rachel
Singapore
Cha Eun Sang, played by Park Shin Hye, does not know how to kiss, as seen from all of Park Shin Hye's other dramas. She is mostly tossed and bossed about in the show by the richer characters around her, until she suddenly decides, once in a while, to take charge of her own life and decisions. Girl, get a backbone! Choi Young Do, played by Kim Woo Bin, magically transformed from being one of the most hateful characters to almost having a bromance with Tan. That was really odd.
This is one of Lee Min Ho's poorer dramas. After the strides he made with City Hunter, I don't know why he chose to return to a soppy chaebol show. Park Shin Hye didn't give a performance that compelled me to really side with her character. Kim Woo Bin certainly did well with the material he was given - one cannot blame him for having to play such a violent character, but he once again does well playing a angst-filled teenager, learning to forgive those who have hurt him (sounds like Heung Soo in School 2013!).
I felt that the side characters had more interesting stories. Krystal's character, Bo Na, and Minhyuk's character, Chan Young, along with Hyungsik's character, Myung Soo, were the only cheery bits of this show. Add to that the hilarious relationship between Kim Tan's mum and Eun Sang's mum. Kim Ji Won's character, Rachel, started out as your vanilla hateful second female lead, but as more of her relationship with her mum was revealed, I began to partially understand her hateful attitude. The fate of Choi Jin Hyuk's character, Won, provides an interesting contrast to Tan's story, but too bad the show didn't delve that much into his character. Kang Haneul's character, Hyo Shin, has a pretty unsurprising backstory, but with KHN's charm I was really won over by him.
And finally, LOVE IS FEELING, LOVE IS MAH PAIN, and LOVE IS THE MOMEEEEENNNNNT.
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The first part of the movie was relatively charming, as we were introduced to the main flower boy trio, and the mundanity and charming qualities of rural village life. But the movie took a very strange and unexpected turn into rather dark territory, some of which touched on themes like loyalty, and I just didn't understand why the characters took the actions they did.
There were a number of themes that were so underdeveloped that could have made the movie more whole - the spies' relationships with the villagers, Sohn Hyun Joo's commander character, who I was expecting to have more significant screen time, but again, a waste.
You can call me a bitterly disappointed viewer.
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In this movie, money was definitely no limit in the special effects department. The flames, explosions and collapsing scenes were scary.
Being a Korean movie, you should not be surprised by the melodramatic elements in it. Perhaps that is a weak point of the movie - that the characters and their stories are cliched, the movie is trying too hard to knock the 'moral of the story' into your head, like how the rich always escape unscathed, yet are the least deserving to be rescued, pride will always befall man, etc. In fact, in light of stories that have emerged from recent disasters like Sewol in Korea and Rana Plaza in Bangladesh, perhaps the human stories are still the most important in bringing hope in the midst of tragedy.
Not a deep and meaningful movie, but still an alright way to spend 2 hours.
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This show, at many points, made me laugh so hard, then made me cry sadly. I appreciate that the romance was revved up very quickly - very typical of Hong Sister shows. What I really love about this show is the personal growth of the characters - Joong Won, Gong Shil and Yi Ryung. Their growth and development is very satisfying to watch onscreen.
One pairing I really grew to love is Kang Won and Yi Ryung. Female second leads still suffer from being painted with a broad brush as being bitchy and jealous, while male second leads are always written as being very well-meaning nice guys who just never get the girl. Yi Ryung definitely won me over by the end of the drama.
Gong Hyo Jin, as expected, acted the heck out of Gong Shil, and has great chemistry with So Ji Sub - as she has had with just about every male actor she has acted with. I was also looking forward to seeing how So Ji Sub, the quintessential brooding man, would be transformed into a comedy star, the way Cha Seung Won was transformed through Best Love. I think his transformation is quite successful!
Some side storylines were somewhat wasted or were badly written and acted, i.e. I didn't have much interest in those characters and just wanted to know, so what happened to them?, but the overall show won me over.
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Each episode, being about 22-25 minutes, breezes by, making it a very light and breezy show to watch. Of course, B2ST is heavily featured, Kikwang being the male lead in this show. It is interesting to learn about the difficulties idols face in their dating lives. Your dedicated fans can be your biggest assets and your biggest enemies too, no? Idols are built up to be 100% dedicated to their fans and their music, but they are people too, with the need for love and relationships in their lives. Also, the all-important first love concept is featured too.
Lee Da In puts in a fairly likable performance as the beleaguered commoner girl. Kikwang doesn't feature as heavily so I can't say much about his acting, and his character doesn't carry the emotional weight that Lee Da In's character has to.
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The cast is alright - Sooyoung puts in a fairly okay performance for her very cheery character, the supporting cast are alright, and I enjoyed Lee Jong Hyuk's performance the most - perhaps the character with the most growth throughout the show. Lee Chun Hee puts in a strong performance too with the material he's been given.
There's also the star-studded cameos to look forward to every 2-3 episodes, and the different cases the agency must handle help to jazz up and create variety in the storyline. I also like how some of the cases reflect the issues and matters facing the agents at the same point in time. However, the connections can be so bleeding obvious it feels like the show is yelling at me, "LOOK, A AND B. GEDDIT? GEDDIT?"
But I didn't enjoy the sudden makjang twists in the story towards the end of the show. Some of it felt so cliched it was rather painful.
Basically, only watch this if you want something light, breezy and slightly forgettable.
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Ha Jung Woo's character is so overdramatic and hilarious while Gong Hyo Jin plays a mysterious and fun-loving woman who suddenly enters his life. In a way, this is a typical Korean rom-com movie, but the humour is definitely different. Jokes about girls who have armpit hair, for example.
A minus point for me was the ending which was too neat for my liking.
I generally don't think rom-coms have a lot of rewatch value unless I find it extremely hilarious, so it's low on this one.
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This show has a really stellar cast - Ha Jung Woo (great action movie hero), Jeon Ji Hyun, Han Seok Kyu and Ryu Seung Beom (deliciously hot and villainous villain). They all play their roles well. I also love the fact that the movie is set in Berlin, a city I have visited and really love, but its significance probably lies in the fact that people from all over the world converge in this city.
Initially, the story was a little bit difficult to follow because so many parts of it are unspoken, and there were so many players in the story. However, thankfully I managed to catch on. There is a lot of English and German spoken in this movie - some of the English was really awkward, but it was watchable.
As with any Korean show, there is a love story at the center of it all - Ha Jung Woo and Jeon Ji Hyun's characters who are husband and wife.
On the whole, a really exciting watch!
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The story in itself is alright and even features some twists and turns towards the end, but it's the characters that make this show a really enjoyable watch. The side characters are given their time to shine and all have their small comic moments. As for the main characters, Woochi is played by Kang Dong Won with an appropriate amount of overconfidence and flair, once again proving how great of an actor KDW is (I picked this movie up because of him). Woochi is portrayed, rightly and very effectively, as a daredevil and lady's man.
The rest of the cast is great in this movie too. There're Im Soo Jung, Kim Yoon Suk, and some other familiar faces you'll probably recognize if you watch enough Korean movies and dramas. Kang Dong Won plays Woochi with such flair and personality. Kim Yoon Suk takes the spotlight when he appears onscreen, which is good since he is the villain in this show. He has a great screen presence and aura about him. I recommend watching some of his other shows, like Punch. Im Soo Jung has a smaller role as the female protagonist so I have little to comment on.
The side characters hold their own and have their own time to shine, in completely hilarious ways. The time travel element of the story also gives us many moments of comedy.
Seeing that there is a lot of action and supernatural stuff going on this show, the CGI, the film spots and the sets are pretty impressive. The story features two eras - ancient Korea and modern Korea. What is really nice is seeing the bright lights of modern Seoul being featured in the movie, including the now-famous Cheonggyecheon stream.
JWC the drama portrays the character quite differently, since it is afforded more time and space to tell the story of how Woochi came to be the Woochi we know today. This being a movie, however, feels snappier and as a viewer, I feel more secure that it knows where the story is going.
Even though I did not get to watch this movie at one go, it is definitely an entertaining watch.
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The show started off really well, and I really loved some of the endings of the episodes. Each character has his/her chance in the spotlight, where we get to find out more about their mysterious backstories. Unfortunately, there are also some plot holes and befuddling character behaviour that don't get explained or resolved by the end of the show. Actually, because each show ranged from 80-90 minutes, the 12-episode length (shorter than normal) does not explain why these holes could not be resolved properly. Some parts of the story towards the end moved so slowly that I got a bit bored.
Junhyung (of B2ST fame) did a surprisingly good job portraying his idol star character. Ha Yeon Soo is now the Next Big Thing, and Kang Haneul, you are such a HOTTIE. The ensemble cast as a whole makes for a cute watch, but it's the characters' stories that are compelling.
Any rewatch value would probably come from the funny and "d'awww" moments of reconciliation and bromance.
I love the music in this show - to date I didn't know Korean music had such a rich history of meaningful songs and diverse artists and bands. And there were some very sweet songs written for this show. For a show centred on music, it sure delivered on its soundtrack!
Overall a cute watch but not groundbreaking.
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Each of the four male characters have their own interesting backstories and past histories, but the most important is that of Sun-woo (played by Kim Jae Wook) and Jin Hyuk (played by Joo Ji Hoon). I think it was rather groundbreaking for its time to have an openly gay man who flaunts his sexuality and kissing scenes between two men.
Yoo Ah In's character had an interesting backstory but since he was just a supporting character, the story was not elaborated on very much.
What makes it unique is probably the 'hyperrealistic' or 'surrealistic' way in which the movie was shot, with strange musical numbers popping out of nowhere during which the characters express how they feel, instead of speaking it, or the way each character's memories fade in and out of reality, such that sometimes I don't know what is real or not. I personally did not like this because I became very confused about what was the truth.
There is a bit of everything in this movie, such that it is difficult to pinpoint what genre this movie would fit into. It has comedy, romance, and some drama to it.
Even though I am still utterly confused about the ending, I would recommend this movie as a 'chance card' watch - you won't know how you would feel about it until you have watched it.
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This movie is very artfully filmed. Each introduction to a new setting is done seamlessly, in a single shot. Most scenes fade in and out, instead of cutting to the next scene. There is quite a dreamy tone to the movie and many of the important scenes take place in the dark or at night, which was slightly frustrating for me but I guess it adds to the mystique of the film. Each duel is filmed like an art piece, like a dance. Very well done!
Most of the story is not told in your face, but left to your imagination and interpretation. I would say the director assumes that the audience is intelligent enough to infer certain things and interpret certain scenes.
I really like the depiction of the relationship between 'Sad Eyes' and Nam Soon. There are insinuations of a romantic relationship between them, but I gather that most of their relationship is based on mutual admiration for each other's excellent swordsmanship skills.
I had only previously watched two of Kang Dong Won's films, Psychic and Secret Reunion. In this movie, he plays an equally mysteriously character, with very few lines and few opportunities to see that pretty face of his. I'm definitely not complaining.
Ha Ji Won is really good in this film, and I feel that she is the heart of this show. Her character is vivacious, enthusiastic and we can see the conflicts of emotions she feels on her face.
An interesting and stylish watch!
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I only watched this movie for Go Soo and Han Hyo Joo, who are both gorgeous people. And naturally, gorgeous people will fall for each other.
The premise of how Han Hyo Joo's character comes to work with Go Soo's character is slightly far-fetched in my opinion, but well, that's how we get to the important part of the story. There are some funny moments in the beginning part of the movie, but it later turns quite serious and reflective.
Overall, a fair watch that will not haunt you or stick in your brain for a long time afterwards.
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The story was not all fantastic, but as with all sageuks, the king and queen come to feature quite heavily in the show.
Cha Tae Hyun is great in this show, as usual. He is pretty hilarious as Jeon Woo Chi. Bong Gu steals the show as Jeon Woo Chi's hilarious sidekick. Unfortunately, UEE is very underused, being the second lead. The development of the villains as characters is also quite poor, but Lee Jin Hoon does a really good job with what he is given as the villain Kang Rim. Thankfully the story is kept moving along quite swiftly through various plot twists and plot devices.
On the sageuk front, this is not an excellent show, but as a lighthearted comedy with some royal intrigue that is not too addictive, I recommend this show.
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The story is well crafted and tightly written to keep you on your toes. There are so many twists in the story that keep you hooked, and I mean HOOKED, to the show. Facades are slowly peeled back to reveal the relationships and connections between the characters through secret conversations and flashbacks that tease the real story, layer by layer. Utterly fascinating and addictive. It’s no wonder that the writer spent 6 years perfecting the script.
As a general theme, it is difficult to pinpoint any one character being the hero. There are no heroes, no one emerges blameless. Everyone perpetrates a wrongdoing in some way. This is what I really like about the story.
What stops me from calling this a perfect show is the middle part of it - about episodes 11-15 - during which the story did not develop much. There’s probably at least 2 episodes’ worth of wasted story. The good point about this show also becomes a flaw later on. Loyalties and alliances that keep shifting and changing are only interesting up to a point. After a while they become tiring to follow (that’s what I felt). Perhaps that's just me being lazy.
I like that the love affair is not the central relationship in the show, which gives good time to the other relationships in the story - the sisterly relationship between Jin Sook and Soo Min, the brotherly relationship between Soo and Shi Hyun, the father-son relationship between Hyung Min and Commissioner Ji, etc.
I also like the ending.
Jung Kyung Ho is, no doubt, the star of the show. I noticed him from the show Smile, You in which he played such a cheery character that it was hard to imagine him playing such a fiery, smouldering bada**.
I’ve never liked Nam Gyuri - I always found her look too plastic and thus restricting her ability to emote. However, the transformation she makes as a character is interesting to watch. Even though I didn’t like her face (literally), I think she does a decent job, though I would have preferred a more established actress to portray the character.
I have never seen any of Lee Jae Yoon’s shows before. I think he did a pretty decent job.
The soundtrack is pretty exciting and sexy.
All in all, a good, serious and heavy watch.
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