7
34
cheshire
Heaven's Night
Proceed with caution, if that makes sense.
'The Penthouse' is an SBS drama series which has been planned to have a total of 3 seasons. The show focuses on the lives of high society people who live in a luxurious apartment named the 'Hera Palace'. They'd do anything to protect their social status-- even if it means that they have to kill someone.3 seasons feel like a big stretch while the 1st season itself has 21 episodes. So, should you buckle up and watch 3 whole seasons of this show? Is it all worth it?
Firstly, let's talk about the plot. The first season of The Penthouse focuses on a murder mystery, a revenge plot and introduces its variety of characters to the viewers. A good revenge plot and a murder mystery is fun to watch, but does this show fall into the 'well-done' category? If you think logic and basic sense of knowledge, this show's plot lacks at that. Many conflicts made in the show would be quickly solved only if the writer had applied more common sense and logic to the story. However, the frequent plot twists and unpredictable situations definitely makes up for it. On the other hand, let's talk about the characters. Where do I even get started? The Penthouse sounds similar to the hit 2018 drama Sky Castle in many aspects. However, the characters of The Penthouse draw a big line. One moment you'd think one character in The Penthouse couldn't get worse, and then BOOM, the character turns out to be a whole lot more worse and just insane at one point. Most of The Penthouse characters don't have much sense of morality and they have very little humanity in them. One thing you need to acknowledge, is that no character in this show truly have a development or redemption. Is that a bad thing, you may think? Well, it depends on what kind of a viewer you are. Now you might also be thinking that how will you be able to watch something with 21 episodes where 9 out of 10 characters on an average are despicable? The evil characters and their insane actions make this show unpredictable, crazy and extremely addicting. You'll undoubtedly be hooked to it despite of the hatred it'll make you feel. This drama, in short, is an intense and over-exaggerated 'makjang' (soap opera), that is one of the most dramatic shows you'll get to watch. I believe anyone will finds themselves totally engrossed into the show-- as long as you don't take it too seriously.
Finally, about the acting. Many people will have issues with the acting and I have to admit, it is quite over-the-top at times. There's a whole lot of screaming, crying, throwing tantrums (or basically breaking stuff), shooting lazers from the eyes and a lot of... opera? I personally believe the acting style was pretty good and suited the plot well, and if I had to do a special mention, it'd be Kim So Yeon, who plays the role of Cheon Seo Jin. Her character is crazy, ruthless and one of the worst. And while Kim So Yeon's acting is also over-exaggerated, her overall performance was brilliant. The rest of the cast was great too, indeed.
For the music, I'd say it wasn't anything outstanding but it did the work pretty well. The scores they had suited the scenes perfectly and helped to set the dramatic mood much further. It would've done better for the show commercially if they had a memorable OST like the ones in 'Sky Castle' and 'The World of The Married'.
Overall, my rating for the first season of 'The Penthouse' is a good ol' 8 out of 10. 8 is a quite high score for me, so do I recommend this show? I do recommend. But, I personally believe it depends on what sort of viewer you are, as I mentioned earlier. You will either love and embrace the insanity of this show or you will not be able to tolerate it more than the first 3 episodes. But in the end, the question remains, is it worth for 3 seasons? That also depends on you but I personally doubt I'll be continuing. But then again, I might change my mind in the future when I'm in need of 100x stress and high blood pressure for no reason because I like pain :'). Thanks a lot for reading this excessively large and spoiler-free review, if anyone did read it and find it helpful!
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The little rom-com that could... but didn't.
Oh, I can't hide my disappointment with this one.I will say that I don't regret watching this although I may sound like I did. First off, let's talk about the beginning or the first half of the show-- which was amazing. Okay, it wasn't anything brilliant, and it started off with its fair share of 'romcom cliche 101', but it worked perfectly well with the characters they'd introduced to us. The refreshingly imperfect leads were a bickering pair I could watch all day. Their chemistry was cracking, and I had sparkles in my eyes and a big fat ugly grin on my face throughout episode 1 to 7. "Nothing could go wrong with a 12-episode K-drama, amiright?" -- is what I thought to myself.
I was wrong.
A show that could've easily gone out with a bang, instead, fizzled out with a fart and that's literally the best way I can put it. This is what happens when-- as if it's a trend with K-dramas nowadays-- they push in a bunch of dumb conflict just to fill out some screentime and a couple episodes. In this case, it simply felt like the writers didn't know how to handle things anymore. They had a vision, but then after episode 8 or 9, it's like they forgot all about it. Like amnesia. Now, that's the only cliche they missed out on in this show because the writers were suffering from it themselves. The cliches felt like they were in the plot as satire at first, which was fun, until they picked out the 'bad' cliches from their big ol' cliche book. The rest became a sloppy serve of a has-been romcom.
There's a lot of things wrong about this little k-drama-- bad inconsistent writing, awkward directing, a bit of meh acting tossed in here and there etc. I'd say it's not worth the headache. But personally, I'm still glad I watched it to the end. The first half is truly worth it-- it was an 'enemies to lovers' feast, for sure.
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This review may contain spoilers
Dramas with a moderately dark, controversial, and intense plots addicts me to it a LOT. And, 'Sachi-iro no One Room' is such a drama. The plot is pretty controversial, as you can see how it romanticized a case of kidnapping. But, if you check out the drama, you'd realize that it isn't exactly a case of kidnapping, as the supposedly stalker male-lead simply saved the female-lead from committing suicide and only asked if she wanted to live with him. She agreed, as she had given up on life. It was nothing serious for her to live with a stalker after getting abused by parents, bullied by classmates, and sexually harassed by her teacher. If you simply look into the drama, you'll find out how the story is interesting and how it would pull you into it- and the doubtful thought you had after seeing the summary would go away from your mind.
The actors are pretty good too and the simple-yet-so-satisfying cinematography would surely make you enjoy this short drama as much as I did. Plus, the OST is absolutely amazing. Recommended indeed!
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Definitely not what I expected
When I first found out about ‘He Won’t Kill, She Won’t Die’, the summary made me think ‘oh, just another edgy teenage romance huh’. But I loved what a delightful surprise this was.The plot of this movie isn’t anything extraordinary. The film followed three stories— an unfriendly guy who always tells others to die and a suicidal girl, a girl struggling with boyfriends who never actually seem to like her for who she really is and her friendship with a studious girl, and a determined girl who never gets tired of confessing to her crush despite the fact that she always gets rejected by him. Sounds uninteresting? Well, sometimes a film doesn’t need to have an outstanding story in order for it to be good, and this one is an example.
With a mesmerising cinematography, what this film does capture most correctly is the emotions and the feels of each scene. What makes this film so special is how it managed to execute this simple plot with in-depth characters and a great storytelling. The acting is really good too. This film surely reminded me of why I actually loved watching Japanese films the most.
Overall, a solid 9.0/10 for me. The rewatch value is low because it’s not really the kind of film that’s rewatchable, but not all good movies are worth a rewatch as the first times tend to give you feels that you might not feel the time you re-watch it. Thus, I highly recommend this film to everyone :)
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At the beginning, you will find yourself getting confused but it all starts to make perfect sense and the story comes all together in the mid-way.
In terms of acting, the acting was done nicely by the actors. There's not much characters in the short film but the actors did really great with their given roles!
For music, it was pretty mellow and it complimented the scenes really well.
Therefore, this web film is pretty worth watching! I recommend it if you're looking for something short and heart-warming!
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Firstly, I was very much skeptical to watch this movie since it kind of felt like it would be a real let-down, but because I adore a good zombie film and the trailer seemed a bit promising, I gave it a try. Honestly, the beginning of the movie is pretty weird and gotta say, quite awkward. It could be just me, but it was pretty awkward at first. But later on, things started to become better and I was able to enjoy it more than I imagined! I had 0 expectations for this movie, but it turnt out to be pretty good and quite a refreshing film with the comedy and it's been pretty long since I've watched a zombie film.
The story was very unique for a zombie movie, in fact. Most zombie movies would revolve around a certain group of people amidst an apocalypse and how they survive it, but the story of this movie is different and special. I guess the story makes this movie most charming.
The actors were great and they all played their characters reallly well. I knew they were good actors, so I wasn't expecting bad acting whatsoever.
There's not much of a music in it, but there is a song which suited the movie a lot.
I don't rewatch movies unless I really LOVED it. I enjoyed this one a lot, but I definitely didn't love it to the point that I would rewatch it. But probably, I would rewatch some years later or so when I completely forget what happened in it XD
In conclusion of this long and boring review, I recommend you to watch it! It's refreshing, unique, funny and would be great if you're bored and you're looking for something to spend your time! :)
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'Perfect World' is a love story which portrays the meaning of true love.
It was a beautiful movie. The story was amazing and heart-warming, at the same time, sad and heart-breaking. The cast did an amazing job in the movie! I definitely loved their characters and what I truly adored about the movie is its mindblowing cinematography! Really intriguing and mesmerizing!
In conclusion, I would recommend this to all. This was overall great and really enjoyable. 8.5/10 <3
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Revenge, dragged through the mud, Xiao Heng, potentially 2024's hottest stud--
First of all, I deeply apologize for the little piece of poetry that you had to read just now. I promise I'm sober as I'm writing this.Right when I thought (personal opinion) 2024 is turning up a bit dry compared to last year in terms of c-dramas, The Double came blazing though that barren field (personal opinion) with smoke and mirrors because I didn't even know about its existence until people began to talk about it upon its premiere.
Truthfully, for the first 20 episodes, I treated this drama like my topmost obsession. Equally clever (and sexy af) main leads with explosive chemistry and slow-burn romance? Check. A boiling hot yet calculative revenge against tremendously evil individuals? Check. Goosebumps-inducing soundtracks with gorgeous cinematography? Also, check. It seemed like the drama had pretty much everything going well for it. I loved the atmosphere, the revenge that was brewing slowly but surely and most of all-- I was all knee-deep and beyond thrilled for the romance to ACTUALLY happen because the sexual tension between the leads, in contrary to what prejudices and biased thoughts people tend to have towards actors who have a 5+ years age-gap, was nothing short of HAWT.
But, all of that was-- like I'd mentioned-- were my thoughts for the first 20-30 episodes. Although I knew it was still heavily flawed with moments of unnecessary off-putting humor that didn't exactly do what it was probably supposed to do, a filler-y story arc or two on which a good number of episodes were wasted on and a bunch of nonsensical stuff-- I still enjoyed it mostly for what it was. Until after episode 30, when I began to become a bit... tired of it?
By the moment they reached the climax of the long-planned revenge, I guess I'd lost my patience. I couldn't care less about how it would end for the antagonists because when you push the suspense too hard, it tends to crack. In this case, it definitely cracked. At least, for me. Plot becoming dry and draggy due to too many episodes is a common issue among Chinese dramas, and unfortunately, The Double is no exception. I feel like it would've benefitted greatly if they excluded a couple parts of the whole show that didn't necessarily need to be there.
Fine. Besides my faltering enjoyment for this drama towards the end of its run, I still think this drama was pure mindless entertainment. Very over-the-top, very soap opera, too convenient. If you pull out your brain plug by a bit, you'll find it entertaining too. Also, a quick little appreciation for the acting from pretty much the entire cast of this drama. Like, I can't even bring out a particular actor's name to praise them separately because I thought everyone equally gave their all into this. They served like their rent was DUE. The fantastic OSTs gave each scene that extra impact and spice, while the visually pleasing cinematography that well-utilized the characters' clothing, hair, accessories and the set designs brought everything together. The budget of production wasn't high, but they don't let you notice that. Kudos to that.
IN CONCLUSION, despite of the heavy flaws that make this drama far FAR from being the masterpiece it was actually never supposed to be, it's still highly entertaining for most of it. Imperfect drama, but PERFECT for a one-time watch ^^
Last but not least... You and your stylish array of hand fans will always be famous, Xiao Heng/Duke Su.
*SPOILER SPOILER*
That last episode was full of shit lmaoooo
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One HELL of a ride!
I think this was the single most consistently entertaining public TV k-drama to come out this year, no cap. I got so used to getting disappointed with kdramas after a particular number of eps that I was all READY for this to fall apart too... but guess what? This was pure fun. There was EVERYTHING-- a kickass fun FL, witty humor, role-reversal romance (I've been waiting for something like this!), fast-paced action, gore, and TONS of outfit changes!!!Firstly, miss Park Shin Hye CAME THROUGH and carried the drama on her shoulders. She finally escaped the typecasting hell after almost 20 years of her acting career and I couldn't be more happy for her lmao. I could watch her play the role of Kang Bit Na/Justitia for another 10 episodes easy because she was just THAT good. Kim Jae Young, on the other hand, was HOT and adorable. That man could just stand in one spot with his luscious hair and I'd still clap.
So yeah, this might be the BEST (public tv) kdrama to come out this year, because I highly doubt anything will surpass it in quality within these remaining 2 months.
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A love story that can restore love in any barren heart.
Frankly, I finished this over a week ago and-- yes. I still haven't entirely moved on. That being said, it took me a long while to come up with a review for this drama that will continue to hold a special place in my heart because I didn't want to simply rave about it. (lie)Firstly, what I loved about it? Pretty much everything. I went into it blindly-- expecting to drop it after the first episode since I avoid medical dramas like the plague. But what I definitely did NOT expect, was to be so quickly sucked into the world of its simple but powerful characters. All their charms solely lied on how humane they were. And rather quickly, I found myself feeling like a part of their little group-- as if I'd gotten attached to them personally.
But beneath its slice-of-life outer shell, is a deep love story between the two main characters-- a neurosurgeon whose life seems to have come to a halt as she's diagnosed with short-term memory loss, and a man who doesn't have the word 'impossible' on his dictionary... especially not, when it comes to the love of his life.
While I initially believed that intimacy played an important role in driving a love story, such as kisses or casual skinship-- 'Unmet' conveyed a love story that is deeply intimate, without showing any of the above.
Starring a cast full of talented actors you might have seen in several dramas/movies if you're familiar with Japanese films and TV, nobody stands out in a negative way. Everyone shared wonderful chemistry with one another, and a special mention for Sugisaki Hana's performance as the soft-spoken and utterly lovable Miyabi-sensei.
After all those positive stuff I just wrote, you must be wondering why I still settled with a '9'... Well, I won't say it's a perfect show (nothing really is). I feel like the antagonists were a bit too conveniently written, and cartoonish. It was a bit funny at times, but I'm not sure if it entirely suited the overall concept of this drama. Then again, I can be super nit-picky.
In conclusion, highly recommended. Even if you're not into the slice-of-life or medical genre, I strongly suggest you still give it a try. I'll miss this show deeply.
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Only Sex, No Love...?
I wasn't expecting much and ngl I thought this was just another cringey raunchy netflix flick at first glance, but then I thought "eh, why not?" and... it was a fun watch!This Taiwanese raunchy comedy centers around a messy but realistic family and their individual lives-- mostly their love and sex lives. A part-time vlogger girl who doesn't believe in love and has a friends-with-benefits with an unemployed guy who was born from an extramarital affair, her gay older brother, secretly a pro-gambler, who winds up signing a contract with a gangster dude, and the oldest sister who struggles with a sexually frustrating marriage.
A lot to unpack, just for 8 episodes. Each of the plots could've been fleshed out a bit better, but I get that the time constraint didn't allow much room for that. However, this was still very entertaining. Great acting, great chemistry between all the cast members and the raunchy comedy was very tastefully done, mixed with an adequate amount of emotional depth and sentiment. This drama might be a bit sexually graphic for some, but it made sense with the subject matter.
I do recommend this if you're willing to spend less than 8 hours on a steamy but heartwarming, hilarious but emotionally moving show! It's not perfect by any means, but it was definitely worth my time.
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So, when I discovered that the manga was having a live adaptation, I had a slight expectation that the movie would hopefully come out better, since there are times an adaptation comes out better than what it originally is adapted from. However, the movie let me down too. Worse than the Manga.
First of all, the story pace felt rushed right at the beginning of the movie. The female main character was somewhat annoying and puzzled (The actress wasn't bad) and the male lead was just another typical cliche character. There were many unnecessary parts in the movie and some small things they added in the movie which were absent in the Manga felt useless too.
I know that comparing an adaptation with the original work isn't a cool thing to do since it's just an adaptation. But seeing how I disliked the Manga, it was somewhat obvious that I would dislike the movie adaptation too. And believe me, even if you watch it without reading the manga, you still won't like it.
The only tad-bit positive part I found in the movie was the Opening theme song, I guess. That wasn't bad.
All I have left to say is that- I don't recommend this movie to anyone. However, it is totally up to whether you should watch it or not since people have different tastes and rejecting to watch something just by a review is kinda wrong. You should check it out yourself to see whether it matches your taste or not. But to my assumption, it probably won't.
I hope this review was helpful to you :)
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So, basically, if you've watched the drama, you should give the movie a try since this version is not a fail at all. If you haven't watched the drama version, I believe watching the drama version before this is a better choice.
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Predictable + Entertaining = Good Enough
I will admit-- I thought this movie was more about healing and overcoming past tragedies to welcome new beginnings, based on the synopsis and posters. However, I wouldn't say it's much about healing-- but rather, this is an action thriller film with hints of revenge drama that keeps you on your toes, but doesn't want you to use your brain too much.If I have to discuss about the story, there isn't much to say. There's not much to hate, but there's not much to praise either. Most of it was predictable, the plot twists didn't have much effect on the overall film's shock value and the characters aren't the type you haven't seen before. If I have to nitpick, some scenes were a bit too illogical for me to look past, the antagonists were cliche, and some of the choices made by the main characters were stupid (but I get it, since those choices conveniently made way for shit to keep happening throughout the 2-hour runtime). If you watch stuff for the plot and the plot only, I wouldn't recommend this film.
However, there's a pattern with Korean noir/action films that I've noticed as of late, upon watching another noir action drama the other day-- Ji Chang Wook's 'The Worst of Evil' (which I dropped, because it was just not worth 12 hours for me). The plot is a background character, the writing is not important. What IS important, is pretty much everything else-- the directing, the production, cinematography, acting, action scene choreography etc. They want you to focus on everything BUT the writing. It is a bit lazy and un-creative, but if you're looking to entertain yourself (and nothing more) with a movie, then these are it. This is it. I, on the other hand, care a lot about the writing of a film or tv series, so perhaps that's why I was pretty bothered with the screenplay throughout this movie. It didn't hinder my enjoyment way too much though, because 'Night in Paradise' is visually striking.
Now, to sum all the good points of this film up, the cinematography and acting from the main leads take the cake and eat it. Set conveniently in Jeju Island, the cinematographer didn't have to think too hard in order to make this film pleasant for the eyes. That, but the actions scene were nicely shot too and didn't make my eyes hurt from trying to find a point to focus on. Next, the acting performances were nothing short of amazing. This was my first time watching Uhm Tae Goo, and I might've become a fan. And Jeon Yeo Bin gave exactly what I'd expected from her-- excellence.
The music wasn't anything special, sadly. If the music slapped, I might've rated this higher.
In conclusion, this is an entertaining action film that's easy on the eyes-- and might've been a little too easy on the brain.
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'Go Back Couple' was a drama I heard about here and there but I didn't check it out then— and I did it now and totally an AMAZING drama!
Firstly, the story is so great! So creative and each episode taught me about different lessons in life. How a simple misunderstanding can ruin your life, how it would feel to lose someone so special to you— this drama taught me all about it.
The characters were highly realistic and it felt like I was watching an actual married couple going through so many problems. The character development is amazing too! You will experience all kinds of emotions while watching this drama!
It's cool how I didn't get the SLS because of the love triangle and I had rooted for the male lead the whole time!
Then there's the music. The OSTs and every music used in the drama suited it so good! It was excellent and the feels of the drama felt greater because of the music. The OSTs were great!
In the future, I'd definitely rewatch this drama since it's so freaking good! Sad how it's only 12 episodes but I guess that's what makes the story perfect and not too draggy or slow-paced.
Overall, an amazing drama and with all kinds of vibes to it– happy, funny, sad etc. Highly recommend everyone to give this a try! <3
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