Reviews

I'll start this review by saying that I thought the story was very unique, and once the "Scheduler" was introduced I was completely hooked. The plot constantly revealed new twists, and elements that kept me interested even when some scenes felt like they were dragging. I was never quite sure what would happen next, which stopped me from giving up on this drama.

The cast also did a great job, and I was impressed by Lee Yo Won's range, and absolutely loved Jung Il Woo as the Scheduler. There were no weak links in the cast. I admit that Nam Gyu Ri did get on my nerves, but i think I was just annoyed by her character.

Though I would give the story, and acting high marks, and I even liked the soundtrack, I still have to give this drama an overall lower rating. My main issue with it was that it was soooo depressing. There's not much comic relief, and even romantic scenes always seemed to have a cloud of impending doom. It did make me reflect about life, but more so it made me depressed. The story centers around issues of betrayal, and grief, which aren't exactly happy topics. If you cry easily make sure you have a huge supply of tissue nearby as you watch this.

49 Days simply didn't give me the addicted "I gotta watch" feeling that I usually get from kdrama. I knew I wouldn't miss any characters once it was all over. I can't think of any memorable scenes, or moments that I would want to watch again. I watched all 20 episodes because I wanted to see how it would end, and once it ended I was satisfied, and ready to move on.

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DNG is the weirdest movie you will ever see!

The story starts off as just another teen comedy but turns into something just completely insane towards the end. I seriously felt like I was on drugs watching this (You'll see what I mean). This movie has teen troubles, a transvestite business Unnie, a Cyclops student, transgendered student, a prostitute student turned dancing video sensation, a man principle turned lady dragon, and plenty of laughs. You will be saying WTF am I watching throughout the entire movie but that's what makes this movie fun to watch.

The cast is mostly unknowns but they managed to make thier roles believable.

Really loved the use of color.

I'd recommend this movie because its funny and out of the ordinary.

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I seldom give a drama a 10 on 10. Because no matter how well a plot has been handled and cinematized there's always room for improvement. But in the case of this fabulous Hong sisters venture, I can think of no other way to improve the story. From the cast, to story, to direction, to solid comic chops, to acting, to music and plot and character development, nothing was lacking in this gem. Although to be truthful I'd have liked for the romance to be a bit more pronounced. But I think the subtlety of feelings the leads had for each other, was needed to suit the general mood of the story. Another thing-people who had started hating Han Ye Seul after the whole Myung wol The Spy controversy, please watch this drama and prepare to be mesmerized. The way she brings out Jo Anna's arrogance and pompousness and Na Sang Shil's innocent charm onscreen, is a treat for the senses. And Oh Ji Ho proves that a solid, toned body isn't all that he has got. He made Jang Chul Soo appear so genuine and sincere. MUST watch Hong sisters drama, and on some accounts I'd rate this even higher than You're Beautiful yes!

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I liked the story but I was disappointed by the ending. I thought it was rly rushed at the end and could have used another epi or 2 to explain things a little better. It killed me how fast Yi Fei's pregnancy went but Mei Le's was not even visible the further along she was. I think Mike He did an excellent job expressing his characters feelings about his loss of independence when he was seen as such a strong person. I rly enjoyed how the music stopped right before a critical answer was given. It added a sense of importance to that answer. I rly enjoyed this drama & it will stick w/ me b/c it dealt w/ so many different issues. I may watch it again just b/c I love Mike He's acting skills. He is sooooo good at being arrogant & sexy at the same time.

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Oh Ji-ho & "La Belle"

By Fung Lan Yong (2011)



La Belle (starring Oh Ji-ho) contains captivating expressions that reflect Roland Barthes' concept of neutrality, something that is open and noncommittal. It exposes the audience to the passionate experiences of two star-crossed characters so much that they become lost within the scenes. Such loss of self or immersion allows the audience to experience a string of emotions outside the social realm, free from cultural constraints.

La Belle is a novelistic form of rhetoric that challenges the audience's views of the social constructs of love without asserting any definitive meaning. It presents the fictionalized reflections of a young melancholic writer seeking to identify, and be identified by, a lovely model whose personal life he knows little about, and who does not love him at all. While his obsession is open to criticism, his unrequited love evokes empathy.

His desperate search for signs by which to express, and receive, love is mainly evident through illusions. By affirming himself into a false ideal reality, the gorgeous introverted writer spends his days waiting in a delusion, demonstrating the contradictory logic inherent in his search for love.



La Belle is a story about two complex personalities, a dashing writer and a captivating model, whose intriguing lives revolve around a passionately surreal relationship. Though blessed with many ecstatic moments, the relationship is a heart-wrenching experience characterized by waiting, abuse, unrequited love, and fatal emotions.



The writer

The writer (Oh Ji-ho) is an introspective and reclusive individual who strives to derive reality from fantasy. Possessing neither courage nor inner strength to voice his feelings, he persuades himself to use his youthful body to speak the language whenever he fails to express his thoughts and emotions with words.





He patiently waits for la belle to return with empty longing eyes. He silently follows her every abrupt departure with a long painful gaze. He tenderly uses his warm body as a safe haven that offers her security and comfort. As she weeps in his sturdy arms over another man, all he is able to do is to shout a silent scream that cries out for unrequited love, far beyond her unreachable space.





He ruefully stares at the elaborate body art on her back, stressing that he does not want others to paint on her. He gently carries her from the wet bathroom floor with loving arms that lay her on his spotlessly white bed. Under the wet dress, he gingerly wipes her lifeless body with a soft white towel so that she can recuperate from the physical and emotional wounds inflicted by another man, a man whom she recklessly clings to.





He tries in vain to make her stay by embracing her with tightening arms, begging her not to return to the abusive boyfriend. Determined to win her love by erasing her forbidden past, he impulsively kills the abusive rival by calmly slashing his stomach with a gleaming razor blade at a crowded junction.















La belle

La belle is the capricious model who pays the writer an unexpected visit on a gloomy night, dripping cold and homeless. Shunned by an abusive man, she wants the writer to mend her broken heart and calm her shattered mind. Since then, she becomes not only an indispensable part of his life, but his very existence as well.





She continues to devote her affection to a brutal man, as the writer sinks deeper and deeper in love with her. She disappears from his life the minute the cellular phone rings, without a moment's notice or a farewell kiss. Having utterly no knowledge of her undertakings outside, he can only despondently wait for her return, penning his lovelorn feelings in a black-cover diary, with black ink constantly flowing from a black fountain pen.





She returns to the writer each time she is badly injured, depressed, or intoxicated, yet she offers him neither attention nor gratitude. Seeking solitude from cold rejection, she finds solace in the writer's harmoniously sparse apartment that rises far above the hustle and bustle of her own shattered world. Shackled by a sadomasochistic relationship, all she wants from the writer is temporary physical and emotional relief, not a committed relationship with love as the foundation.





She coldheartedly uses the writer as a substitute for unrequited love and as a provider of food and shelter, never once cherishing him as the object of her love. She unrepentantly manipulates his caring and sensitive nature to satisfy her sordid desire to be with the other man. In the writer's nurturing embrace, she pretends that she is loved by the sadistic man whom she truly adores, one who reciprocates her adulation by trampling on her soul with cruel contempt.





The lover of her choice is an aloof and violent man who exploits her movements like a perfunctory marionette. While she is with the writer, she has one ear tuned to her phone all the time. Whenever the lover calls, she leaps right out of the writer's view, dresses up, and races off without uttering a single word. Her heartstring is synonymous with the phone line securely wrapped around the other man's fingers; whenever he tugs, she helplessly responds without the slightest hesitation, like a selfless moth fatally drawn to an insidious candle flame.





She treats everything casually; she casually enters the writer's life and then casually abandons him. She says that destiny is casual and that it is also casual when things become reality. When she feels dejected, she casually finds the writer to give her accommodation and sustenance. While faithfully waiting for the other man to call, she casually uses the writer as a soporific to soothe her pain. She casually weaves a gripping spell from which the writer tries to struggle free, but to no avail.





She is unable to wrench herself free from a self-destructive past, too engulfed to wake up from a nightmare to start a loving relationship with the writer. Her boyfriend treads on her like an unwanted doormat all the time, yet she willingly accepts the humiliation and shame. She even declares that she is willing to get hit while the other is happy to hit her. She often throws derogatory remarks at the writer, indicating that neither his considerate deeds nor his foolish gaze can change anything. Her masochistic tendencies blind her from the writer's love and undermine her willpower to supersede self-loathing with love. To numb her heartache and despair, she mentally abuses the enamored writer who describes his pining in solitary silence.





Waiting for love

La Belle depicts the fruitless waiting of an infatuated writer and a lovely model. In his harmoniously sparse apartment, the writer awaits the love of his life, serenaded by books and accompanied by a pen. Writing his thoughts down allows him to dwell in her extended periods of absence, while dreaming of someone similar to la belle, but someone who genuinely loves him and never leaves him lonely again.





While waiting, he unceasingly tries to find meaning in all aspects of her existence, which makes his disconsolate heart tremble with fear. She always acts as if she will stay; nevertheless, he never knows when she will be desperately out of his reach again. His futile waiting leaves him not only more exposed to her absence, but also more vulnerable to her presence.





He once assures her that he will help her terminate her unhappy life if she is still unhappy ten or twenty years from then. Sadly, he is unable to wait that long; one day, with tears rolling down his cheeks, he strangles her to death, after realizing that she has never been, and will never be, happy despite all that he has faithfully done to bring her happiness. By ending her unhappy life, he also brings all the wistful waiting and passionate obsession to an end.





However, it is not only the writer who incessantly waits for la belle to change and reciprocate his love. While despising the writer's meek waiting, la belle is also waiting in vain for her tyrannical boyfriend to eventually accept her love. She relentlessly waits for the ringtones, regardless of what the writer is ardently doing to make her stay. When the phone finally rings, usually at unearthly moments, she answers it like an excited schoolgirl. Upon receiving a harsh command, she dashes out of the apartment without giving the writer the slightest glance. After some time, she drags her physically and emotionally drenched body back to the elegant apartment, often in a drunken frenzy or savagely beaten by the boyfriend. Still, he rescues her with welcoming arms, fully aware that she loves another man who not only does not love her but also perpetually assaults her. Just as the audience thinks that all the waiting is finally over, the ominous phone rings, and the vicious cycle of abrupt departing and prolonged waiting invariably starts.





END

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This drama, even though it lacks in some parts, it truly really fun and interesting to watch. It is about how we grow up and learn lot of stuff that will help us through life always staying true to yourself, not changing but evolving into someone better.



The story is really funny to watch, mainly because all the characters are well written and interesting without overdoing it. Also I liked that unlike most dramas, this one doesn't really have a super dramatic arc. Besides I think the way it starts, with Misaki becoming a flight attendant only to impress boys is really different and is only an example of how the rest of the drama goes. If you liked the first episode, you'll love the whole drama, but if you didn't, you probably won't like it.



I loved how Ueto Aya acted in here, the whole drama is about her character Misaki, and how she struggles to find her place, and although it was a difficult part to play, because it was a lot of responsibility, but she completely pulled it off. I also loved Ryo here, this wass actually the drama where I met him and fell in love wih him. Besides, this was the drama that he starred after 1 litre of tears, and it was a great choise because after seeing him all dramatic, people could appreciate that he could also be funny and cute. The whole supoorting cast was good, their character helped to create what was going to be airport environment, which was almost another character by itself in this drama.



I watched this a long time ago, so I don't remember the music really well, but I do remember the main theme, which was a cover of "Pretty Woman", and I simply loved it, it was funny and cute, and very fitting for the main character.



I've watched this drama several times ever since I first saw it, and never get tired of it, it's the kind of drama that I watch when I just want to see something funny.



Overall, this is a great drama, if you like comedy combined with a little depth, this is your drama.

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I gave this a rewatch value of 5, because why would you rewatch a show that is going to make you cry? Which is what I did. For most of the last two episodes. As soon as Mika starts talking in the beginning, you know how it's going to end. I don't usually watch sad shows, but I couldn't resist this one. And i'm glad I watched it. It was very sad, but it wasn't depressing. And i'd been worried it would be too melodramatic but surprisingly, it wasn't that either. The two leads do a pretty good job with their roles. It's not easy to display all of the emotions that they had to, but they did it fairly well. I gave this an 8/10. It wasn't perfect but they made me cry and if you can make me cry, something must have gone right.

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I loved-hated the drama. The acting especially the early epis left a lot to be desired from most of the cast. Shota was awesome as always (no I'm not being biased he really was the best actor) and he has the sexiest hair in this drama. Shota's character Noato was probably the most complex character in this drama. Although the acting could have been better the overall story saved this drama and kept me marathoning through the episodes.



This drama also gave me some insight into Japanese night life. It taught me that host clubs are like reverse escort services. Escorts go to the customers to entertain them but at host clubs the customers come to the host for the same type of entertainment and this big business and a lot of money. It is also the selling of the human body. And if the host does not know what he or she is doing it can mean a lot of trouble like the main character Ayaka-chan learns.



The lead actress Kato Rosa is gorgeous. I really was interested in every obstacle that came Ayaka-chan's way and how she was able to over come everything and keep going. The relationship between Ayaka-chan and Naoto-kun is not the typical romance story and it was part of what made this drama unique. This drama is a tragedy about triumph. It is a mature drama that probably won't appeal to some people who don't like adult themes such as violence, sexual abuse and prostition.



My main gripe as I mentioned was the acting. The horrible villainous laugh of Hojo Rina-san was too much to bear at times and the actress's acting was equally as terrible and disappointing. Most of the bad girls were just horribly played. Some parts of the story were not very believable either especially the initial interactions (epis 1 and 2) between the lead love interests but I was able to quickly put that aside to follow the rest of the story which flowed well.



This is also not a typical drama that takes place over a few weeks. this story encompasses many years of these characters lives to show the struggle they go through to achieve their ambitions. The jumps through time are done well and the characters all seem to mature and age in their looks as well as demeanor appropriately. I did not want it to end the way it did but it's kinda fitting ending to everything.

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