Navillera (2021)

it's never too late to pursue your dreams

This beautiful tear jerker of a drama will break your heart then stitch you back together again. A wonderfully pitch perfect story about a 70 year old man who decides finally to pursue his dream of being a ballet dancer.
And while you'll no doubt sob through the whole thing, it's a cathartic cry, a healing cry. One that will fill you up and let you leave the drama completely satiated.

This is a beautiful drama that is not even bittersweet but just an ordinary story about ordinary people learning to live their lives to the fullest and that it's never too late to pursue your dreams.

If you don't love the characters, the story, the cinematography and the themes, you will at least love the music, which completes the emotional journey perfectly.

Just perfect

Leggi di Più

Most Heart Warming Real Life story

I started watching this because of song kang
I am not into this series actually but After seeing so many romantic dramas and crime dramas I wanted to see something REFRESHING & Good story
If you want to have something with good emotional story and perfect acting then go for this one

IF YOU ARE FACING PROBLEMS IN REAL LIFE THEN YOU SHOULD DEFINITELY WATCH THIS DRAMA AS IT MIGHT GIVE YOU COURAGE TO SOLVE YOUR PROBLEMS..

Song kang and grandpa relationship is nice and side character's development is also nice and there are heartwarming scenes
You might need to have a tissue in your hand too
These days I stopped crying after seeing so many korean crime dramas but after a long time NAVILLERA made me cry again


I am still watching this so I Will update more soon
[now updating]

Now after completing watching it I can only say one thing if you want something about real life [ not like supernatural or other genres ] then you should definitely watch this. You will definitely like this.
And if you dont like dance then dont stop watching it becoz I also dont like dance but didnt I like it
...who know you might like it too..//!!

Leggi di Più

Can clichés soar?

Kudos to the creators for putting an elderly man in the front seat of a major drama. We need more stories featuring older people. And it's great to make a story that breaks gender stereotypes, especially in such a patriarchal society. However, that's pretty much where the praise ends.

Unfortunately, the story is nothing but clichés and predictableness. It wouldn't have been so terrible if the challenges faced by each character were presented with more depth, but on top of the clichés, the script was so generic that it seemed like every character was saying the same thing over and over again. Every person was simply there to tell us to "do what we truly want to do". Our ballerinos, the former doctor, the failed politician, the ex-football player, the white collar worker, his counsellor wife, and their daughter seeking her first job, had the same challenges and the same script.

Of course, Park In Hwan as our grandpa ballerino is the obvious highlight. Despite the terrible script, he delivered each line with wisdom and quiet, thoughtful strength. His talent came out but he deserved so much better material to showcase what he has to offer. Song Kang as our young ballerino Chae Rok was directed to play his part with too much annoying angst at the beginning and then his transformation didn't even get to breathe. One day he just changes, and the transformation of the entire cast is presented in the same way. There is no real progression. Kim Kwon as the blonde haired punk did well too, despite the shoddy script and lack of dimension in his character. The scene where he is leaning over Chae Rok in the stairwell gave us a glimpse of his acting talents. Finally, the relationship between ballet instructors Seung Joo and So Ri was the only one that provided a tiny bit of interest, but only a few drops.

I started watching this one night when I was absolutely exhausted and wanted something that demanded nothing from me. However, the lack of depth and the absolutely terrible script made it hard to get through. In the end, the talent and time was wasted even though I did smile and tear up a few times. And watching the professional dancers was a treat.

Leggi di Più

Now THIS is how you direct, write and produce an outstanding show!

This is by far one of the BEST Kdrama shows ive ever seen. The storyline was unique, warm, engaging and cute lol the acting superb! Wow wow wow! Hands down this show needs to be at the top.

The storyline is so heart warming and the character development is so good! The pacing of the show keeps you engaged and I love the relationship between Mr Sim and Chae Rok. Even the cute little things Mr Sim does like his exercising (the funniest moment was when he is at the park on that swinging thing lol) and the loving things he does for his kids.

If you are contemplating watching this, watch it you wont be disappointed!

Leggi di Più

Such a Beautiful Masterpiece

First of all, I am not someone who writes a review for any drama or movie I watch, but I felt the strong need to express my emotions for this beautiful masterpiece.
Where should I start, a very heartwarming, tear-jerking story about how we all need a Guardian Angle someone to support us as we follow our dreams. Someone to simply tell you "Don't worry I got you". The relationship of Chae-rok and Harabuji is simply like that or to be precise this is kind of the main theme of the story.
This feels like random rambling than a proper review but that's what this drama does to you it glows your heart in the warmest way possible.
All characters main and supporting have a story to tell including the anti-hero characters. I guess that's the beauty of this show.

One more last episode is remaining I hope it will still glow my heart tomorrow.

Leggi di Più

We absolutely don't deserve this masterpiece.

This show is such a hidden gem. I cannot even explain it to you how much it means to me. I cried in almost every episode because how deeply it moved me.
My favourite characters are obviously Duk Cheol and Chae Rok. Their relationship is so beautifully crafted and every character had such a good character development, especially Beom (the blonde guy) and Seong San.
This show... damn..
Words can't explain how beautiful this show is.
I also loved Hae Nam's character. In the beginning, she was against of Duk Cheol doing ballet but when she finally accepts it, it is the most beautiful thing ever. She's so supportive of her husband; she respects his dreams so much and it's so lovely. I loved Seong Hwan, Eunho and her mom.
Also, we don't deserve to see Song Kang in a ballet costume. He looks like a literal God. It's so cute and adorable that by the end of the show, Chae Rok becomes a family member ❤
I recommend this show to everyone. It's such a masterpiece ?

Leggi di Più

Seeking the chance without regret

Beautifully written and directed tale on chasing after your dreams and hopes regardless of external factors, whenever they are your age, family, social expectations or past demons keeping you away from taking that chance.

The true star of the show was Shim Deok Chul played by Park In Hwan. Both, how the character was written, and then portrayed on screen made me as a viewer relate to him, empathize with his journey and root for his success even though, practically speaking, we had close to nothing in common. The story was so touching and beautiful that it left me dehydrated because of all the crying (not all the tears were sad).

Acting wise, I had a small beef with Song Kang - his emotional scenes were just… not emotional. The sadness, fear, loss, frustration his character was supposed to feel, were not translated via his acting on screen.

Sadly, Shim Deok Chul arc was both the blessing and the curse of the drama. All the other plot lines felt flat when compared - there were just too many characters that at the end of the day, were relaying the same message. Dropping some characters from the script, and allowing the rest to present better structured and developed plot lines could have potentially elevated the quality of the overall storytelling.

The production quality was, dare I say, perfect. Props to Song Kang double and the director for filming the ballet scenes in a way that was consistent and it did not feel like I’m watching two completely different people doing completely separate takes of the same scene.

The OST is one big bop, having both slower and sentimental songs and faster tracks.

Overall, it was a ride that, at times, was tough to emotionally deal with, but still worth all the tears. It did not leave me completely depressed, as I was fearing, taking into consideration the used themes. What I’ve got was a beautiful conclusion to a beautiful story.

Leggi di Più

A VERY GREAT SLOW BURN (a review from an amateur but really do love kdramas)

I knew this kdrama would break me and when it did I still was very emotional about it. This was one of the kdramas that would leave you feeling empty when it ended. I know that because it's what happened to me (and still is happening to me wtf, let me move on pls).

The main characters and their growth is everything. The OSTs suit to every scene. The cinematography?? Pretty AF. Seriously, this series was just very well-thought, directed, edited and shot.

I loved it all but (this is a good but okay dw) episode 8 made me cry so bad, like ugghhhh the build up to that??? Was f*ckin amazing!!! Now that is what you call a great slow burn. Song Kang doing ballet in that particular episode is now forever engraved in my mind.

Seriously, if you've watched A Moment To Remember and you loved how it emotional it was, then this kdrama is for you. Actually, if you're into slow-paced kdramas that is emotional and the characters have character development and simply a quality content kdrama, this is for you.

I can't express well my love for this kdrama and put it into words but it really was great. I loved it. It was perfect.

Leggi di Più

Honestly, this drama caught me off guard. I initially watched this because I just wanted to see more of Song Kang. But wow, just wow. I'm really glad I did watch it.

Even though this drama only had 12 episodes (I only found out it has 12 eps when I was in ep 8, was really bummed when I found out tbh), it made me feel a whole array of emotions. Firstly, it made me feel annoyed how SK and his mentor were treating the grandpa. I felt bad for the Grandpa when he was practicing. I felt happy when he passed the test. I felt disappointed when his family didn't support him. I didn't understand well why the his children were always arguing. I felt angry and sad and hurt when they talked back to their parents (the grandpa and grandma).

There were three things I really loved about this show. 1. The relationship of the grandma and the grandpa - even after all these years they still love and respect each other. 2. The relationship of the Grandpa with his granddaughter - this made me envy them actually. I wish I was that close and open also to my grandparents. 3. Lastly, the wisdom they share - I think this is my most favorite in this show. Because when they share their words of wisdom to one another, you can feel that they are speaking from the heart and not just empty words.

This drama was so realistic, so relatable. I think this is what has drawn me into it. During the first few eps, I was actually not anticipating the end of the drama because in my head, I was anxious that something bad will happen to the grandpa. I'm just glad that they decided to end the drama in the way they did.

Kudos to the team. Now, unto the next drama.

Leggi di Più

One word: Beautiful

I think this show aired at the right time for me. I could put myself in the shoes of the granddaughter (and other characters at times), especially because my grandfather also has Alzheimer's (maybe that's also why I caught the hints so early on, too?) and I am having the same thoughts about my future. I think I cried almost every episode after that was initially 'revealed.' I related so much to this show. It was made even better by the wonderful production, the amazing cast, and the enthralling story line. Everyone felt so *real*, so human. It was just wonderful to see how people are so faceted. (This show was character-based, and I loved seeing the character arcs for everyone.) I just really love this drama. It's become my all-time favorite drama now. Up until the last second (literally), I loved everything that they did. The ending was so beautiful. I just (as you can tell) have no words to properly explain how good this show is. I highly recommend it to everyone. It was done so well.

Leggi di Più

The drama that made me cry in episode 1

Navillera is the beautiful, heartwarming story of a man in his twilight years trying to finally pursue his dream. It's a show that embodies the mentality "it's never too late to start." It's also the story of the most unlikely of friendships as SDC, a man in his 70s looking to pursue ballet, and LCR, a man in his 20s who excels at his craft but is too lost and unmotivated to give it his full attention meet. These two make this drama. The supporting cast is amazing, too, with characters that each have their own personal growth and stories throughout the series, but it's the leads that steal the spotlight. Their interactions are some of the most wholesome things I've ever seen, they're inspirational, and seeing them help each other get back up when they've been kicked down is enough to bring you to tears.

That brings us to my gripe with this drama. The tears, or lack thereof. This is really going to be dependant on your tastes so you may have liked this, but personally, I was turned off of the series by the shoehorned-in Alzheimer's plot. I'm fine with Alzheimer's being present in dramas and I think it's an important talking point because it affects so many families worldwide, but I wasn't particularly fond of the way it was implemented here. In this drama, Alzheimer's is mainly used to up drama and make the viewer emotionally invested. That's fine in other narratives, but I feel that it just wasn't necessary here. I felt emotional in the early episodes before Alzheimer's became the main focus. I teared up in the beginning because the story was just so beautiful and inspirational. It didn't need more drama, it didn't need more angst and it was already making me cry. Navillera thrives on its very human, everyday atmosphere. Sometimes ordinary life is heartbreaking enough. You don't need to have a terrible illness or disease to go through hardships in life or to make the viewers feel for the characters. So when ballet started taking a backseat to characters having revelations about SDC's condition, characters crying over SDC, and SDC himself reminding us that he doesn't have much time left, my eyes dried up. Yes, it was sad, but it made me feel like those scenes were added just to pull at my emotions, so I didn't get teary-eyed or emotional over it. I haven't caught up with the webcomic yet, so correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm fairly certain that Alzheimer's isn't a plot device in the source material and it was just added into the drama for, well. Drama. Again, I've started reading it but haven't caught up, so I could be wrong here.

I wish that the writer and director were confident enough in their story not to add in little melodramas like that. There were other instances, like with the youngest son's backstory of being a doctor who left his field after his patient died or the situation with LCR's dad, that were just added in for what feels like the same reason, but the Alzheimer's took up a large majority of the plot in the second half of the drama so it was the most glaring. The simple story of a man trying to pursue his own goals at an age where most people would have considered his life over was powerful enough on its own. The relationship between him and LCR as his instructor was amazing and heartwrenching all on its own.

Despite my gripes, I still love the drama. It's different and unique, and I do understand why dramas have such a tendency to fall on these tropes and cliches. It's a drama. It needs to be dramatic. But if the addition of the Alzheimer's subplot doesn't deter you, it's still a great story. The ending is satisfying, not great but it doesn't leave you wanting more, and the characters will stick with you for a long time afterwards. Give it a try.

Leggi di Più

such a beautiful slice of life drama :)) I enjoyed it but I wish it's not too slow. I watched this ongoing for the first 6 episodes and forgot about it until it's finished. the drama was good but since it's too slow to my likings I forgot about it. anyways, this is suchh a beautiful drama, from the first episode till the very last moment, it was very heartwarming, loving and basically soothing. The grandpa's character was a wholesome, you know it's one of the characters in this kdrama world where you just want to protect him at all cost. My favourite part of the drama is of course the grandpa and chae rok chemistry as well as the hardworking grandpa who never gives up on ballet. Also, this drama is full of beautiful messages and motivations, very uplifting and positive. the only downside would be it is too slow for me andd im not really interested with other characters stories huhu so i find it wasting my time during those part. but i enjoyed it regardless

Leggi di Più