Star in My Heart (1997)

Star in My Heart, I originally started watching this on a whim, I added it after a random find. After watching Reply 1997 I felt in the mood to watch an older drama, one that ironically also came out in 1997. So needless to say, when I started watching this I didn't have much expectation for it. The oldest Kdrama I had watched before this one had come out in 2006.

From the first episode I knew I was going to like this drama. It starts off with Yun Hee as a high school student, taken out of an orphanage by a friend of her father. She's taken into his rich family and inherits an arrogant step mother, an annoying step sister and a creep step brother. Typical Cinderella start out. But the story progresses little by little until Yun Hee is already half way through college. The time gaps, I will note, did confuse me a little. They're implied by change of hair or change of events, it's not stated how much time has passed, rather something you have to pick up on yourself.

The story overall was good. While nowadays it may be clichéd, Star in My Heart was one of the dramas that paved the way for modern Kdramas. To me, I found it really refreshing and a nice change of pace. There wasn't the over amount of angst and drama, but rather just the right amount. Another thing I loved was the lack of confusion between the leads. There was some, but they understood each other. And the love triangle is really hardly there at all. But it didn't take away from the drama at all, actually it made me like it more.

The acting was done really well. Choi Jin Sil did an excellent job as Yun Hee, and I was really sad to hear about her death. Yun Hee was a character who stood up for herself. She had her limits and didn't let the petty things get to her. And the actress also portrayed someone else in the drama, really contrasted her original character. Ahn Jae Wook as Min Hee was also really well done. I loved his character! He has such an amazing voice, too, and I'm pretty sure he was singing live during the show. Most of the times in modern dramas it's often lip synching through audio when it's supposed to be live. Cha In Pyo as Joon Hee was also a favorite. Not getting as much screen time until later on, but becoming one of the most important characters in this drama. His character was always supportive and he knew what he was doing as a leader.

Other characters, such as Yi Hwa, Yi Ban and their mother did their roles fine. Yi Hwa was probably the most annoying character in the drama, but her mother followed closely behind. Yi Ban was annoying, but I found his character pathetic and wimpy and couldn't help but laugh at his character on screen at serious moments.

The music was the best part of the drama. The soundtrack has become a favorite of mine now. As I mentioned above, Ahn Jae Wook has an amazing voice! Such songs as "Forever" and "Hurt" have lingered in my head even after I finished watching. The theme song "Always Beside You" is also nice. As are all the instrumentals.

I don't normally rewatch that many dramas, simply because there's always a drama I haven't seen calling my name, but I can see myself rewatching this one some time down the road. As I mentioned before, it was a refreshing and nice break from the modern Kdrama.

Overall, I would recommend this drama to anyone looking for a change of pace or something that would nowadays be lesser known. If you're the type who doesn't like to watch older dramas, maybe because of the quality, then maybe this is not for you. The quality I found to watch I felt was good for a drama 15 years old. You're not going to get much better than that unless you buy the drama.

I think I'll always picture the leads look the way they did in this drama.

If you do decide to watch it, keep in mind that the fashion may not be what you consider "good" simply because the styles have really changed since then. The lack of cellphones as well. Only one character had one in this drama. And the difference in the sound of the music. I, personally, love a lot of things from the nineties so I loved the music. But I understand that may not be the case for some.

Anyways, hope this review convinces you to check it out! It's worth that much at least (:

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If you like romance, this is the drama for you. Love conquers all is the main theme. The main characters are gorgeous. I was not familiar with Ahn Jae Wook, but he blew me away with his passion! Of course, as with all dramas, there are the annoying antagonists that you want to strangle.

The story was not unique, however, I like some of these older dramas because they have more realistic love scenes. No chicken peck kisses. I actually enjoyed when they replayed the love scenes to the beautiful, haunting music. My only complaint is that the writer didn't tie up all the complications at the end, although the ending was beautiful and memorable.

This is a "feel good" romance drama that you will want to rewatch.

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