Skip to main content

Chained To My Bully Stepbrother (AI Vertical BL Drama)

This is the second vertical AI BL drama I've sat through, and honestly I went in knowing better. I had it on while I was doing cardio at the gym, and what struck me was just how much the plot echoed the last one I watched. Same step brother romance angle, same mystery girlfriend showing up near the end, same extra guy pining after one of the leads. Genuinely the only thing going for it was the runtime, the whole thing wrapped up in forty five minutes flat.  The setup kicks off with Finn moving schools because his mom just married into money. He finds out his new step brother Aiden goes to the same place, and he's warned to keep his distance from him. Their first run in at school is rocky, just like you'd expect, but there's this odd pull between them neither can shake off. Finn keeps telling himself not to read into it because Aiden's straight and openly homophobic. Things shift when some kids start bullying Finn and the student council president, Ryan, steps in to ...

The Wise Kids

I am not big into religion but at the same time I do not judge anyone at all for what religion they follow and what their beliefs are, as long as I am left to do and believe what I want to. I don't judge and i do not want to be judged. I am not an avid or devout churchgoer but I would like to believe that this film touched upon some very real issues of faith in a way that were both authentic and unique. 

A group of high school students who are members of a church youth group are preparing to begin their adult lives in South Carolina town. We follow 3 close friends: Brea is the minister's daughter, Tim is an aspiring film maker and Laura who is totally devoted to God and religion. Tim realizes that he is gay but hasn't acted on it. Brea is very comfortable with this fact but when Laura finds it out, she is shocked and frightened. She tries to help Tim reconcile between his sexuality and religion. At the same time, Brea is questioning her faith and prayers. Then we have Austin and his wife who help with the church. Austin is closet gay and has feelings for Tim but he cannot do anything about it except showing your run-of-the-mill expressions and telling gestures like touching. He is devoted to his wife but cannot convert it into physical intimacy which is driving his wife insane. She almost goes about cheating on her husband but stops herself. She suspects that something is wrong with him but doesn't question him. Time moves on and Brea and Tim goto New York for their college. Laura moves on and find s anew boyfriend who's believes in religion like her. 

The film shows that we all go through problems. Religion or no religion, we all will deal with various issues at various stages in our life. The kids in this film are wise because they deal with the reality of the world through logic and reason instead of through man made doctrine. The subject matter is brave. I loved the way Tim's father deals with his son's homosexuality. He gives a very heart warming speech on Tim's birthday on how he has been a great son. It was difficult and I am very sure realistic too to see Austin and his wife's relationship because I bet you that there are many women and man out there in non compatible marriages unable to take drastic steps. Acting by all kids and characters is good. My one problem with the film was too many characters. For a small budget and clear film, I don't think the film maker needed to introduce so many characters. Nevertheless, it was a nice movie. This film is a reflection on issues of personal identity and choice for which there are no easy answers. (7/10)

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Phor Lae Lukchai (Thai) [Father & Son]

I think the budget of this film was probably too small, but for that, the film definitely offers a different and unique storyline without over dramatizing anything. Yes, some scenes were a bit amateurish but in the bigger scheme of things, that can be overlooked. The film is both beautiful and sad in its own unique way. Aek is a gay dad, whose partner died right around the time their son Nueng was born through surrogacy in a road accident. The relationship between father and son is unpleasant and unstable. We are not really told why, but it seems the father has been unsuccessful in caring and loving his son because of his partner's death. Aek continues to hook up wit hookers. Also, Nueng is constantly bullied by everyone around him for having a gay dad. He has no friends, except Nat, a neighborhood boy, who also happens to be Nueng's boyfriend. In a sudden turn of events Nat is found murdered along with another boy naked. Saddened by the events, Nueng jumps from roof and k...

Sei no Gekiyaku (Japanese) [Dangerous Drugs of Sex]

Every person has their own unique way of dealing with loss. This film is as much a psychological thriller as it is a soft porn BDSM portrayal of two young men that makes the film overall horrifying as well as humane. It is really hard to describe the genre of this film in one word. Its important not that the film has some really disturbing scenes so if you go into seeing this film, please proceed with caution. Although any sexual non-consensual activity is not ok, this film has its won strange way of showing that suicide is not the only solution to all life's problems. Makoto is a regular office goer, who just finds out that his girlfriend is probably cheating on him. ON top of it, his parents sudden death coming back from a trip that he forced them to take, he gets completely dejected and decides to commit suicide. Unknown to him, he is saved by mysterious man Yoda Ryoji, and he wakes up finding himself tied up in leather and belts in a very BDSM setting. This mysterious saver soo...

The Shortest Distance is Round 3: Fallen Flowers

Continuing with the weird trilogy of "The Shortest Distance", I am so glad that finally I am done with part 3 and won't have to deal with this again in future. Thankfully, as of now the makers have not announced any further parts; which will save all of us on this earth from the embarrassment of watching this in near future. After the first 10 minutes are used in sort of recapping bits of first two parts, the story moves forward. Haruto is now starting to have feelings for Ruka, the mysterious pole dancer from second part. In a fit of rage, Ruka ends up killing the goat man and to save him and Haruto, Shibahara asks them to go underground. Meanwhile Shibahara continues the search for Seiya (the guy who had cut off Haruto's penis). It turns out Seiya is now also taking care of the original club owner from part 1. Both of them were released after they had informed Shibahara of Aoyama's secret location. Shibahara tortures Seiya's boyfriend leading to Seiya killin...