Move to Heaven (2021)

A gem

This drama is a must-watch of the year. Absolutely heartbreaking in a comforting way, just like life. Life is what it shows and tells: its pain, its unfairness, but also the comfort in memories, the uniquely human need of being loved and leaving a trace. It tackles social issues in a respectful way and never trying to preach, only stating facts. Each story told is deeply moving, encompassed in the main frame of the journey our protagonist Geu Roo takes towards remembering but letting go. The lenght of the drama is perfect, as well as the lenght of the episodes. The cast is incredible, the cinematography is beautiful. I'm glad I watched this.

Lire davantage

A heart rending critique of the human condition and society.

I can reassure that too many tears were shed, and my surrounding was flooded with piles of tissue.

Short stories:
The show interweaved different stories into one to touch upon different issues in a human, a family, and society. From a neglected mother with dementia and an aggressive, money hungry son, to the story of a father that priorities his reputation over his gay son, the director positions us to look at different issues embedded in society.

Central story/Autism:
Following an autistic 20-year-old, geu ro, we learn about how autistic people look at the world. (Though we must be aware that this is not how ALL autistic people behave, and perceive the world, the disorder is a spectrum, so traits are variable). We also learn about how mistreated and misunderstood autistic people are in society. Geu roo was bullied, called stupid, and false assumptions were made about him, like he can't cook, work, and look after himself. But we can see that these assumptions were all contradicted, geu roo is very capable and even more emotionally understanding than an average person, not to mention, he is extremely smart, and hard working.

I have a challenged bother, who has seizures, my heart broken into a trillion pieces over and over again at the thought of him not having anyone with him in the future. When I was young, I used to get very, very mad at how mistreated he was. So, seeing geu roo struggle made me very emotional. The relationship he had with his father and mother was SO, extremely beautiful, and healing, I really want to emphasis that this how every parent should be with their challenged child: patient, sincere, loving, and never limiting them from doing what they are good at.

Characters/Sang gu:
At first, I grinded my teeth at sang gu's impatience and short-tempor when he was with geu ro, but eventually, I became anxious at the thought of him not being near geu ro.

- A bit of spoilers, skip if you want to be fully shocked when watching -
Through sang gu we really see that good and bad people do not exist. It is more human to say that some choose to do more bad than good, vice versa (evil people like hitler and joseph stalin are a different story). But we are also reminded through his character that 'there is a side to every story', we also see this through geu roo's father. The surface level sang gu we knew was impatient, and aggressive, but at core, he was struggling with unresolved trauma, shame, and self-hatred, once we get to learn about his past we see how he was done wrong. People like na mu, who only knew about the illegal gambling, became scared, and untrusting of sang gu, she even attempted to get rid of him as a guardian. I felt like people call sang gu a murderer and exclude him from everything and push him aside, which shows how unwilling people, who don't listen, are foolish, and ignorant as they don't know anything about what actually happened, and who really is sang gu.

Death:
A very big part of the show boiled down to death. The show illustrates how the deceased are shown little respect, from gossiping to bad mouthing, whining over how it is freaking out other residents, lowering the price of the apartment, as if it was the dead person's fault that they ended up like that, it shows how ignorant, and unemphatic humans can be towards others. It makes us question will they react the same if it was one of their loved ones who passed away. I loved the work geu roo and his father did, their company was respectful, and honoring of the deceased.

Lire davantage

Best drama I have ever watched!!!

One of the feel good korean drama. Each episode is wonderful, the actors were so perfect that i literally cried for each episode. Those who want to watch drama with unique story and able to watch sad scenes are recommended to watch this drama. Each episode is fantastic and i recommend this to everyone:)
One of the feel good korean drama. Each episode is wonderful, the actors were so perfect that i literally cried for each episode. Those who want to watch drama with unique story and able to watch sad scenes are recommended to watch this drama. Each episode is fantastic and i recommend this to everyone:)
One of the feel good korean drama. Each episode is wonderful, the actors were so perfect that i literally cried for each episode. Those who want to watch drama with unique story and able to watch sad scenes are recommended to watch this drama. Each episode is fantastic and i recommend this to everyone:)

Lire davantage

A very touching story - a masterpiece drama

At first, I was a bit reluctant to watch this, as I thought it might be a horror drama, when someone told me it was about death. Then another friend, who was a fellow movie lover but rarely watches Korean drama, recommended me to watch this one with two thumbs up. There were only 10 episodes, and each episode was no more than an hour (40-60 minutes).

By then, I haven’t really moved on after watching Navillera, which to me was a beautifully-made drama on deeper issues unrelated to love and romance. Now here was another similar Korean drama. Yes, there was definitely love and romance in it, but not among the main leads. This was more like a family drama, but with many social issues added to it. This was a drama about stories untold by people who had left the world. It shows that each of us has a story to tell, but not always have the opportunity to do so.

Move to Heaven was inspired by a book "Things Left Behind" by Kim Sae-byul, who used to be a “trauma cleaner”, a professional job which I did not know existed before.

In the first episode we were exposed to a story of occupational hazards and a company that does not care. Then we were exposed to stories about Alzheimer's disease, elderly couples, suicide, parents who disapproved their gay son’s love relationship, domestic violence, child adoption and the search for one’s natural parents, deported Korean kids who returned and could not adjust to life in Korea, and illegal gambling and cheating.

But most of all this was a story of a father’s love towards his son, Geu-ru, who had special needs, and how he raised Geu-ru to become an independent, self-reliant person. It was also a story of a rude, uncaring, ex-convict uncle who came into Geu-ru's life, who eventually came to love his nephew so much (this somewhat reminded me of the movie My Annoying Brother).

At the end the whole drama was about learning to let go. Geu-ru was so concerned about other people’s lives and witnessed how they all had to let go of the past and move on. Eventually Geu-ru learned to do the same thing: learning to accept the loss of his father and to move on with his own life.

If there is one thing I’d like to criticise about this drama is that the whole story took place during the pandemic. The dates were specifically mentioned between April 2020 and July 2020, and yet none of the actors/actresses wore masks or kept physical distancing, not even in the hospital (and I think people in hospitals should really observe health protocols).

I know there were many dramas made during the pandemic, but since those stories was not time-bound, it doesn’t really matter. Start Up, for example, had a three-year lag in the story line. So we don’t really know (and don’t really care) in what year the story began and when it ended. This is also the same case with Lovestruck in the City, Run On, Hello Me and A Love So Beautiful. But Move to Heaven specifically mentioned dates which happened in 2020.

Anyway, this is an emotionally-touching drama. In fact, I could say it's a masterpiece. There were so many scenes which brought tears to my eyes, and yet it was not too melodramatic. I give my two thumbs up to the 17-year-old Tang Jun Sang who brilliantly played his role as Geu-ru. I’d like to see more of him in the future, and I’m sure he will be a great actor. Lee Je-hoon also played a great role as the obnoxious uncle.

Lire davantage

This was the first drama to make me cry. Each episode brought new emotions. The acting in this show was incredible. The characters are portrayed very sincerely. I can't praise this show enough. I never felt bored while watching. In every episode there are lots of new characters that you learn about. Every story felt unique and heartwarming.

I hope there will be a second season as it has definitely been set up that way. The open ended final scene makes me think there will be another season. I hope to see more of some characters and there are some plot lines could be taken further.

All the characters had a lot of depth. I loved seeing the character development of both the main characters and guests. The show was paced very well, it revealed more about the characters each episode which changed my perception of them.

I highly recommend this drama. It is very well written and well acted. I hope to see a second season announced soon!

Lire davantage

Outstanding

I can find no fault with this series. From writer, directors, technicians and throughout the whole cast, everyone has presented sterling work. My first 10.
The writer gives us an original concept, showing us lives and deaths of startling intimacy, and the director never overwhelmes these delicate and sometimes heart-rending stories. The development of the over-arcing plot, showing the process of each of the main characters as they deal with their own issues and build new relationships in the light of differing responses to loss, is delicate but powerful The acting is perfect throughout.
This is moving but not sentimental. It addresses many issues, some violence, some political matters, and, of course, loss. But it also raises a question - who exactly is most disabled here - and how should we defne or categorise disability? Is it to be pitied, or understood?
I often enjoy a drama but still find the pacing laboured. and yet this one was perfectly pitched. It CAN be done, Korea!
I cannot recommend this enough.

Lire davantage

made me cry lol

this drama taught me more things than school regarding social life. its kind of dumb to say but the life lessons this drama can teach you are very, very valuable. the character development is just.. WOW and the acting is a m a z i n g g g g g
i rewatched it with my mum and to be honest i would watch it a third time. it's funny also because the days i was watching it aligned with the days in the show. it's my comfort drama and everything about it, i would recommend. i love how it shows all different sides of life, i think thats very difficult to portray but they did it amazingly. yeah so anyway you should 10000% watch it when you have the chance! it can be a tiny bit slow at times but its extremely worth it! :)

Lire davantage

IT IS AN UNDERRATED MASTERPIECE

I usually never prefer watching slow paced shows which have serious undertone linking to the meaning of life but this changed my mind I initially gave it a chance as it only had 10 episodes so like it could easily be watched and by the end I was dying for more episodes I loved how beautiful the execution of the characters were even the minor guest appearances side storyline was set up over a span of short duration, the stories of deceased not only felt real and touched your soul but it felt so personal at times you yourself find grieving over loses and feeling hopeless and specially the Geu-ru's character which was unique and for a 17 year old the actor played it gracefully and IDC HE DESERVES AND AWARD FOT IT.

The music was beautiful and felt soothing and refreshing and specially the direction was amazing it was beyond expectations how amazing this gem of a show is give it a try YOU WON'T REGRET IT BELIEVE ME I'm the kind of person who only watched rom com and non serious shits but this show has made a place deep in my heart!!

Lire davantage

A beautiful show

This show was just so perfect i have no words to describe it

Tang joonsang acted out his role so damn well it made me feel so 😢

Leejehoon was also perfect except for that hairstyle HAHAHAHA

I love the different stories shown in the drama, all of them made me bawl my eyes out btw, it's just really beautiful and sad

I watched this q a long time ago so i kind of forgot how the plot goes but i remember it as a drama which really hit me

There is seriously nothing to dislike about this drama, it's one of the best dramas netflix has produced and should have been much more famous

Lire davantage

An Emotional Masterpiece

I don't even have the words to explain how amazing this drama was. It's far too perfect. After I heard about this coming I was excited and was definitely going to watch it because it sounded so unique and it really was unique. Then I heard that the portrayal of an autistic person was going to be stereotypical even though the drama hadn't even started and it made me rethink watching it but in the end it didn't stop me from watching it and as soon as day came and the drama was released I started watching it and I was blown away. At first I was annoyed that it was turning into every kdrama and I'm still annoyed that what happened, happened but it was needed for the drama, the drama wouldn't be what it is without it. Every episode was so unique and emotional and deep that I could just watch it all day and I can't even begin to explain my own feelings on the drama but it was beautiful and one of the best dramas I have watched in a long time. The character development was really satisfying. I'm not good at reviews or explaining my feelings on things but I promise you if you watch it you will not regret it.

Lire davantage