Shasha
Eeyew....
This review may contain spoilers
Dorian Gray in Grand Amsterdam Hotel
If you are looking for horror, you are in the wrong place in spite of the genre mentioned on this drama's page. It is a murder mystery, comedy and fantasy but not horror: horror is scary, gives you nightmares. Here, except for a very sexy serial killer, there is nothing to be jumpy about. Unless the sexy serial killers give you nightmares.
The plot in this drama is reminiscent of those many c dramas where the FL falls into a novel and has to find a way out. The FL here is an editor in an online publishing company. When her boss, on whom she has a crush, disappears, she goes looking for him and discover the existence of magic laptops: when you write a person's name on it, that person disappears into the novel the laptop writes all by itself. So the FL writes herself into the novel and while trying to save her boss's life, she discovers the truth behind the writer and the laptop.
How far are you willing to go in order to succeed as a writer? Sell your soul to the devil? There are parts of Dr Faustus and Dorian Gray in this drama. There is also a slight criticism of the writers' system ruling the korean entertainment world: when one writer rebelled against the constant harassment by her writer boss, she was immediately blacklisted in the whole community. When you touch the bottom, you either sell your soul or sink deeper but they never realize that by selling their soul they would inevitably sink deeper! The choice is only superficial!
The hotel setting of the novel reminded me very much of Wes Andersons' film Grand Amsterdam Hotel with the exterior aesthetics and with its quirky staff (well here we only get to see the receptionist but he is bizarre enough!).
I found the FL very annoying in the first couple of episodes, with her swooning over her boss who does not notice her, batting eyelashes at him and speaking like a little girl. But she is actually very smart and, with the help from a couple of coworkers, she eventually figures out how to get everyone out of the novel.
This is a well written drama with the plot which survives scrutiny: no major plotholes noticed: every question gets an answer in the last episode. The acting is correct, the music is there. Except for the jazzy bar singer: she was good and the songs steamy!
An exceptionally good short drama, definitely worth your time!
The plot in this drama is reminiscent of those many c dramas where the FL falls into a novel and has to find a way out. The FL here is an editor in an online publishing company. When her boss, on whom she has a crush, disappears, she goes looking for him and discover the existence of magic laptops: when you write a person's name on it, that person disappears into the novel the laptop writes all by itself. So the FL writes herself into the novel and while trying to save her boss's life, she discovers the truth behind the writer and the laptop.
How far are you willing to go in order to succeed as a writer? Sell your soul to the devil? There are parts of Dr Faustus and Dorian Gray in this drama. There is also a slight criticism of the writers' system ruling the korean entertainment world: when one writer rebelled against the constant harassment by her writer boss, she was immediately blacklisted in the whole community. When you touch the bottom, you either sell your soul or sink deeper but they never realize that by selling their soul they would inevitably sink deeper! The choice is only superficial!
The hotel setting of the novel reminded me very much of Wes Andersons' film Grand Amsterdam Hotel with the exterior aesthetics and with its quirky staff (well here we only get to see the receptionist but he is bizarre enough!).
I found the FL very annoying in the first couple of episodes, with her swooning over her boss who does not notice her, batting eyelashes at him and speaking like a little girl. But she is actually very smart and, with the help from a couple of coworkers, she eventually figures out how to get everyone out of the novel.
This is a well written drama with the plot which survives scrutiny: no major plotholes noticed: every question gets an answer in the last episode. The acting is correct, the music is there. Except for the jazzy bar singer: she was good and the songs steamy!
An exceptionally good short drama, definitely worth your time!
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