Part psychological thriller, part crime drama, and almost family drama, Beyond Evil manages an impressive balancing act between cold, disturbing darkness and raw emotion, both of the positive and negative kind. The plot unfolds perfectly over the course of the 16 episodes, leaving no lull in intensity or filler episodes but not rushing into anything either. You get enough time to savor all of the twists and turns of the story, all of the new developments and revelations, without getting bored. Contrarily to other intense crime dramas, Beyond Evil is truly moving and shocking at time, but never uses cheap tricks and haphazardly put together twists to achieve that, each turn of the story is impactful in its own right, and will leave you trying to solve the mystery by yourself.
What I was not expecting from this drama is for it to be so viscerally emotional at times. This comes mostly from the stellar acting from Shin Ha Kyun, who constantly walks the line between protagonist and antagonist, while staying utterly loveable and captivating throughout. The rest of the cast are all really impressive, most notably Yeo Jin Goo, who manages a really great, complex performance, despite his young age. The Korean title (Monster) is particularly fitting: the drama explores the monstrous in the different characters. If it sounds clichéd and a bit on the nose, don't worry, the drama never is. It uses this admittedly a bit overdone idea with impressive subtlety and efficiency, so that it always feels fresh and new.
On top of that, the drama simply looks fantastic, even though a lot of it takes place in dingy police station and old, somewhat decrepit houses, the filmography captures each place's essence and feel in a way that always elevates the story. The cold interrogation room is the perfect backdrop to enhance the ambivalence and mystery surrounding the suspects, while the old butcher shop reinforces the warmth of the long years of friendships between the main group of protagonists, and the old streets surrounded by vast expenses of countryside surrounding the town really drive home the sense of "localness" of a tragedy taking place in a small town.
The music is another great addition to the drama, with pieces that almost sound out of place at first, but work so well overall to build up the atmosphere, without being too distracting.
All in all, Beyond Evil is a remarkably well-rounded drama, that manages to feel amazingly intense while never resorting to cheap twists or being too fast. Each element of the production helps build up the intensity and emotions, leaving you with a really solid contender for best mystery/crime drama/psychological thriller of the year.
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the story starts unfolding itself slowly and you realize that truth isn't what it seems to be, tbh what I love the most about korean thrillers is the plot twists and BE didn't disappoint.
The acting!!!, Omg it was perfect, better than most dramas I've watched, what makes me so fond of their performances (especially the two main characters) is their ability to deliver emotions through their eyes only ,other characters acted very well too I couldn't find a mistake, I think acting is one of the main things that made this drama so stuck in my head even after finishing it.
Now that I wrote this review I feel a huge desire to watch it again.
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It's not for no reason that this drama won so many awards this year. We have an addicted story mixed with actors that deliver everything in their roles. I'll start talking about the main characters. Lee Dong Shik (Shin Ha Kyun) is the kind of character that you don't know what to expect. Until the last episode, I yet had afraid that he could do something terrible and I think that Ha Kyun pass the exact essence of the disturbed personality of Dong Shik. What is the smile of this man? It made me nervous and in love at the same time during the entire show. On the other side, but with the same instability, Han Joo Won (Yeo Jin Goo) made me crazy in the same way. Seeing Joo Won slowly losing his sanity and notion of justice and himself was the most incredible journey for me here. Yeo Jin Goo is a beast and I really hope that he can get a lot of complex characters in his career because I think we'll gonna see so much more of his ability from now on. I love the way how they put the people of the city so together. This left us confused for many episodes and maintain the thriller at the highest. I will make an honorable mention to Choi Dae Hoon, our Park Jung Jae, and Lee Kyu Hoe, the incredible Kang Jin Mook. These two, besides all the Munji crew, captivate me with extreme performance. I'm not totally recovery yet, for real.
About the story, I have to say that is not a even single missing point. Maybe you don't feel so excited if you don't like corruption plots, but if you are like me, you gonna love it. The corruption of the high society of Munji is the center of everything, and many times I felt disgusting seeing so much dirty, but at the same time is a totally possible story. It's very insane to think that something like that could happen for real, maybe not with such greatness but for sure with something similar, for the same reasons.
I'll definitely put this one as a chosen one (★ ★ ★ ★ ★★ ★ ★ ★ ★) and tied with "Mouse" in the scale of my heart (I really can't choose between these two). If you love "Mouse", "Taxi Driver", "The Devil Judge", you'll gonna love this for sure.
See you soon!
XOXO, Mari.
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The best of it's genre.
A suspense thriller that deserves all the high ratings and awards it has received. Its scriptwriting is incredible; written for a thoughtful viewer who is able to read the eyes & emotions yet able to understand a plot which includes a bunch of different undertones. This show will not seem as tense or tedious only to viewers who can see beyond a facade.It's certainly more inclinied towards the psychological part of a thriller e.g heroes unravel a tight tangle of secrets and intrigue through interrogations and reflections type of plot. This is exactly why, I would recommend it to an adult. Specifically a thoughtful viewer who is able to empathize with the heroes even when they do not openly show their suffering.
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Most murder mysteries focus on solving the crime, but this one explores the damage left behind – the way friendships and communities fray, the guilt of survivors, the difficulty of finding closure, the fact that neither vengeance nor arrests are ever really “enough.” The show also recognizes that atonement is an action taken, not a gift bestowed. It never lets its characters escape responsibility for their choices, but it also grants the option of redemption. There is a lot of darkness in this world, but it suggests that even at our most broken, we are worthy of love and capable of grace.
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PHENOMENAL! PHÉNOMÉNAL! FENOMENALE! PRIMA!
WAIT before watching something after "Beyond Evil": subsequent series/movies will feel bland or boring. "Beyond Evil" (I don't like the title, hence I left it to watch it when there was nothing else on Netflix) requires concentration and you'll get rewarded BIG time.One thing that is amazing is how you can at times barely guess what is going to happen. As a rule of thumb, you can't. Let yourself immerge in the events shaking fictional Manyang village next to fictional Munju town.
Unsure whether the lack of romance adds or detracts from the series. There was the possibility to develop something, and my bet would have been Oh JiHwa (ladies first) and ML DongShik as well as Yoo JaeY and ML JooWoon. The author chose not to.
The music fits both in terms of when it appears and what it sounds like.
"Beyond Evil" is another high light of 2021 kdramas, and bodes well for the future.
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Beyond Expectation
Where do I begin? The writing of this crime thriller is phenomenal, every episode subverts your expectation while keeping you throughly engaged due to it’s excellent pacing. Each side character is integral to the plot and aren’t in any way 2 dimensional. The morally grey nature of this show is captured perfectly by the cinematography and then further enhanced by it’s eerie OST. Yeo Jingoo and Shin Hakyun’s chemistry is seriously out of this world. In addition with the rest of the cast which makes the acting thorough out this drama outstanding. On the surface level, Beyond Evil might be perceived as a “who done it” mystery drama, however it’s much more then that, so please give it a watch!Was this review helpful to you?
The best drama that 2021 has released until now
This is the best drama that 2021 has release until now. Shin Ha Kyun and Yeo Jin Goo have the best chemistry ever. Their acting is spectacular and flawless. Especially, Jin Goo need to receive an award because they way he plays with emotions in this dramas is amazing. In one scene he goes from shock to deception, sadness, betrayal and anger in seconds was mind blowing. The plot is amazing and plays with your mind every minute of every episode. But, the strong point of this drama are the characters and the actors.Was this review helpful to you?
The Intricacy of Beyond Evil
I have been watching crime thriller dramas non-stop for quite a while now. But nothing prepared me for the intricacy that Beyond Evil brings. Unlike some dramas that the villain is a bit predictable from the get-go, I have a tough time deciphering the characters of our protagonists-male leads-villain in this drama.If you are going to embark on this 16-episode journey, prepare to read through a lot of the subtitles and, listen to a lot of narration from our “subs” or suspects. But as the drama reached its conclusion, you will have this sense of fulfillment and accomplishment to finally see the drama come in a full circle.
Not a bad watch. Thanks, jTBC! And kudos to our actors as well.
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Definite pros and cons here, decide carefully
Cons:Absolute useless dialogues are repeated entirely too many times. Especially in the first half. The characters talk themselves into a circle, and the suspicious game of who's the culprit, is not interesting enough, again mainly in the first half. Yeo Jin Goo, I am not a fan, and he has not done much in this drama to turn me into one. If not for some turnaround in his performance during the last few eps, I would be surprised he has a career. But that turnaround did not justify his show-no-expression for majority of the drama. If there's any excuse, I will unbiased on one thing. He is not completely at fault because his dialogues had nothing but parroting and asking, "did you do it?" questions and looking like he's in on a secret mission, when he knows nothing. And bromance? There was only suspicion and animosity and angst at first and that was also boring, I personally did not feel much bromance chemistry due to this, suddenly they start joking about, you worried about me? Then into the second half, while repeating their circle dialogues, they started acting a bit cute about it. Finally the during the last couple of arcs, it turns into real care. Still not convinced on how exactly it came about but yup, it then did feel like they had some real bromance towards the end.
Pros:
Second half also has this game, but definitely felt more natural and the knots get unravelled much better. Shin Ha Kyun has at least an interesting character and does justice through his performance. I was also impressed by the supporting actors and was quite a fan of the villain club here. It might seem like a usual villain trope when everything was revealed, but the characters and their performances definitely kept the suspense and interest alive. And they seemed to act in more sensible (still villainous) ways than the main leads. And the Manyang circle of people did grow on me a LOT despite the first half game. They had some redeemable acting skills and character and performance and it was goof and fun to watch.
Overall, do not go in with high expectations, and if you can keep your interest, be patient, then you might get a good show.
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I'm impressed
This is one of the most perfect k dramas ever for me. The plot really surprised me everytime. On my first watch i felt like the show could have been divided into two different seasons. But on my second watch, i fell in love with the second half of the show. Amazing plot , no plot holes left to criticize. The pacing was perfect for me , it left me gripping the edge of my seat.The acting was impeccable. Both the Lead characters were done justice by the acting . All the side characters were three dimensional and amazing. I'm in love with Jihwa tbh , she is so badass.
The music was perfect. I especially love the happy and mischievous tune that plays when the two main leads confont each other. Perfect representation of two tsunderes. Amazing work.
10/10 recommended ! This is the first drama in so long that I'm rating 10/10
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