3 Movies Like Believer (2018)

Us and Them follows two former lovers who reminisce and reassess their decade-long relationship over one night. They both seem to be in better places, certainly financially if anything else, but their shared wistfulness for the past threatens to prove otherwise. 

The film was an immediate hit when it was first released in China, and it’s easy to see why. With just the right balance of realism, romance, and comedy, the movie makes for a simple but deeply moving and involving watch. You can’t help but root for the exes to get back together, even though you know as well as they do how minimal the chances of that happening are.

Genre: Drama, Reality, Romance

Actor: Andrew Tiernan, Boran Jing, Dongyu Zhou, Jack Roth, Jing Boran, Liu Di, Liu Qiheng, Qu Zhe Ming, Qu Zheming, Rene Liu, Shi Yufei, Sophie Colquhoun, Su Xiaoming, Tian Zhuangzhuang, Tim Bentinck, Zhang Zixian, Zheming Qu, Zhou Dongyu, Zhuangzhuang Tian

Director: Rene Liu

Rating: Not Rated

Full of charm and nostalgia, Bang Woo-ri’s first feature film is a love letter to the late 90s—and to the heartstopping experience of first love, as high school student Na Bo-ra tries to get to know her friend’s crush Baek Hyun-jin. While at times immature, she comes across as endearing through Kim Yoo-jung’s charismatic, devoted performance. And as Na Bo-ra goes through all the ways people wooed each other in the 90s—figuring out each other's phone numbers, filming each other through old camcorders, renting out VHS tapes—the film evokes memories of our own first loves. Even with some underdeveloped characters and certain contrived moments, 20th Century Girl is still a stunning picture of young love at the turn of the century.

Genre: Drama, Romance

Actor: Bang Woo-ri, Byeon Woo-seok, Choi Kyo-sik, Gong Myeong, Gong Myoung, Han Hyo-joo, Jeon Hye-won, Jeong Min-jun, Jeong Seok-yong, Jo Ji-hyeon, Kang Chae-young, Kim Nu-rim, Kim Sung-kyung, Kim You-jung, Lee Beom-soo, Lee Beom-su, Lee Cheon-mu, Lee Woo-sung, Ong Seong-wu, Park Hae-jun, Park Jung-woo, Roh Yoon-seo, Ryu Seung-ryong, Shin Dong-ryeok, Yoon Yi-reh

Director: Bang Woo-ri

Rating: TV-PG

While Hollywood still makes some films in this genre, there are less historical epics being released, in part due to cost, but also in part due to having had so many, ever since the start of the medium. However, there are some historical events that we rarely see on film, and one of them is The Great Battle. Set before the formation of a united Korea, the film is a classic standoff against a larger army, that has all the swordfighting and armies we’ve come to expect, but it’s also grounded by the dynamic between a young warrior sent to assassinate, and the hardened, brilliant commander whose leadership kept the troops protected. While there are moments that definitely eludes historical accuracy, and there are some subplots that distract from the main conflict, The Great Battle is a fairly entertaining historical epic to watch, especially when focused on the action-packed clashes and the spectacular warfare.

Genre: Action, History, War

Actor: Bae Seong-woo, Bae Sung-woo, Cha Eun-woo, Eom Tae-goo, In-sung Jo, Jang Gwang, Jeong In-kyeom, Joo-Hyuk Nam, Ju Seok-tae, Jung Eun-chae, Jung Ji-hoon, Kim Seol-hyun, Nam Joo-hyuk, Oh Dae-hwan, Oh Dae-whan, Park Byung-eun, Park Sung-woong, Seol-Hyun Kim, Seolhyun, Shin Yoo-ram, Stephanie Lee, Sung Dong-il, Sung-woong Park, Um Tae-goo, Yeo Hoi-hyeon, Yu Oh-seong, Zo In-sung

Director: Kim Kwang-shik, Kim Kwang-sik, Kwang-shik Kim

Rating: Not Rated, R