This was an absolute riot to watch. My cheeks are aching due to how much I was laughing and smiling during this. The story was so simple and easy to follow. There weren't any bullcrap side-plots to make the film more compelling, the cast spoke for itself. This was a movie about two people struggling in their love lives and bonded through their dysfunctionality. Gong Hyo Jin as Sun Young was as wonderful as ever. She wasn’t ariad to be herself and speak her mind, and it leads to some great altercations. Kim Rae Won as Jae Hoon was as charming as he was pitiful. The film is a rom-comedy but it had some rooted messages regarding pasts, life and general advice.

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A simple film about love that’s both brought together through their personal life struggles and stopped because of that same struggle. Sang-Min is struggling with a loveless marriage in addition to having a son with mental deficiencies. Likewise, Ki-Hong has a suicidal, meantally unwell wife who he can’t fully connect with and a withdrawn, depressed daughter. This isolation circumstances brings them to Finland where they meet each other and have a very intimate encounter before parting ways. Both parties love each other but with both being married, it makes their relationship a wrong one. And in the end it comes to ahead where Ki-Hong can’t pursue his love through obligations to his family. It turned out to be futile love, eventually.

The symbolism in all the scenery, setting was heavy. But the heart of the story was in the acting. Gong Yoo’s performance brought all the intensity and vulnerability required. His character is a stuck soul that’s longing for love and intimacy. And he’s struggling to let it go, as shown through his persistence throughout the film, but eventually, regretfully. acquiescence to his situation, and lets Jeon Do-yeon’s go in a heartbreaking finish to the film. Jeon Do-yeon’s acting was so subtle and on-point, bringing everything she needed to the character and making the best out of the story on display.

A super well rounded movie that was both heart-warming and pitiful at the same time.

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Golden Time got really high ratings at the time of airing but the reviews aren't anything too special and I sort of see why with the last five episodes. As the ratings were high, the studio added three additional episodes but the story, as a result, gets dragged out and a bit tedious to watch by the end. However the rest of the show is a brilliant commentary on the country’s policy regarding Trauma Centres within hospitals and I'm certainly appealed by it myself after watching Golden Time. One of our main characters, Choi In-hyuk, is based on a famous trauma doctor in South Korea so there is some weighted truth in the show. As for our fictional characters, they were a delight to watch. We say a careful Lee Min-woo transform into a carrying surgeon of the future and a thoughtful, but naive Kang Jan-in grow into a smart acting chairwoman. Their relationship is rather sweet because they are simply friends throughout the series. Close, bonding friends without any silly strings attached that can often plauge stories such as these. That was a breath of fresh air. Another breath of fresh air was the antagonists. There were none. The department chiefs aren't antagonists, they are people looking out for the best interests of their departments. Another rooted reality touch that helped the drama.

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There aren't a lot of dramas that are so comfortable to watch where you can put it on before you go to sleep. And that's what I did. Every night, I'd watch a few episodes of Strong Woman Do Bong So, watch whatever antics Bong So and Ahn Min were up to and sleep. Which is odd considering there is a violent serial kidnapper (and presumably rapist) in the show. But this was a very lightly toned show while keeping the mystery intriguing. Do Bong So was a great character to watch regardless of the circumstances. She was totally badass, quirky and clever. She was a good influence on those around her and made great use of her powers to help people.

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Forest is visually stunning. The nature environment is beautiful with a sea of trees, man rivers and lakes to go with it. The setting is refreshing compared to the usual location that's set in Seoul.

Forest is follows two people that are sent out a small town in Gangwon for seperete reasons, punishment and job related respectively, after first meeting in Seoul. Both are suffering somewhat from their troubled childhoods and despite their tough exteriors, are able to use this to connect to each other. They have a sweet relationship but with shady businessmen that's related to Kang San Hyuk's ideas for a resort having their own plans, things go arwy. The villains of the series are a little generic and too evil compared to the simplistic story and characters around them but it does create a nice contrast for our leads to overcome. The rescue team plot adds some good adventure scenes and gives depth to Kang San Hyuk, allowing him to show his less ruthless side outside of the relationship with Jung Young Jae.

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Promising series but it fizzled out and left you wanted more in an unfulfilling way

Doctors is a decent drama with an interesting premise, character ideas and a surprisingly interesting back cast. However, all are either left unfulfilled or under used. The show is really good and delivers on the overall plot until ep 12/13. The drama starts off showing our characters during their last months at school where our main lead, Hye Jung, was a delinquent and how she met Prof Hong and it changed her life. That was a really strong first main arc of the show with all the characters having strong aims and goals. But I can't help but feel that all of that work came off very weak once we were in the present day where everyone in at the hospital. That's disapointing. Hye Jung wasn't as mentally strong as she was as a child as she just seemed normal and, honestly, generic albeit likeable nonetheless. But her plotlines just totally fizzled out at the end and I just lost my investement in the whole plot. Hong was a cool character, was determined and smart - perfectly fine except the second lead was much more interesting. I'm not saying that I have second lead syndrome because I don't really thing Hye Jung and Yoon Do was a better pair (the main leads are right for each other, for sure) but Yoon Do was much more interesting in his motivations, actions, etc. He is on the losing end of a love triangle that he was never going to win but he's not angry or bitter. He takes it in his stride and contiues to function. That's what I feel the story should've focused on more. His scenes were the highlight of the show. In fact, Yoon Do's scenes with his Dr Jo In Joo and Prof Pa Ran were a joy to watch. Their chemistry together would've made for a better series on its own, imo. The side characters had interesting arcs and they were too something that make the series worthwhile but it's all limited as well and just squandered potential. I've seen other reviews that say that Doctors would be best as a long running sitcom and I throughlly agree with that statement. You'd get more chance to flesh out some of these interesting ideas and characters such as Dr Choi's brain tumor, Dr Kang's relationship with his subordinates.

It's acting perfecty fine but the lack of compelling overall plot, the not fully fleshed out side plots and focus on the lesser compelling characters means this is just an good series. It could've been great and it was for large parts but I was left underwhelmed towards the end.

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Quite memerising. The non linar storytelling threw me for a loop as I didn't expect it at the time but I thought it added depth to the twists and turns that would follow. The ambguity set up by the first act had a pay off once all was revealed. This was a pure artistic filmmaking at its finest.

The erotic vibes are heavy. Perhaps a bit cliche but served their purpose. One thing I found fasinating is how the the story was able to be protrected through these acts. Anything more will be spoilers.

Kim Tae-ri continues to impress with every performance. Hopefully that leads to stardom. Cho Jin-woong was wonderfully eccentric, making the perverted Uncle role his own. The subtle movements, the eyes,. The acting all round is up to par.

I'm intriuged by the rewatch value this has. I may need to watch the directors cut. That's a first.

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”I'm just an actor playing a king. You really are Concubine Yu.”

This was a tough film to take in. It's such a multi-layered phenomenon that it’s difficult to really take it all in and convey my thoughts on it. In some ways, this is a tough tale about unrequited love between two lifelong friends who have grown up in an Opera Troupe, playing the parts of The King and Concubine Yu in “Farewell My Concubine”. Dieyi is struggling with his homosexual love towards his friend, partner, brother (as Xiaolou calls him) while failing into the trap of art limitating life. And to make things harder, Xiaolou has fallen in love with another. In other ways, it’s a social retelling of the struggles of the Chinese citizens through pivotal yet tumultuous events of the 20th Century - beginning with the Sino-Japanese War then the Revolution with Mao and his army, then the cultural revolution. It does a great job of combining it all together for one cohesive epic spanning near 3 hours.

The run time was a joy to sit through as this film was truly enthralling. The performances more than matched the rest of the film making, the grand costumes, poignant soundtrack and story elements. Leslie Cheung brought his absolute all to, what was essentially, two characters - Concubine Yu and Dieyi. The struggle of it all is hard to portray, and Cheung brought the role to life. Impactful film from all aspects.

Fair warning to all (and spoilers): Suicide is a main fixture in all points of the film. You’ve been warned.

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Maybe the most influential story of all time

Instant classic. The movie is pretty much immaculate. The only things I'd point out as less than stellar, Kikuchiyo'death being not as impactful as it could've been, are minicule and nitpicking at best.

The pacing is perfect. A 3 hour run time can put most die hard movie fans off, but the gripping storytelling, acting from all of the cast with such range of emotions - heartfelt to dramatic - and cinematography just catches you and never let's you go until the title cards say "The End".

Takashi Shimura, Isao Kimura and Toshiro Mifune all give exceptional performances. The wise veteran, giving wisdom, the naive protoge and the brash unpredictable rogue. Mifune steals any scenes he's in with his charisma, his energy, his range and the weight behind everything he says. You could follow him for the run time and be just fine.

Kurosawa's masterpiece, indeed. Every shot is beautiful. Timeless direction and camera work.

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This was a story about healing through connecting with others and learning to grieve properly. Gang Doo is a troubled young man who uses painkillers to deal with the injuries he’s suffered, both psychologically and physically but he is still upbeat and determined to live an honest life whole in living in an dishonest world. Moon Soo is also troubled but in a different way. And the way these two are forced to confront their issues and develop a relationship of their own was brilliant. It’s not light, there is a lot of hardship in their journey - alcoholism, death, illness, etc - but it’s meaningful and necessary for their recovery. The other two leads also suffer from problems with their relationship and work but it's less direct than Gang Doo and Moon Soo. Their relationship breaking down in the fall out to current day. Yoo Jin’s attempts at getting back with Joo Won don’t work out which is against expectations but she is able to grow herself and develop a very loving friendship with Gang Doo in the process - a key highlight of the drama for me.

Lee Jun Ho’s role in this drama was incredibly hard. He had to play someone plagued with drama and hardship but was also resilient. Being the one we, as viewers, follow, he was a brilliant focus point. His chemistry with the rest of the cast was pretty outstanding. Everyone gelled in their role and was able to bring something vital to the drama.

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Witty, clever and entertaining. All words I can use to describe Run On. Plus with strong, ranging performances from all four leading characters, Im Shi Wan especially with his deadpan expressions, made this quite the show to watch for the 8 weeks. Run On honestly doesn't have much of an overarching plot but rather mini happenings and events ranging from overbearing parents, bullying, being comfortable with yourself and the path you wish to go on in life. The show was strong despite a simplistic plot and just as entertaining as most of its “plot driven” contemporaries.

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You'll wish to go shopping after watching this

Alive won’t break any new ground as far as Zombie movies but it follows the formula well. It's not a scary zombie film, it's more about the loneliness, the isolation and the will to live through it. But with that being said, there were a few big jump scares while our main character, Joon-Woo is looking through apartments for food and other essentials. The zombies themselves looked amazing and so creepy. The transformation of those creatures sends shivers up my spin. The chase scenes themselves were very exciting. The sheer number of the zombies chasing our MCs made the chases very tense and gripping. The dialogue throughout the film is rather limited with not much being said given the characters' situations but I found that they were able to convey communication really well thanks to their facial expressions and good use of the technology around them. Joon-Woo using his phone and his drone and Yoo-Bin using her laser pen to good comedic effect but showing her smarts using rope to send food, saving Joon-Woo from starvation. Just a good solid film from a production and story standpoint. I enjoyed every moment of the film. One of the biggest criticisms of the film that I have is that it's very short compared to most Korean films (which are mostly 2 hours plus in my experience). Perhaps some scenes are cut out or the writers didn’t feel the need to drag the story out longer. There is room to develop the film more, I feel.

The performances in Alive were really good throughout the film. The acting from Yoo Ah-In is particularly strong as well. He brings a good sense of frustration and regret to the role during the opening 40 minutes where it is basically a one man film. The short cameos from Jeon Bae-soo and Lee Hyun-wook provided some nice spice. Park Shin-Hye was solid in the film as well. Her character is very resourceful and friendly to living things such as her plants and Joon-Woo. That came across in her acting - Shin-Hye is a very soft natured person naturally so the role was perfect for her and her other roles. Again, there weren’t many lines but she sounded natural and on-point when called upon.

I just want to point out the brilliant soundtrack. From what I heard, it was only two or three songs (Break by Beenzino and Sail by Inni) but Sail by Inni in particular had a real tension fueled vibe to it. The eerie synth sound brought gravitise to the scenes it was used in.

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There is one thing you should know watching (Behind The) White Tower. Contrary to 95% of TV shows and movies, the main character, who's perspective we follow the most, is the antagonist. You don't quite realise it until the second half, but it's subtly stated through the election process. At first glance, we may see Chief Lee as the antagonist. Authority figures usually are in medical dramas. However if you look closely, every reason he has to be against Dr Jang Joon Hyuk is just. He is abhorrently arrogant, does have a tendency to choose his reputation over the patients and he was indeed a bad influence on his Juniors. Even during the election, Chief Lee was pushed into making an unethical choice to abstain from voting. All while keeping the politics of it all, somewhat clean. Relying on faith and connection's opposed to Jang Joon Hyuk, who bullied and bribed his way to the role. The difference is small but clear in hindsight. Our hero is the villain. And not an anti-hero either. Like I said, he is abhorrently arrogant again. And once he got the chief position, that only got worse and we went on a drama journey of right.

At heart, this is a social commentary on the struggle of doctors having to choose their ethics over the harsh system they are supposed to adhere to. The idea that you shouldn't admit a mistake to protect the reputation of yourself and the hospital, even just a little bit. The inner fight to choose a side is strong for anyone, and it's explored heavily through Dr Yeom Dong Il, an intern in the surgery department. But that aside, the political elements are vastly interesting as well. The idea of cliques and past relationships having so much effect. Choi Do Young - our conscience opposed to Jang Joon Hyuk - is plagued by that idea. No matter his values, he is expected to stick by Jang Joon Hyuk and his version of the truth. We see small elements of that in Vice-Director Woo (Played by Kim Chang Wan). He is on the side of Chief Lee, previously being wronged by Dr Jang but due to being friends with an ally of Dr Jang, he had to abandon that dislike to further his career. This brings many different, little threads to the table, giving this drama so much depth that you'd think on first viewing. That's thanks to masterful writing and direction (Lee Ki Won and Ahn Pan Seok respectively)

The acting perfectly complemented the subtlety of the show. I'm not quite sure where I heard this, but I once heard someone praise Kim Chang Wan’s acting for this very drama and I never thought anything of it but within a few screens, I remembered that statement. His sly facial expression, the movements in his eyes when he was plotting. Kim Chang Wan isn't the show's biggest character, plot wise, but he's fascinating to watch perform. He was quite mesmerising in any scene. He was one of many who were excellent in White Tower. Kim Myung Min as Jang Joon Hyuk, the ever reliable Lee Sun Kyun as Choi Do Young, Song Sun Mi as Lee Yoon Jin. The names I can list off tenfold.

It took me a while to find White Tower on the Internet, but that struggle was well worth it. It was an engrossing drama that had very interesting medical, ethical and political elements while very little tropes you can see elsewhere. Lee Yoon Jin and Choi Do Young are described as being very similar in this show by other characters. Both have a strong sense of justice. So, you'd expect there to be some romance between the two, right? That's not what transpires. Choi Do Young is a happily married man, who doesn't think of any other thoughts. Nor does Lee Yoon Jin. They are simply friends (through his wife) and want to help the bereaved Kwon family. Isn't that refreshing? That's what White Tower brings. Just a well rounded, excellent drama through and through.

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I'd say it's only criticisms are that it doesn't quite live up to initial expectations. It's a fantasy involving impending doom so it should be an emotional experience and it just doesn't really draw those tears out. Only when Dong Kyung comes to grips with her fate does those tears seem to come out. But it's brief and it's predictable outcome makes it hard to feel that doom lingering. And back to the other criticisms (that's right, plural): it's a little disjointed. There are two main plots: Dong Kyung and Myeol Mang doing the fantasy elements with deities, illnesses, etc and the other half, a love triangle with Joo Ik, Lee Hyun Kyu and Na Ji Na. Both were good on their own. Yes, the Love Triangle took its time to get interesting but there was something lacking in linking these two together. Maybe it was to do some world building and put emphasis on the otherworldly elements but it felt disjointed. It didn't seem like these plots were in the same universe. I enjoyed the show but it was, at best, a pretty good show. I have a tendency to not complete dramas and this had me watching from Ep 1 to Ep 16. That's an accomplishment.

All the actors were good in their roles. Kang Tae Oh was somewhat wasted as he mostly just stood there and smiled. Admittedly the idea of his character was a fantasy, a figment of past memories by Ji Na but wasted is the term that I'll go for. The best two actors were the ones with the strongest characters - Seo In Guk and Lee Soo Hyuk. Lee Soo Hyuk is so good and I'm glad he was used correctly. Tak Dong Kyung as a character was likeable. The choices the writers go in aren't too wayward. Park Bo Young was witty and amusing as always.

I had a good idea of what I was going to write for this review and rethinking about it has made me rewrite complete sentences. Enjoyable but wasted potential.

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Since everyone tends to talk about the change in writing direction after critics and audience viewers panned the opening shows, let me quickly address it. I personally don't mind the pre-change show. Chae Ro Woon comes off harsh and overly terrible towards everyone's favourite boss, Eun Hwan Ki. However her motives show why. Quite frankly, from her point of view, it's just. And she learns from her mean spirited actions and develops regret and sympathy from them which manifest into a relationship. Perhaps this was due to the re-write, but that was always going to be the conclusion. People just need a bit more patience.

What truly bothered me was how inconsistent Eun Hwan Ki’s anxiety was. When we are first introduced to the character, it's crippling to the point where he can't look anyone in the eye (and no, it's not just his secretary overreacting although she is in hilarious fashion). However it goes on to be simply fear of public speaking and lack of confidence. Far too passive for what we were introduced to. But you can mark the argument that the introduction is the mistake.

So My Introverted Boss is a standard k-drama. Despite some themes involving suicide and self harming, etc, this is fairly comedic and fun to watch. Maybe the aforementioned writing and editing is noticeable. It's fairly inoffensive though. As is this show. Eun Hwan Ki growing into a confident boss is a great story and the best aspect of watching this drama.

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