Reviews

Well, didn't see this one coming.
I had just finished my first drama with So Ji Sub (Master's Sun) and was searching for another one of the same genre with him starring as well. Came across this one, and although an action/serious drama was everything I didn't want, I still gave it a try because, well, it's So Ji Sub. And, oh, thank God I did.

The story developed perfectly along the 20 episodes, although in my opinion there are way too many flashbacks and a few fillers. I loved how the flashbacks were displayed and how the quality was pretty different from the present time action.
I don't have many things to point out except I still have my doubts concerning some hidden cameras displayed in questionable flashbacks. Other than that, this drama got all my attention and was the best company for the last days of my holidays.

I had seen Ghost's poster before, but it never got my curiousity because it had Lee Yeon Hee and, well, I really don't like her acting from what I've seen of her. This drama didn't convince me otherwise. She's too... 1 dimensional. In my opinion (although I'm no acting expert at all), she still has a long way to go.
On the other hand, there's So Ji Sub and his eternal amused look with his sympathetic frown (it does make sense if you know what I'm talking about). Since I'm considerably new to So Ji Sub and thus I don't know him exactly well, I have to recognize he did a great job, but there's another actor that took the spotlight. Absolutely loved Kwak Do Won's acting. I saw him on Good Doctor, but his acting there is far from as good as it is in Ghost. He perfectly portrayed the frustrated and mad detective. I must agree with the awards given to the main cast. So, although I feel like taking a point off the acting, I think of both So Ji Sub and Kwak Do Won and I just can't. Lee Yeon Hee, I want to see more of your expressions. Being a pretty face isn't everything...

I took extra attention to the music ever since Phantom of the Opera's theme started playing out of nowhere. It caught me by surprise and it did scare my at first, but then whenever it played again I would just laugh. But that music isn't everything. Overall, the OST was pretty good. 10 points for P.O's sudden "Burn burn out out" at the end of one of the first episodes.

This drama exceeded all my expectations. Lately I've been into a melodrama, 16-episodes drama mood but this actually changed and surprised me. I recommend it to anyone who likes a bit of action, police-related series and really handsome boys. (y)

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Actually, I saw this film about two or three years ago when I was a total newbie and discovering things step by step. The current me would never ever watch these types of things even if you pay me.

I saw this film by chance when I was browsing through some pages and I realized that I forgot to add it. You see even the newbie me didn’t like this and found it quite ridiculous; I am sure I would’ve rated it 5/10 at the time but now, even 3/10 is still too much. I am being a little bit nice.

Well, I don’t usually write negative reviews; I prefer publicizing the good dramas and films instead but this time around, I just had to go a little against my general rule and I don’t mind being hated for my straightforward thoughts. I will try to keep things shorter than usual because this doesn’t deserve any length.

This film’s story felt so unoriginal at first, and then it failed to deliver anything that grabs the attention, it was seriously boring to follow. Those who are watching this for romance would find this quite lacking and very disappointing. Yes, I am not romantic stories’ lover but I can list several average films that would beat this one to pulp. I am sure that even the fans of the genre would find this film’s story absurd if not unwatchable.

The acting was unbalanced, untrue and absolutely unbelievable. I felt like the director was putting a knife on the actors’ throats to make them act or something, they just couldn’t grasp their characters. But maybe the actors are originally bad that the director who’s already in deep trouble for creating a bad storyline didn’t care any longer what happens with his movie. The chemistry was disastrous, obviously forced without any feelings to portray.

Watch if:
- Well, I am going to leave this blank because I don’t want to recommend it to anyone except those who accept any type of romantic stories.

Do not watch if:
- You want to watch a good romantic story.
- You want to watch it for Mike He. Really, this doesn’t deserve the trouble.
- You’re looking for chemistry or something cute.

Love at Seventh Sight had storyline issues and major acting problems but the main element to blame for this foolish film is the director who failed to make things balanced.

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The Punisher (also known as the more striking “Days of Wrath”) takes a pessimistic stab at the aftermath of bullying. It is a violent and disturbing tale, relentless in its depictions of physical and emotional abuse, rape, and sexual harassment. For those sensitive to these subjects, please take care in moving forward. As someone who rarely is, I still found myself quite affected by what was shown.

We start with a strong premise, and the initial twenty minutes are particularly promising. A good chunk of the emotional foundation is established after that point. From here, the story primarily deals with the troubled lead character and his actions once fate brings before his high school bully as an adult. What I enjoyed most about this film how human Joon Seok was; he was no mastermind or powerfully connected avenging knight. His pain was real and easy to connect with. There are also real instances of suspense, though mostly near the end; most of the intensity comes from the disturbing nature of the content.

Unfortunately, the middle sections of The Punisher are somewhat meandering and reliant on coincidence; certain events rely on the character knowing just how an event will play out. All but the lead actors play bare shadows. Several actors and actresses come and go in the narrative, serving more expositional purpose than anything else. As such, it’s hard to get a real feel for their talents, or even the real importance of their characters.

Joo Sang Wook often portrays dapper authoritarians, a fact he has frequently lamented in the media. Perhaps some of that irritation will now subside, because his Joon Seok is a wholly different animal. Of hollow eye and haunted expression, this character has barely held it together since his hellish teenage years. He is anything but suave here, barely recognizable; of particular note must be the scene in which Joon Seok first sees his tormentor again as an adult. The pure fear and honest trauma is just flooring. Our other lead, Yang Dong Geun, portrays the utterly despicable Chang Sik. Unfortunately, The Punisher marks the first time I've seen this actor; the frightening portrayal will not be soon forgotten.

A quick honorable mention to Kim Kwon as the young Joon Seok: he single-handedly set the atmosphere for the entire film with a nervous laugh. His is a career to watch.

While watching the music is noticeable, in a good way. Heart-thumping tracks, others which will keep the viewer on the edge of their seats, tragic and wordless vocals. My favorite is the ballad covering the credits; after the effects of the film, the results were chilling. Otherwise, nothing to add to the old MP3 player.

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I realized something after watching this drama, I'm not much of a fan of Ahjussi-romances. This drama wasn't bad, but it wasn't my cup of tea (or hot chocolate, considering I don't really like tea).

I really liked it, even loved it, at the beginning! It was funny and I enjoyed watching it. But eventually it got boring and I had a hard time trying to catch up with the episodes.

The story is good. I'm not into politics AT ALL but this wasn't THAT boring. Sometimes I didn't understand some stuff but I ignored it so all was fine. The conflicts presented were good and the mystery around the Prime Minister's wife's death and Chief Kang was interesting too. Yet, I didn't care much about anything after watching half of the episodes. I honestly think it had more to do with me than with the drama...

The characters were OK. To be honest, I didn't care much about them either. I was glad Prime Minister Yul was portrayed with the maturity he should have. The other characters were OK but not that memorable. Seo Hye Joo was a character that confused me. I liked her when she was bad-ass but then I didn't like her when she got all emotional. I really liked Park Joon Ki even though he was the villain. He was a good villain. And he was cute despite being old. ;)

My favorite characters, though, were the kids, particularly Man Se! It surprised me how amazing their acting was! Jeon Min Seo as Na Ra did a spectacular job! And Man Se was so adorable!

A lot of people were disappointed with the ending but I thought it was OK. I think they wrapped up pretty nicely and I'm fine with the fact that they left the future to the audience's imagination. Maybe if I cared more about the drama I would've been disappointed with the ending but right now I'm fine with it.

Overall, it was a good drama. I'm pretty sure many of you would like it, and do like it, but it just wasn't for me.

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overall this drama is good one and worth watching.i actually watched the first ep and gave up,then thanks to mydramalist and all the review,i decided to continue watching it.i enjoyed watching it after that.but can't help but be bored when i was watching the middle part of the drama and wish for it to be over soon.i was tired of waiting for the drama to end.for me,i prefer reply 1997 more because of the cast and maybe because i think 1997 is more lighter than this one which had more characters and story.21 ep is wayyy to long for me i guess.i really like watching samcheonpo's awkwardness.lol

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This drama is one which just makes you happy. Sometimes after watching loads of melodramas and action dramas etc. you might feel drained and just physically tired you know what I mean. And a nice sweet romantic comedy is just what you need to pick you up. Its a cute fun drama with elements of family and politics but mainly just cuteness. Its not a hardcore drama that's going to have you on the edge of your seat but I know sometimes I just want an easy watch with fun elements. And that's exactly what i got. The story itself isn't reaching new heights in script writing but the actors bring it to life and you have an emotional connection to the characters your happy when their happy and sad when their sad. Its just a really sweet drama that's nice and easy to watch and makes you feel happy on the inside.

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I just positively had to write a review on this drama. Had to.
If you're thinking of watching this drama but being put off by the 46 episodes, as I initially was, I have to say- don't worry! The episodes aren't as long as those you'll find in some dramas, and you'll find yourself flying through them.

With those 46 episodes in mind, I guess it's obvious to say that a lot happens in this drama. The story is a classic one of fighting the good fight for the good of the people, with a thrilling and beautiful romance (and love triangle!) to spice it up. I almost want to say that the romance is a bit too much, considering it feels like the center of our love triangle becomes a plot point more than anything, but it's definitely excusable.

There are several different arcs that we see our characters go through, and the characters also naturally develop with the story. By the time each character reaches their peak in the show, you've basically had a complete rundown about why they are the way they are, why they're doing what they're doing, and what your opinion is on them. This drama has much better developed characters than most in the sense that there are literally no characters I can think of (besides one that becomes irrelevant fairly early on) that I hate COMPLETELY. Of course there are moments of frustration, but even then you can definitely understand where they're coming from. This is a far cry from the usual drama antagonist, the ones that raise hell for no other purpose besides raising hell. It was refreshing.
Now, I'm complimenting the characters and their development, so you might be wondering why I didn't give a '10' to the Acting/Cast... well, that's honestly for no other purpose besides some brutal overacting in occasional places. But thankfully enough, those expressions that were overacted were at least fairly accurate!

The music was flawless. Nothing else needs to be said about that. Trust me.
Side note as well- this was a very... well... simply put, it was a very pretty drama. Besides the occasional questionable CGI sequence (that I'm fairly positive would only bother a perfectionist like me), the aesthetic qualities of this drama are worth being noted. Both in scenery and in people's faces. The Prince of Lan Ling isn't exactly unpleasant to look at if you know what I mean. And the clothes! The costumes! They were gorgeous, I feel like the people who made the clothes were having the time of their lives designing those clothes. Don't even get me started on the hair, which was almost* completely flawless. (* I think one of the actors had the occasional allergic reaction to the wig glue or something, I don't know man.) Basically, it was a very pleasing drama to look at.
Rewatch value is only a 9 for length, but the depth of the story, characters and romance will no doubt make for an engaging, interesting watch every time.

Ugh. This was just such a satisfying drama! Just watch it! I no doubt have more to say but it isn't occurring to me right now.

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This movie is twisted with a capital T. I had my reservations going into it after seeing the low MDL score, but I’m glad I viewed it. Just like any other movie, you have to be in the mood to watch the genre—in this case a psychological thriller about a split-personality psychopath.

Overall the story is okay. The theme revolves around the damaging effects bullying can have on a person. You truly feel sympathy for young Juzou and the torture he suffers at Akai’s hands.

However, the movie could have been better if not for the ending. As a middle of the road movie viewer, I found I had to work really hard to understand the final twist. While I don’t like in your face endings, I also dislike obscure endings you have little hope of figuring out. Without spoiling the ending, it involves the viewer reconsidering what Juzou's reality actually is against what could have been.

On the plus side, there are a few artistic highlights that make the movie above average. First are the imaginary house scenes where Juzou struggles with his internal other self. Second, is a part where live action changes into animation. Finally, there are a number of graphic scenes I found utterly disturbing--but in a good way.

The acting was believable by the three leads – Oguri (Juzou), Arai (Akai) and Nakamura (No. 13). Oguri plays the damaged socially inept Juzou well. No offense to Nakamura, because he did a solid job of No. 13, but I would have liked to have seen Oguri play his own alter ego. Arai as Akai was also good—I hated him for being a jerk as a kid and even more so as an adult. That must be testimony to his acting skills.

Overall, a good watch if you’re into psychological thrillers and ready to wrap your brain around the final mystery that is Juzou and No. 13.

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Well,basically, I felt a need to write a review for this show. When I think about it, Heirs wasn't SUCH A DISASTER, neither did it live up its hype as it had its own strengths too (along with its many flaws). I didn't like it alot though, mainly because park shinhye's acting (really sorry psh fans, understand that you must have your own reasons for liking her).

Let's start off saying, this show had SOOOO much potential. It had a wide selection of talented actors and actresses as well as its fair share of enjoyable OSTs. I'm not kidding - as much as I grew to hate kimtan though I loved him at the start, Lee Minho is as talented an actor you can get. I really wanted the super-popular woobin to see what was so great bout him - and he didn't disappoint! DIdn't like his character at the start but grew to root for him and feel for him :') an cry for him too.Kang Haneul and Choi Jin Hyuk did a great job playing their roles Hyoshin and ChoiWon (love rivals too), the girl they loved, Hyunjoo did a fab job too. One of the few times I remembering tearing and crying in the show was because of them! so *applause* for them! Kang Minhyuk and Krystal did a GREAT JOB as Chanyoung X Bona, absolutely loved them , they're one of the reasons I kept watching. I loved Kimtan's and Eunsang's mums together too. THey're so adorable! ALso one of the pairs that kept me through the show. Park Hyunsik fro ZE:A proved that idols can act too! He was so cute and I loved him lots as Jo Myungsoo

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when i watch the trailer of this series last January 2014 here in Philippines,i was stun by the story,its uniqueness and i instantly recognized the face of shi min ah b'coz of gumiho actually im not her fan "before". But when i watch arang and magistrate i immediately fell inlove with the story along with the whole cast, Lee joon ki is very good in his role, he deliver it well as well shi min ah. Action, murder drama and love story are in one series(arang and magistrate).You like riding in roller coaster because you don't know what will happen next. There are times the story is very slow but it worth waiting. The love triangle is so unbreakable,they are twist, jealousy and cuteness which i love it.The ending is rare i really don't expect it will happen but i want more, something the fill you up but maybe they have part 2 on this series. I want to congrats to all the staff of arang and magistrate you give us new meal in our menu. WORTH WATCHING AND SOMETHING THAT STAY FOREVER IN OUR HEART..

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This is a pretty cool movie. It even had me thinking (for all of 5 minutes) that maybe I should try mountain climbing. Ha.

If you're into mountains and/or rescue themed movies, you might enjoy this one. The first five minutes alone are full of beautiful snow-capped mountains and riveting camera shots. Maybe this idea has been done already, but as I was watching the film, I thought this could be a cool drama. Each episode would revolve around a set of characters who at some point, need to be rescued from the mountain.

I recently watched Oguri in a movie where he plays an introvert with anxiety issues. In this movie, he plays Sanpo, an optimistic mountaineer who smiles even in the face of death and adversity. Seeing him excel at playing characters with opposite personalities just amazes me. He is truly a versatile actor.

Nagasawa also does a decent job of playing Kumi. I think, however, the writers could have downplayed her naiveté. It just seemed unrealistic to have an inexperienced newbie join such a demanding rescue squad without a better understanding of what she was getting herself into.

Pros
Oguri, breathtaking snow-capped mountains, rescue scenes, and a portrayal of having a positive outlook

Cons
The movie drags at times and many of the characters seemed a bit two-dimensional for my taste

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