18+ Psych/thriller saved by good casting and cinematography
The fact that this is my 3rd Kim Young Kwangu project,I guess he is got a hold of my attention.I will give it an 8.I don't normally watch thriller/psycho tropes but this just kept going..the important parts were good and the unnecessary were just fillers that would have made sense if this was a 16 episodes drama.Many critics said it was slow but I feel like it was too short,there was so many juices that the director would have used like a man hunt between Yun O and the police,CSI team trying to piece the dots and him outsmarting them..now that would have been fun, Maybe i have watched to many western detective dramas in the past but I need a kdrama with proper twist and turns between the criminal and the police.I stopped watch American tv long ago but I know an American director will eat this up,there is waaay too much material to develop this to be a hitOverall,I have nothing bad to say about this and I definitely have praise here and there
Was this review helpful to you?
No depth, just vibes
All right, the story begins with such an interesting premise and it’s an intriguing beginning, but unfortunately the initial episodes are the only bit of excitement you might feel as a viewer and the plot makes sense to an extent because after that, it moves based on how hot and sensual each of the characters are. The drama is wholly explicit, which isn’t a problem if there’s a story backing it but it might just be soft erotica with a romanticised version of a serial killer. The cops in this drama have got to be the stupidest team ever — everything done in the plot is motivated by how sexy the characters can be. Of course the acting is spectacular and so much could have been done with a well written story, but we barely get to see anything but their visuals. I did love the music in this drama though, it set the mood and added to the tension which wouldn’t have existed otherwise. Overall a disappointment, you can still give it a watch as it’s only 8 episodes.Was this review helpful to you?
Something you would not normally enjoy watching but interesting
Clever to come up with the title “Somebody” that was not meant literally.This was one of those dramas whose imperfection made it to perfection in relation to its artistic sense. If this would be a movie, it could be a good entry to any international film festival. It has a style of narration that leaves the interpretation of the whole story to the viewers.
I had these uncertainties in the early episodes but eventually appreciate it later on. It digests the topic of psychological conditions and the imbalances that lead someone to go astray. The character of Kim Young Kwang wasn’t entirely hateful and I got to pity him in the end. I have this hypothesis that he was ready to change but was not given a chance. His encounter with Kim Sum (with a special condition as well) to whom he developed a sincere affection made him capable of showing mercy to the people closest to her. It was the power of love that held him back to harm them. But that love was not strong enough for Kim Sum to choose him over her friends. Although justice was served, my heart bled for the character of the ML. for he badly needed guidance and love the most in the story.
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Long.
Bro for me when I first watched this show I was interested from the first characters, the murder mystery surrounding Yun-oh and the connection to Sum, I thought I was in for a rollercoaster. HOWEVER as I want went on I realized very easily that this show is going to be longgg. 8 episodes isn't that bad, it's better than most shows. And okay to be fair I dropped the show thinking I wouldn't watch it again after completing 3 episodes because I was very, very bored however I thought of continuing just because I was interested in how it was going to end. The style of the show is fantastic there's a lot of quiet moments and beautiful shots of just Sum but then there's also a lot of boring moments that will make you wonder why you're watching this. I really enjoyed the last minutes of the first episode where Yun-oh is revealed to be a killer. We have some moments between the two which I believe is actually interesting, I don't know why but the dark elements of them being together intrigues me. Obviously this couple is bad, I don't even support it but seeing how the two share the same feelings, being the only ones who feel out of place made me want to see how it would continue. Like why didn't he kill her? Why is he attached to her? YOU KNOW?!? Messed up relationships like theirs is really interesting but then we'd have some unnecessary parts mid way aka the rest of the side characters. Okay cop lady made me so BOREDDDD like girl I know it's for the plot but maybe? Maybe? Next time why did she go by herself in some demolition zone with the guy that legit left her??? Ummm like okay? AND btw we spend like a whole episode with her just being stuck and the boring ritual sorry... LOL I don't even know why??? Then afterwards we move onto where everyone finds out Sum is dating him then idk they just kind of let it??? From episodes 7-8 Yun-oh likes her, like really likes her... And I was kind of surprised- Because I legit thought he would kill her but okay sure understandable I get clinging onto the first person that you like and she did too. Afterwards skip to Yun-oh's backstory which wasn't as interesting as I thought it would be??? Kind of disappointing how it just chucks up to mommy issues and accidentally killing the first woman he meets on the app woopsiesss. Moving on- We get to the last episodes where Sum tricks Yun-oh to get killed with a razor blade to his eye, perfect slice btw, and neck and just like the cat she killed it was to spare both of them. But also um idk in revenge of all the girls he killed I thought his death would be more extreme? However I liked the part where Sum regained her control after being with him. Tbh I thought the actor for Yun-oh was sooooo good, like his scenes were probably the best part of the show, I kind of feel bad for saying this but everyone else was just meh characters to me, like I didn't really cared too much abt them even Sum... Sorry. Overall on the messed up factor I liked it. On the plot- ummmmmmmmmmm it's ight and the acting was alright. I wouldn't sit through this show again and I don't really recommend something like this to anyone who wants something dark. AND THERE WAS SOOOOOOOOO MUCH MISSING POTENTIAL THIS SHOW COULD HAVE BEEN GREAT. Also the hand thing was really weird lol. Overall 6.5 because I really like Yun-oh's actor. Thanks for reading.Was this review helpful to you?
Gritty but ultimately disappointing
Not sure whether this was made to shock more than thrill and have us biting our nails. That's how it turned out for me and the shock wasn't, sadly, in a compelling storyline, but the fact it is very different from the vast majority of K-dramas, with sex, nudity, swearing and sex talk.Sadly the sex scenes felt too unnatural and gratuitous in several instances.
I found the plot very disjointed and one particular, very vulnerable, character's actions had me losing all sympathy for her situation and totally lost credibility. Utterly stupid decision making.
The Shamen was.... ??? Really, like, what was her purpose.
The police were a waste of space and screen time; inept and utterly useless.
The actions of supporting characters with the aforementioned vulnerable character in some latter episodes, were frankly unbelievable and totally ruined those scenes for me.
By the end, I was not at all surprised at how weirdly it was left.
The cast were very good (only reason this gets a 6 overall from me), but the story could have been so much more.
I would not watch this again.
Was this review helpful to you?
Not for people who like typical Korean Thrillers. hide your kids, hide your wives
Come into this with an open mind. there is sex and gore but if you've seen a naked person and fake blood before, you wont die watching it. there is a skip forward button for a reason, i suggest you use it at those parts. if ur american there is less sex than grays anatomy so you'll be fine.btw the dudes' glasses are why i gave it a lower rating, like who is the stylist because those glasses were bigger than his head??
Plot can be hard to follow for the faint-hearted romance lovers who dont understand shows with layers, respectfully.
I was gonna drop it but im glad i watched it till the end because OMG....
the ending was really good, dont listen to people who say its bad. they only watched Vincenzo and think theyre an expert in thrillers.
not gonna watch this again tho. i cant stand it horrible story building. You feel like the writers forgot about some characters at times because i cant even tell you the name of one of the main characters.
but super great u should watch :)
Was this review helpful to you?
Not Good Enough
Korean Drama " Somebody " is a thriller with a mature content.As an idea, Somebody doesn't stray far from the beaten track and keeps things predictable and, overall, simple. The criminal is known from the start and his crimes are pretty basic textbook, even though he appears to have no pattern as to whom he kills and whom he lets go.
The drama also gets unnecasserily gory and adds some extra scenes more to provoke than to enhance the entertainment value, or, at least, get deeper into the characters' mind.
In the end, along with some other extra plotlines that didn't add up, the drama wraps up everything the way it started things in the first place.
On the other hand, the performances were the best part of the drama.
So, overall, three out of ten.
Was this review helpful to you?
Just so very boring
But you know, at first it actually wasn't. Got to give full credit to those amazing Korean production values and the acting chops of literally everybody on screen because all of that propelled me through to about episode 3 before I realised I had no idea what was happening and the whole thing didn't make much sense.Plot points seemed to repeat endlessly to no purpose and characters did inexplicable things for vague reasons (although rank stupidity did seem to be a factor).
The male lead seems to be able to sign up to a dating app with his own image, lure women in and kill them with nobody noticing or caring - let alone the police. I've seen the whole thing and still have no idea what motivated our female lead, Sum, at any point. The writer seemed to think her being autistic was sufficient motivation and I don't even know where to start on how offensive that is.
Somebody and the titular app, Someone, seem to represent an intense desire for connection between people who leave themselves open and vulnerable in trying to find it and thus end up hurt. But the show's limp, oppressed storytelling left us with nothing but a lot of scrabbling around in the dark and, admittedly, healthy doses of Kim Young-kwang being in equal parts creepy and sexy as fuck.
What should have been menacing ended up being undercut by the serial killer's sheer overwhelming omniscience and everybody's vague motivations. Don't get me started on the drama's annoying detours into mysticism and mentions of 'evil spirits' and 'exorcisms'.
By the end, I was hoping I too could be strangled mid-coitus because that would be a hell of a lot more interesting than this show and I'd still end up stupefied to the same extent.
Was this review helpful to you?
Kim Young Kwang’s butt
It is weird. Yes, in a negative way. At first, I kind of feel amazed at how creepy they tried to showcase the storyline, Yet, as it went on, I kind of feel icky about most of the scenes and tend to feel bored from time to time.The only entertaining thing that the drama has to offer to me is seeing Kim Young Kwang giving his best in nailing a daring role. Full nude scenes are too good for such a popular actor like him. He is indeed a professional. Those intimidates scenes are actually the sole reason why the show is not perfectly bad. They nailed every sex scene with no too much work in camera angles and show us how thirsty the characters are in terms of sex.
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
a hit and a miss
somebody (2022) instantly intrigued me the minute i read its synopsis. personally, i love crime thrillers, especially when done correctly, however, i felt like somebody was not in that case, to me it felt rushed, confusing and disappointing as a viewer.the general storyline is very hooking, the concept we are introduced to is one about a creepy yet charming serial killer that uses an app to find his victims. similar to a concept i've seen in webtoons like 'killstagram' for example which is about a killer that uses social media. we are also introduced early on to the character dynamics between our female lead and the killer, her friends, and her enemies as one could say. this story though doesn't really follow very easily, as there are loose ends left and parts unexplained to the audience. it also moves very quickly during the start but slowly during the middle, making it harder to complete. the ending was well-- boring and expected. also the app aspect?? what happened to it?? our fl leads passions??? idkkk
my main grief is probably the characters, specifically our main female lead kim sum. for one, it's rare for a character to be both female and on the spectrum, which as someone on the spectrum myself, i was happy to see it, but in the case of somebody, i found it to be super lazy writing. obviously yes, autistic people can be killers but with the little to no rep in sk, and the rep there usually being stereotypes and very ableist representation i found it be a letdown because it did nothing to outstand those stereotypes. there was absolutely no reason to make her autistic, especially to 'make' her a psychopath.
the other characters were just okay, the male lead was obviously disturbing but nothing outstanding to be nor shocking. i expected him to be the way he ended up being at the end. the side characters were probably my favorite, i love seeing other reps for disabilities and wlw reps as well. i love that they showed those with those impediments can still have love and desire it just like anyone else.
visually though, somebody is a hit. as someone who studied video composition, wow, these shots are amazing, and it sent chills through my spine during some scenes just by visuals alone. the lighting is cool as well, with blue lighting for distress and more warm for comfort which I enjoyed. the acting was also a hit, it was greattt, ml was so creepy and made me very uncomfortable, but the facial expressions were always on point and the fl also did a good job with what she was assigned.
one thing i will note is on it's portrayal of sexuality. it's uncommon for shows in south korea to show skin so graphically and i was shocked by it's portrayal here, also rarely do you see women talking about this stuff! somebody did do a good job of making it uncomfortable.
so in the end, this show is a hit in an artistic standpoint, the creative directors, set designers and cameramen did well. but god, i could not get over the poor directing and writing, stop making autistic people villains as a way out and goddd find a way to keep the hook going throughout the story, don't ditch it immediately.
Was this review helpful to you?
no logical episodes
rating it less ONLY because of the last episode. i just don't get it what happened why. and it was totally illogical episode....
tho the episodes being illogical i still enjoyed watching it through out. the ML is hot af 🥵🔥
and even the acting of both the leads is top notch.
..
i have alot of questions. but since everything in series was so illogical and stuff. i don't think there is a need to be precise with epsiodes.
..
i mean it is how it is. there is no logic i tell you .
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
majorly missed the mark
This show needed at least 4 more episodes to delve deeper into the backstories of the characters. I was left feeling like I knew none of the characters on a deeper level or their motives. I needed a background on the cop’s accident, the serial killers past, the shaman’s past… this show introduced 5+ half-baked plot lines that went nowhere.Because we had no background on the killer and no inside look into his motives, I couldn’t understand his change of heart. It was just the guilt and fear of getting caught I guess.
Also, the characters made some incredibly stupid decisions. People, never meet a man for the first time in the middle of the woods by yourself, even if you don’t depend on a wheelchair to get around. And don’t go meet that man again after he abandons you in the woods and destroys your extremely expensive wheelchair. I could not feel any empathy for the cop because she kept getting herself into stupid situations.
The music also felt off. There were multiple times when the music did not match the atmosphere of the scene. The music would be really quirky while the scene was tense. It took away from the immersion into the scene.
On a good note, the acting was awesome. The male lead did a great job being menacing and a little unhinged. He mastered the creepy smile.
Overall, this show failed to keep my attention most of the time and it has 0 rewatch value to me. I almost dropped it after the dumpster fire that episode 6 was, but I figured I could finish the last 2 episodes just for completion.
Was this review helpful to you?
