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Journey With You (Chinese Series)

By Golu
I've always had kind of a love hate relationship with Chinese historical BLs. Some are genuinely excellent, but then there are others that cram in so much plot that keeping track of all the layers of betrayal and scheming gets exhausting, and I end up checking out mentally. Part of the issue is also just how much content is out there in this space, so something really has to stand out to keep me hooked. In this case, the production value is genuinely impressive, top tier stuff, but story wise, I just couldn't bring myself to actually care about these characters. There's a ton of political scheming and backstage manipulation running throughout. Somewhere in the middle of all that chaos, a hostage ends up falling for his own Prince Charming. The show runs eight episodes, each around 50 to 60 minutes long. After spending three years guarding the border, Fifth Prince Yin Qi gets called back to the capital because of a secret letter, only to end up walking straight into a deadly...
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Saving Private Tootsie (Thai)

By Golu
I thought I would be watching a sort of spoof and an over the top film, given its subject, but it actually was not the case. The film was supposedly done seriously, But I, as the audience, could not figure out, where is it that they really wanted to go with this film. At one point you feel this is full upon drama but at the very next instance, too much "fag" reference and then campy and peevish attitude from the people being rescued would just take it into another zone.

A local Thai flight crashes inside Burma in rebel-held territory. Amongst the survivors are several gay men and transsexuals. The Thai Army is ordered by the Foreign Ministry to rescue them. One of their soldiers is a bit of a loose cannon and he hates homosexuals as his son is one. However, he must do his duty despite his prejudice. The Shan rebels control the area. They capture the survivors but they manage to run away with the Thai rescue team. They are supposed to be picked up by helicopter but the Thai Foreign ministry changes their mind and refuses to allow the flight to take off. They have no choice but to trek through the jungle to reach the Salween river and cross with the Shan rebels in hot pursuit.

This film was supposed to be a mix of action and comedy, but to be honest, I didn't find either. Yes, action was actually quite decent and they didn't do a shoddy job, but overall, the film is not entertaining and fails to leave any impression at all whatsoever. The tension is alright , with the jungle itself, booby traps, the cliche of treacherous politicians refusing helicopter help, and the armed rebels. The rescued group antagonize their rescuers by failing to co-operate, and the tension arising from the homophobia of some of the soldiers is played on. None of the gags by the lady boys hold on and when the film tries to show some seriousness, you don't believe them either. The film could have been a funny comedy action film with focus on the screenplay. Instead, it's a failed attempt at just capitalizing on an actual event without taking sides and giving a message. (1.5/10)
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