Masquerade Hotel (2019)

Probably the most star-studded movie of 2019. Once you see the names like Kimura Takuya, Kohinata Fumiyo, Nagasawa Masami, Matsu Takako & Watabe Atsuro are all in this movie, you gonna enjoy the top-notch acting and chemistry between the actors.

Story-wise, this is not the kind with breathtaking twists and turns, rather calm and steadily paced. I have high hopes since it's based on Higashino Keigo's work. If you are a fan of Higashino Keigo, you will understand that this is simply not at the level of Suspect X (from Galileo series), Sleeping Forest and The Crimes that Bind (from Shinzanmono series). You could argue that those movies have stronger plots since they have their own specialized novels and dramas but I expected more since such great assembly of talents do not come up often in the Japanese movies.

An entertaining movie, but not the one that would give you lingering thoughts after watching it.

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STORY: Not that I thought there was anything wrong with the story. It was indeed a good complex plot... however the storytelling wasn't really great imo. Especially if you're gonna package the story as a whodunnit... I REALLY love whodunnits, especially when it's done well. In my opinion, the best ones doesn't necessarily have to have a complicated plot... Rather, one that allows the audience to participate really MAKES a whodunnit. I was kind of disappointed upon coming to the end that I as the audience, never got that shot. A fair shot, that made it plausibly possible for anyone in the audience to be able to solve the case if they had paid close attention. Instead, it felt more like we were spoon fed the whole story...

CHARACTERS/ACTING: Characters and cast were great, I don't have anything negative to say about it. Chemistry between the lead characters were imo, realistically palpable. You can tell there's admiration but due to circumstances their duties to their profession naturally made them forces at odds with one another.

MUSIC: The ost was really good! Definitely played into the vibes of a masquerade ball. Very mysterious, grand, and thrilling.

PRODUCTION: 10/10 would recommend. Beautiful cinematography...Beautiful hotel. I actually thought it was a real hotel at one point and googled it up lol. It definitely reminded me of The Grand Budapest Hotel and Wes Anderson's obsession with symmetry.

OVERALL: I'm still processing whether I actually liked the film or not... just cause I'm a big whodunnit fan and the story was spoon-fed to me... And also during reveal, they did not go into detail of the killer's... (trying very hard not to spoil) accomplices... I did however enjoy the comparison of a masquerade ball and what was described as a "first-class" hotel. Especially when the female lead expresses that their jobs are to "imagine the guests' true faces", but should never think of peeling off those masks. That particularly, was very interesting. Because of that, and the feast-for-the-eyes that is this film, I'd say that I'd give it try if you're bored.

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