Tag: Lee Joon Hyuk

Review: Stranger

Posted October 1, 2020 by Rowena in Reviews | 0 Comments

Stranger

Male Lead: Cho Seung Woo
Female Lead: Bae Doona
Also Starring: Lee Joon Hyuk, Shin Hye Sun, Yoon Se Ah,Yoo Jae Myung, Lee Kyu Hyung, Moo Seong Choi
Year Released: 2017
Number of Episodes: 10
Genre: Drama
Country: Korea
Where I Watched It: Netflix
Recommended By: Bae Doona
Who I Watched It For: Bae Doona

Prosecutor Hwang Si-mok who, as a child, lost the ability to feel empathy joins a police lieutenant to try to uncover the true identity of a serial killer. While looking into the case, he must fight rampant corruption within the police department that continuously undermines the investigation. Si-mok vows to find the perpetrator within two months, but rumors about his violent nature pop up and lead to questions about his ability to lead the case. He eventually sets out to meet the person who he believes is the real murderer.

I chose to watch this drama because I saw that Bae Doona was in it. I became a fan of hers when I watched Sense 8 and wanted to see some of her other works so this worked out. This isn’t a romantic Korean drama. It’s a drama about an emotionless prosecutor who teams up with a police detective to find a serial killer. The writers of this show did a great job of bringing this everything together. The details, the characters, and the setting all played a part in making this show an interesting one. I had a couple of issues with the pacing in the beginning but I’m glad that I stuck with it because once everything came together, made sense and I got to know our main character, Hwang Si Mok better, the show really shined.

It took me a while to come to warm up to Si Mok’s character. He wasn’t a very likable person. Everything is black and white to him, there’s no room for the gray area that most everyone lives in and he’s not swayed by emotion so when things would happen around him, he didn’t react the way normal people would and I struggled with that and with him. The way that Bae Doona’s character, Han Yeo Jin was around Si Mok was exactly the way that I felt. She didn’t give up on him even though it would have been easier for her and I’m glad that she didn’t because they became a really great team that I came to like over the course of the show.

There were so many corrupt ass characters in this show that I spent a good amount of time pissed off at everyone and everything. But the more the story unfolds, the more interesting it was and the more interested I became in finding out how it all ended. So even though the pacing, in the beginning, was slow, the story picks up, the details fall in place and I was rewarded for sticking with this. Bae Doona was once again a freaking badass character that I adored and I want to keep watching her in another show and another show and another show. She’s so freaking great.

Final Rating

3.5 out of 5

0 Comments
Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Review: Be with You

Posted September 29, 2020 by Rowena in Reviews | 2 Comments

Be With You

Male Lead: So Ji Sub
Female Lead: Son Ye Jin
Also Starring: Park Seo Jun, Go Chang Suk, Lee Yoo Jin
Year Released: 2018
Genre: Contemporary, Fantasy, Romance, Family
Country: Korea
Where I Watched It: Viki
Watched It For: Park Seo Jun

On her deathbed, Soo Ah (Son Ye Jin) makes a promise to her husband, Woo Jin (So Ji Sub), and her son, Ji Ho (Kim Ji Hwan), that she will return to them a year after her passing. Wishing, rather than believing she would keep her word, Woo Jin and Ji Ho say their final farewells. With broken hearts, they do their best to pick up the pieces of their old life and try to move on.

A year later, the unbelievable happens. True to her word, Soo Ah returns home, the problem is, she has no recollection of her past life. With no idea of who she was or what Woo Jin and Ji Ho meant to her, Soo Ah does her best to find a place in their lives once again. Eventually settling into this new life, Soo Ah and her family experience happiness in ways they never dreamed would be possible again. But their happiness is short-lived.

Only able to stay with Woo Jin and Ji Ho for a short while, Soo Ah soon realizes that her time at home is quickly coming to an end. With hearts breaking all over again, Soo Ah must say goodbye to her family, only this time it’s forever.

Adapted from Takuji Ichikawa’s novel of the same name, “Be With You” is a 2018 romantic fantasy drama film directed by Lee Jang Hoon.

I’ve been meaning to check out something with So Ji Sub in it because my friend B Nice is a huge fan of his so when I came across this movie with you guessed it…Park Seo Jun, you know your girl had to watch it. This is another one of those movies where Park Seo Jun is in a very small part of the movie but it was still an enjoyable movie. It was sad and it was hopeful and in the end, it was warmed my heart to see how far both father and son have come.

So this movie is about a young boy and his father who are both grieving over the loss of their mother and wife. The boy, Ji Ho, misses his Mom a great deal but is hopeful that she will keep her deathbed promise to him about returning to him after a year has passed. His father, Woo Jin, doesn’t believe it and though he’s having trouble moving on, he’s doing the best that he can. When the year mark comes up, the unthinkable happens. Soo Ah, the mom, and wife that Ji Ho and Woo Jin have been missing shows up just as she promised, the story really picks up. A huge bulk of the story takes place during the time that Soo Ah returns to her family. She’s only there for a short period of time and part of that time is spent trying to catch up. When Soo Ah returns, she doesn’t remember Woo Jin or Ji Ho or her life with them so she does her best to get to know them again and rebuild what they had before.

This was a very emotional story and I connected with every single family member. They’re all trying their best to keep the memories alive and I really enjoyed seeing them bond as a family while Soo Ah was back. I loved the connection between Soo Ah and Ji Ho. I loved seeing how happy he was for her return, how hard he worked to make her return more comfortable for her, and I really, really loved seeing how happy he was when she showed up for his performance. The same for Woo Jin. I really loved seeing him fall in love with his wife all over again. I loved seeing the two of them get to know each other all over again and seeing their relationship told from his pov since she didn’t remember much of it was just great. There was enough romance in this movie to warm my romance-loving heart.

There was a lot going on in this movie and the emotions, the warmth, it all got to me. I really connected with this story and seeing Woo Jin and Ji Ho being able to move on with a heavy heart but hopeful for the future made me so happy that I watched this movie. It’s another good one and even though we only got to see Park Seo Jun, who played an older Ji Ho, for like five minutes, I was happy to see him when he finally enters the picture. Goodness, that guy is bomb. Anyway, if you’re in the mood to cry and want an enjoyable but emotional movie, this is the one for you. I definitely recommend it.

Final Rating

4 out of 5

2 Comments
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,