BootDigest
Such a frustrating disappointment
Sameer Callahan
It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.
Rosie Searle
It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.
Marva
It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,
Paul Magne Haakonsen
"Saekjeuk shigong" (aka "Sex is Zero") is the South Korean equivalent of "American Pie" in my ways, for better or worse. I must admit that I found "Saekjeuk shigong" to be far more enjoyable than the aforementioned American movie.I watched "Saekjeuk shigong" for the first time during the mid-2000's, and I remember enjoying it back then. So when I got a chance to return to it in 2017, I did not hesitate."Saekjeuk shigong" is very much still an enjoyable movie, one that still has good appeal and still proves to be funny in many aspects.The scene where the law student spontaneously break out in song still cracks me up to the brink of tears. It is just so oddly out of place and hilarious, and the actor looks so amazingly funny while doing that scene. And the scene with the vomiting and kissing is a timeless classic, it is one of those scenes that makes you go "aawwww no, that just didn't happen!"There is an abundance of funny situations, hilarious characters and awkward dialogue in the movie, which all works out well together for a great movie. Some of the scenes and situations will have you curling your toes in disbelief, while others will have you laying flat down from laughing hard.The cast ensemble is good, and they managed to get a group of greatly talented actors and actresses on board for this project. I initially got around to find the movie because I like the talent of Ji-won Ha. And if you are familiar with South Korean movies, then you will see a handful of familiar faces in the movie, in bigger or smaller roles."Saekjeuk shigong" and its sequel stands out in the South Korean comedy scene, because of the sexual tones and concept of the story. And it was refreshing to see a South Korean director branch out to embrace this. And I must say that director and writer JK Youn accomplished this task with perfection.If you enjoy a good comedy that thrives on below-the-belt comedy and delivers hilarious situations with sexual tones, then you definitely have to watch "Saekjeuk shigong". This is a very entertaining comedy that can be watched multiple times.
Pingo-2
Some movies occasionally try to mix serious drama with absurd humor. Most doesn't succeed at all. SEX IS ZERO does succeed, though! Slapstick jokes, some very funny, some very stupid and some lost in translation are mixed with extremely serious drama towards the end, and then goes slowly into the comedy genre again - with great results.Very nicely done movie that are probably most inspired by movies like BRING IT ON and American PIE. However, this is a Korean movie, and that means it's weirder, better acted, slightly more surprising and original.Be prepared for serious drama mixed with high-school humor, though. And be prepared for lots of cute girls! :) 7 of 10.
Meganeguard
Eun-shik seems like a decent, if a bit odd, sort of guy. A 28-year-old freshman, Eun-shik had to delay his entrance into college because of the obligatory military service that all Korean males have to serve and other difficulties. However, with his younger roommates, Eun-shik is able to enjoy the pleasures of college which in this film seem to be limited to smacking the head of the martial arts club with various implements, gawking at pretty girls, and masturbating to his and his roommates large stash of pornography.Similar to Jason Biggs character in American Pie, Eun-shik is a bit hapless when it comes to striking up conversations with members of the opposite sex. Yet it must be said that he does not aid his cause very well because he tends to find himself in some awkward situations such as standing on a windowsill in his tighty whities, after drinking a medicine that will supposedly give one an erection for three days, with a couple of perverts who seem to enjoy molesting girls on subways and jerking off at any given opportunity, while hiding in closets watching people have sex and at gymnastic events.The main object of Eun-shik's affection, or lust, is the gorgeous Lee Eunhyo, played by Ha Ji-won, who seems to acquire a bit of affection for Eun-shik after she kicks him in the balls and sends him to the hospital. This incident also leads to Eun-shik's martial arts club being able to share a room with the gymnastics club where the sultry Kim Ji-won rules the roost. Eventually Eun-shik and three of his friends take out Eunhyo and three of her friends, but while his three friends make "progress" with their dates, Eun-shik seems to be losing Eunhyo to Sung-OK, the university's big man on campus and Ji-won's boyfriend. However, for Eunhyo, even though Eun-shik leaves a lot to be desired, maybe in the long run he would have been the better choice.Similar to Jung Cho-sin's Wet Dreams 1 and 2, Sex is Zero is filled with some very low brow humor, such as the consumption of semen in soup and fried form and a very sloppy kiss that starts before a drunk girl has finished emptying the contents of her stomach, but unlike the two films above there is quite a bit more skin. With the exception of Ha Ji-won each supporting actress bares her breasts with the actress showing a bit more. While some of these bits can be quite humorous such as when one girl gets stuck in "the wrong hole" there is one scene in which the guy unbuttons the top of a passed out drunk girl feels her up amongst other things. While meant to be humorous this scene was a bit uncomfortable especially after the girl wakes up and the guy blames her for coming on to him. They stopped at a hotel because she had a bad headache from drinking too much.In addition to the scatological humor which is so gross at points that it is not amusing, Sex is Zero falls into the trap of many other comedies and tries to take itself too seriously in the last third of the film. If it had been left as a sex comedy the film might have been more tolerable, but the last third of the film divulges too much from its beginning to be taken seriously.If one is looking for eye candy one will find it in abundance in this film, but if one is looking solely for a light, if a bit raunchy, comedy then there are better ones to be found.
NIXFLIX-DOT-COM
SEX IS ZERO is a rather funny film in the style of, as others have noted, AMERICAN PIE. There are three differences: the characters are Korean; the scene is college; and the Third Act is Overwrought Melodrama that completely undermines all the gross out gags of the first hour.Anyone familiar with Asian films will not be all that surprised by the movie's sudden shift in themes. Tackling a serious topic like abortion in a movie where characters masturbates at just about EVERY given opportunity??? It provides an odd dichotomy, to be sure.Still, the film is reasonably funny enough, even if all of its gags are telegraphed about 10 minutes beforehand.6 out of 10(go to www.nixflix.com for a more detailed review of this movie)