G.D.N. tells of another Thomas Edison in colonial India

Gopalaswamy Doreiswamy Naidu is not well known, even in India, but he is a most remarkable man who has finally been depicted in a major film "G.D.N." (2026).

The film starts near the end of his life when tax authorities are trying confiscate his wealth and then we switch to a textbook committee meeting that was to discuss books for the next school year.  A strange woman enters and explains she wants to make sure they include a chapter on G.D. Naidu while a few protest that he a traitor, a  tax evader and not properly educated having dropped out of school after grade 3.  She gives each member a copy of some biographical information and the story moves on.

We are introduced to a young G.D. Naidu as he wants to buy a motorcycle to see how it works.  He is very curious person, studying lots of processes.  Another move is to work at a cotton mill owned by Robert Stanes and find a way to improve cotton processing that led him to start his own mill.  While there he learned to speak English.  Unfortunately he gambled on prices and lost when the market for cotton declined.

He goes back to Robert Stanes asking for a job and instead is given a bus.  After a few years he proved his management skills after devising more efficient routing he persuaded a number of bus drivers to join him, pooling their resources to share in profits.  At one point United Motor Services had 600 buses.  This is also where he partnered with Ramiah Pillai who stuck with him to the end.

His list of innovations is diverse.  In agriculture he made improvements with cotton, maize and papaya.  He found better ways to extract fruit juice.  He made voting machinery more safe and efficient.  Motors was one of his first interests and that is reflected in transportation.  One sideline was developing an electric shaving razor.  Education was boosted by encouraging wider spread schools.  He was a founder of a polytechnical institute and revised a curriculum to give engineering training in only two years.  Concerned over the plight of the poor he developed a way to construct a more affordable, safe house in one day.  A man who loved taking photos he developed accessories to make cameras more efficient.  

As he succeeds he is generous to his fellow Indians which of course upset some British.  They tried to cut him down using tax rules to force him into a corner.  One British colonist, Winston Smith did some dirty tricks to stop him, but was constantly outsmarted.  He then hooked up with a high level income tax collector, Ambalapara Kristnan who over years was always finding parts of Naidu's business to tax and try to confiscate his assets, but failed.

His employees, and customers could see through the attempt and helped him evade unfair taxes.  Other tricks learned was to have the stock given to a dog and another was to divorce his wife giving her the right to take 98% of his assets, so the government could not confiscate 80% of them and still live together.     

He travelled over Europe and elsewhere looking for suppliers and ideas.  He spent time in Britain, France, Belgium and Nazis Germany and eventually got a deal with Benz to manufacture automobiles in his part of India.  These efforts branded him a traitor.  

At the end we learn the textbook committee has been swung over and there is an ironic twist.

"G.D.N." makes a good case for great contributor to India.  A lot of people help present a superb case.  Here are a few.

A key person was Madhavan who played.the title character, but more than that  he co-wrote the script and was also a producer.  He had won a national public speaking award and is fluent in English, Hindi and Tamil.  He took part in a student exchange program to Stetler, Alberta, Canada,  He has appeared in such films as "Rang de Basanti" (2006), "Guru" (2007) and "3 Idiots" (2009) which were all exceptional.  Altogether he has 100 acting credits, 5 for writing and 1 for directing.  Another film was the American, "The Reluctant Fundamentalist" (2012).  My first awareness of him was with "Kannathil Mutthamthal" (A Peck on the Cheek) (2002), but I assumed it was a Bollywood film and much later learned it was a Tamil film, opening another door for me.  Other films include "Arbe Sivan" (2003), "Tanu Weds Manu" (2011), "Dhoka" (2022) and "The Railway Men" (2023). See http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2023/11/the-railway-men.html   In "G.D.N." one scene had him throwing away a cigarette as requested by Ramiah Pillai.  It turns out that Madhavan in real life does not smoke although willing to act if the script calls for it.

Krishnakumar Ramakumar was the director and co-writer.  He was the founder of Black Box Films in Chennai that mostly does advertisements.  He has 3 directing credits, 1 for writing and 31 for acting including "Madras Cafe" (2017).

Sathyjaraj played Ramiah Pillai, the loyal supporter.  He has 233 acting credits and 2 for producing including "Mersal" (2017), "Baahubala:  The Conclusion" (2017) and "Idly Kadri" (2025).

Priyamani played Chellamanal, the first wife who asked for a divorce so as not to drag him down.  She modelled which led to films.  She has acted in Hindi, Tami, Telegu, Malayalam and Kannada films.  Primayami has 85 acting credits including "Raavan" (2010), "Raavanan" (2010),  "Chennai Express" (2013), "The Family Man" (2019-2025), "Article 370" (2024) and "Maidaan" (2024).  See http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2023/03/the-family-man.html                     

Durshal Vijayan played Ranganyaki, Naidu's second wife who stuck with him through a wide variety of circumstances.  She studied fashion design which led to modelling and in turn tv. commercials and then films. In 2017 she won a contest for Face of Chennai and in the same year Miss South India, placing second.  She has 14 acting credits including "Natchaathiriam Nagangirahu" (2022).

Richard Bhakti Klein played Robert Stanes who gave Naidu critical support.  Lived in America and moved to Mumbai in 2005.  For a few years he was a professional singer/guitarist and has taught music and science.  He has 92 acting credits including "Dear Zindagi" (2016), "Gully Boy" (2019), "Love Aaj Kal" (2020), "RRR" (2022), "Dunki" (2023) and "Maidaan" (2024)  See   http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2024/06/maidaan.html

Jayaram played Ambalapara Krishnan, the brutal income tax collector you will come to hate.  He has 250 acting credits, 4 for the music department and 1 for additional crew including "Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo" (2020), "Poniyin Selvan, Part 1" (2022) and "Hi Nanna" (2023).    See   http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2024/01/hi-nanna.html   

"G.D.N." is available dubbed and subtitled on Netflix

As usual I have bolded the first mention of films I have seen.  They are not necessarily a recommendation, but generally these are among my favourites.  The cast and crew are well connected to outstanding films and if you follow the links you should be better able to determine if a particular film is worth following up.

Graveyard third season is riveting and socially aware

Turkey is a Muslim country and as such is assumed to be restrictive for women.  In many ways they are more westernized and women can be said to be relatively free, but as with so called more progressive countries they are struggling and deal with discrimination.  

A special task force is given a room in the basement of a police building in Istanbul which some call a graveyard.  The focus of the team is to investigate murders of women.

In the first two series they deal with a variety of murders against women.   See   http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2025/08/graveyard.html

Onem, after a break for personal reasons has returned and reassembled her crew.  A member of another group, Gokce learns of mysterious boxes given to women and feels they are a form of intimidation.  The boxes all have intimate knowledge and are numbered indicating they are the result of stalking.She is directed to the Special Task Force and eventually becomes involved in their investigation.  

In the meantime the Task Force gets involved with murders.  One is about a woman trying to hide her overweight body while doing cooking videos.  Her son was able to manipulate video tapes.  She becomes concerned about conveying a false message about body image.  

Before too long the boxes attract more attention.  Eventually the motivation becomes more evident as coming from some sort of incel group.   Incels are men who hate women, usually the result of rejection.  You know under layers of deception there is someone seeking revenge and making a statement about the role of women.  You have already seen grisly dead bodies, but the action and suspense go to a higher level as the team gets closer to cornering the culprit. 

Most of the film takes place in the modern city of Istanbul, but some of the investigation takes place in the town of Ephesus with buildings from Greek and Roman history.

The story is gripping and will draw you in.  Here are a few of cast and crew to credit.

Omer Baykel was the director.  He has 6 directing credits.

Abdullah Oguz was the previous director and producer.  He has 54 producing credits and 5 for writing including "Bliss" (2007).  See http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2011/05/turkish-delight-in-book-and-movie-form.html

Ozden Ucar was a key writer.  He has 5 writing credits and 1 for additional crew (river co-ordinating).

 

Cem Oget was the composer.  He has 47 composing credits, 22 for the music department and 1 for soundtrack. 

Ferhat Uzundag was the cinematographer.  He has 32 cinematography credits, 3 for the camera & electrical department and 2 for acting.

Sercan Guducu was the editor.  Sercan has 9 editor credits and 4 for the editorial department.

Bice Akalay played Onem, the head of the Special Task Force.  She was a finalist for the Miss Turkey contest.  She has modelled and became a sports anchor on tv.  She has 22 acting credits and 1 for soundtrack.

Olgun Toker played Serder Ata, a tough, sometimes brutal partner for Onem.  He has 71 acting credits.

Baron Guler played Berk, a forensic expert who tended to get sidetracked with tedious explanations.  He has 4 acting credits and 1 for acting.

Elif Cevinc played Sude, teenage daughter of Onem.  She has 10 acting crtedits.

Yesim Celebri played Gokce, the newest member of the Task Force.  She has 6 acting credits. 

Onur Durmaz played Bora, the bad guy.  He attended to the Vienna Conservatory where he studied music and acting while learning German, English and Italian.  He has done tv. commercials and has 13 acting credits. 

"Graveyard" is available subtitled and dubbed on Netflix.  I hope they come up with another riveting series.

As usual I bold the first mention of films I have seen.

A Taxi Driver is a gem

We learn that in 1980 a military dictatorship violently tried to put down student protests in South Korea.  The poster for "A Taxi Driver" (2017) seems to indicate a comedy, but it is not.

A dictator had gained control of South Korea and at this time his main obstacle seemed to be student protests who were of course described as radical and Communist.  The media was tightly controlled and the outside world was given a false narrative.  A German journalist in Japan, Jurgen Hinzpeter, heard about the suppressed riots and decided to fly to Korea to get the story.  He realized there was no easy way to get to Gwangiu, site of the riots, so thought if he used  large money he could hire a taxi driver.  Kim Sa-bok, heavily in debt was quick to see an opportunity and skipped the line to get the job.  He didn't realize the danger, but soon learned and tried to back out.  Eventually he felt a grave injustice was being inflicted on Korea and rescued the reporter and his film.  The script is based on a true story about a reporter and a taxi driver keeping their real names for the story.

There is a lot of violence and action (especially with cars).  Killing is almost without thought, as a dictator is determined the true story doesn't reach the outside world.  Human relations are important as there is resistance from local taxi drivers being influenced by a student.  Kim Sa-Bok was a widower with an 11 year old daughter left on her own who was helped logically, but also surprisingly. 

My reason for seeking out this movie was the actor I consider a star and an indicator of a good film.  Song Kang-Ho is not glamorous, but I have stumbled on a number of his films and am amazed how a character actor can be a leading actor.  "A Taxi Driver" is a good example.  See below for more information on him.

A lot of effort was put into this award winning film and here are a few of the contributors.  

Hun Jang was the director.  He got his start working working with production departments.  He went on to have 5 directing credits, 1 for writing and 1 as an assistant director. 

Yu Na Eom was the writer.  Another film she worked on was to do with the Korean dictionary that helped maintain the Korean language.  She has 2 writing credits and 1 for directing.

Cho Young-wuk was the music composer.  He got his start as he once wrote about film music for a radio show.  He was asked to recommend someone to pick music for a movie and he took the job.  This award winning composer has 74 composing credits, 9 for the music department and 2 for producing including "Oldboy" (2003),  "Thirst" (2009), "Glove" (2011), "The Attorney" (2011), "Joint Security Area" (2010), "The Beauty Inside" (2011), "The Tiger" (2015), "The Handmaiden" (2016), "The Man Standing Next" (2022) and "Decision to Leave" (2022).   See   http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2023/02/decision-to-leave.html  and  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2023/07/broker-japanese-korean-collaboration.html

Nak seon Go was the cinematographer.  He has 15 cinematography credits and 1 for the camera & electrical department including "The Man Standing Next" (2020).

Kim Sang-beom was the editor.  He has 141 editing credits and 2 for producing including "Oldboy" (20023), "Sympathy for Lady Vengeance" (2005), "Thirst" (2009), "Hope" (2013), "The Attorney" (2013), "The Handmaiden" (2016), "Asura" (2025) and "Decision to Leave" (2022).   See  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2016/11/hope-gut-wrenching-film-from-korea.html

Song Kang-Ho played Kim Sa Bok, the taxi driver.  He is also one actor with his own post http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2020/12/song-kang-ho.html which gives a fuller picture of his stature.  He is a heavily awarded actor and is revered by many directors.  He started in theatre at one time offering to work cleaning services to maintain working for the theatre.  In 2020 the New York Times compiled a list of the top international actors and he was listed as number 6.  With a slight hiatus he has been active in commercials and was noted for increasing sales of a liquor in Japan. Some of his film credits include "Joint Security Area" (2000), "The Host" (2006), "Thirst" (2009), "The Attorney" (2013), "The Age of Shadows" (2016)  "Snowpiercer" (2013) "Parasite" (2019) and "Broker" (2022).  Americans can see him in 3 episodes of "Beef" (2026), a popular American tv. series.   See http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2020/09/parasite-breaks-oscar-tradition.html

Thomas Kretschmann played Jurgen Hinzpeter, the reporter.  He has 144 acting credits (including German and American films) and 8 for voice dubbing including "Stalingrad" (1993), "The Pianist" (2002), "Downfall" (2004), "Whiskey, Tango, Foxtrot" (2016) and "Gran Turismo" (2023).

Ryu Jun-Cheol played Gu Jae-sik, a student protester.  He has 25 acting credits.  At the moment I am just past half way watching him in the highest rated Korean series "Reply 1988" (2015-16) for which he is in all 20 episodes.

Lee Jeung-eun played a hostess for the taxi driver and reporter.  She started in theatre and now has 63 film acting credits including "Mother" (2009), "Okja" (2017), "Parasite" (2019), "Our Blues" (2022-23) and "Daily Dose of Sunshine" (2023).  See  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2023/11/daily-dose-of-sunshine.html

I was interested to see this film, but it did not seem to be available on any of the usual streaming services, but my library membership allowed me to watch it for free with subtitles.  Kanopy is available through libraries throughout Canada and the United States.

As usual I have bolded the first mention of films I have seen.  Some of them are among my favourite Korean films and a big part of my Korean obsession.  If you follow the links you should be able to determine if any film is worth following up.

The Crusades are largely forgotten, but they left a mark

 Some of my previous blogs dealt with the Mid-East, the Holy Land, but they were pretty much contemporary times.  The Crusades happened over 1400 years ago, but have left a mark.  

We are all tied to the past. The Third Crusade in the 12th century revealed a serious conflict between Christians and Muslims.  When the Papacy learned that the holy sites inside the most holy Christian city, Jerusalem were ruled by Muslims a campaign to restore it began.

At this time Muslims looked at Europeans as relatively uneducated.  Literacy and science were more developed in the Mid-East.

We think of Richard as the English King Richard, but he saw himself as French.  He was religious and agreed to take part.  Throughout the Crusades he recognized his actions were needed to protect Christianity and at times it was his religiosity that turned him to focus on the task.  He was truly a magnificent fighter.

Saladin proved himself capable and commanded the Ottoman military, even though he was a despised Kurd.  The Byzantine Empire was still strong, but the Ottoman Turks had control over what is now Turkey, but extended into Egypt and Israel and Jordan.   The Crusaders were able to maintain Cyprus as a Christian nation.

Jerusalem is also a holy city for Muslims, but they allowed Christians to visit holy sites.

Saladin was older than King Richard, and not as physically intimidating.  They both were good as tacticians, but the author concedes King Richard was the better.  The two never met, but communicated through messengers including Saladin's brother, Safadin.  Saladin died in 1193.

Geoffrey Regun recounts several battles that the combatants took turns winning.  One advantage the Turks had was the heat.  The longer the Crusaders endured it, the weaker they became which Saladin stretched to his advantage.

King Richard received messages that all was not well in England or his French territories.  Along the way back home he was captured and put in a German dungeon with demands for a ransom.  This resulted in heavy taxes, but finally after a year and 6 weeks, was enough.  No connection to Robin Hood.  In the end King Richard had a minor wound, an arrow to his neck, but two surgeons botched removing it and gangrene set in.  Knowing he was dying he arranged his will and demanded that his followers pay allegiance to Prince John.  He died in the presence of his mother in 1199.  

The influence of the Crusaders lingered for awhile with Muslim mothers warning their children if they didn't behave, the King of England would be coming.  The Ottoman Turks ruled the Holy Land for several centuries.  It was after WWI, with the help of Lawrence of Arabia that the Turks were forced out and Arabs under the British made headway.

For later historical developments check:  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2013/12/lawrence-in-arabia.html  

The photo at the top is of a jacket cover with an aquatint of Richard I and an engraving of Saladin courtesy of Mary Evans Picture Library.

Romance Disrupted by India/Pakistan Partition

 After WW II, England prompted by rebel forces and their own economic difficulties decided to get out of India.  As planning began Muslims made a strong demand for their own country.  This complication was handled expeditiously with little concern as to how complicated it was.  It was easy enough to draw lines creating two parts to Pakistan out of India.  The problem was that Hindus and Muslims were spread across the lines and little attention paid to the Sikhs who were also distributed on both sides of the line.

"Main Vaapas Aaunga" (2026) is spread over about 80 years.  We see a bedridden man suffering from a stroke, heart concerns and creeping dementia.  A grandson is visiting India from England.  Death seems approaching and the old man is rambling and for some reason the grandson pays more attention to the words of a dying man than all the other relatives.  

The viewer is taken to what the old man is trying to articulate going back to just before Partition and his relationship with his love.  He is a Sikh and assures her he is not leaving despite rumours of Partition. One joke was they could both convert to Christianity and get married in a church.  Keenu, to reassure Jiya has her name tattooed on his wrist which we can also view on the old man's wrist.

We are shown men fleeing and many not able to board extremely overcrowded trains.  We see enemies killing the Sikhs with Keenu barely escaping.  More frightening is the plight of the women following who were separated by mutual agreement as it was thought they would slow the men down.  However as enemies (could have been Muslims or Hindus) the women realized they not only could be beaten, but also raped.  Young girls had their hair cut to appear as boys, but as the fear became more imminent some girls had their throats slit to avoid the shame.

The old man gradually makes sense to the grandson while the rest of the family just feels his dementia is getting worse.  We learn that Keenu had made an early attempt to revisit his lover, but was discouraged about the prospects of her being alive.  Still as he approaches death he retains hope and the desire to read a poem he wrote for her.  We see a grandson wanting to help and the old man deteriorating.  I will leave it there.

Another theme was the grandson had become a Non Resident Indian, but not one able to hold down a job.  He marvels at his grandfather's desire to go home and wonders if that is something he has lost.

"Main Vaapas Aaunga" is likely to be involved with awards as it has a lot of top notch cast and crew.  Here are some of them.

Imtiaz Ali was director and script writer.  He has 18 writing credits, 11 directing and 6 for producing. including "Ahista Ahista" (2006),  "Love Aaj Kal" (2009), "Jab We Met" (2007), "Rockstar" (2011), "Highway" (2014), "Tamasha" (2015) and "Amar Singh Chamkila" (2023)  Check   http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2024/04/amar-singh-chamkila-used-dirty.html

A.R. Rahman provided the music.  He had done commercial jingles when Mani Ratman invited him to write for a film "Roja" (1992).  I had not realized that Rahman wrote for the Tamil market, but has expanded to Bollywood,  American, English etc.  With the encouragement of  Andrew Lloyd Webber he wrote for a stage musical, "Bombay Dreams" that had long runs in both London and New York.  He has 221 composing credits and 90 for the music department (often backup singer) including "Bombay" (1995), "Fire" (1996), "Lagaan Once Upon a Time in India" (2001), "Swades" (2004), "Water" (2005), "Rang de Basanti" (2006), "Ghajini" (2008), "Slum Dog Millionaire" (2008), "Jab Tak Hai Jaan" (2012), "Highway" (2014), "100 Foot Journey" (2014) "Tamasha" (2015) "The Goat Life" (2024) and Maidaan (2024)   Check http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2022/07/the-making-of-laga and http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2024/08/the-goat life.html  and   http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2024/06/maidaan.html  Elsewhere Rahman had commented that he often gives producers a difficult time in order to get what he wants and feels the film benefits. 

Sylvester Fonseca was the cinematographer.  He has 32 cinematography credits and 2 for the camera &  electrical department including "Sacred Games" (2018-19) and "Amar Singh Chamkila" (2023).

Aarti Bajaj was the editor.  She has 56 editor credits including "Jab We Met" (2010), "Udann" (2010), "Karthik Calling Karthik" (2011), "No One Killed Jessica" (2011), "Ishaqzaade" (2012), "Highway" (2014), "Tamasha" (2025) and "Amar Singh Chamkila" (2023).   See  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2016/02/tamasha-wonderful-story.html

Naseeruddin Shah played Ishar Singh Grewal, the old dying man.  He once formed a traveling theatre group and has done a Hollywood movie.  He has 271 acting credits, 6 for the music department and 2 for producing including "Hey Ram" (2000), "Monsoon Wedding" (2001), "Maqbool" (2004), "Omkara" (2006),  "Amal" (2007), "Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara" (2011) and "Gehraiyaan" (2022), "IC814:  The Kandarhar Hijack" (2024).  See http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2024/09/ic-814-kandahar-hijack.html 

Diljit Dosanjh played Nivair Singh, the grandson and was also a playback singer.  He has 101 acting credits and 41 for the music department including "Udta Punjab" (2016), "Phillauri" (2017), "Soorma" (2018), "Good Newwz" (2019) and "Amar Singh Chamila" (2023).   See   http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2020/02/good-newwz.html 

Vedang  Raina played the young lover Keenu.  He has 3 acting credits and 2 for the music department.

Sharvari played Jiya, the young lover abandoned.  She has 8 acting credits and 3 for assistant directing including "Bajirao Mastani" (2015) and "Maharaj" (2015).  See   http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2024/07/maharaj.html

Rajat Kapoor played Iqbal.  He has 84 acting credits, 14 for directing and 10 for writing including "Dil Chahta Hai" (2001), "Monsoon Wedding" (2002), "Khoya Khoya Chand" (2007), "Beja Fry" (2007)"Dasvidaiya" (2008)"Midnight's Children" (2012), "Ankhon Dekhi" (2013), "Drishyam" (2015), "Kapoor & Sons" (2016), "Drishyam 2" (2022), "Saare Jahan Se Accha" (2025), "Raat Akeli Hai:  The Bansal Murders" (2025) and "Raid 2" (2025).  See http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2015/11/driishyam-bollywood-remake-masterpiece.html and   http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2025/12/a-nawazuddin-siddiqu-sequel-is-very-good.html

Dolly Ahulwalia played Keenu's grandmother.  She has 32 acting credits and 18 for costume design.  As a costume designer she worked on three films with Deepa Methta, "Fire' (1996)"Earth," (1998) "Water," (2005 also acted)  and "Midnight's Children" (2012).  She won costuming awards for "Bhaag Milka Bhaag" (2013) and "Haider" (2014).   She also won supporting actor awards for "Vicky Donor" (2012).   http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2020/04/vicky-donor-cf-dharala-prabhu.html 

"Main Vaapas Aaunga" is an important movie as it concerned with the Partition which many of our westerners have long forgotten.  There is a short gruesome scene illustrating extreme desperation.  It is also an enduring love story.  It is available subtitled on Netflix.  I do recommend it

Do Americans realize Trump is a traitor?

 Up front there are a lot of reasons to find Trump disgusting, but so far too many Americans accept his leadership.  He has Congress members under control as they fear how he can hurt them and his staff has been picked for loyalty, not expertise.  What could tip the scales?  How American do you think you are?  

Americans are right to be concerned about the cost of groceries, housing and gas, but international affairs are intertwined with domestic expenses.  

We are not certain if Trump just admires Putin as a fellow kleptomaniac or if Putin has incriminating evidence.  Either way he seems to do a lot of Putin's bidding.

Go back a few years to just after when the Soviet Empire was broken up.  The deal was for Ukraine to give up nuclear weapons.  United States was to protect Ukraine against a Russian invasion and Ukraine was never to join NATO.  Doesn't carry any weight today.

He calls accusations that he was helped by Russia in 2016 a "hoax", but there is a lot of evidence otherwise and even that he was aware of it.   See  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2019/06/house-of-trump-house-of-putin.html and  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2022/10/freezing-order.html

In Helsinki he said he believe Putin against 16 American agencies regarding Russian influence in the 2016 election.  During his first term he made decisions regarding Syria and Afghanistan that probably benefited Russia as much as the United States.  He also criticized NATO with a hint he could do without them.

In his second term he was better organized.  He humiliated Zelenskyy in the White House while previous administrations including Republican would have helped Ukraine against Russia.  Although many in Congress wanted to help Ukraine, Trump was able to minimize any aid and although promising he could end the conflict preferred to let it drag on.

The complaints against NATO continued having one definite outcome.  Members were encouraged to increase their military spending.  Dwight Eisenhower had pointed out that military spending detracted from health care and education, but Trump emphasized the military.  He threatened to take over Greenland, currently controlled by NATO member Denmark.  They already had a military base on Greenland and the Danish government was willing to allow more bases.

All previous American administrations had heavily supported Israel and Trump went further.  After the Hamas attack on October 7th, 2023, European and American students began to protest what turned out to be a genocide of Palestinians.  The students were branded anti-semitist.  One suggestion of his was to clear Gaza and turn it into a tourist area.  Military armaments continued.

More importantly, although previous American presidents had resisted a Netanyahu request to attack Iran he went ahead and to this point lowered American military resources that it affected its military readiness. NATO and others were condemned for the lack of support of his (illegal) attack.  Iran had supported Russia with drones and Russia has supported Iran to hold against overwhelming American forces.  Trump's decisions have led to an increase in gas prices which in turn pump up inflation.  Another long term complication is much fertilizer comes through the Strait of Hormuz.

A later development was a Trump announcement that a joint military exercise with South Korea would not happen.  At the same time we learn North Korea plans to send 50,000 soldiers to fight against Ukraine.  Surely it is no coincidence that North Korea would not want to be distracted by the American troops.   In reality, South Korea has been a useful ally--keeping an eye on both China and Russia.

Within the past two weeks Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan have formed a defensive alliance as they feel the U.S. is not reliable.

Unless Americans want to ally with Russia they need to investigate instead of investigating voter fraud and political opponents.  Russia and Israel will do what they can to influence the elections later this year.

Do You Like Brahms?

 It was news to me that there was a love triangle among classical music composers.  Robert Schuman married Clara, a concert pianist while Johannes Brahms pined for her.  Apparently some modern musicians took sides.  For some fans the two composers had personal attachments that interfered with romances.

"Do You Like Brahms?" (2020) is similar in plotting to a soap opera.  Girl and boy stumble to discover love and then circumstances conspire against them before a happy ending.  Chae Song-ah had graduated from business college, but decided to pursue the violin, even though disadvantaged by her late start.  Park Joon-young was established as an international concert pianist.  A few colleagues felt there was too big of a talent gap.  

Lee Jung-Kyung was a violinist of the same age, but more experienced.  She had been the girl friend of Joon-young who was tired of her, but she had a hold through her wealthy family and helped pay off his family debts.  She had also dated Han Hyung-ho, a cellist and friend of Joon-young.

Previous love affairs, heavy debts incurred by a father cloud prospects and a cheating teacher conspire for a complicated plot.  Joon-young generates a good income from international performances, but unknown to Song-ah it mostly goes to pay debts and an ex girl friend with money exploits his vulnerability.  She is not liked by many and has her ups and downs.

Song-ah is quiet and became attracted when Joon-young played a version of Schuman's "Treumari" that plays a role in the film involving others.  Joon-young found himself in conversations with Song-ah and felt comfortable.  He asked her to be a page turner for one of his performances.  They are both introverted and eventually they decide to date.

The relationship moves slowly with a few complications to spice it up.  Song-ah is very uncertain about her future career and is advised she will never be a solo performer or even accompany solo performers.  An agent for Joon-young is very candid with Song-ah saying she is not good for Joon-young.  He keeps his debt problem secret from Song-ah, but others know about it.  The other young musicians are intertwined and the staff have their own politics.

You do hear snippets of classical music, but even more of Korean romantic film songs.  Classical music for most of us is something only refined or weird people take any notice of--I am one of them, not sure which one.  For some viewers they will feel comfortable with the culture.  Stirring contemporary Korean songs may appeal to a wider audience.  The two main characters are very likeable.  

It takes a good cast and crew to make a series work.  Here are a few.

Young-Min Jo was the director.  He has 3 directing credits and 1 for editing.

Ryu Bi-Ro was the writer.  He has 4 writing credits including "Trolley" (2022-23).  See   http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2023/02/the-trolley.html

Jay Kim was the composer.  He has 54 composing credits and 13 for the music department including "You and Everything Else" (2025).   see  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2026/03/you-and-everything-else.html

Park Eun-Bin  played Chae Song-ah and re-learned to play the violin  She has 30 acting credits including "Hot Stove League" (2019),"The King's Affection" (2021), "Extraordinary Attorney Woo" (2022) and "Castaway Diva" (2023).   See http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2022/08/extraordinary-attorney-woo.html and also http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2026/07/baseball-lovers-will-find-hot-stove.html  While watching this I also started watching her latest series, "Spooky in Love" (2026) which is very different, but demonstrates her versatility with two more episodes to go.

Kim Min-jae played Park Joon-young and learned to play the piano.  He has 20 acting credits and 2 for soundtrack including a voice role in "Swing Kids" (2018).

Park Ji-hyun played Lee Jung-Kyung.  She has 23 acting credits and 1 for the camera and electrical department including "You and Everything Else" (2025).

Kim Sung-cheol plays Han Hyun Ho. a cellist, friend to Joon-young, a boyfriend to Jung-Kyung.  He has 23 acting credits including "Vincenzo" (2021) and "The Wind Blows" (2023).  see   http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2023/11/the-wind-blows.html 

Ye Soo-jung plays Na Moon sook, wealthy director of the music institute and grandmother of Jung-Kyung.  She has 48 acting credits including "Along with the Gods:  The Last 49 Days" (2011), "The Thieves" (2012), "Train to Busan" (2016), "Black Dog" (2019-20) and "Spooky in Love" (2026).  See http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2023/01/black-dog.html

Seo Jung-yeon played Cha Young-in, an advisor to Song-ah.  She has 79 acting credits including "Live Up to Your Name" (2017), "Something in the Rain" (2018), "Black Dog" (2019), "Trolley" (2022), "Castaway Diva" (2023) and "You and Everything Else" (2025).  See   http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2021/07/live-up-to-your-name.html

Choi Dae-hoon played Park Seong-jae.  He has 32 acting credits including "Flower of Evil" (2020), "Melancholia" (2021), "Extraordinary Attorney Woo" (2022), "Decision to Leave" (2022) and "When Life Gives You Tangerines" (2024).  see http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2022/10/flower-of-evil.html  and http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2025/04/when-life-gives-you-tangerines.html

Joo Suk-tae played Joon-young's agent who pushed for deals not wanted.  He has 75 acting credits, including "Tunnel" (2006), "A Hard Day" (2014) and "The Age of Shadows" (2016). 

Kim Jeong-yeong played Joon-young's mother.  She has 44 acting credits, including "Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter and... Spring" (2003), "Signal" (2016) and "The Glory" (2022-23).

Kim Seon-hwa played Song-ah's mother.  She has 31 acting credit including "The Glory (2022-23) and "Teach You a Lesson" (2026).  See http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2026/06/teach-you-lesson.html

Korean romance lovers should enjoy "Do You Like Brahms?" available subtitled on Netflix.

As usual I have bolded the first mention of films I have seen.  Some of them are among my favourite Korean films and a big part of my Korean obsession.  If you follow the links you should be able to determine if any film is worth following up.