In the meantime, I congratulate you for your editorial, which deals with an extremely complex and variegated subject that at the same time offers so many possibilities for analysis. Personally, I too love this theme, it is something that has always accompanied me, in a discourse not only linked to Asian cinematography but open to a more ‘generalist’ vision, let's say, regarding cinema in its entirety...
Implicitly, rereading your article, it occurs to me that you have already provided a good key to reading it, speaking of themes that are today perhaps a little too overused and perhaps considered ‘old fashioned’ in the contemporary context, possibly with less appeal to viewers more immersed in the contemporary, but melodrama that flows into the fantastic, often linked to the ‘gothic’ genre, which in itself inevitably integrates supernatural connotations - ghosts in primis - is something that has always attracted legions of fans;
There was a time - quite a large one, especially in the 1940s and 1950s - when not only in Hollywood but also in much European film industry - France, Great Britain and Italy as well - many directors drank from this source, often using the theme of psychoanalysis, which was very much in fashion, or of surrealism - not only in the pictorial field - for complex, but decidedly involving interpretations...
When I think of movies such as ‘Pandora and The Flying Dutchman’, ‘Marianne de Ma Jeunesse’ ‘Juliette ou La clef des songes’ or ‘Peter Ibbetson’ just to name a few of my favourites from memory, I think that any lover of dramas and Asian cinematography would end up finding themes dear to their passion in the Dramaverse, due to the universality of the subject matter...
In my opinion, in certain cases there is nothing more enchanting than that dreamlike, fairy-tale dimension, where dream and reality come to overlap and where the characters slowly become aware that ‘something’ or ‘someone’ has already crossed/encountered their destiny with the other character...
Predestination is undoubtedly a message of hope, of reassurance that one day we will meet the other half of the sky, or finally be reunited with her, in another world, dimension or what any of us can imagine for an ‘after’ ...
Melodrama is in principle something pushed to excess, it is extreme love, over the top (‘Amour Fou’, in the French definition), it is something that overcomes many barriers, in certain dramas even temporal ones; how many times has it happened to be fond of dramas where the main characters make almost supernatural efforts to reach and conquer the coveted object of their desire?
Every now and then I ask myself: I wonder if for some users here on MDL even their life resembles a drama!? (maybe, if there isn't already a thread on the subject, someone can take a cue for one in the future)
Banally I am not able to provide any sufficiently explicative answer on the theme of the thread, I am an incurable romantic who, perhaps, seeks in this kind of works the antidote to live well in spite of life's dramatic events; among the series listed here I adore ‘Goblin’ (which is one of the few 10 I have in my list) which, perhaps precisely in its ending, renders well the idea of predestination that I have tried to summarise
Not too long ago I posted here on MDL my own review of ‘Next’, an excellent drama from a few years ago, perfectly pertinent to the subject matter, and then I would like to point out ‘Rouge’ by Stanley Kwan (an extraordinary director, ‘Center Stage’ would be enough to define his stylistic character) which perhaps could fall into the genre...
P.S. Kim Hee Soon in the hanbok is truly a beauty out of category!
Happy Birthday, Min Young! ❤️ Our beautiful goddess, who never lets us down and who never lets too much time pass without cheering us up with her extraordinary talent, practically the perfect woman of the dramaverse!
I think Zo In-sung has the best body language among all the Korean actors I have observed. The way he carries…
Absolutely! For me since he was young he's been extraordinary in ‘Piano’ as in ‘That Winter’ and ‘Bali’ (which have some of my favourite casts ever in the Dramaverse!) I love ‘Shoot for the Stars’ and even in ‘It's OK’ which is not among my favourite dramas he's really good... ‘Escape from Mogadishu’ is also occasionally shown here in Italy (it's always curious to hear Asian actors dubbed!) because of its very blockbuster cinematographic cut, but it enhances his acting versatility, definitely... Great actor, a guarantee!
Happy Birthday, dear Yu-ri, of course you could give us the best present, but as they have written before, I too have lost hope and we all live on memories... Look at how many of your peers are making waves right now, maybe they could inspire you to make a comeback!? No!? Happy Birthday, Yu-ri! ❤️
Happy Birthday to our fantastic Ha Neul! There don't seem to be any upcoming shows this year, I'll take the opportunity to catch up on ‘Nothing Uncovered’ which I haven't seen yet. Best wishes to you! ❤️
She is always adorable, as they say ‘she alone is worth the price of the ticket’; I hope for a rom-com of depth, with appropriate partners and adequate development of the characters portrayed, the problem of marriage in Korea seems decidedly extended, as well as the denatality with decidedly high percentages (0.72 children per woman, in Italy, for example, it is 1.23), I often think about how much the national series attempt to ‘influence’ the new generations towards a family future rather than single lives dedicated to the most blatant careerism ...and here ‘Love Scouts’ let's see how it ends! Love You so much Ji Min, fighting! ❤️
Happy Birthday Hee Soon! Really perfect in the excellent ‘Trolley’ and also extremely functional in ‘The Bequeathed’, recently; I see you have a busy 2025, lots of curiosity for the project with Park Min Young, it's nice since you're a really versatile and talented actor Ah, while you're blowing out the candles on the cake🎂, maybe you can remind your wife to get back in action, we haven't seen her in a while!? Thanks! 😉 All the best and happy birthday again!
Namib is ok-watch but don't binge. It gets too depressing and overwhelming. Take lots of breaks between eps..
Ah, got it, thank you, you need the right mood, personally I don't fall into the category of voracious, as far as watching dramas is concerned, so any pauses are to be taken into account, anyway it's there on VIKI; I adore Go Hyun-jung, who for me is always an added value and not even on purpose, she is also in the excellent ‘Mask Girl’ rightly pointed out in the comment by JulySnow2
...[Do you wish to see Son Ye Jin as an idol agency's CEO in a new K-drama?] Yes, I Do! 😁 Eh, SYJ if she picks up the pace she had before the birth of the baby, between movies and series, she is practically unstoppable, it is always a joy when such a wonderful actress remains open to so many projects, this one seems to have some similar features with the recent “Namib” maybe (which I haven't seen yet)!?
Watch out for the cast and their adult versions, this drama definitely looks like a must-see, absolutely, moreover the scenario in the 1950s 1960s (talk about mid-20th century) is even more intriguing... ...The Netflix teaser at the end refers to a volume 1, in the commentaries on YT they mention 4 episodes per week for a total of 16 standard episodes...
An extremely praiseworthy initiative, the figures are nonetheless important, not exactly low budget but reasonably contained in view of the calculated risks for possible fallout, after all, I do not believe that even today's most successful filmmakers started with exorbitant budgets, and frequently necessity sharpens the wit... Korea is steadily among the largest film industries in the world (then taking into account the not too large number of population), so that significant passage about ‘maintaining the creative ecosystem of Korean Cinema’ is particularly relevant, with, hopefully. on the horizon, some future prominent filmmakers... Who knows if any film stars will take up the cause, perhaps ‘sacrificing’ themselves and working on a lower budget with a potential percentage of the revenues, I suggest...
Many Many Happy Birthday wishes to you Jo Min Soo, what a marvellous actress, who was also at the Venice Film Festival as the main character when the late Kim Ki Duk won the Lion with ‘Pieta’, I recently rewatched the beautiful ‘Piano’ with her marvellous, even if only for a few episodes, splendid also in ‘Will it snow for Christmas?’, a less convincing drama but she was perfect, let's wait for her in ‘Riding Life’ which looks promising Happy Birthday! 🌺
Sounds like a lovely coming-of-age story with lots of nostalgia and tears guaranteed, beautiful cast (they absolutely perfect as a couple) and setting in Jeju too, wonderful title and trailer that creates the right growing atmosphere, I'm definitely getting on board! I Love IU! ❤️
You are absolutely fantastic ❤️
Implicitly, rereading your article, it occurs to me that you have already provided a good key to reading it, speaking of themes that are today perhaps a little too overused and perhaps considered ‘old fashioned’ in the contemporary context, possibly with less appeal to viewers more immersed in the contemporary, but melodrama that flows into the fantastic, often linked to the ‘gothic’ genre, which in itself inevitably integrates supernatural connotations - ghosts in primis - is something that has always attracted legions of fans;
There was a time - quite a large one, especially in the 1940s and 1950s - when not only in Hollywood but also in much European film industry - France, Great Britain and Italy as well - many directors drank from this source, often using the theme of psychoanalysis, which was very much in fashion, or of surrealism - not only in the pictorial field - for complex, but decidedly involving interpretations...
When I think of movies such as ‘Pandora and The Flying Dutchman’, ‘Marianne de Ma Jeunesse’ ‘Juliette ou La clef des songes’ or ‘Peter Ibbetson’ just to name a few of my favourites from memory, I think that any lover of dramas and Asian cinematography would end up finding themes dear to their passion in the Dramaverse, due to the universality of the subject matter...
In my opinion, in certain cases there is nothing more enchanting than that dreamlike, fairy-tale dimension, where dream and reality come to overlap and where the characters slowly become aware that ‘something’ or ‘someone’ has already crossed/encountered their destiny with the other character...
Predestination is undoubtedly a message of hope, of reassurance that one day we will meet the other half of the sky, or finally be reunited with her, in another world, dimension or what any of us can imagine for an ‘after’ ...
Melodrama is in principle something pushed to excess, it is extreme love, over the top (‘Amour Fou’, in the French definition), it is something that overcomes many barriers, in certain dramas even temporal ones; how many times has it happened to be fond of dramas where the main characters make almost supernatural efforts to reach and conquer the coveted object of their desire?
Every now and then I ask myself: I wonder if for some users here on MDL even their life resembles a drama!?
(maybe, if there isn't already a thread on the subject, someone can take a cue for one in the future)
Banally I am not able to provide any sufficiently explicative answer on the theme of the thread, I am an incurable romantic who, perhaps, seeks in this kind of works the antidote to live well in spite of life's dramatic events; among the series listed here I adore ‘Goblin’ (which is one of the few 10 I have in my list) which, perhaps precisely in its ending, renders well the idea of predestination that I have tried to summarise
Not too long ago I posted here on MDL my own review of ‘Next’, an excellent drama from a few years ago, perfectly pertinent to the subject matter, and then I would like to point out ‘Rouge’ by Stanley Kwan (an extraordinary director, ‘Center Stage’ would be enough to define his stylistic character) which perhaps could fall into the genre...
P.S. Kim Hee Soon in the hanbok is truly a beauty out of category!
Our beautiful goddess, who never lets us down
and who never lets too much time pass without cheering us up with her extraordinary talent,
practically the perfect woman of the dramaverse!
For me since he was young he's been extraordinary in ‘Piano’ as in ‘That Winter’ and ‘Bali’ (which have some of my favourite casts ever in the Dramaverse!)
I love ‘Shoot for the Stars’ and even in ‘It's OK’ which is not among my favourite dramas he's really good...
‘Escape from Mogadishu’ is also occasionally shown here in Italy
(it's always curious to hear Asian actors dubbed!) because of its very blockbuster cinematographic cut, but it enhances his acting versatility, definitely...
Great actor, a guarantee!
Come back soon in a leading role, mind you!? ❤️
but as they have written before, I too have lost hope and we all live on memories...
Look at how many of your peers are making waves right now,
maybe they could inspire you to make a comeback!? No!?
Happy Birthday, Yu-ri! ❤️
There don't seem to be any upcoming shows this year, I'll take the opportunity to catch up on ‘Nothing Uncovered’ which I haven't seen yet.
Best wishes to you! ❤️
Absolutely amazing actress -"Achiara" drama very underrated- and truly beautiful woman!💖
I hope for a rom-com of depth, with appropriate partners and adequate development of the characters portrayed, the problem of marriage in Korea seems decidedly extended,
as well as the denatality with decidedly high percentages
(0.72 children per woman, in Italy, for example, it is 1.23),
I often think about how much the national series attempt to ‘influence’ the new generations towards a family future rather than single lives dedicated to the most blatant careerism
...and here ‘Love Scouts’ let's see how it ends!
Love You so much Ji Min, fighting! ❤️
Really perfect in the excellent ‘Trolley’ and also extremely functional in ‘The Bequeathed’, recently;
I see you have a busy 2025, lots of curiosity for the project with Park Min Young,
it's nice since you're a really versatile and talented actor
Ah, while you're blowing out the candles on the cake🎂, maybe you can remind your wife to get back in action, we haven't seen her in a while!? Thanks! 😉
All the best and happy birthday again!
I adore Go Hyun-jung, who for me is always an added value and not even on purpose, she is also in the excellent ‘Mask Girl’ rightly pointed out in the comment by JulySnow2
Always amazing, love you so much! ♥️
Yes, I Do! 😁
Eh, SYJ if she picks up the pace she had before the birth of the baby, between movies and series, she is practically unstoppable, it is always a joy when such a wonderful actress remains open to so many projects, this one seems to have some similar features with the recent “Namib” maybe (which I haven't seen yet)!?
(aquarius you too 😘)
Absolutely gorgeous, don't make us wait too long for the new projects eh!?
...The Netflix teaser at the end refers to a volume 1, in the commentaries on YT they mention 4 episodes per week for a total of 16 standard episodes...
Korea is steadily among the largest film industries in the world (then taking into account the not too large number of population), so that significant passage about ‘maintaining the creative ecosystem of Korean Cinema’ is particularly relevant, with, hopefully. on the horizon, some future prominent filmmakers...
Who knows if any film stars will take up the cause, perhaps ‘sacrificing’ themselves and working on a lower budget with a potential percentage of the revenues, I suggest...
what a marvellous actress, who was also at the Venice Film Festival as the main character
when the late Kim Ki Duk won the Lion with ‘Pieta’,
I recently rewatched the beautiful ‘Piano’ with her marvellous, even if only for a few episodes, splendid also in ‘Will it snow for Christmas?’, a less convincing drama but she was perfect,
let's wait for her in ‘Riding Life’ which looks promising
Happy Birthday! 🌺
beautiful cast (they absolutely perfect as a couple) and setting in Jeju too, wonderful title and trailer that creates the right growing atmosphere, I'm definitely getting on board!
I Love IU! ❤️
(same zodiac sign😘)
Love you so much, no need to repeat it, looking forward to your new projects
All the best!