K-lover61
UK
Feel good
March 2024
Great cast, great location, great story, great fun! This has everything. Family, community, enduring friendship, loss of purpose and mystery. It's all wrapped up in a more sedate coastal life, where the most exciting thing to happen, outside of the local ssireum (traditional Korean wrestling) team's matches, is a local dog constantly slipping its leash and running off, hotly pursued by the 2 local police beat officers.
The warmth this drama exudes is so lovely. It's a small town, where everyone knows each other's business and when they don't, gossip takes over. In some cases small lives breed small minds, but as happens, many find it hard, or even impossible, to face up to their mistakes and mistreatment of others, when they should know better.
I loved that there was NO stupid, slapstick humour in this, even though it's a comedy-mystery-romance. There are plenty of laughs, generated by daily comings and goings; main character, Kim Baek Doo's, innocent, simple (NOT stupid though), contemplative personality (wonderfully interpreted by Jang Dong Yoon); and the often comicly mundane.
I really liked the coastal setting (filmed in a small area of Pohang, North Gyeongsang), which felt so normal, rather than picture-book pretty. It wasn't unpleasant, by any means, just normal, if that makes sense!
A serious incident leads to the lives of almost everyone in the heart of the town and connected to the ssireum team, being affected one way or another, as tensions build.
The past comes rushing back and some old scars are revealed, to be finally allowed to heal.
Whilst simplistic, it really is a great watch and although I guessed the culprit, it didn't spoil my enjoyment at all (typecasting has a lot to answer for).
The ssireum matches were fabulous and honestly had me twitching in my seat!
Not one character irritated me, even though there's a fair bit of physicality between a few. They get away with it though, because it's not mean or nasty, but out of affection and simply how they interact. Very exuberant.
Most characters are pretty noisy, too; but again, it's how most (not all), speak to each other. Their accent is fabulous. I really found myself engaging with so many of the characters and the cast did themselves proud.
Definitely one to try. I'd happily watch it again.
Great cast, great location, great story, great fun! This has everything. Family, community, enduring friendship, loss of purpose and mystery. It's all wrapped up in a more sedate coastal life, where the most exciting thing to happen, outside of the local ssireum (traditional Korean wrestling) team's matches, is a local dog constantly slipping its leash and running off, hotly pursued by the 2 local police beat officers.
The warmth this drama exudes is so lovely. It's a small town, where everyone knows each other's business and when they don't, gossip takes over. In some cases small lives breed small minds, but as happens, many find it hard, or even impossible, to face up to their mistakes and mistreatment of others, when they should know better.
I loved that there was NO stupid, slapstick humour in this, even though it's a comedy-mystery-romance. There are plenty of laughs, generated by daily comings and goings; main character, Kim Baek Doo's, innocent, simple (NOT stupid though), contemplative personality (wonderfully interpreted by Jang Dong Yoon); and the often comicly mundane.
I really liked the coastal setting (filmed in a small area of Pohang, North Gyeongsang), which felt so normal, rather than picture-book pretty. It wasn't unpleasant, by any means, just normal, if that makes sense!
A serious incident leads to the lives of almost everyone in the heart of the town and connected to the ssireum team, being affected one way or another, as tensions build.
The past comes rushing back and some old scars are revealed, to be finally allowed to heal.
Whilst simplistic, it really is a great watch and although I guessed the culprit, it didn't spoil my enjoyment at all (typecasting has a lot to answer for).
The ssireum matches were fabulous and honestly had me twitching in my seat!
Not one character irritated me, even though there's a fair bit of physicality between a few. They get away with it though, because it's not mean or nasty, but out of affection and simply how they interact. Very exuberant.
Most characters are pretty noisy, too; but again, it's how most (not all), speak to each other. Their accent is fabulous. I really found myself engaging with so many of the characters and the cast did themselves proud.
Definitely one to try. I'd happily watch it again.
Was this review helpful to you?
