Mirzapur

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Mirzapur turned out to be an unexpected joy. It has its flaws but the good things far outweigh the bad. And I definitely want to see more of it. It is very very violent though and the trio above is responsible for the majority of it.  

The Perfection

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The Perfection has some unexpected turns and it was entertaining but I hesitate to call it a good film.

John Wick

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John Wick turned out to be as good as the first time. But I have always liked Keanu Reeves. 

Crazy Rich Asians

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Crazy Rich Asians turned out to be a regular rom com with an all Asian cast. As usual the book was better but of course this didn't stop me from shedding happy tears at the end. Some things don't change. 

Ocean's 8

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Ocean's 8 turned out to be a bad film with a good cast. It was a rather annoying viewing experience actually. 

The Switch

The Switch turned out to be a good diversion. This is the second novel from this writer I have read and I can recommend to people as travel reads (while waiting for the plane, train etc.) not strong enough to make you forget everything else but sufficiently engaging to make the time fly while waiting. 

The Dragonbone Chair

The Dragonbone Chair ended up being just a background for me while doing errands and performing tasks and falling asleep. I just couldn't connect with any of the characters and failed to get into the story. It didn't work for me in any level. However I appreciated the work that went into it and recommend to read a few chapters before deciding on a purchase. 

Mikhael

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Mikhael there were some interesting choices but I chose this one since revenge is a theme that appeals to me in fiction. And it turned out  to be pretty entertaining. I enjoy South Indian films mainly because they are very straightforward and usually quick. This one had some aesthetic aspirations and that kind of slowed the pace and hurt the film. The other thing I like about these films are how normal everyone looks. The ladies are not skin thin and the hero here has a rather impressive belly (which doesn't prevent him to be a martial arts prodigy avenging doctor) One of the baddies had a better suited physique as far fighting goes. And as they fight you can see sweat on their clothes (underarms etc.). Anyway it was sufficient diversion. 

Pink

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Pink turned out to be a better film than I thought it would be. As a woman it is impossible not to like it though the male saviour theme was a bit much. I liked the cast and shed silent tears over it.

Fi

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Fi turned out to have a very good first season and not nearly as good second season. Of course it doesn't have anything to do with the source material especially at the second season (no wonder the adaptation tv shows go downhill as soon as the sources they have been adapted from dries). I liked the actors, the production values and it was a nice diversion (the theme of fiction in the month of Ramadan is diversion it seems)

Love In The Afternoon

Love In The Afternoon was entertaining but I got bored by the intimate scenes. It is a nice diversion if you need one. 

Blindsighted

Blindsighted is definitely a solid read and I have enjoyed it a lot. I just wish I had read it before I read Will Trent series nove Undone. Other than that I have no complaints. It is very violent however but I have no problem with that. 

Clean With Passion For Now

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Clean With Passion For Now turned out to be a very entertaining rom com at the start. It is not nice to laugh at a person's illness but they set it up to be very funny. Case in point is where he sees her slowly puttin blue paper at her face and the ones she used up look kind of wet. So he thinks that they are face cleaning tissues but then he finds out from her that they are face oil blotters and as he realises the horror of the whole thing one of them flies out from the pile and stuck to his forehead. Yeah I know it shouldn't be funny but I thought these gags on him fighting his phobia when with her were hillarious. Of course the whole thing went south towards the end as these dramas tend to do. But it was hillarious while it lasted. Also the male lead in this drama Ahn Seok - Hwan is a rather hefty guy in comparison to the willowy males all around him, and I usually prefer the willowy look but he has these adorable dimples and his different body type was a refreshing change. The female lead is cute and a good actress but the problem was that these two has zero chemistry and they had all these kissing scenes left and right and long ones too. Wasted I guess. 

Private Life

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Private Life turned out to be decent film, reminded me a bit of Woody Allen films but with a more humane touch to it. (God, I still like Woody Allen films...) Paul Giamatti is one of my favorite actors and he is great in it as is Kathryn Hahn. I felt for this couple in the end and I wanted them to be happy.  

Vesikalı Yarim

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Vesikalı Yarim hatırladığımdan daha güzel geldi bu sefer. Ve bir kez daha Türkan Şoray'ın oyunculuğuna hayran kaldım. İzzet Günay'da hiç fena değildi. 

A Precious Jewel

A Precious Jewel turned out to be a delightful read. I liked the beta male and the whore (who had to choose this life out of necessity and circumstance). It may not be a usual romance but it definitely made me happy in the end. 

The Chalk Man

The Chalk Man ended up being an ok novel. I felt the lack of heft though and it bothered me for some reason. The writer seems to be a nice person though (I like to read the acknowledgements). I can only recommend as an introduction to the genre (horror mystery??)

Burnt

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Burnt has a lot of problems, mainly the storytelling. And it didn't really work for me although I watched it till the end. 

The Wandering Earth

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The Wandering Earth (Liu lang di qiu) well you were accustomed to Americans saving the world from a variety of disasters all these years. In this film it is the Chinese who save the world (with a little international help but still the majority of the brain and body work is done by our intrepid Chinese heroes and you know what? It was not that unwelcome a change. Oh the formula is still the same (separated family, devestating threat, sacrifices all around and eventually the triumph of human spirit) the whole thing reminded me of a much more intelligent Armageddon without the romance. Because yes, when the stakes are that high, romance is not the number one priority in everybody's mind. I liked it, cried during despite not expecting to. 

Sky Castle

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Sky Castle is the most recent S.Korean cable ratings behemoth I have been very eager to watch and Netflix did me a solid this time by making it available. I really liked it so much so that I almost inhaled the whole thing in less than a week. It is one of those "unhappy lives of the rich and privilidged" type of drama where the ordinary masses love to watch the higher class suffer through many hurdles, mostly caused by their bad decisions. It was funny, entertaining, sad, very well acted and very high quality makjang with a great soundtrack. Highly recommended if you are into that sort of thing.