Strangers from Hell (2019)

HEAD TILTING

It's a lot darker when you feel inside the misery.

It the entire series, all we hear and see was Jong Woo's point of view. We weren't able to know what the weird ones really think or feel. And it'll remain a mystery.

The introduction was not really intriguing to me. I thought it's just the characters, Eden Studio residents, are creepy while Jong Woo was an innocent person who'll make those people pay from whatever they'll commit or blah whatever. It's only I wasn't that fond first. But it gets more interesting even the direction of the storyline wasn't what I expected but awed me eventually.

Overall feeling was creepy, thrilling, and mysterious especially the ending with no explanation. As I said, we don't know any backgrounds and the real reason of the residents. It's practically a cliffhanger for me aside I want more.

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The Best psychological thriller i ever watched !!!

short synopsis:- The main protagonist, Yoon Jung Woo (Im Si-wan) lives with his mother and an elder brother who suffers from a mental illness. After failing to find employment that fit his needs, one day his collage senior offered him a job in Seoul. He agreed to the offer and moved to Seoul.After arriving in Seoul, he found a motel in a redeveloped area which suited his budget, despite the fact that he would have to share the kitchen and bathroom with other residents. He eventually discovers that the other residents are strange and suspicious, mainly the dentist Seo Moon Jo (Lee Dong-wook).

The drama delivers a fantastic job of capturing the unpleasant and dark atmosphere of the small, filthy dorm with strange and frightening neighbors of a motel. The director and writer were successful in keeping the story moving at a steady pace while balancing the dark and horror elements.
Screenplay plays crucial to reveal plot twists in this drama and make to think the characters are illusional or real. And the characterizations perfectly designed like webtoon ( i haven't read )..
This drama acts like an eye opener to not ignore those who need help.
And the psychological manipulation does not just come from any one person or thing. It comes from people, their physical surroundings and the greater society.

Two main protagonists:-
Im Si Wan was excellent in his role given his career best performance and Lee Dong-wook, Compared to his previous roles, his character in this drama was entirely dii different. You'll witness a completely different side of Lee Dong Wook that highlights his versatility as an actor.


Finally:- Strangers from Hell gives the best psychological thriller experience with a superb cast, outstanding direction and Screenplay with a completely gripping story.

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A friend of mine loved this drama so I decided to give it a go. I had tried watching it once before, but had a hard time getting past the first episode. Since I've had more time recently, I pushed myself through it.

I have to admit that the acting is fantastic. As I was watching, I kept wanting to scream at the screen telling Jong Woo to get out of that literal hell hole. Everyone really did such a wonderful job playing characters that I hope are nothing like their real life personas ;)

However, I felt like ten episodes of this was too much and would have been done better as maybe a slightly longer film. Halfway, I was ready to call it quits again because it was not only a bit repetitive but also, such a drama is rather psychologically and emotionally taxing as well. I wonder if this would have been a drama that would have been better watching week after week rather than binging over the course of a few days.

I rated the rewatch value low since these dramas are hard for me to watch again, especially already knowing what happens. I'd say it's probably not a drama for everyone, but if the theme is up your alley, then it'd likely be a good one to check out.

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If this were the only drama available to watch in the whole wide world, I still wouldn't watch it

I made an account just to say how garbage this show is and I have no idea what other reviewers have in their brains, I read them and decided to watch this but it was painful to do so, I felt I had someone over my shoulder pointing a gun at my head to watch it. It's hard to watch especially with those stupid twins, I should've stopped watching it after 2 episodes but decided to carry on with hope of it being a good series. The only hope it gave me was to become a police officer because that female cop is completely useless. The only thing that has going for it is probably the intro music and thats it, felt like a cheap low budget adaptation to what seemed to be a great webtoon as heard from my Korean peers, and even they told me everyone else thought the drama was a complete letdown, so if you're a 14 year old kid with no sense of good cinema go ahead and watch it lol totally not recommending this to anyone. waste of time and can't believe I spent 10 hours on it.

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Introvert

Are you a socially awkward potato? Do you hate having neighbors? WELL HAVE I GOT A SHOW FOR YOU!
Lee Dong Wook is my bae and seeing him as a psychopath somehow makes him sexier so naturally, I dove straight in headfirst with this one lol
Most horror/suspense series make you hate being alone but Strangers From Hell will make you wish you were alone and definitely make you hate the thought of neighbors. It's gonna be second nature to shout "OMG you're gonna die!" or "Turn Around!" from the comfort of your bed or couch while all the madness unfolds beautifully in a sea of screams, maniacal laughter and blood. Cause this series delivered it all!
It'll send you through a infinite loop of "Wait, was that even real?" and have you begging for a S2 (which I would be happy with, but it ended well enough to not be a cliffhanger).
Enjoy...

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This drama will remain one of my favorites. If you're unsure whether to start watching it or not, just give the first episode a try. It has tension building from the beginning, and from then on each episode is amazingly creepy and suspenseful.

What truly amazed me was the camera work. I don't who takes credit for that, but it was brilliantly done. I don't think I've ever seen a drama with such elaborate shots and transitions. It really added to the story and it was done in a really unique way. It was just so good.
Aside from that, it has to be the first time where I don't have any flaw to point out. There are some things that do need clarification from the writer/director, but even these felt intentional. There's a phone charger coming into play for a bit of the story, and this scene is open to interpretation, but I don't think they would have integrated it to the story if it didn't have purpose. Whether it be to add to the atmosphere, or simply to show a character forcing an encounter, I'm dying to know what the meaning behind this scene is.
The ending was also incredibly chilling. One of the major advantages of the show was the completely unpredictable future of any given character. That to me was amazing, and the ending really fit the story.

The Actors :
- This was my first time encountering Im Shi Wan, who plays the lead character. He was really impressive in his role, it really made me feel like the plot wasn't just a story. Like we were witnessing someone else's daily life. It really was amazing to watch him as the main character. You could sense the character's unease turning to pure fear, and the 9th episode will forever remain one of the most intense episode I've seen in my life.
I can't elaborate without giving away some spoilers, so I'll leave it at that, but he really made quite an impression in this drama.
- Lee Dong Wook was made for this role. I had seen him in Blade Man before this, and consciously avoided anything he was in after that. But to me this role attested his talent as an actor. It says a lot, because this has to be a really hard character to play. The chilling sensation you have when he appears on screen, this was a complete surprise to me. I feel like the drama wouldn't be the same without him playing Moon Jo.
Every actor aside from them was remarkable, and I had the pleasant surprise to see the girl from DAY6's music videos cast in this drama. It was nice to see more of her.

The story also had perfect OST to complement it, the songs really fit the drama, and were also amazing on their own. (Yes I am biased, The Rose are fantastic what can I say)

That said, if you have trouble watching bloody / gory scenes, this drama probably isn't the best thing for you. I advise you to skip a few scenes if you're determined to watch it.

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One of the best Korean thriller/psychological dramas

SFH was a drama I stumbled upon without any intention, and I'm glad I did because I was really satisfied with it. I'm going to make this a really short review, in simple terms: WATCH IT!

It has you hooked from the beginning and keeps you on edge every second, not only with the OST but also the way the drama has been filmed and executed. The psychological aspect is amazing, and the way this element progressively builds up through only a matter of 10 episodes - is commendable. You think you've finally grasped the main plot, or what's going to happen next but you're plastered with something completely different, leaving you second-guessing your thoughts and whatever you've grasped so far.

I mean, another bonus is Lee Dong Wook and how FINE he looks, but don't let that distract you from the fact that he's a part-time dentist who also has a passion for killing and cannibalism. (Siri, play 'Criminal' by Britney Spears <3)

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"Humans are the most fearful creatures."

This drama clearly has no strong plot. But, with only ten episodes, each spanning the length of an hour, it did not pull any punches.
Disturbing and dark, it begins with Jong Woo moving into a dingey apartment with the least rent out of all that he had seen. With a hopeless job and seemingly disconnected friends, he is thrust directly into the company of the many strange men in his neighbouring rooms. Yet, he has no way out. No one listens to his words or has time for him.

The drama brilliantly portrayed the sweet country boy Jong Woo's many incidents that ultimately lead him spiralling into a state of mental distress so much that we at one point are unable to watch it out of sheer stress. Im Shi Wan was excellent in his role and he conveyed the intense expressions and Jong Woo's state of mind with so much reality.

Help comes in the form of a charismatic dentist, Mung Joo, with whom he shares his similar love for crime fiction. But, wh he originally thought to be the most normal out of everyone, becomes his biggest nightmare. I saw Lee Dong Wook in Goblin, but it is this drama that truly showed his talent. The very mad gleam in his eyes, the flicker of compassion (only for Jong Woo, by the way) and his own strange perceival of nature and human mind was almost paradoxical. It was weird that Jong Woo and more chemistry with him than his own girlfriend Ji Eun, who was saddled with work load and never really semed to have her 'country boy' image of his removed from her mind.
People keep pushing their frustrations out on everyone , and Jong Woo, a good guy, realizes that he was being pushed around and maybe it was time to snap back.

The turn of events, the gory scenes and most importantly, the sheer incompetence of the police was mind numbing. There was a moment I assumed that one of the policemen/detective was working in favor of Eden studio.
*Mild spoiler*: this would also make the ending more possible.
I was suprised that I liked it so much. Every single supporting character delivered their roles well. All in all, this is definitely a highly thrilling, re-watch worthy drama, especially for starters of this genre.

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WOW

If you like some thriller and psychopaths this is your thing, I really enjoyed every second. The relationship between the characters is amazing, and the acting impressed me more than once. The aura of the settings is pretty accurate, representing exactly what is wanted at all times. It is one of the few psychological series that has really marked me, not only because of the story itself, but also for the whole environment that they created.

If you are hesitant, please give it a chance, It will hook you from the start!

Also the BSO immerses you in all the scenes, giving it a plus! The Roses did an amazing job hehe

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maybe not to everyone's "taste"

This drama started quite interesting and I admit I was hooked and the end was well done and surprising at end and I also liked the manga drawings over characaters at the end but for me finally it crossed the line from scary with flaky characaters to just sick〜 I do not really like these stories with psychopaths and seral killing [ it is scary how people like them so much it must be some primitive instinct buried deep in us all] so I take off 1 point perhaps unfairly considering how good it was as a drama〜but 十人十色 depends on your” taste” as you will see when you watchwww

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Unique.

As Jong-Woo facing mental issues, the ending doesn't surprise me. Isolation, bullying, alienation, step by step he went into a black hole with no way out.

No one in his environment was sane and they all one after each other put his head into the water and pushing him off his limits. The residents of the hostel but mostly Moon Jo help him to embrace the darkness that it kept increase in him.

That rage he wanted to discharge, the power to do what he always wanted. In the head of Jong-Woo that's completely normal, he just reproduced what he constantly saw and always endured from others. "Others are hell, imma be worst then hell then.

The realisation was wonderful, the writers have done a great job in their search and to bring awareness to mental health. It felt pretty realistic.

The acting needed to be excellent so that the viewers would take the show seriously and being immersed into the darkness at the same time as Jong-Woo. Both I'm Shi Wan and Lee Dong Wook pull off a wonderful act, it was magistral. LDW was the perfect protagonist, he should take more often that kind of role.

Some people, blame the ML ending pitifully way but I have one question: Would you’ve done better? In these circumstances, how can you be sure to end up better than him?

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