Chiamalo Amore (2023)

LLike a warm and nostalgic cuppa

I don't know why but when I had initially tried watching this show, I couldn't. When I tried the second time, I realized that with each episode I wanted to know more about the story of SWJ and HDJ. The story for me felt like a warm yet nostalgic cuppa. It's a melodrama so expecting to instantly like or get hooked on the 1st episode is not a good idea. I liked the development of the main characters. They were both flawed yet at the core, both of them were good, I think DongJin and Woojoo were the best for each other because he was initially a pushover and needed someone to not pity him but show him what he was doing not entirely right, and someone needed to make Woojoo realize that taking revenge wouldn't make everything go back to normal. I would, however, want the reunion to be a bit longer, but it aligned well with the rest of the episode. The filter, the back and forth of the times, and the prologues at the beginning of some episodes made the show interesting. However, it would have been better if it was 12 episodes rather than 16. But I would say this is worth watching because you will see how a broken girl could be strong enough to protect the right people.

Leggi di Più

Sanó mi corazón

Es increíble lo mucho que me ha gustado este dorama. De principio a fin fue totalmente mi estilo.
Los personajes están tan bien escritos y actuados que hay escenas totalmente mudas donde puedes entender lo que se dicen con la mirada. Es increíble que la relación entre los personajes se salgan del esquema y que en ningún momento haya caído en el drama barato y repetitivo como la ex o el mejor amigo de infancia, totalmente aplaudible.
Estoy realmente enamorada de esta historia. El poder ver cómo van evolucionando y sanando los personajes hizo que pudiera empatizar con ellos en más de una forma. Lloré muchas veces al sentirme identificada, no es algo que me pase a menudo. Me hizo sanar.
Ponerle 10 no es suficiente, realmente necesito poder ponerle más nota. Se va definitivamente a mis favoritos.

La escena final (esto no cuenta como spoiler) cuadra con la imagen del disco de la canción del protagonista (canción de la que estoy totalmente enamorada, por cierto) realmente hizo que mi corazón saltara al darme cuenta.
Me encanta!

Leggi di Più

Call it Satisfying

When I finished Call it Love I I honestly felt like I was satisfied in a well that was a grand days work kinda way as opposed to oh my god im totally blown away kind of way. But yet i look back at this as time well spent it kind of grows on you and you go through a certain kind of coming to terns with whats happening along with the characters.

At times this drama really had me moved and totally absorbed and at times I was feeling this is getting dull only for it to pull away from the edge and remain engaging and it makes you interested to hear what others thought.

Pros:
Some great chatacters and exploration of same and a sense of understanding them gradually in a satisfying way.

A really good fairly realistic story not OTT and well brought together. I genuinely felt any number of endings would satisfy me no anxiety re a happy vs sad vs open ending a few episodes out as the story was making sense to me (eventually) regardless.

The Secondary characters were all really engaging and not filler material and no really extreme characters (though some might say close to)

For a drama with virtually no comedy it was still not gratituosly depressing.

Some genuinely powerful moments.

The normalised and gentle treatnent of sister struggle with mental health issue, note not a central part of plot but nicely introduced and explored with subtlety and normality.

Cons

The leads at times were too monotonous and almost unable to express any emotions outside of a narrow range of stoic silence and underlying sadness.

The FL in particular some of her scenes were like oh come on say something, its actually getting weird now. Tropes were not rampant in this script apart from the miscommunication/no communication between leads trope which weared just a little at times.

The chemistry between leads lacked i felt I dont know if it was directing acting or both but it was a bit too low key to match where they get too in their relationship. However this may be because this was not just a story about romance it was that and a bit more so even the romance had to be in balance.

To put it simply the acting was anazing to capture a certain tyoe of mood or moment which was then repeated a lot so while many fekt the acting was great i felt it was within a narrow range and not mind blowing sorry.

The use of the split scene then flash back was done really well except maybe a bit too often esoecially where verbal communication was sparse it was at times a long wait to find out what was actually said when.

Overall I feel like this is really really a great watch but maybe not all in one go. I have a fulfulling sense of satisfaction even though at times i was not sure what to make of it. Somehow this drama didnt neccessarily always go they way I wanted and yet i never felt cheated or had an oh i hate this type of story moment. I still havent settled on a no for my rating im curious what people feel.

Leggi di Più

looking for a soul healing journey? BINGO

Call it Love is a beautiful Kdrama that tells the story of three sibling that couldn't be any more different. The main themes are friendship, romance, hardship, grieve and revenge.

The three siblings taught me many things:
Rely on yourself but don't go through all the hardships alone.
Don't be afraid to be alone and learn to appreciate your time with yourself.
Always pursuit your dreams. Never give up.

The writing is excellent, with character development and plenty of heartwarming moments that will make you smile. The show also touches on deeper issues such as family and societal pressures, which adds an extra layer of depth to the story.

The supporting cast is also exceptional, with each character bringing their own unique personality and quirks to the show. The soundtrack is also fantastic, adding to the overall romantic and lighthearted vibe of the show.

Lastly I want to say

Goodbye pink filter

Leggi di Più

Call it slow-burn. Like watching rotisserie chicken simmering in the oven. A tale of revenge-turned-love unfolding in bits and pieces in this drama as Sim Woo Joo battles with her conflicting feelings about the son of the woman who stole her father, their house and ruined her whole life. Meanwhile, Han Dong Jin, slouches his back as problems at work surround him, and a belated visit from his ex-lover disrupts his routine. While Sim Woo Joo fights her way through life, Han Dong Jin acquiesces for what falls on his way. He lives minimally as if ready to relinquish everything he has at a moment’s notice. And this is what Woo Joo takes an issue with, the man’s passiveness and easy forgiveness as if he has no right to feel wronged.

Lee Sung Kyung shows some of her best acting prowess in this drama; the way she unleashes her pent-up frustrations at how life dealt her hand, how the father she loved betrayed their family, how she has to hold back some of her emotions for the sake of her sister and brother, how she defends her actions as justifiable, and how she grapples with her growing feelings towards her sworn enemy.

The rest of the cast also pull their own weight in this mostly character-based drama, with the plot being secondary as a background. The events that unfold showcase how humanity or lack there-of can play in the decisions of some, like how some people are repentant while others are not, despite numerous chances given. We learn in this drama, that while some people are just plain horrible, it does not necessarily mean that their off-spring will be the same. Some just lack the basic human decency of treating others with respect and continue to become trash, but we should not be painting their relatives in the same brush because they can turn out to be really decent human beings with an unfortunate excuse of a mother.

If you are expecting a light-hearted, fluffy romance drama, this is not it as Call It Love meanders its way along the excruciatingly long road of life.

Leggi di Più

Be patient

I loved the two main characters and I felt invested in their outcome. The reason I lowered the score has to be the directing.

A lot of the shots are muted, almost as though gauze has been added to the screen and like the opening scenes of shadows the story is not too clear.
Yes there is an easily understood revenge from a girl who was heart broken when her father left the family for another woman. Her pain is exacerbated when she tries a confrontation at his funeral and then, as details are revealed, she becomes obsessed with payback revenge.
Unfortunately her target is the woman's son and the story gives a good build up to how he is being targeted by her and a very viciously jealous ex boss.

The complex cultural need to lump a families wrong doing onto other members of the family is hard for me to fathom. The gap of a year before her sister lets drop the information that the man our FL has fallen in love with has actually been accepted by her mother beggars belief. On that note why does the ML also not share this gem of information but instead wanders off for a year?
I was exhausted by the last episode as the director dragged out the slo-mo movements and ML leaving then coming back with flowers. It felt too contrived and less logical.

Leggi di Più

Most beautiful slow-burn romance I have ever seen but so much than that…

I did not think I would love this show so much when started. It was finally a slow-burn done right! This how you do it, ladies and gentlemen…
The story was simple but the characters were very well written so that is what made it compelling to the end. FL and ML very carefully thought out, the actors were amazing and directed very well. I loved the micro expressions and complex feelings they transmitted. I especially loved that Sim Woojoo was not the typical FL, she was though and conflicted, but honest. On the other hand Han Dongjin might just have became my favourite ML character. It is so hard to write characters that people honestly root for, and he was like that. He started to smile more starting from the 10th episode and he was truly happy in the final episode, it was such a joy to see him enjoy life finally after all tha hardships. Shim Woojoo on the other hand, I realized it only at the last moments of the 16th episode that that was the first time we actually saw her with a real wide smile on her face.

Excuse my chaotic review, but I just finished this drama and feelings are still all over the place. If you want a perfect slow-burn romance with beautiful character development, I can’t recommend Call it love enough!!

Leggi di Più

BEWARE B4 U SPEND 16HRS ON THIS !!!

I am a BIG Lsk fan and so decided to try this out after so many 10/10 reviews. I have very painfully completed the series but there is very little enjoyment I have got out of it. Seeing all these reviews makes me wonder if its just not my cup of tea. But seriously I failed to understand the subtelty of showing everything in slow-mo with the characters wearing a blank face most of the time. They dont talk...they just sigh and look at each other. Are they DUMB? . I understand that things are sad but I feel they dragged this thing too much. The ML and FL might have good chemistry but its not explored at all ......they hardly talk with each other. They just stare at each other and silently walk. I can understand the initial shyness but this just goes on. On top of that they have very little screen time.
" SO THERES NO ROMANCE YOU SAY? The other things are good right? RIGHT? " NO ITS NOT!! ITS WORSE. The story premise about the house is good and innovative but IT GETS DRAGGED ON LIKE HELL . Everything was dragged on tbh. The GF arc , the president shin arc and these were not even that good of a story.
TLDR:-
>> The premise and first couple of episodes are good.
>> Without the slowmo and filler scenes this is hardly a 4 hr drama.
>> I had to skip those silences towards the end cause it was getting tedious
>> The main lead romance is not good at all. (IMO)
>> Theres a lot of camping business BS that i didnt get. Good luck to you.
>> Good for you if you like seeing people walking from A to B and having noodles 100s of times.
>> Good if you can read facial expressions and need no talking. ( I cant ,sorry )
>> Sit with loads of coffee if you wanna stay awake.
>> I am ranting at this point. Have a nice day and I hope you enjoy this drama. I SURE AS HELL DIDNT.

Leggi di Più

A weapon that could even turn the deepest revenge, you ‘Call it love’!

When someone is yearning for love, it means that they are lonely. Because love means care, affection, something with which your every pain, sorrow, happiness and joy is shared. When there is no love, you are lonely, even when a million things exist around you, you are lonely. That’s why the story opens up, “to understand the loneliness of others, for me, it’s the beginning of love.”

Han Dongjin and Shim Woo Joo, I don’t know if they were yearning for love at the time they met but they were definitely two lonely beings bearing with the timeless and indefinite unwelcoming fate that’s inter tangled up between them without their littlest acceptance. She spent her days wanting to ruin that woman and he passed those same days wanting to repair those ruins of that same woman.

Hell must be angry on itself for what it has done to the two of them, so it tried to reconstruct the web, this time with love. The woman who made them enemies, is the women who’s the reason who made them mates, is the woman who made them strangers, is the woman who’s the reason who made them soul mates.

Soul mates indeed! His back looks sad and her eyes look gloomy. He never goes down and she gets up every time she falls. They say opposites attract, but Dongjin and Woo Joo aren’t exactly like that or at least, it’s not the reason they get attracted to each other. They are not each other’s missing puzzle piece rather two puzzled up puzzles themselves, who for a long time of their lives, tried putting their own pieces together until they meet each other, now trying to put pieces of each other with their own perspectives, still summing up to be complete. However, both are surviving the present, picking shattered bits of the past with a hope to mosaic a fine picture in the future. She is a 10 but she thinks creating havoc can settle things. He is a 10 but he thinks bearing everything will settle things. Both wrong but a right together.

This is probably still a lot less which explains the emotion that ran through my soul throughout the drama. For it is rather felt than said.

I would only say one thing if you are here and searching the reviews to watch it or not. Do you like a Slow-burn? No? Skip. Yes? You will be here writing your heart out after you complete watching this!

Both Dongjin and Woo Joo’s characters are very unconventional. Not your typical bubbly female lead and the hot CEO male lead. These guys are built different! More human, less k-drama. The story might be, to some extent, unrealistic but these characters aren’t. Fresh air of reality.

Dongjin and Woo Joo breathe air through Kim Young Kwang and Lee Sung Kyung. They hold all of Dongjin and Woo Joo’s emotions in the heart. Eyes speak. Speech conveys. Actions felt. Not one time did I feel what’s reeling isn’t real. I was always a fan of their works, now I’ll be even more.

Joon, Hyesoeng, Jigu, Sunwoo, Minyoung, Heeja, Hyunjoo……. Characters not left but travel together with the story. Simple yet complex, chaotic but pleasant, not the whitest whites but the less greyer greys and the more greyer greys. Not just there but heard, felt. All the actors who played their respective parts, didn’t just play but pleased.

The direction, story, screenplay and cinematography…. One word- Nonpareil. Like no other was, is, will be. They just deepened my love for slow burn shows.

The OST’s wrapped all the beautiful parts of this drama carefully like flowers in a bouquet. Isn’t a necessity but beauty. Beauty that makes you wanna make it a necessity.

Although I might have been too poetic praising it, it still has its flaws. The slow, at sometimes, feels slower. Every so often, I wished I could get in and push a few. Some towards each other and some from the hill! So I bet people who are not interested in the slow pace will be skipping this away from the first episode. This drama is a love story but not your typical one. It is a revenge story but not your typical one. It has the family element but not your typical one. So if you’re looking for some typical stuff, you are on the wrong side of the track.

Anyways, now that you’ve read this much, it means you wanna watch it. So, WATCH IT AND CALL IT OFF AS LOVE!

Leggi di Più

Angst done well

Excellent on all fronts. Didn't expect to like this drama as much as I did but I did. This one's a bit of a slow burn -- lots of stretches of silence and meandering shots -- but it hits hard emotionally. Best of all, the angst completely makes sense.

Especially enjoyed the writing. Every character is a little bit annoying (some more than others) but also a little bit of a joy to have around on-screen. Everyone just feels very human. Really appreciate how the writer wrote every character's misery with care.

Also, really really love the fact Woojoo and Joon were completely platonic.

Leggi di Più

I wanted more Chemistry between the Leads

Subjective Gut Rating - 8.25

“Call It Love” is a melodrama through and through. The pacing is slow, the conversations are meaningful, and the romance is slow burn and quiet. South Korea really likes its revenge drama in all genres. However, what differentiates “Call It Love” from other revenge dramas is that love, healing and forgiveness are more central to the plot, than revenge itself.

I had high expectations before I watched this drama. Kim Young Kwang was the main attraction and he did not disappoint. What a versatile and amazing actor he is! From an adorable and sexy CEO in “The Secret Life of My Secretary”, to a psycho serial killer in “Somebody”, and now a lonely and sad CEO, he was just perfect for the lead role. Han Dong Jin (ML) is a man of few words and walks with a sad and slightly crouched posture. He exudes loneliness, yet his caring side shows when he’s with FL. Kim Young Kwang is able to portray subtle facial expressions and looks/eyes that can convey all he wants to say without actually speaking the words.

On the other hand, I have mixed feelings about Lee Sung Kyung’s portrayal of Shim Woo Joo (FL). I am happy to see her venture out of the rom-com genre and challenge herself to play this role. Shim Woo Joo is another sad and depressed character. However, I find Lee Sung Kyung’s acting one-note throughout most of the drama. She often maintains that one facial expression - a sad and bland look/gaze. I actually like her character in the first ⅓ of the drama. Woo Joo speaks her thoughts with no filter and no reservation. I like her no nonsense approach and doesn’t care what other people say. But then, she seems to lose that straightforwardness and barely utters a few words.

Another reason I want to watch “Call It Love” is because I was craving some angst and melo-romance. I thought this drama would satisfy this urge of mine but I am disappointed. The first few episodes reminded me of “My Mister”. When the romance starts to slowly build up, I was hoping for the angsty, sizzling chemistry similar to Mr. Gu + Yeom Mi Jung in “My Liberation Notes” or Lee Boo Jung + Lee Kang Jae in “Lost”. Unfortunately, I did not feel that tension and longing in Han Dong Jin and Shim Woo Joo. I do like how honest and open they are with each other (in their own introverted way). I enjoy the depth of their conversations. Without really having long conversations, they are able to speak their minds succinctly. But they don’t move me. I wasn’t sad. I didn’t cry for them. I didn’t pray that they could live happily ever after. The chemistry was not bad, but did not live up to my expectations. I am sure many feel very differently and am in love with the leads.

“Call It Love” does explore the message of healing and forgiveness. I do think the drama does a good job by showing the effects of the father’s betrayal and the mistress’ calculated scheme. Oh yeah, I hated ML’s mother but I’ve seen worse parents in K-dramas. However, the secret was so long drawn out. At times, I wanted ML to know the truth already, so we can deal with the aftermath and damage control. On another note, I like the somewhat dysfunctional Shim family and the love/hate sibling relationships. I love what Shim Hye Seong (eldest sister) said to ML that, their family doesn’t know how to comfort each other, and feels awkward consoling someone, thus, they went out to karaoke and party hard instead.

Love triangles technically don't exist in this drama and I’m glad a couple friendships did not turn into unrequited love. Men and women CAN have platonic relationships. I’d rather see more of the bromance between ML and his fellow CEO buddy, than the lukewarm secondary romance. I find Shim Hye Seong (sister) a little annoying in the beginning but I understand why she acts that way once we get to know her. Once the forced smiles are gone, she becomes so much more tolerable. Yoon Joon (pharmacist 2ML) is a great and loyal friend to FL, and I’m glad to see Sung Joon plays this role after being introduced to his handsome guy in “I Need Romance 3”.
Many commented on the pink tone and the use of different colored filters. It doesn’t bother me, nor does it add to how I feel about the drama. It just doesn’t matter to me, but it might to you. I also quite enjoy the OST.

Overall, this is a good melodrama if you are in the mood for a very slow burn and slow-paced romance. I just wanted more in the chemistry department to give this a solid 8.5+ rating.



Completed: 4/18/2023

Leggi di Più

Um drama que também tem como plot a vingança como tantos outros que já assisti este ano, a diferença é que a protagonista descobre que a busca pela vingança a estava destruindo. Quando finalmente deixou esse sentimento para trás ela conseguiu seguir em frente na vida, as coisas foram se ajustando, o mundo foi deixando de ter um filtro rosado e começou a ganhar cor kkkkkkkkkkk (eu e metade dos expectadores odiaram o filtro, mas o filtro tinha esse proposito narrativo também).

Foi legal acompanhar o desabrochar do romance entre os protagonistas e a dinâmica dos dois ganhando confiança em si e no mundo, tirando o foco das mágoas e se apaixonando. Foi bonito de acompanhar.

Leggi di Più