right kind of character for the kind of escalation that goes on with Kangjo. And Kangjo himself barely has any character either, living only by the sheer charisma of So Jiseob. And even when it does crack jokes, I feel like the film's sense of timing is too long and it frequently draws the wind out of its own jokes. Furthermore, I think that the film's story itself doesn't properly resolve for Sangtae because the ending really strays away from the "catch the burglar" concept (come on, Home Alone got this right!) and then just all out lapses in believability (although this happens many times over the course of the film).

It does have the benefit of being produced in the era following the development of the industry, so it benefits from improved production values, but I found the direction pretty overbearing, lathering on the "hey, we're funny and stylish!" so thick, it's obviously trying too hard. There are some elements I appreciated, like the use of subtitles, but these were largely overshadowed by the film's overwrought nature. Park always seems to be cast in these kind of roles (he was also a hapless civil servant in My Wife is a Gangster so he's got that kind of comedy down pat, but I think the character's so wrong that his attempt just doesn't work. So does capture cool, but he overplays it here--although I have to note that if he tried for his more effortless cool like in Rough Cut, it probably wouldn't have fit in with the sledgehammer subtlety antics in this film.

I found myself quite bored while watching Steal It If You Can and that is not a good thing for a brightly colored comedy like this film tries to be. It bungles the premise in the story and in the characters, drowning the potential comedy in over-the-top presentation and running the story thin in endless and largely unfunny asides. The actors, who are usually competent, either just went along with the flailing comedic attempt or couldn't save it. In the end, that made watching this attempt at comedy a chore and yes, a bore. I will admit that as jetlagged as I was when I watched this, I did not fall asleep, so maybe that counts for something, but I had to fight the urge to give up on the film. Avoid. 4/10.

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Seen: Iron Man 2

Seen examines the shows I see.

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I have to admit right up front that I haven't yet seen the original Iron Man and I wasn't actually planning on watching Iron Man 2 until I did. However, it was playing on my flight and to break my utter boredom, I decided to forgo my embargo against watching a sequel before the original and watched 2 anyway. Turns out that I was lucky that I knew enough about the Iron Man mythos to know who all the players were and while there are some slight introductory moments, I would highly advise against watching 2 before the original.

In Iron Man 2, Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.) goes on a huge ego trip after his success as Iron Man and comes into conflict with the government of the good ol' US of A, who want the Iron Man technology for themselves, using Stark's friend Lt. Colonel James Rhodes (Don Cheadle) to pressure him. Stark's trusty assistant, Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) becomes overburdened by trying to run Stark's company as he becomes increasingly erratic seeing that the technology keeping him alive (and powering Iron Man) is also slowly poisoning him. Then there's also his corporate nemesis, Justin Hammer (Sam Rockwell), a goofy and semi-amicable, but amoral arms developer who's trying to compete for the government contract. And if that's not enough story for you, there's also a mysterious former Soviet scientist Ivan Vanko (Mickey Rourke) who has a vendetta against Stark, Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) trying to recruit him into the Avengers project, and even daddy issues all mixed into the pot.

Personally, while I certainly found the whole effort watchable, I felt like the story was stretched into so many directions and tried to cram so much into the film that the ultimate impact of everything that was going on was lessened. I get that Marvel is trying to set up and tie into the other films in their universe with Fury, but he definitely edged towards Deus Ex Machina territory, giving Stark an "easy out" for his problems that he didn't have to earn and stole the focus from Stark's story at times. In fact, the central conflict to the story just never really got nailed down, even as the different conflicts, while interlinked pull the story in different directions and so the resolutions (and yes, the film actually gets around to resolving everything) feel kind of weightless. There's also a huge plot hole in the final act of the film with Venko that the film doesn't even attempt an explanation for, which left me scratching my head. And ultimately, that's the problem I have with the story of Iron Man 2. There's no focus and it almost seems like there's no point even as the story ends with things in a different place from where they started.

But at least, despite the messy web of a story, we have a clean and pretty production. Visual effects pop and shine and dazzle and the direction is fairly tight most of the time. The actors all perform their parts adequately, but I didn't really feel like anyone stood out except for hamming it up (like Rourke and Rockwell), although I suppose it didn't help that few characters really develop any serious weight to them during this film. Sound was pretty good, even as I was listening on tinny airplane headphones.

From everything I heard, Iron Man was an exemplary comic book film that really outdid expectations. Iron Man 2 does not live up to that standard. I'm not saying it didn't have promise, but the story is messy, scattershot and unfocused and doesn't really earn the character development it provides. It did have a couple small promising moments, but I have to say I was unimpressed. In terms of the look of the film, it's everything that you'd want in a summer blockbuster, so it at least has that going on. And it had enough "cool action moments" to keep me somewhat entertained during two hours of my long flight. Still, I couldn't help but notice that the film just kept wandering from sub-story to sub-story, never letting anything soak in and become a viable emotional or logical core for the film. And so, when the credits rolled, I was left pretty unsatisfied in terms of a cinematic storytelling experience. As a diversion, Iron Man 2 works, but it had a lot of potential with its underlying themes that gets squandered by just having way too much going on. For that, I can neither recommend it nor say that it ought to be ignored. It's not horrible, but I'd only watch it if you're following the franchise. And definitely don't watch it before watching the first one. 6/10.

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