This review may contain spoilers
I LOVE IT SO MUCH!
Overall, this is a really solid adaptation that stays true to the spirit of the original work while making thoughtful choices about what to include, exclude, and reimagine. It hits all the key emotional beats!One of the biggest strengths is how much of the original’s voice remains intact. The humor, the oddball charm, the characters’ personalities, so much of it carries over. Most of the iconic gags are kept, and those that wouldn’t have translated well to live-action are smartly trimmed. Instead, they’ve added original scenes, like the amusement park sequence, that feel cohesive and emotionally resonant. That scene in particular really works both as a storytelling beat and as comic relief.
The casting and performances are excellent. Every actor feels well-suited to their role, and their delivery brings depth and believability to scenes that could easily have tipped into caricature. And the adaptation doesn’t shy away from reworking moments that were more controversial in the original. For example, Jung-hwan’s infamous “Soo-ah, bite me!” line is reinterpreted here; now, Soo-ah bites Lee Moon-ki on her own, and Jung-hwan intervenes to stop her. It reframes the dynamic in a way that’s cleaner, clearer, and much more in tune with the emotional tone of the film.
Another major change? The ending. In the original, Jung-hwan dies, but here, he survives after a coma, and ahh that happy ending choice reallyyy landed with me. It offers a sense of catharsis and hope that feels earned. His new job as an animal trainer also adds a sweet layer of plausibility to Soo-ah’s own growth and discipline. It’s a smart, emotionally satisfying change that works.
There are a few shifts in focus. Imo, Shin Yeon-hwa and Soo-ah’s school life took more of a backseat in this version, but that didn’t take away from the emotional core. The tone does shift more into family film territory in the second half, with added warmth and tenderness. And yes, there’s a moment near the end involving Soo-ah’s vision in their old home in Seoul that adds that bittersweet, nostalgic note that ties everything together.
Visually, though, this film is rich and vibrant. The setting of Eunbong-ri is stunning, full of seasonal beauty and quiet details that ground the story in a real place. The humor and visuals work hand in hand, and there’s a softness to the world-building that’s genuinely moving.
The dance element introduced in the adaptation also brought some interesting texture. I appreciate how it visually ties memory, movement, and healing together. The musical-style finale, where Soo A, now cured, dance to BoA’s “No.1” on stage with her new friends, bring a kind of closure for me that feels celebratory.
In the end, I'd say, it’s a tender, thoughtfully crafted film that wears its heart on its sleeve: full of warmth, charm, and quiet emotional truth. It leaves you with a lump in your throat, a soft smile, and the comforting sense that healing, no matter how messy, is always possible.
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Surprised by A Zombie
I've never read the webtoon, but I was thrilled by the writing. The story seems lightweight from the start and it's executed insanely awesome. At first I thought this was going to be just zombies and some cheeky comedies, but they gave us a lot of heartwarming dad-daughter relationship moments instead. For this kind of story which could go wrong easily, this one is an impressive job. They successfully pour tears, joy and laugh into one package. Thanks to Jo Jung Suk for being a perfect father figure, he may be able to get another Baeksang for this. Also visual of the house in Eunbong-Ri is very calming,The pace of the story is somewhat unusual, not wrong though. The story escallated extremely fast in the beginning, looks like it's going to peak already on the first 30 minutes. This made me questioning, what are they going to do for the rest one and half hour. So they bring us into an enjoyable roller coaster of emotion, going up and down near the peakline but never touch it. However this may has been like this already all the time, it's just the fact that I've never read the webtoon.
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Warm Body Meet Fido in Korean Version
To be honest, I’m usually not into drama (unless it’s BL, lol), so when I walked into the cinema I was expecting something closer to Train to Busan with a mix of Warm Bodies and maybe a sprinkle of Fido. Basically, I was ready for chaos, action, and some comedy, not a tear-jerking family drama disguised as a zombie flick. And let me tell you, I was not emotionally prepared for what this movie threw at me 😂. It’s funny, absurd, and sweet at the same time, but it leans way more on the heartfelt side than the gory zombie side.I actually ended up enjoying it a lot more than I thought. It’s quirky, heartwarming, and somehow manages to balance comedy with some really touching father-daughter moments. The whole “training your zombie kid” thing is both ridiculous and oddly moving, like, one minute I’m laughing at the absurdity, the next minute I’m holding back tears.
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Deserving premise that is surprisingly touching
Despite getting started with a slapstick comedy treatment that came out of nowhere, eventually it gains enough traction as the story progresses and lands a pretty deserving premise that is surprisingly touching. Seriously this kind of deliberately mixed genre is very risky to handle, it can either fail miserably or work seamlessly, almost like a high risk high return thing, though it's safe to say that this movie had worked really well all thanks to its solid family drama core that somehow overturns a devastating situation into an unbelievably hopeful vision. That said you will need to ignore some of its tenuous logical reasoning throughout the plot and it will be good to go, The acting performance is definitely the strongest suit that gave this movie an incredible amount of support to flourish into a box office success right now.Was this review helpful to you?
