I’m a little mad right now. At myself, because the negative reviews on this made me wait sooo long to watch it- til a couple of delightfully rainy days in fact.
1. The acting is amazing. If you have a pretty face, I’m biased against you until you prove your acting chops, and Jung Hae In continues to pleasantly surprise me. Watch his eyes, they’re amazingly expressive. I actually liked Son Ye Jin in this even more than Crash Landing, which I had seen first, and I liked her in that as well. The antagonists get under your skin too- good job done there.
2. The story was not exceedingly melo. Not purely “slice of life”, but with an overall feeling that almost any of this could happen any given day. It had realistic problems woven together into a believable story.
3. The cinematography was beautifully done. The OST was brilliant, and added to the overall feel of the production- with one tiny nitpick that the Stand by Your Man song was occasionally ill-timed. Unless they were being wry, and it didn’t really feel like it. I would have saved it til later. Otherwise the music gave the show the sort of mellow, poignant feel it deserved.
4. I never once lost interest in any part of the show. It didn’t lag in the middle or anywhere else. On the contrary this one did bring tears to my eyes, and giggles, and made me shamelessly sigh. Which was what I was looking for at the time. And, well, most of the time. If your heart’s not in it, what’s the point, right?
5. I like how the secondary plot gives the show a dose of seriousness. Workplace harassment and bias is prevalent in real life and they portray the aspects of it well- from the subtle undermining of self esteem, to the way women occasionally turn on each other in doubt and selfishness.
A definite must see in my book. I’ll be watching it again, for the feel good moments... and to see if I can definitively ascertain any significance behind the red, green and yellow umbrellas. I have my ideas, but I’m just not sure. :)