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Contrast (Japanese Series)

By Golu
This is basically a high school BL where two guys who have nothing going on in common somehow end up getting really close to each other, and that's kind of the whole point of the title too. There's barely any drama or fluff packed in here, it stays pretty straightforward the whole way through. A little bit of friction pops up here and there, but it's nothing compared to what you'd normally get in this kind of show. Runtime wise you're looking at 8 episodes, each one sitting around 25-30 minutes. The two guys carrying the story are Akira and Kanata, and funny enough they knew each other's faces way before they ever knew each other's names. Kanata's the type everyone likes, always got people around him, popular guy, but there's this distance to him that people can't quite place. Turns out he had an injury that ended his football days, and that's what pushed him into being more withdrawn, and it only got worse once his younger brother got picked...
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The Taste of Betel Nut (Chinese)

By Golu
I don't remember seeing a film with absolute minimal dialogues and the story being told just by the characters, by your surroundings, by their interaction and with their eyes. IT sill doesn't warrant a full length feature film, but thankfully the cinematography of the film is quite beautiful. The quietness and visually arresting setting offer a picture of everyday life and young love in China that is rarely seen onscreen.

The story starts with Li, who works with dolphins in an ocean park following a guy and then beats him and his friend mercilessly. We are then shown the story in flashback. We meet Ren Yu, who looks like a Chinese pop star and impersonates him in karaoke to make money. The duo are roommates and lovers. Ren Yu is bisexual and is open to having sex with anyone. As vacation time starts, the duo meet a girl. Three characters are more and more fascinated and drawn to each other, when the one night they try betel nut that brings about sexual revolution and experimentation. Li is probably more involved in love with his roommate but the entry of the girl who is slowly falling more for Ren Yu creates an issue. But one day, a group of thugs assault the girl and Ren, who tries to save her. And then we know who are this people that Li was trying to attack in the beginning.

This film has a very clumsy editing. As mentioned before, the film does not go into dialogue, instead it just uses the images of characters and surroundings for nostalgic or entertainment purposes. There were certain aspects of the film that were not very clear to me. I don't think the two male leads were strictly lovers. They felt like roommates who occasionally got involved in sexual pleasure which was evident when the girl walks in their life, but some scenes made me believe that somehow the quiet shy Li was more involved in their relationship. Not that this is important, because the focus of the film was not the sexual orientation, but a depiction of youth of Chinese culture willing to move casually between tradition and a proudly alternative way of life in a very island setting. The leads look good. I though Li was cute with his supposedly mundane life, which he enjoyed in parts. But having said this, this film could easily have been a short 25 minute film rather than a full length feature film that definitely tests your patience. (4/10)
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