“Crash Landing on You” – Korean Drama Review 12

8/10: this was a very well-done comedy/love story where I grew to enjoy and appreciate the supporting cast just as much, if not more, than the main power couple!

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This was such an adorable drama!! I started watching it because it had an interesting concept, and very quickly I fell in love with the story, the main couple, and the supporting cast! This is one of the few dramas where the side characters were just as, if not more, interesting and hilarious than the main characters! Hyun Bin plays Ri Jeong-hyuk, an upright and noble North Korean military captain, and the lovely Son Ye-jin plays Yoon Se-ri, a feisty, slightly spoiled, but totally badass boss bitch South Korean CEO. Se-ri accidentally crash lands in North Korean (lmao), where she meets Captain Ri and his amazing group of subordinate soldiers. Hyun Bin is *mwah* chef’s kiss in a military uniform, let me tell you, lol.

[SPOILERS AHEAD]

One thing I appreciated about the romance in this drama was that there were actually high stakes and legit barriers to the main couple being together. It wasn’t like other asian dramas where there’s some stupid misunderstanding that causes a break-up, or the guy being a noble idiot and breaking up for some issue that could easily be resolved without devastating his girl. No, in this drama, the audience is fully aware of the potential ramifications and political upheavals that could occur if a North Korean military captain (who is son of a prominent military director) and a wealthy South Korean CEO try to “make things work” lol. Captain Ri and Se-ri were faced with real obstacles, and I could understand and relate to all the decisions they made, whether it was to protect each other, or their families (we can all imagine what would happen to Captain Ri’s parents if North Korea found out that their son was harbouring and protecting a “South Korean spy”), that made the drama very gripping and intriguing to watch. Also, omg Captain Ri is the sweetest most considerate stoic guy ever lol. Some of the things he does are cringe to the max, but the LADIES LOVE IT.

That being said, I’m very surprised but pleased to say that for once in my life, the main couple was not the star of the show for me. IT WAS THE SUPPORTING CAST, OMG. I really have to spend some time praising the writers and actors for bringing the side characters to life in such endearing and well-developed ways!! The five other soldiers under Captain Ri were all so dynamic, hilarious, and charming in their own ways!! Pyo Chi-soo is a stubborn slightly overly patriotic master sergeant who honestly grows on you so much once he shows that he actually has a soft side. Kim Ju-muk, my personal favourite, is a really cheerful corporal who is obsessed with South Koran asian dramas and therefore knows the most about life down south. He is the source of a lot of perfectly timed humour and sweetness! Geum Eun-dong is a really adorable and naive private who is the oldest in his family and sole breadwinner, but the youngest in this group, making him the younger brother everyone else feels especially protective of. And finally, there is Park Kwang-beom, a staff sergeant who is the strong silent type with kpop level good looks (one really funny moment happens when they are in South Korea, and he gets a lot of business cards from big kpop companies like SM and JYP because he was spotted off the street and “has the right look”. Of course, no one knew what that was all about, lol). There was also an amazing callback to “Memories of the Alhambra”, with Hyun Bin playing video games hahahaha. They even had the theme song playing dramatically! I loved it! Basically, these characters were largely for comedic effect, but their characters were well fleshed out and not over done, so I enjoyed them a lot!! The best humour in this show by far centred around the many misconceptions they had about South Korea, and watching the process of them discovering the many perks of capitalism LOL. THEY WERE SO ADORABLE AND CLUELESS HAAHHAHAHAHA. The beautiful group friendship that grew between Captain Ri and his men and Yoon Se-ri, was also the source of many touching moments. The guys loved and appreciated her spunkiness and kindness, protecting her and treating her as a sister. Similarly, Se-ri saw them as older and younger brothers, and she teased them, cared for them, and worried about them.

One other surprising aspect of this drama was the second male and female leads and the side couple story. At first, I wasn’t very invested in them, and I found the second female lead (Seo Ji-hye as Seo Dan) very unlikeable and arrogant and cold, which is the point, I guess. She was engaged to Captain Ri ten years ago, a classic asian drama troupe, and I just saw her as a shit-stirrer that created unnecessary drama. The second male lead, Gu Seung-joon (played by Kim Jung-hyun) was more interesting, a very charming smooth-talking guy who embezzled money from Se-ri’s second older brother and fled to North Korea. Despite his obvious character flaws and sleaziness, I actually found his character likeable and refreshing because he didn’t take himself or other people too seriously. As the drama progressed, both of these characters grew on me, and when they started getting involved with each other’s problems and helping one another and growing closer, I was really rooting for them. Gu Seong-Ju brought out Seo Dan’s warmth, and she steadied and matured him as a man. Their romance was honestly sooooo cute, and one of the saddest aspects of this show was that they didn’t get their happy ending together. I CRIED.

Finally, I thought it was very tasteful and wise of the writers and producers to portray all the characters fairly. North Korea wasn’t painted to be a wholly terrible place where everyone was either evil and corrupt, or starving and impoverished and stupid. And South Korea wasn’t portrayed as this beacon of excellence with only noble and upstanding people. There were antagonists from the North Korean side for sure, but the evil-doers from South of the border were perhaps even more awful because they were YOON SE-RI’S OWN FAMILY MEMBERS TRYING TO GET RID OF HER FOR THEIR OWN SELFISH AMBITIONS, LOL WTF. That choice of conflict was albeit a bit on the unrealistic side, and this is keeping in mind that the main premise of this drama is already pretty out there…a South Korean women literally crash lands in North Korea haha. But anyways, yes there were some politics involved, and you could definitely see the corruption in North Korea, but I think it was depicted in ways that served to further the plot, rather than just being disparaging, and I appreciated that. There was one scene where the soldiers and Se-ri were at a fried chicken restaurant in Seoul watching a soccer game with random other South Koreans, and seeing them unified in their cheering and excitement almost moved me to tears. Ultimately, I think this drama was made on the hope that one day, re-unification will happen between the two countries, and that families and loved ones will be brought back together once again.

 

 

“Master in the House” – Korean Variety Show Review

I love this show SO MUCH. It’s so FUNNY, but also so incredibly wholesome hahaha, it’s addicting, honestly. I came for Lee Seung-gi, but after only the first episode I was in love with the other hosts as well, Yang Se-hyeong, Yuk Seong-jae, and Lee Sang-yun. Their group dynamic and amazingly hilarious friendship is really what makes this show shine!

The basic premise is that these four men meet up with famous/influential/interesting Korean people (usually celebrities, singers, actors, athletes, or someone who made important impacts in their field), the “master”, and they spend two days with this person. They learn about the person’s life, try new things, share meals, and sleepover with him or her. Not only do you get to enjoy the amusing antics of 4 kidults (adults who sometimes act like children, lol), you actually learn a lot about Koran culture and gain many useful life lessons based on these famous Korean people’s lives. The many different values and philosophies bring so much unique character to the show! Along with the funny scenes, there are also so many very touching moments that really humanize the hosts and the guests. One of the things the show does really well is be real – we get to see the behind the scenes of the filming, as well as the genuine emotions and thoughts of the hosts and everyone they meet.

As I mentioned, I really love the group dynamic of the four hosts. They are all so different, but so funny in their own ways, and you can really tell how close they become as friends as the show progresses. Their interactions are so hilarious, but also each person’s individual quirks also create amazing television.

 

Give this show a try if you’re looking for a wildly entertaining show that leaves you smiling every time 🙂

UPDATE: I just heard the news that Yuk Seong-jae and Lee Sang-yun are leaving the show, and that their last episode will be aired in March…I’m very saddened!! The show won’t be the same without these two lovely guys. But, from what I hear, their reasons for leaving is to pursue their individual careers (Seong-jae is releasing his solo album and also preparing for a role in a drama, and Sang-yun is also wanting to focus on his acting career), so as long as it was a decision they made for themselves, I fully support them.

“Parasite” – Movie Review

I know, I know, I’m absurdly late to the party. I PROMISE I HAD WANTED TO WATCH THIS MOVIE BEFORE THE OSCARS WIN HYPE!! I just didn’t get a chance to because of the limited release in my country. Anyways, last night I watched it with my parents, sister, and fiancé…

[MILD SPOILERS AHEAD; I WOULD RECOMMEND GOING INTO THIS MOVIE WITHOUT AN IDEA OF THE SYNOPSIS]

And it was amazing, Bong Joon Ho is a genius, and all the actors were *chef’s kiss* mwah. I’m not sure if it’s because of the psychological bias of knowing it’s a critically acclaimed movie, but I thought it was pretty masterful. Not only was it a beautifully shot movie that seriously highlights the disparity between classes in South Korea, it was surprisingly refreshing and darkly funny as well. One element  I think that was particularly handled well was the the use of visual and verbal metaphors! There was one scene early on where the poor family is given a “lucky stone” that promoted prosperity, and the son said “this is so metaphorical” – I thought that was an incredible witty use of dialogue that not only set the tone, but also made the audience attuned to the heavily allegorical nature of the movie. The image of stairs and staircases was used throughout the movie as a physical manifestation of upper and lower classes; walking upstairs led to scenes in the affluent settings where things appeared polished and happy, whereas every time a character travelled down a flight of stairs, it denoted the character’s literal “descent”, a grim return to physical and moral poverty. Another motif that was the movie emphasized was the use of light and dark. The poor families that relied on the rich family were literally like parasites (during one scene the poor father even talked about cockroaches), emerging when it’s dark, and then scattering when the light shines.

Besides the brilliant dialogue and visual story-telling, this movie had everything: humour, suspense (trust me…A LOT OF SUSPENSE), action, gore, you name it. I guess that’s why people have a hard time putting it into a category. I would classify it as a comedy thriller, but that title doesn’t fully capture the social commentary aspect of the movie. I’m not sure if the movie is a realistic portrayal of Korean culture, of if it was exaggerated for dramatic effect, but the message of the movie was depressingly clear: society is cruel and will always make sure there will be people at the bottom. The ending especially, really drove the nail into the coffin. Instead of ending on an ambiguous note, or with a strong sense of potential for redemption and resurrection, the movie ends where it started – in a dingy, low-class basement. There is a sense of hope, but it is darkened by the reality that just because there is a will, there is not always a way. The movie did a really good job of making it difficult to choose a side. Who were the victims here? The gullible good-natured, but totally self-centred rich people who almost unconsciously scorned the lower class? Or was it the deceptive and resentful poor family who worked hard but continuously got struck down by society and circumstance?

I would highly recommend this movie to anyone! Don’t be discouraged by foreign language films; I promise you, having to read subtitles is a negligible downside!!