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Journey With You (Chinese Series)

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...

O SilĂȘncio da Singularidade (Portuguese) [The Silence of the Singularity]

This was more like an extended short film running to about an hour or so, which could easily have been squeezed into a 25 min film. There a re a few obvious scenes that can be eliminated and the message that this film is trying to say would not have been diluted. Story is about 18 year old boy who is obsessed with universe, space and astrophysics. He is also a religious boy thanks to his mom and how his knowledge of science and religious interferes with his confusion when he starts to have feelings for his friend.

Thiago is a young man of 18 who is simple, Christian, and passionate about astrophysics. He lives with his religious mother and sister in a happy family. His best friend is Lucas, who is not very good at studies and Thiago helps him a lot. His life takes a turn when he realizes that he is developing feelings for his best friend. As their friendship deepens, Thiago is confronted with unexpected feelings that go beyond his comprehension. Intrigued, Thiago embarks on a quest for self-knowledge and acceptance, seeking to complexities of the human heart. He meets a trans girl, who gives him some info on how to balance his feelings alongwith religion and how Jesus mens to love everyone. But he is still confused. Interestingly Lucas feels the same and one day he kisses Thiago leaving him even more confused. As he dives into this journey, some obstacles make him question his faith, the universe, and his growing passion. This is when his mother reminds him that love can never be wrong and manages to make sure Thiago never thinks he is doing anything wrong just because he is gay. He returns his love and kiss to Lucas.

The film is a sensitive story that addresses themes such as faith, identity, and the challenges of youth. The story focuses on the internal conflict of a young man dealing with his feelings and the expectations of society and religion. The acting is decent but I found some scenes were unnecessary like the conversations around God feels repetitive just because it happens between so many people. Also I am not sure how Thiago's love for universe and space fits into all this? The boys are both cute and have good chemistry. The mother's character is the best since at one side she is deeply religious but is also modern in the sense that she knows love cannot be wrong. And if you push your kids too much, it could have consequences. Most scenes between mother and daughter also could be deleted. They offer no value except showing how understanding the mother is. Overall a decent attempt at telling a story of acceptance and self-discovery and how to reconcile religion with being gay. (5.5/10)

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