For its tight script, wonderful characterisation, supreme lighting, consistent performance, and well, music, this is simply the best of all Korean dramas.
No more Cinderella's story, it is a refreshing drama every walking adults can relate to; on dreams and how we can either let it fade away to succumb to 'ordinariness' or overcome the biggest enemy - ourselves, to make it stay alive. For the first time ever, Korean drama steers clear away the conventions on how a woman is judged. Like many a great drama, the supporting cast are given solid and interesting roles, with each exploring a different social dimension in real life. It is a drama that focuses on one's ultimate concern: how to make a success of ourselves with what we are endowed with; be it innate talents or the circumstances we find ourselves in.
The pace of the first five episodes is so compelling it can work brilliantly as a standalone mini-drama.
What intrigues me as well is the lighting in the night scenes. For too long now, I was under the impression that Korean television dramas would always by default resort to flood lighting even when the characters are supposed to be fast asleep or cannot afford the utility bills. The lighting in the house where the two heroes share, especially the ground floor, can compare to the best of those seen in a British counterparts. Given their interest and profession, realistically so.
There should be more intelligent dramas like this.
PS: One Sunday and three nights afterwards, I finished watching the 18 episode drama last night. The unexpected ending, leaving loose ends on all accounts, makes this drama stand out even more from the rest. Now I wonder how come I was put off by You Are Beautiful even with Jang Geun Suk in it.
October 31, 2011
An education
Last Friday was a good day for me; I found three films on my list with one of them being An Education, starring the stunning Carey Mulligan. Once I put it on the DVD player, it was like a beam of civilisation was shining on me; it is an instant hit and I was mesmerised by both the storytelling and the performance.
Although I had read the rave reviews on Carey Mulligan, her immaculate performance is still beyond my expectation, and like the Danish director Lone Scherfig remarked: she is a natural. There are many a great moment; one of which being the scene in which she dances with Danny: her intense look is both innocent as appropriate of a just-turned-seventeen year old schoolgirl and seductive as an intelligent lady 'with good taste', making it extremely convincing indeed for the conman to snatch her away from his friends and propose to her straight afterwards. Her quality of a child-woman and probably her hair style as well, draws comparison to a young Audrey Hepburn in The Roman Holiday. Although it is an all star cast, Carey, then still a budding actress, has made the film her own. What surprises me most perhaps is when I checked on the web, I found for the first time she was Kitty in Pride and Prejudice (2005); and Ada the orphan in BBC adaptation Bleak House, which I had watched but failed to identify in this film.
Another surprise 'find' is perhaps Peter Sarsgaard, in the role of the charming Jewish conman. And what a brilliant yet understated intrusion to the scene when he he winds down the window to make a perfect appropriate offer for Jenny to put her wet cello in his car (in the name of his love for music) and for her to walk alongside the car!
For the chemistry between the lead couple, and the dazzling life Peter seems to be offering to a bright sixteen year old living in a suffocating suburban London house, the film would still be one of the best films in 2009 if it finishes at Jenny accepting Peter's proposal and leaves her Oxford dream astray. The last quarter of the film is sombre in tone yet turns the film into another category; that of how to deal with the mess we find ourselves in.
I am intrigued by the fact some of the deleted scenes are offered as special feature. For me, that decision in itself is a tribute to the film's editor and is proving yet again that less is more.
Although I had read the rave reviews on Carey Mulligan, her immaculate performance is still beyond my expectation, and like the Danish director Lone Scherfig remarked: she is a natural. There are many a great moment; one of which being the scene in which she dances with Danny: her intense look is both innocent as appropriate of a just-turned-seventeen year old schoolgirl and seductive as an intelligent lady 'with good taste', making it extremely convincing indeed for the conman to snatch her away from his friends and propose to her straight afterwards. Her quality of a child-woman and probably her hair style as well, draws comparison to a young Audrey Hepburn in The Roman Holiday. Although it is an all star cast, Carey, then still a budding actress, has made the film her own. What surprises me most perhaps is when I checked on the web, I found for the first time she was Kitty in Pride and Prejudice (2005); and Ada the orphan in BBC adaptation Bleak House, which I had watched but failed to identify in this film.
Another surprise 'find' is perhaps Peter Sarsgaard, in the role of the charming Jewish conman. And what a brilliant yet understated intrusion to the scene when he he winds down the window to make a perfect appropriate offer for Jenny to put her wet cello in his car (in the name of his love for music) and for her to walk alongside the car!
For the chemistry between the lead couple, and the dazzling life Peter seems to be offering to a bright sixteen year old living in a suffocating suburban London house, the film would still be one of the best films in 2009 if it finishes at Jenny accepting Peter's proposal and leaves her Oxford dream astray. The last quarter of the film is sombre in tone yet turns the film into another category; that of how to deal with the mess we find ourselves in.
I am intrigued by the fact some of the deleted scenes are offered as special feature. For me, that decision in itself is a tribute to the film's editor and is proving yet again that less is more.
Secret sunshine
If the angst-ridden film stopped mid-way at the prison scene where the heroine offers her full forgiveness to her son's killer, then it would be a flop and I would stop watching Lee Chang-dong then and there. To my relief, it goes on for another hour or so on how the now disillusioned woman takes revenge on the religion that has once lifted her from extreme pain of losing her beloved son, the townspeople that lead her to put her trust on God, and, finally, even the man who really deserves her affection and love. After a painful journey that ends with rehabilitation after a suicidal attempt, the finale is a 'blank's shot: storming out from a haircut by the reformed daughter of her son's killer, she sat at her sun-lit backyard to finish the cut at home. Her hair falls to the ground, the camera tracks them, and then stays on the dirt before the closing credits come up. Whose point of view is it? The director or the protagonist? And what does it mean? Life is meaningless like the dirt on the ground? Though rather baffled, I have now come to realise there couldn't be a more apt finale, especially given it is from a director who is known for his critics on the contemporary society.
Like other two films I have watched from him, Secret Sunshine tells the lonesome and uneasy struggle of an ordinary citizen who is left to her own device when given a bad deal in life. In Green Fish, it is a bright young man whose fatal encounter with the mistress of a mobster that leads to his demise in a desolate town where none of his family members are finding life easy. In Peppermint Candy, it is the traumatising experience of a young man in the army during the military regime that sows the seeds of his gradual disintegration. None of them makes a comfortable watch, but who says film is for entertainment only?
Like other two films I have watched from him, Secret Sunshine tells the lonesome and uneasy struggle of an ordinary citizen who is left to her own device when given a bad deal in life. In Green Fish, it is a bright young man whose fatal encounter with the mistress of a mobster that leads to his demise in a desolate town where none of his family members are finding life easy. In Peppermint Candy, it is the traumatising experience of a young man in the army during the military regime that sows the seeds of his gradual disintegration. None of them makes a comfortable watch, but who says film is for entertainment only?
October 28, 2011
Goong
In Korean drama, two total strangers usually enter into a most improbable contract that will bind them together for an agreed period of time. Because of the ostensible conflicts in character, the disparities in their backgrounds and, the initial prejudices against each other, the most unlikely setup allows ample room for conflicting characters to learn and relearn each other and even some of the most basics in life. Such popular plot has produced some of the most entertaining dramas from Korea, such as Full House, My Lovely Sam-soon, My Girl, and Lie to Me, to name but a few. To appreciate them, a prerequisite imposed on the audience is to ignore how implausible such scenario is in real life.
While Goong is nothing anew in it, it demands more from the audience: to be told upfront to intertwine fantasy with reality; to participate in a masquerade where the long abolished monarchy is sound and well in present Korea; and allow the characters to move fairly freely between the medieval and contemporary Korea. An engaging character study, Goong captures how characters from different background respond and interact with each other while confronted by the many rigid rules of an ancient entity on one hand, and a freewill spirit of modern society on the other.
Despite its sluggish pace, especially the scenes that involve the mother queen wonderfully played by one of the most graceful actress Kim Hye-ja, the story is intriguing. At the beginning, my main purpose is but to check out the 'breakout' performance by Yoon Eun-hye, but within two episodes, I was drawn by the amazing chemistry between her and the two princes, let alone the understated use of chamber music and the fantastic art direction which provides us a stunning visual treat in the compound of the royal household.
Yoon Eun-hye is more confident and versatile as an actress in her follow-up role as a cross-dressing girl in Coffee Prince. And I also find the quiet but confident performance from Kim Jeong-hoon remind me of Rye Shi-won in his Beautiful Days and Wedding days.
Though also a drama mainly for the teen market, I find it a lot easier to enter the over the top game than those that offered in You Are Beautiful and Boys Over Flowers.
While Goong is nothing anew in it, it demands more from the audience: to be told upfront to intertwine fantasy with reality; to participate in a masquerade where the long abolished monarchy is sound and well in present Korea; and allow the characters to move fairly freely between the medieval and contemporary Korea. An engaging character study, Goong captures how characters from different background respond and interact with each other while confronted by the many rigid rules of an ancient entity on one hand, and a freewill spirit of modern society on the other.
Despite its sluggish pace, especially the scenes that involve the mother queen wonderfully played by one of the most graceful actress Kim Hye-ja, the story is intriguing. At the beginning, my main purpose is but to check out the 'breakout' performance by Yoon Eun-hye, but within two episodes, I was drawn by the amazing chemistry between her and the two princes, let alone the understated use of chamber music and the fantastic art direction which provides us a stunning visual treat in the compound of the royal household.
Yoon Eun-hye is more confident and versatile as an actress in her follow-up role as a cross-dressing girl in Coffee Prince. And I also find the quiet but confident performance from Kim Jeong-hoon remind me of Rye Shi-won in his Beautiful Days and Wedding days.
Though also a drama mainly for the teen market, I find it a lot easier to enter the over the top game than those that offered in You Are Beautiful and Boys Over Flowers.
October 25, 2011
The classic
A classic tear jerking love triangle, with both Son Ye-jin and Jo Seung-wook giving great performance.
This is another successful creative output from Kwak Jae-yong, famed for his international hit My Sassy Girl. Pity its follow-ups such as Daisy and My Mighty Princess are less impressive though.
This is another successful creative output from Kwak Jae-yong, famed for his international hit My Sassy Girl. Pity its follow-ups such as Daisy and My Mighty Princess are less impressive though.
October 24, 2011
Footnote
I was given a mug last week after topping up my skin care products with a certain Korean brand. When I opened the packaging at home, I found that was no ordinary mug - for it features Hyun Bin, one of my favourite Korean actors. The old me would have by instinct either given it away to a friend or neighbour, or put it on the top shelf of the cabinet for visitors. The new me though sported a wry smile when she put away the wrapping, rinsed the curvy mug, and decided to have a cup of tea with Hyun Bin, every morning.
Hyun Bin looks immaculate on the mug, if not a little bit feminine in one of them that features a white lace top. Though I would like to believe his claim that he has never undergone any plastic surgery, other fans believed otherwise.
Plaster surgery or not, the trouble is, once you realise how common it is among Koreans, males or females, the idea creeped in whenever you see a perfect face: is it entirely a gift of nature or, more enhanced by knife? When the story is gripping and the performance is good, this might not spoil your viewing experience. But still, at times, you catch yourself wondering whether a less immaculate face would have been more convincing for a certain role.
Hyun Bin looks immaculate on the mug, if not a little bit feminine in one of them that features a white lace top. Though I would like to believe his claim that he has never undergone any plastic surgery, other fans believed otherwise.
Plaster surgery or not, the trouble is, once you realise how common it is among Koreans, males or females, the idea creeped in whenever you see a perfect face: is it entirely a gift of nature or, more enhanced by knife? When the story is gripping and the performance is good, this might not spoil your viewing experience. But still, at times, you catch yourself wondering whether a less immaculate face would have been more convincing for a certain role.
Marathon
What a heart warming story! And a triumphant showcase that the country has some of the best talents in the region when it comes to scripting, directing and acting.
I have seen Jo Seung-woo in both Wanee and Junah and Who R U?, but Marathon is no doubt the best performance from this most talented actor. I am looking forward to check out The Perfect Games, another 'sports' film, to see if he can live up to my expectation now raised so high by his natural performance as an adolescent handicapped by autism but finds back his own voice through participating in a marathon.
There is hardly any plots per se, yet plenty of soul searching in the minute depiction of the mother and son relationship when they forge ahead to overcome the challenges encountered by 'a special child' and those around him.
I wasn't so impressed by the director, Jeong Yoon-chul's later work If I Was a Superman, although it stars two of the country's best actors.
I have seen Jo Seung-woo in both Wanee and Junah and Who R U?, but Marathon is no doubt the best performance from this most talented actor. I am looking forward to check out The Perfect Games, another 'sports' film, to see if he can live up to my expectation now raised so high by his natural performance as an adolescent handicapped by autism but finds back his own voice through participating in a marathon.
There is hardly any plots per se, yet plenty of soul searching in the minute depiction of the mother and son relationship when they forge ahead to overcome the challenges encountered by 'a special child' and those around him.
I wasn't so impressed by the director, Jeong Yoon-chul's later work If I Was a Superman, although it stars two of the country's best actors.
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