This review may contain spoilers
A ten hour movie disguised as a K-Drama
A really long, satisfying cinematic ten hour movie where one episode might break your heart and the next episode gets you choking and laughing.Unlike other audiences who may have watched the same piece, I came in foolishly thinking it was an actual movie and expected the first episode to be the last. When the episode ended, I thought: “what the heck? This is how it ends?”
With this unique yet foolish expectation, I felt a deep sense of gratitude and desire to finish this “movie.” The high quality production was worth my continued pursuit. I was extremely grateful for the beautiful breathtaking visuals of the scenes, backgrounds: a movie within a movie but in a drama. The audience coming into this show expecting it to be a normal Korean Drama will be absolutely disappointed. This is a masterpiece 10 hour movie is what it is! Please don’t treat this as a Korean drama—it is a masterpiece artsy movie for melo lovers.
I see a lot of reviews on here talking about “realisticness” of the plots and character tendencies. As someone who has experienced many of these plots in real life, I can tell you that these types of situations and timelines do exist. People stubbornly live their life thinking they are right and believe they make the right decisions for themselves and for others. We can easily be objective when analyzing other people’s lives, but we are always going to be biased towards our own perspectives.
Ko Gyeom: My top favorite scene has to be his optimism on set. Gyeom acting very poorly yet still touching people’s hearts with his relentless passion for movies. I definitely felt cringe when I saw him, as Mubee saw him. He was good at being annoying and nerdy about movies, but it all makes sense when you hear about his trauma and upbringing with his brother. He did the best with what he had available to him. He actually excelled - ended up making a living as a critic. Also, the child actor deserves an award.
Kim Mubee: She’s very cynical and had a cloud looming over her head the entire beginning of the drama. It was honestly so annoying to watch Bo Young in this character because she’s usually so cheerful or comedic in her other dramas even if she was portraying a tragic character. Boyoung did exceptionally well in this one because I felt so sad watching her, so much that it felt like she didn’t have the will to live and was only existing to take revenge on her father by being a “smart” and detached director. Gyeom likely sensed the darkness in her, and wanted to support her but realized he was limited by his own darkness. One could tell that Mubee was naturally so kind and hardworking, but was coping by drowning herself in work and avoiding intimacy with others. The child actress was amazing!!
Mubee’s Mother: I loved that her mother encouraged her to pursue this love and also opened up about their grief and love for each other—this was such a realistic and exceptionally well written scene. How many of us struggle to be intimate with our parents, especially after losing one of our core family members? No one wants to trigger the other person’s grief so no one says anything. We just try to keep each other safe and somewhat okay. Rarely in Asian culture do we acknowledge that deep grief. I would say this might be my top 1 mother daughter scene in a movie/show.
Son Ju A: I sat with myself for a long time reflecting on her character. I couldn’t understand her hesitation with the relationship. I think the writer could have included more of a backstory for her to help viewers understand better, but I get the feeling the director may be trying to convey that “Right time, wrong person.” This lady is extremely determined and ambitious. She chose her high school based on the boy she had a crush on. This means she amazing guts or is truly foolish. Based on this, you can safely assume that she’s a dreamer who is living to pursue her greatest desires, which she later on she discovered is not this boy, but rather her love for the arts (which is why she was such a fangirl). Maybe she wanted to be like her boyfriend and support him but was he the boyfriend she needed? A relationship is more than just passion.
Hong Si Jun: I think his character was the most cliche and boring, but it served a great purpose for the other characters. Dude had a rich family but didn’t want to pursue that rich people route and instead arrogantly pursued his interest while his parents reluctantly paid for his studio. His treatment of people around him makes sense since he was treated with zero respect and intimacy by his own family. He needs a lot of emotional growth.
Ko Jun: His character wasn’t anything new in the drama world, but it did remind viewers that not everyone gets the privilege to live a selfish life. He could have chosen to neglect his brother, but it could be that he was dealing with untreated PTSD and Depression since his parents died and his way of coping with it was avoiding. His character development was realizing that him not healing from his mental illness (I.e. being a little selfish) ended up hurting his little brother. His character also teaches viewers that if people choose to hide who they are, that’s their choice and circumstance. The people who are left behind do not need to blame themselves if their loved one chose to live selflessly or to hide their own desires.
Bartender Ajussi: “Love itself is complete.” This is going to be my quote for life!! I love it so much. This script was GOLD and I’m going to say it 10x more.
Director Ajussi: I feel like he deserves to be like godfather for all these kids. He inspired so many people by not only not giving up but also not taking things so seriously at times. He was a great role model for all these characters!
…And so many more amazing supporting characters
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