Daisy

The Plot
An elite Interpol agent Jeong-woo and a ruthless hitman Park-yi, both stationed in Amsterdam, are in love with the same young woman, Hye-young. Hye-Young is a simple sidewalk artist with dreams of one day holding a real exhibition in a real gallery. Her pure love will draw these deadly men into a spectacular showdown in the process, revealing Hye-Young's hidden past.
(cr : imdb)


The Cast
Jun Ji-hyun - Hye-young
Jung Woo-sung - Park Yi
Lee Sung-jae - Jeong Woo





Foxi Feels
Would you cut your right thumb to know who your secret admirer is?



Neither would I (lol).


But I would do my darnedest to find out who the person is; and once I have a prime suspect, I would also come right out and ask the person straight to his face if he was the one who has been leaving me flowers each day - and not be coy about it.


Alas, that is not the case for this movie; and hence we are saddled with a melodrama that left you pulling hairs right out of your daisies (excuse the pun).


But a sucker for everything melodramatic, I love this movie!


As I love Jung Woo-sung (of Athena and A Moment to Remember) and Jun Ji-hyun (Gillian Jun of Blood the Last Vampire and My Sassy Girl). 

If all hitmen are this good looking,
they can hit me anytime!

Central to the story is the (initially) one-sided love story between hit man, Park-yi (Jung Woo-sung) and street painter, Hye-young (Jun Ji-hyun). Due to the dangerous nature of his job, Park-yi did not pursue his love interest. Rather, he was content to watch her from afar, help her whenever he can without her knowledge and of course, leave her bouquets or pots of daisies at the exact precise time each day.

Delivery!

Now tell me, which silly girl will not go googly eyed over that!


And true to the tried and tested drama storyline, the daily flower delivery definitely piqued Hye-young's interest but not to the extend of her going out of her way to find out who the mysterious sender is.










But as luck would have it, a twist in the fickle finger of fate, led her to meet Interpol agent Jeong-woo (Lee Sung-jae), who, in pursuit of our outlaw hero, decided to 'blend' in the street atmosphere and pose for Hye-young, with a daisy pot in his hands...uhuh, of all the paraphernalia he could grab on the streets, he settled for that one.

Is he or isn't he?

Thus, our dear girl thinks that the agent is her secret admirer and a courtship blossomed from there.


Well, what do you expect, the girl is pretty and even interpol agents need a breather from work once in a while :)


And so, a triangle love story began and you just have to watch the movie to find out what happens from here onwards.




For me, again I can be biased. I love Jung Woo-sung and Jun Ji-hyun. They are both excellent actors and oh so beutiful. So, their pairing is just one made in heaven. The cinematography is beautiful too - fresh green fields, interlacing with cool arty streets of Amsterdam.

Choice of fresh or cool June air

The movie is more of a love story rather than a thriller, lest you get misled by the trailers and synopsis.


The storyline may be predictable; but for me watching a movie or drama is like riding a harley (like, I have ever been on one), it is the journey not the destination. 


Daisy is a 2006 South Korean-Hong Kong co-production film directed by Hong Kong filmmaker Andrew (not Andy) Lau of the Infernal Affairs trilogy. So, having cool Korean storytellers, pair it up with good looking actors and a revered Hong Kong director - how right can you be?


The theme song is only so-so and has elements of saeguk (oriental traditional) music in the beginning, what gives? But is it soothing.


So, don't take my word for it, check the movie out yourself - it's another oldie, but a definite goody!

Predictable but definitely worth the ride 

Watch Daisy online

(Mysoju.com)

Hey - Daisy

(Download OST)

Mother

The Plot

Frustrated with the cursory investigations and unhelpful public defence attorney, a widowed mother went out to prove her mentally challenged son's innocence when the latter was accused of murder of a young girl.
(Cr : dramawiki)


The Cast

Kim Hye Ja - Mother

Won Bin - Do Joon

Jin Goo - Jin Tae

Yoon Je Moon - Je Moon

Jeon Mi Seon - Mi Seon


Foxi Feels

I must say that the Koreans are getting better and better at their story telling.


Forget about the love between Juliet and her Romeo; or between Delilah and her Samson; or even between Eve and her Adam.

It is a mother’s love that truly knows no bounds.


It is often a mother who will go through hell to bring her son back into the world.


It is always a mother who will continue to believe in her son’s innocence when others won’t.


And it is also a mother who will take secrets to her grave for her son to continue living.


Due to lack of local promotions, I often follow the Japanese and Korean entertainment scenes based on my preferred entertainer. In other words, if I like a certain actor, I will try to follow almost all of his or her work.

Can the real Won Bin please stand up

Likewise with Won Bin, I managed to watch almost all of his dramas and movies; and have just now completed sitting through his first movie after leaving the army – Mother.


Though, the producers naturally used Won Bin’s name to brand the movie, I believe the movie was truly carried by Kim Hye Ja, who brilliantly played the role of the Mother.

While the Korean horror movies always get the best reviews, I tend to shy away from them, preferring the romances and the thrillers instead.


Mother is one such thriller, telling a seemingly simple story of a mother trying to prove her son's innocence in a murder case.

It did not help that the evidences pointed straight to the son; and him, being a  simpleton, played along to the police’s manipulative ministrations.


At the same time, being poor, the Mother and son team cannot afford to hire a proper defence lawyer and had to resort to the incompetent services of a public defence lawyer.


In the end, Mother does who Mothers do best - take matters in her own hands and seek justice for her son.

Beautiful Kim Hye Ja with her on screen son

Personally, I liked it!


I like the twist in the story, the grey overtones, Won Bin's scraggly looks and the brutality of some of the characters. But most of all I really liked the Mother!


As mentioned above, Kim Hye Ja pulled off the character really well.


(while Won Bin proved yet again that he is truly an actor by not banking on his good looks for the role of the mentally challenged Do Joon)

Mother and the mentally challenged Do Joon

If you are a mother, you will identify with her. With her desperation, her need to save her son and to some extent her guilt to her son's predicament. 


But then again, life can sometimes be cruel; and at the end, the balance between right and wrong is only slight tilt of the scale.


Here's to all Mothers out there, God Bless!

English Subbed Trailer of Mother