Movie Review Part Dos! (White - Korean Horror) Anime Reivew! (Kaze No Stigma) Loco Rambling!

'Twould seem a weekend in bed is driving me little a little crazier than usual.  I've gotten out of bed a handful of times and only left the room twice...today.  Yesterday...maybe I left the room four times.  Hooray for math.  I can count.

So today I streamed White, a Korean Horror flick (subtitled) and watched the entire Kaze no Stigma anime series (24 episodes).  Of course, I also talked with the vet and asked that they run a comprehensive blood panel on Neko, not only to search for a possible culprit, but also to check on her kidney and liver function since dehydration could cause issues.  And my dad called to check on me, which was sweet, but I couldn't talk long since I was waiting on the vet to call and I'm a cheapskate who won't pay for call-waiting on my home line.  I hate land lines and, since I mentioned it, I'm feeling better than I was, but still not great, still have an awful headache, and didn't need to take any of the pain meds I was given on Friday.

Okay, so the reviews!  #1 - White.  This subbed Korean horror movie is about an all girl idol group who have hit bottom and live in the shadow of a popular group.  That all changes when one member discovers a song called 'White,' complete with choreography, and the group takes it on as their own.  However, as they find more and more fame, and begin fighting with one another for the "main" spot, tragedy begins to strike and the member who found the song begins to wonder if it isn't cursed.  The plot may sound a bit hokey and anyone familiar with vengeful Japanese/Korean/Asian ghost-story horror movies may guess how it plays out with ease, but it was still an entertaining movie.  I won't say it was gripping or even scary - it isn't capable of grabbing the audience in the ways that The Grudge or The Ring could - but there was at least one moment where my jaw dropped open and I thought the constant bickering and bullying among the girls was realistic.  I'm more familiar with Japanese culture and the problems with bullying there, but given this film's deeper meaning, I found their cruel and degrading treatment toward each other and one member in particular very believable.  There were a few moments of beautiful artistry, especially near the end, when White emerges - I love her solo poster - and there are a few moments where I was confused.  I'm not certain if I missed something, if something wasn't translated, or if it's an insider thing specific to the music industry, but they refer to a video tape a lot and when they begin to analyze it for a specific thing, it's that specific thing that lost me.  But even so, it's been a while since my brain has tried to solve a movie while I watched and I was right on top of this one (again, anyone familiar with these types of films probably won't find it that difficult - it just felt good to be watching and solving again, instead watching and mindless).  Anyway, I enjoyed it and liked it.  I liked the way the main character was handled throughout the movie and especially in the end.  POSSIBLE SPOILER DEPENDING ON HOW YOU VIEW SPOILERS - I like that while she did get a little snobbish after gaining popularity, she still treated her best friend  well (even if she did call her an "acquaintance" in an interview), and how she signed the cd for her friend - I think there are subtleties in her actions toward her friend that speak more toward her character than the words she uses.  Anyway, that's my take and I liked that attention to detail with the character.

I do have one minor issue with the movie, but stating it here would, in my opinion, be a major spoiler, so I won't say anything at all.  Things just...happen in a rather convenient way for the plot to advance and that doesn't mesh very well with the typical ghost story.

#2.  Kaze No Stigma - an anime series about elemental martial arts magic users that focuses mainly on a high powered fire-using family who banished their son, Kazuma, because he couldn't harness the power of fire.  As an adult, Kazuma returns, having gained the power of wind, and joins forces with his former family in their fight against evil.  Okay - that is a super simplified version of the plot, but it's better than the one Netflix provides, which makes it sound like something for kids.  Teens, yeah, ok.  But not little kids.  First - the coloring is excellent and the voice acting is excellent (dub), with a lot of familiar voices.  Second - Kazuma was SO MUCH like Phantom in the second part of Phantom: Requiem for Phantom (Zwei) after he accepts his fate, that it was eerie.  For the first couple of episodes, if it wasn't for the wind and fire magic, and screeching teenage redhead, I'd think I was watching Phantom.  They aren't voiced by the same person, but I swear they are similar.  Anyway, the first part of the series focuses on Kazuma's relationship with his family and his partnership with Ayano (the screeching teenage redhead).  At first they mostly go about one or two episode monster hunts until the story begins to evolve and form a linear, continuous plot.  This plot delves into Kazuma's past, is sad and tragic, is interesting, and makes me really wish there would be another season.  However, according to a quick bit of research, the creator for this story is now deceased and it appears the project has been cancelled.  I haven't confirmed any of that as true, but given that the anime aired in 2007 and it's now 5 years later...I think they (Gonzo) have moved on.  My thoughts.  Kazuma is a serious fellow and I thoroughly enjoyed every bit of him throughout the anime.  He is one of those unflinching, unwavering, and unbeatable guys with a tortured heart beating at the center of his chest.  He made me want to watch this anime.  He is why I watched the whole thing in a day.  The rest...okay, so the rest is fine, except that I wish the rest had stayed at Kazuma's level.  But maybe that was their way of showing the difference of maturity in their characters - I don't really know.  Ayano had moments of maturity, but overall was rather annoying and I wanted more seriousness and maturity from her.  Overall, I wanted more seriousness and maturity from the whole anime.  The other supporting characters, like Kazuma's brother, Ren, his uncle, and his father, and the villains and whatnot where all fine.  I actually really liked Ren.  He was a cute character and I loved his interactions with his friends.  But the seriousness and maturity level extends to the anime itself.  There's a lot of fan service going on here - panty shots, wind blowing skirts up, torn up clothes, big breasts, unnecessary boob jiggling (and I mean it - boobs jiggling in the scene just to have them jiggle).  The story gets really serious once the relationships are established and this just doesn't go with the maturity level that the anime sets for itself.  That was kind of disappointing.  I wanted more from it.  If it hadn't gotten so serious, if Kazuma was a little goofier - maybe like Vash - I don't know - maybe the lighter side would've been easier to accept.  But as it is, this seems like two animes trying to meld into one that kind of mostly works, but leaves you wishing it was a little bit better.  So that's it.  I enjoyed it.  I wish there's more to it.  I want to know what happens, what the whole story is, and I wish it was more serious.  But even with all that, this is a title I would put on my buy list.  It wouldn't be at the top, but if I saw it for a good price tomorrow, I'd pick it up.  I can enjoy goof, silly anime (I LOVE Cromartie High and Azumanga Daioh), and I can appreciate lighthearted characters juxtaposed with serious characters (take xxxHolic or Fruits Basket, for example) when done well.  However, here, the juxtaposition doesn't sit well.  But if you can overlook that, or if you like jiggling boobs and panty shots along with lots teenage girls, fighting, monsters, and fire/wind magic, then check this title out.

When I sat down to write this, I realized that what I should be reviewing is my new laptop.  Is it ironic that I work in I.T. and choose to review movies and anime instead of my new HP Pavilion M6 with its 3rd gen (yes, Ivy Bridge...woot!) Intel i5 processor and 8gb DDR3 ram and 700 gb hdd?  The M6 is HP's replacement for their DV6 line, which is my other laptop, running a measly core two duo with 4gb ddr 3 and a 500 gb hdd.  It's going to get a ram upgrade and become my husband's laptop since his Dell is dead and will soon have a greater metal-to-lead ratio (read: he's going to shoot it).  We have an even older HP Pavilion, from one of the dinosaur-eras from whence XP was born, that we upgraded as a spare for my father-in-law to use when he house sits for us.  We added a one-gig stick of ram and that thing is speeding along now.  I'm looking forward to upgrading my DV6.  Maybe one of these days I'll review this M6. 

Sorry for any typos.  I've already taken my meds and vertigo is setting in, so re-reading this is out of the question now.  Have a good night!