The movie tells his story in a unique way. The character tells the same story again and again in different forms, till we know the whole truth at the end.
Every fan of Wuxia will love the fight scenes in this movie. Perfect cooridinated.
Overall this movie is more for people who love wuxia and artistical movies.
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The cast did a great job. The OST is beautiful. I must say this is DAEBAK. If you're looking for a heartwarming story, this is for you.
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Sigh, now I hope they make a special or a second season atleast. I'd love to see these amazing group in a modern setting! Their BTSes and photoshoot are everything that made me smile.
I wont really re watch it per say but I know I have a few scenes in my mind that make me smile but then what follows is disastorous so dunno if I'll be able to watch them freely lol. But one thing is sure, the beggining of the series, is worth it. It's everything!
I'd make the review short and just say, watch it if you like serious melodrama, with lots of good acting, twisted plots, borderline stupidity, a number of romances that make your heart ache (often with the same lead lol) and if you like historical setting.
I'll say one last thing. Moon lovers is one of those shows that makes you want to give it a 10 but then when you think back to all the heart aches it gave you, you reduce it to 8 lol. It's like an exboyfriend that you loved so much but he gave you a big ass heartache in the end! Sigh
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Moon Lovers is a remake of a Chinese drama with its story modified to fit the Goryeo setting. This one is a challenging story to execute with a lot of Goryeo princes to build up (and destroy too) and a modern girl transported to live in their period. I love how refreshing the first few episodes were. A female-centric story just lost its way along the way. I'd like to think that these amazing actors are shooting a different drama at some point because sometimes I don't even understand why a certain character acted that way. At some point some of the characters just went incoherent and crazy.
It's very rare to assemble such amazing cast and they really did a good job. I love Lee Jun-ki even before and I rarely watch sageuk, but if it's him, I'll surely try it out. Kang Haneul is the best! I've seen him in his other dramas but he just made me amazed in him. I'm totally sold with Wook's love story with Soo. I like Nam Joo-hyuk here as the only brother who's close with So and the bromance he briefly shared with Jung. There's a lot of amazing cast that I will no longer mention all of them. Even the portrayal of Yeon Hwa and the Queen Mother is an act to behold.
I love the story, the cast and acting, the music, the cinematography (I'm talking about shots of landscapes here), all of which are almost perfect for me.
What I really don't like about this is how the direction of the drama went. I don't think that this is a matter of messy writing cause I believe there's a limit on how a good drama can be ruined. The drama's greatest flaw will definitely be its editing which is a big part of its directing. I think SBS learned their lesson on having a fully pre-produced drama that came out half-baked. The confusion it cause when we had two different versions for a single version will never be justified. It may be unfair to the drama to be evaluated because of these things but since watching Korean drama should be a wholistic experience, I can't just ignore it.
I finished this drama definitely because of the great actors in it. Such an amazing display of talent there is in Korea. I will forever treasure it's characters and remember them on those bright moments at the beginning of the drama.
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Hence, I decided to add it here so that people will read and may catch their interest in this period drama that has romance, palace intrigues and politics.
This is the story of Ching dynasty's 4th prince Hong Li (Mickey He), his adventures and journey to seek for religious scripture on longetivity for his father/Emperor Yong Zheng. During his journey, he also became Shaolin disciple, made friends with swordsman and encountered several life and death experiences.
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The director and executive producer for SHR is Kim Kyu Tae, who is well known for his cinematography where he works with close-ups to show the actors detailed facial expressions and then pulling out to show the settings and location views sparkling with colours and textures. His style is very present in this drama, delivering the atmosphere of each scene and handling transitions very well.
The atmosphere becomes overwhelming when the soundtrack is added. This is the first drama I ever watched where I enjoyed every single piece of music used. The OST is a mix of modern songs (that works well because Soo is from the future) and more classical film compositions that gives of a more ancient feeling (even though we know orchestras weren’t a Goryeo thing). I will be crying for a long, long, long time every time I hear the song “Will Be Back” by Im Sun-hye.
The story is a supernatural type of fantasy. It’s also portrayed in my favourite type of way; where there is a fantasy element/catalyst but it doesn’t take up the whole story and isn’t the biggest part of the main story. The fantasy element in this story is the time travel. It happens straight from the top in the first episode. What it brings with it is the struggle for our main female lead to adapt to her new surroundings and the choices she makes. I would also say it’s more of a supernatural time travel, since she isn’t physically moved, it’s only her soul that is transported.
A drama full of flowerboys and idol actors, can be a scary thing to start watching if you’re not here for your favourite Oppa. However, the director has handled the juniors very well and made them all have their shining moments. And this drama is full of moments for each and every one in the ensemble. The veteran actors that support and lead this drama are all on fire and delivering perfectly.
I would say it’s unnecessary to worry about the novice cast. The idols where more present in the story during the first part, but screen time was slowly phased out until the end where we were left with what I would like to call “the real” actors. This worked well since the atmosphere in this story slowly turns from feel good to tragic, where the real talent was needed. It never really bothered me, because I didn’t notice any lack of talent. I believe this was well handled by the director.
I will give a quick shootout to my favourite characters in this drama.
Park Ji-Young who played the 4th, 3rd and 14th princes mother, Queen Yoo is a true veteran and an excellent actor. Her role was incredibly hard and she pulled it off completely believable. I hated her to bits and constantly wanted to bitchslap her. She helped balance and portray the struggle of acceptance the 4th Prince constantly had, giving a good backstory to his character and his drive and motivations.
Ji Soo playing 14th Prince, is an up and coming actor (should he now be called a veteran after portraying support characters in 7 dramas and two films?) and he truly shined. In the last part of the series his role became more crucial to the story and his screen time showed his potential to become something really big. I will for sure keep my eye out for more dramas with him in the future.
Nam Joo-Hyuk playing 13th prince, is also an up and coming actor (soon to be the lead in his own drama, with 4 previous supporting roles on his resume list) who definitely nailed the role. It was as if this character was written just for him. He has never disappointed me and he is firmly on my list as a very talented actor.
So how were the leads doing? Lee Joon Gi as 4th Prince, Kang Ha-Neul as 8th Prince and of course Lee Ji-Eun (IU) as Hae-Soo. I have high expectations of these leads and would say they delivered to my satisfaction. What was a bit confusing before I got used to it is the different acting styles, that the director didn’t really manage to meld into something complementary of each other.
Lee Joon Gi (4th) is a historical/fantasy veteran, this is his element, this is where he is on fire and burns as the hottest star in Hallyu land. In his scenes he really pulls the show and I get the feeling not only the audience is swept away but also the actors he is acting with. What I love most about this actor is not only how he carries dialogue and can use minimal face gestures to deliver his emotions, but how he actually uses his whole body to convey and tell. It’s electric. I was fully enjoying LJG as an anti-hero in a dark and sometimes truly evil type of role for the first time in his career.
Kang Ha Neul (8th) has sadly passed me by and I have not noticed him in previous dramas. However, he is wonderful and was well casted as the 8th Prince. I believe he did a good job and the difference between him and 4th was very obvious, as it should be since this is a big part of the story.
Lee Ji Eun (Soo) should after this be considered not only an idol but also an actress. I will now stop calling her an “idol-actress” and I think she deserves to get recognition. She was good. She has some talent. I wasn’t really disappointed with the results. I am however hugely disappointed with the director who failed to melt her stiff porcelain doll face for more than a twitch. I am actually just going to guess that this has been so drilled into her during her idol career as a baby doll/Lolita, that she is having troubles moving on from the idol baby open lips constant surprise face. But apparently the Koreans love that kind of shit so… it didn’t bother me the first half of the show, but it did start to bother me the second.
The leads chemistry… personally for me… well, not really. Still I was super invested in the love between Soo and 8 and Soo and 4. Really! I wanted it, I needed it, I was immersed and found it believable. The guys were super hot and I understand that I just don’t get the sex appeal of the type of innocent stiff as a rock thing that Soo brought to the table. You, however, might find this the hottest thing since Pompeii. There’s something there. I just need more response from the woman than what was shown.
The main story is the romance, their lives the character development. This is well paced and well supported by the side plots who all tie in with the main story. How do these people come to know each other, why and how do they all fall in and out of love and friendships. They show that people are not completely black and white. Someone can be loveable but still have a dark side. Especially well written was the story about Wang So (4th Prince) who has a terrifying and tragic past, you can't dismiss it. Even though he changes for the better, going back to a monster is not out of character and never really far away. He is pushed and pulled from all sides.
I’ve been struggling with how to write this review without drawing parallels and comparing to the Chinese drama, how to only describe my impressions of this series excluding my impressions and memory of the story portrayed in the Cdrama. Especially since I know this series was based on the book, which I haven’t read, and not the Cdrama which I have seen. But let’s be honest, I am heavily influenced in my opinion of this drama by my experiences, not only the Cversion but also other historical romantic dramas I have watched, which is how we all form our opinions. Above I have tried to write my review towards both those completely new to this story and those who have watched the Cversion or read the book. I will now get into the comparison with the Cversion.
I am absolutely amazed of the excellent adaption they made with the script. This is not an easy remake to produce. The original book takes place in China and a lot of work has gone into rewriting the setting around the story to become Goryeo era, assigning roles to the historical people but still keeping the main story without destroying the very special core that is so emotional and wonderful. This is not a drama to watch if you want a history lesson, or a drama where you are entitled to become annoyed when it’s not historically correct. It’s a fantasy that borrows times, names and places from the real world and then warps them. But I think it's important for viewers to know, Goryeo era worked different from Joseon era, especially when it came to women rights, how their beauty standards was a real thing (scars are unacceptable in the royal court) and also that the 4th Prince was known to have been thrown away, shunned and he actually did have a scar on his face. There are more things accurate in this drama, but those are the main issues I have seen people question.
I seriously wish the Kversion had 35 episodes as the Cversion! However, I am amazed at how they managed to produce it with 20 episodes. They skipped a third of the Chinese drama and lots of really nice side plots, but it turns out they weren't really needed. Some of the side stories were shuffled around and didn’t happen in the same order as the Cversion. I felt that worked well, but I can’t pretend I wasn’t worried until I realized they had been reordered.
I enjoyed the relationship changes, they were much better portrayed in the Korean version. I do understand them, their changes, their frustration the issues they can't overcome and how Soo feels she needs to get away. But I am wondering if it's the Chinese version that is leaking into my understanding? Because I see fans complaining about different issues in the story development and I can't agree with them. For me, it has been clear as day. So why do I see what others don't see?
I found it much clearer in this version how the love became corrupted and how new love blossomed. How love is different, how we can love people in different ways, even if it’s just as strong. My biggest pet peeve with the Cversion was when Royxy left 8 and moved on to 4. I just didn’t follow that transition and it took some time before I got invested with them. In the Kversion, there is a spark established very early on and the actual moment she moves on is clear as day and very believable.
Some points of comparison I feel I want to mention are:
Prince 13th story and friendship with Soo wasn't built up as well as in the Cdrama. This could be due to them moving his whole arch until the later parts.
I also didn’t really follow Soo's friendship with all the girls. I realize this was a time issue. It happened, we just didn’t see it developing on screen in the Kversion.
I also wish they had built and strengthened 14th relationship with Soo. In the Cversion he constantly nagged her to come out of the palace with him. But perhaps this was enough for people to understand how he was the one who was there for her in the end, how she could trust and chose him to be her safe haven at the very end.
I am surprised of how much airtime they gave 10 without clearly managing to show how he truly came to love his wife. This part is much more clear in the Cversion with just as much airtime.
Again I need to mention that the love changes from 8 to 4 was incredibly well done. And that by the atmosphere, acting, cinematography and cutting. Immensely satisfying.
The 4th Prince had a much deeper and more tragic background than in the Cversion. This suited the story better. I never really thought 4th had the build up for becoming so cruel as he did in the Cversion.
I do miss the kneeling scene from Chinese version. You know the one… the one we all want. Imagine having 8 royal Princes kneeling in the rain for you (well it was because of 13, but Rouxy was the trigger). It was my favourite scene. Though, they did keep the scene where 4 covering her from the rain with his cloak.
The Kversion teased much more action than the Chinese... I was ready for it but it never executed. None the less, since I know the Cversion didn't have that type of all out war/action I am ok with it.
My final conclusion is that Koreans really know how to produce dramas. This adaption is just as good as the Chinese version. I think it’s one of the best dramas I have ever watched and will recommend it. It is definitely on par with the Cversion, both having their own strong points and weak points. I would say this is a must watch for drama lovers who like historical fantasy, can do without really deep political issues and just want to get into the love, rivalry and friendship parts.
As a finishing side note: Should you watch the Cversion before the Kversion?
I really don’t think you have to. But I highly recommend the drama because it's also very good and because it's one of the Chinese classical must watch dramas. Perhaps you know… you can be wild and crazy and start with the Kversion and then go watch the Cversion, because they both hold up equally towards each other. Not to mention the Cversion will surely give you more, much, much more of what you will love about the Kversion. Let me know if that worked for you! I actually wish I still could watch the Cversion for the first time again after watching this.
Thanks for reading I hope I helped make you decide. :)
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This review may contain spoilers
Possible spoilers aheadThe drama was entertaining, especially the first half with such exciting episodes that kept me on the edge. As usual, at some point in the middle, there were boring moments, but I didn't lose my interest even once. There are a lot of things to be disappointed about but also a lot of amazing things as well.
The first thing that made me wonder was how they talked modern Korean and how the songs were all very "modern" as well, it didn't really suit the atmosphere. It was also strange ,how instead of trying to find a way back, Soo concentrated on changing the history. It would have made more sense for her to try to go back, then accept the fact that she won't be able to escape, and only after try to change the history. In fact, the whole concept of changing the history is an overused cliche...
The character development was rather poor. Either there were too many characters or then not enough time. Some of the side characters weren't even introduced too well, yet they were supposed be important. Because of the poor editing, the changes in main characters' personalities were rather sudden and strange. I like how all princes who got on the throne became crazy because they were too weak. Not everyone can be a king. Later in the drama, Soo lost all her spunk, and I understand the palace life did that to her, it killed her inside, but towards the end she became a really boring character. It also seems that, at some point, the whole acting cast was becoming very tired due to the hectic schedule and their acting got worse. The only one who shined through was Lee Jun Ki. Overall, I became attached to all characters and am willing to forgive a lot. Despite the flaws, all characters were really lovable and memorable.
The storyline concentrates a lot on the characters instead of other plot devices, there is not really much of "other plot" like politics and scheming. That's why I am a bit disappointed that the characters come out so incomplete. Also, how come Baek Ah and So were the only ones who didn't seem to get older? And was it really that hard to have at least one successful love story in a drama with so many characters?
The last episode wrapped up the story pretty nicely. Throughout the story the bad people, who seemed to be getting away with everything they did, got what they deserved, they might not have understood their punishment, but at least it left the audience satisfied. The last episode is such a tear jerker, you realize that it's really is the end. I wish the whole drama was as good as the last episode.
Though, "the real world"- part was sort of lame. Instead of remembering the old times, it would have been more interesting if Soo took a look at what happened after she had left and instead of being sorry, it would have been more satisfying if she could leave this all behind with a peaceful heart and finally move on in life. So the audience could, as well, have a peace of heart. Regarding to whom Soo met later in real life and whom she didn't, it made sense if you go back to the first episode. Whom did she meet there and why?
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Reasons:
1) The storyline makes more sense as compare to the Chinese version.
(The restructuring of some scenes allow the story to be convey in a smoother way)
2) The characters are well made as compared to the Chinese version.
(Each character in this version plays an important role in the events happened in the story... unlike the Chinese version where most of the characters did not leave much impact to the viewers)
- The 4th Prince -
In the Chinese version, the 4th Prince is a very ambitious person where he long for the throne. He can do anything cruel including killing all his brothers in order to become the King. However, in the Korean version, the character has much more humanity. The 4th Prince wanted to become the King in order to protect his love ones (friends and family).
-The 8th Prince-
The 8th Prince in the Korean version has much more impact as compare to the Chinese version. (From the affection of the 8th Prince towards Hae Soo till his helplessness to give up Hae Soo and his greed towards the thrown and the betrayal of the sister..). In the Chinese version, the character of the 8th Prince is just someone who is in love with Hae Soo with not much ability in becoming a King.
-Other characters-
All other characters are well design to fit the storyline in the Korean version. (Some of the characters did not appear in the Chinese version). Although they were not the main character, they all played an important role in the story. Besides the love story between the male and female lead, the love story of the 10th Prince and the 13th Prince were well written.
Overall:
Recommend this drama to those who had watch the Chinese version. If you haven't watch the Chinese version, it's ok.. their good acting, the background music, the editing of the drama, the emotion of the story will definitely make you hook up to this drama!! Have a try~~
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To those who want it short and sweet, I think the most important thing I have to convey about SHR is that it captured the "magic" of a Kdrama. To those that say that the plot/characters/music/logic was bad, they are probably right. But despite all of that (and it's weird, because things like that usually bother me too), I just fell in love. I guess you could say it was the Hae Soo to my Wang So (sorry, I had to...).
~
More thoughts:
It was hard to rate this drama objectively. If I really think about it, there were times when the plot was off or the characters behaved a certain way to move the plot. That's why my overall rating is a subjective one (how much I enjoyed the drama) rather than an objective one (how good it actually was). Like I said, this was the type of drama where the parts didn't equal the sum of the whole.
I thought the acting was really good. I know IU's acting of Hae Soo and Hae Soo herself got some crititism. As far as IU goes, I thought she was able to show Soo's emotions well, along with her growth and life experiences. It was good enough for me.
And as for Hae Soo, she was good enough for me too. Sure, the actions she made could be called stupid or selfish. But when I look at her reasoning, her intentions or her emotions at the time, I can understand and relate to her, and even cheer her on. If I put myself in her shoes, I would probably behave much worse.
As a side note, I feel like there are a lot of light romcom-esque sagueks these days, but a true saguek tells the story of people trying to survive in a dangerous and volatile time period. Even though, yes, there were a lot of shallow elements, I felt that SHR fell in the latter category, and that's why I was able to accept Soo as a character. Because along with the people of the time, she was trying to survive. It was also why I was able to accept the total shift in tone of the drama and the ending.
Music: as some have stated, all that pop and rapping was probably out of place for a historical drama, but I loved the songs themselves and they added to the magic. It was one of those dramas where I had to get the OSTs. And the instrumental/other music was really good to.
As a side, the setting/scenary were just pure awesome. SHR definetely reaffirmed my love for Goryeo hair and clothes.
Rewatch: I usually never re-watch dramas. This one? I woudl start watch/skimming it again while waiting for it to update.
In summary, I think this is a drama where YMMV. Some loved it, others hated it, and in a few years, newcomers may wonder what all the hype was about.
As for me, I was having a phase where I was losing interest in a show halfway through. This was the drama that brought me out of it. You could say it felt like watching my first K-drama all over again.
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I decided to watch it because I really wanted to know that happened to Ruo Bai and the end results of the competition between Bai Cao and Ting Yi. (And also for Ji Chang Wook XD!) Considering the fact that Yang Yang couldn't return to film this, I didn't mind they way that they approached the Ruo Bai matter.
Even though I usually like romances in the dramas I watch, I enjoyed the fact that this drama was mainly focused on the competitions, action, etc. In my opinion, the story line would probably still have worked without a love line between the two main leads. I think I even enjoyed the first 18~20ish episodes more because there was so little/no romantic plot-line in the first half of the drama.
The drama could have done with less flashbacks. Many of the flashbacks would be one after another without the extra flashbacks adding anything important.(I.e. They could have just flashed-back to just one moment instead of many.) From the last two episodes, only the first 20~25 minutes were actually important. Also considering the amount of overlapping between each episode (i.e. last bit of the episode and the beginning of the next episode), the whole drama felt a little draggy. It was almost as if they were trying to make the drama last a bit longer. The drama could have probably been done in 34 episodes, maybe even 32.
I didn't mind the change of the main characters that much, they're pretty good actors/actresses, but it did take an episode or 2 to adjust to the change in actress playing Bai Cao.
The ending is very open-ended for the Ruo Bai matter and also the Ting Hao and Feng Yun situation, making me hope that there will be at least some sort of sequel for this sequel! (But at least the ending wasn't abrupt like the 1st season!)
The music is not memorable, but suitable.
I would probably re-watch it if a sequel came out.
Overall, (maybe an unpopular opinion,) I think I enjoyed this season a bit more than the first.
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ratings in its country but the international fans love this drama so much.
Its OST is one of the best and the cast is perfect (well for my POV).
IU's acting can be improved but hands up (and feet too)
for Lee Joon Gi and Hong Jong Hyun. Kang Ha Neul is awesome too. I love to
hate and love him too at the same time.
I hope they added the tragedy category
earlier so I can prepare my poor heart with
its ending. This will make you feel so much emotions.
Love, hate, anger, sorrow, grief and hope. Im constantly at the edge of my seat.
I can say that this drama is worthy to be rewached! Ready your tissue.
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