Save Me (2017)

¿Uno de los mejores thrillers de kdramas? Probablemente

Cuatro jóvenes intentan rescatar a una excompañera cuya familia cayó en las garras de un culto y su líder carismático.

Con esa breve premisa les prometo horas de desesperación, de frustración y tensión. La forma en que todo el tiempo la protagonista parece estar a punto de escapar, pero siempre está latente la sensación de que algo se lo impedirá, sumado a la actitud y trato de los miembros del culto para con ella, son una sumatoria de cosas por las que de hecho es excelente el manejo del suspenso en esta historia.

Las actuaciones en general son excelentes, sobre todo Seo Ye-Ji, quien interpreta una protagonista femenina muy buena y que se sale bastante de lo que uno acostumbra a encontrar en kdramas. Por otro lado, si bien esta serie no tiene romance (la prota no tiene tiempo de pensar en amor cuando vive temiendo por su vida y familia) Taecyeon, que interpreta al first lead, si bien el actor me cae súper bien, en esta serie es insoportable, y claramente es por el personaje . No sé si esa era la intención del guionista, pero considerando que es el protagonista masculino, no le ayuda en nada. Sobre todo no le ayuda a este personaje cuando a su lado tenemos al co-protagonista y second lead, interpretado por el maravilloso Woo Do Hwan, la cosa más bella que ha creado Corea , cuya actuación también es fantástica. Ni hablar de Jo Sung Ha, quien interpreta al padre espiritual; es un excelente antagonista. Podría seguir con otros actores, pero reitero que todos son buenísimos.

La fotografía no es nada especial pero me encanta la paleta de colores: fría en todo momento, cargada de azules y grises, acompañados de una iluminación pálida que acompaña perfecto. El único problema con esta serie es que al ser de OCN, quienes censuran todas las armas blancas y sangre, el blurring continuo de cualquier cosa violenta te saca mucho de onda, te recuerda que estás viendo una serie. Igualmente, "Save me" me parece tremenda serie y la recomiendo a cualquier fan de los thrillers.

Lire davantage

overrated

So I decided to check this show out because the hype was INSANE. Allegedly this show has SHOCKING plot twists and an addictive storyline but none of that was anywhere to be found. I was intrigued at the beginning and wondered where the story would take me but I definitely did not like where it took me. First of all it's just BORING. Like nothing about this was entertaining and everytime something interesting would happen it was presented in such a boring way that I couldn't care less what was happening. The characters' motivations where so confusing that I couldn't even root for anyone. The acting was either over the top or they barely reacted to the events taking place. Overall just a very odd show and definitely wouldn't rewatch it.

Lire davantage

La trama, muy resumidamente, trata sobre una familia que se muda a un pueblo y debido a ciertas circunstancias termina involucrándose con un culto religioso del que la protagonista quiere escapar, pero no puede. Por suerte, cuatro chicos con los que fue un tiempo a la secundaria descubren lo que está pasando y hacen lo posible por rescatarla, descubriendo en el proceso los horrores que rodean a esta secta.

Save me es una historia bastante fuerte que puede poner de los nervios a muchísimas personas, sobre todo durante los primeros cuatro capítulos, que literalmente no te dan ni un respiro. Toda la serie está rodeada por un aura bastante pesada de desesperación y frustración, por lo que es imposible no sufrir viendo las situaciones que vive nuestra protagonista (esto se incremente al tener una trama tan bien desarrollada. Todo es súper creíble y eso lo vuelve más aterrador).
Realmente no hay palabras para describir lo contenta que quedé con el avance de los hechos. A los personajes nada se les da fácil, todo les cuesta un montón, al punto de querer gritar "¿No les puede salir una cosa bien, por favor?!!!".

Pasando a otra cosa, los actores (y los personajes) me encantaron. Seo Yi Ji (Diosa), Woo Do Hwan, Jo Jae-yoon, Jung Hae-kyun... Todos una maravilla. De hecho, puede que el que menos me convenciera fuera Ok Taec-yeon, el "cabecilla" del grupo que intenta rescatar a la prota, pero sigue estando muy bien.

En fin, la verdad es que no les quiero decir mucho más para no arruinarles la historia (que tiene unos momentos bastante impredecibles), pero sepan que les súper recomiendo esta serie.
Es verdad que por el medio tiene algunos capítulos que se vuelven un poco "largos", pero no aburre nunca, y el final es tan bueno que vale la pena remarla un poco si se les llegara a hacer densa (cosa que por suerte no me pasó).

Si quieren ver algo con una trama bien llevada, personajes únicos, momentos turbios, mucha acción y un buen cierre, esta es su serie.

IG de reseñas cortas: @altoplottwist

Lire davantage

great acting but too slow pace

The acting is great, interesting storyline but its too draggy and I got bored. I had to warch on high speed to finish it. I wanted to know how it will ends.

Sang Mi suffered so much and to be abandoned by her family, specially her sick father. It was hard to watch. Sang Hwan character is so annoying and he always makes the situation worst. The real hero is Dong Chul. He risked everything to save her but it seems like Sang Hwan got all the credit for it.

Its interesting storyline and very sad to see how easily people can get brainwashed and even more that places like that exist.

Lire davantage

"Save Me" was another drama that I had tried to pick up once before and failed to get past the first episode but after watching Seo Yeji recently in "It's Ok to Not Be Ok", I decided to give it another try.

I was in for quite a rollercoaster. The first time I tried to watch it, I thought it was really bewildering how easily people could get sucked into believing the things that cults preach ( hence why I gave up because I was just ... wtf???? ); however, it makes a lot more sense the more you continue and progress through the show. The reason why I say that it makes more sense later is that you ( as the audience ) start to see how the cult is viewed from the lens of the main character ( who is more than ready to bolt from the cult ) but as well as through those who are devout followers of the cult. While that didn't mean that I felt sympathetic towards the cult members acting out in certain ways, I could also see how easily they could be brainwashed into believing certain things.

I would say that it started to drag at some points ( and honestly, I ended up watching it in 2x speed because things moved rather slowly ) and probably didn't require so many episodes, but I won't complain about getting to watch more Woo Dohwan and Taecyeon on my screen. Dohwan really did a fantastic job and I started seeking out his other dramas after I finished this one.

This isn't a drama I'd really watch again because, for me, those are usually more feel-good dramas, but if someone else wanted to watch it and asked me to watch with them, then that would probably be the only time I would give it another go. Would definitely recommend for the acting and intriguing storyline!

Lire davantage

intense and gripping

This was def one of the more original and interesting dramas I’ve seen. It was not your typical show that you might be used to seeing. The subject matter was unique and hadn’t really been explored before in dramas but this one did a great job of pulling you into the absurd and frightening world of being in a religious cult. Certain episodes will challenge you not to lose your sanity as the madness around the characters ensues. The writers did a great job with everyone’s characters, especially Sang-mi. Her brother’s death was just heartbreaking. She had suffered much tragedy in her life and her entire family had been turned upside down, so it was extremely easy to root for her to get out of the crazy situation she was in. Seo Yeji is really an amazing actress and I will definitely pay attention to her dramas in the future. Taecyeon as Sang-Hwan was great, but Woo Doo Hwan was the better lead. He didn’t always get a lot of scenes, but when he did he nailed them. I can’t believe he was just a rookie actor in this drama. Also a special shout-out to Jo Sung Ha for his portrayal of the deceiving father of the cult. I’ve seen him play a corrupt politician in another drama but this role is his best I think.

This show doesn’t have much rewatch value. It got slow for me after the first few episodes but things intensified towards the end. I love intense gripping dramas like these as they are more my taste. 8/10

Lire davantage

Save me is a drama about a cult and it is not afraid to present all the horrors that the leads of the cult often did. The description says that a girl asks four men to save her, but that happens later in the drama. First, we are presented with the background story as to why everything happened and why people are now acting like they do. The stories of the characters seem different from one another, but they come together in the end, painting the picture of the story as a whole. The performances, in addition, were really good and helped the drama to create that horror-thriller atmosphere. One thing that I didn't like though was that the ending was kind of open, leaving things half finished. Other than that, I really enjoyed this drama.

Lire davantage

I was looking for a Seo Ye Ji and a Woo Do Hwan drama and my friends told me that if I wanted a drama with a great plot and with acting-wise actors, I should watch Save Me. I'm definitely glad that I listened and watched this drama.

I wanna say that the rewatch value is low because it has so much sensitive content and it's not a drama you're looking for when you're stressed, because, in fact, this is the type of drama that will stress you out!

The plot was really interesting and dark. When I read the description before watching, the word "cult" was the final push before I decided to watch it. The drama was really creepy and it has a lot of content that might trigger one's mental health. As a romance-comedy enthusiast, I'm so glad that I enjoyed so much mystery and suspense thanks to this drama. The plot had an actual story in it and it definitely showed the good and bad characters. Somehow, I think that this whole drama is a reflection of what we have now. We believe in things and we choose to be ignorant of reality.

The cast was... WOW. All I can say that they were amazing. This is my first Seo Ye Ji drama, and I'm so impressed with her acting skills. She executed fear, hatred. and anger very well and all at the same time! Plus, her voice is just so new to me and beautiful. I loved Taecyeon and Woo Do Hwan, but Woo Do Hwan was the character I ended up focusing on more. His character was someone who was very righteous despite being gutsy, and he would definitely protect the people he loves. The supporting cast was amazing too but I would like to applaud for Jo Sung Ha's acting. His two-faced character made my blood boil and that's what signifies him as a great actor! Even by speaking calmly, he can make me mad.

The OST was okay, but I wished they could've used it in the actual scenes of the drama than hearing it by the end credits.

Overall, the plot was very good and the whole drama was really interesting! Every episode was a cliffhanger. It was kinda slow for me at first, but I liked how they slowly approached the climax with intensity to the end. This is my first OCN drama and I'm truly glad to say that they do make amazing crime thriller dramas! Highly recommended for people who like crime, thriller, and suspense genres.

Lire davantage

If you're thinking of watching this drama but aren't sure you'll like it, just do it.

If you're the type of person to enjoy an interesting but intense story with clever plot twists, superb acting and suspenseful situations, you'll enjoy Save Me.

As is already mentioned, this drama deals with a lot of mature themes that you don't quite see every day in Asian dramas.
Cults are still very much a taboo topic, but Save Me covered every vile, rotten aspect of them in such an ingenious and plausible way, that you're only left to question the amount of evil in this world and why it exists.

The series starts out fairly slow, but picks up rather fast which makes up for it.
You might be confused at first, but don't worry, as everything will soon fall into place.
As you get more sucked into the story, you'll start to get invested in the characters and their backgrounds.
The intense, nerve-wracking situations coupled with the climactic soundtracks followed by cliffhangers at the end of most episodes will tug at your heart and leave you coming back for more.

The acting is on a whole different level; it's kind of scary how you forget that these aren't actual people,
but fictional characters that only serve the purpose of carrying out the story until the end,
that's how good it is.
I have to point out Seo Ye-Ji's acting, she really outdid herself.
Her expressions, body language, voice, especially her eyes;
I don't think I've ever seen someone with such expressive, poignant eyes that capture any emotion with such perfect precision.
I also have to praise Woo Do-Hwan for his impassioned acting, he really brought his character to life.
You can see the diversity and skill he holds shine throughout the show , and especially when he has to act as an entirely different person.
Taecyon was nothing short of incredible, as always.
I really do love how he gets into the mindset of the character he plays,
which is also why he's so successful at pulling off so many different personalities and expressions.
The whole cast was fantastic, everyone did their parts extremely well which is exactly why you sometimes forget that this is an alternate reality.

Save Me unveils every single sickening, appalling act of evil in its rawest form.
It will keep you on the edge of your seat at the end of each episode, and will leave you begging for more.
It does get very hard to watch at times, and you might find yourself taking a breather every once in a while because of how painfully accurate it portrays certain topics.
The lovely feel-good ending comes as sort of a reward for both the characters and you for not giving up and enduring it until the very end.

Lire davantage