This review may contain spoilers
With this director and screenwriter, obviously we had to watch it. Kim Go-eun, as a bonus, we can't say no. Park Se-jun's intriguing music completes the picture. He makes good use of the solo bassoon. I appreciate the effort. (Even if that minor sixth leap sounds like the theme of The Force beginning.)
At the beginning, we are introduced to complex characters who have room to exist and develop. We expect nothing less from this team. The understated direction chooses its moments to intensify the stakes of the story, then becomes more academic when the actresses' performances demand it. Thus, we follow the story in the most natural way possible, without questioning the (many) oddities of this far-fetched scenario. The original text of ‘Little Women’ is far removed from this...
One criticism I would make of this K-drama is that it resorts to certain plot devices to add artificial suspense. Certain elements of the plot are resolved in a very convenient, even miraculous way. The whole Singapore section, for example. (Singapore, the wet dream of every fascist on the planet) It's reminiscent of the 2013 film Samar, and that's not a compliment. The twists go so far! These secret societies that scatter blue flowers all over the crime scenes and reveal everything (but not too much at once, let's save some for later) when our heroines question them. Strange, strange.
"The rich risk their capital, the poor risk their lives."
From the very first episode, there are references to ‘illegal’ torture (we'd like to think so, but it was perfectly legal) against people suspected of espionage (being "communists"). The scene is set: the cruelty of the rich. You don't become rich without stealing, killing, cheating and being complicit in all of that at the same time: inheriting.
I think it's good that the alcoholism of one of the characters raises the issue of taking substances to keep up with work and cope with pressure. It's a problem that no one wants to address; bosses are happy to see their employees work themselves to death and then accuse them of bad behaviour when they no longer want them.
It really hurt my heart to see how it was used against her. That said, this theme disappears quite quickly. And excuse me, but when you quit alcohol, you suffer serious, even fatal, physical and mental consequences. It deserved better treatment. Here, it seems like a bit of an easy plot device.
Another thing : the rich great-aunt somewhat undermines the dialectic around money. If we can count on providential help, what's the point of repeating over and over again how desperate these young women are to find money to survive ? It somewhat undermines the illustration of how poverty makes you exploitable and disposable. And so we wonder, where was this immensely wealthy woman when her family was living in poverty ?
What's more, all this talk about pride when you're poor is rather annoying. When you need money, you don't turn your nose up at it, and those in power know this very well indeed. We feel indebted when they throw us a few crumbs, but for them it's nothing; we cost them nothing and they gain so much.
Similarly, trying to justify this great-aunt's actions by saying, "Yes, but being a woman was hard", well, being a poor woman is undoubtedly much harder, and it still doesn't justify getting rich off the deaths of others. At least this old lady seems to have a keen taste for the paintings of Juan Gris, Jacques Villon and Serge Poliakoff, and she's quite right.
And now that I think about it... she could have told her nieces so much about that blue orchid thing, but she didn't say a word ! What a joke.
"Do you really believe that the rich are always the aggressors and the poor are inevitably their victims? That's a lie that poor people tell themselves."
On the other hand, violence among wealthy individuals, towards each other and towards their children, is shown in a stark light. It is their way of validating their worth ; this social position is maintained through violence against others and against themselves. One must undergo "discipline" to remain in line and thus "earn" their's superior position. This is demonstrated in the work of French sociologists Pinçon-Charlot. (not sure if their books have been translated in English) However, it is worth adding that violent fathers exist in all social classes and are never good fathers.
The ambitious mayoral candidate says at one point that his father was a Vietnam War veteran and a victim of Agent Orange. It is curious to see how Korean productions so rarely mention their country's participation in this war against Vietnamese independence on the American side, and how, coincidentally, it is only to talk about a very sad old man who is ill, and never about the Vietnamese he surely killed... The screenwriter does the same thing in Tempest, briefly mentioning the war but without saying what it entailed. There is something to question here.
I notice a lot of annoying things (which no one will read, thankfully. I write too much), but to be honest, this series keeps you hooked throughout. You want to know where it's going, and each episode ends with a scandalous cliffhanger. Scandalous ! Even if it's a senseless mess at times (the youngest little sister who serves as a sort of pet throughout and then disappears because one really don't know what to do with this character...), I devoured it all in a ridiculously short time. I'm so weak. And any story that doesn't involve virile males in search of action, I'm in.
Useless bonus :
_The heir locked up in a luxury psychiatric hospital reads Le Comte de Monte Cristo and later sends a text message under the pseudonym Dantès. A true fan.
_The shameless advertising for chocolate squares wrapped in plastic (we see it in countless K-dramas) is completely off-putting. Buy a whole bar and cut your own squares !
_From one series to the next, we end up seeing the same places. I recognise the house of the evil rich people and the three sisters' flat on the roof. With that church tower right next to it.
At the beginning, we are introduced to complex characters who have room to exist and develop. We expect nothing less from this team. The understated direction chooses its moments to intensify the stakes of the story, then becomes more academic when the actresses' performances demand it. Thus, we follow the story in the most natural way possible, without questioning the (many) oddities of this far-fetched scenario. The original text of ‘Little Women’ is far removed from this...
One criticism I would make of this K-drama is that it resorts to certain plot devices to add artificial suspense. Certain elements of the plot are resolved in a very convenient, even miraculous way. The whole Singapore section, for example. (Singapore, the wet dream of every fascist on the planet) It's reminiscent of the 2013 film Samar, and that's not a compliment. The twists go so far! These secret societies that scatter blue flowers all over the crime scenes and reveal everything (but not too much at once, let's save some for later) when our heroines question them. Strange, strange.
"The rich risk their capital, the poor risk their lives."
From the very first episode, there are references to ‘illegal’ torture (we'd like to think so, but it was perfectly legal) against people suspected of espionage (being "communists"). The scene is set: the cruelty of the rich. You don't become rich without stealing, killing, cheating and being complicit in all of that at the same time: inheriting.
I think it's good that the alcoholism of one of the characters raises the issue of taking substances to keep up with work and cope with pressure. It's a problem that no one wants to address; bosses are happy to see their employees work themselves to death and then accuse them of bad behaviour when they no longer want them.
It really hurt my heart to see how it was used against her. That said, this theme disappears quite quickly. And excuse me, but when you quit alcohol, you suffer serious, even fatal, physical and mental consequences. It deserved better treatment. Here, it seems like a bit of an easy plot device.
Another thing : the rich great-aunt somewhat undermines the dialectic around money. If we can count on providential help, what's the point of repeating over and over again how desperate these young women are to find money to survive ? It somewhat undermines the illustration of how poverty makes you exploitable and disposable. And so we wonder, where was this immensely wealthy woman when her family was living in poverty ?
What's more, all this talk about pride when you're poor is rather annoying. When you need money, you don't turn your nose up at it, and those in power know this very well indeed. We feel indebted when they throw us a few crumbs, but for them it's nothing; we cost them nothing and they gain so much.
Similarly, trying to justify this great-aunt's actions by saying, "Yes, but being a woman was hard", well, being a poor woman is undoubtedly much harder, and it still doesn't justify getting rich off the deaths of others. At least this old lady seems to have a keen taste for the paintings of Juan Gris, Jacques Villon and Serge Poliakoff, and she's quite right.
And now that I think about it... she could have told her nieces so much about that blue orchid thing, but she didn't say a word ! What a joke.
"Do you really believe that the rich are always the aggressors and the poor are inevitably their victims? That's a lie that poor people tell themselves."
On the other hand, violence among wealthy individuals, towards each other and towards their children, is shown in a stark light. It is their way of validating their worth ; this social position is maintained through violence against others and against themselves. One must undergo "discipline" to remain in line and thus "earn" their's superior position. This is demonstrated in the work of French sociologists Pinçon-Charlot. (not sure if their books have been translated in English) However, it is worth adding that violent fathers exist in all social classes and are never good fathers.
The ambitious mayoral candidate says at one point that his father was a Vietnam War veteran and a victim of Agent Orange. It is curious to see how Korean productions so rarely mention their country's participation in this war against Vietnamese independence on the American side, and how, coincidentally, it is only to talk about a very sad old man who is ill, and never about the Vietnamese he surely killed... The screenwriter does the same thing in Tempest, briefly mentioning the war but without saying what it entailed. There is something to question here.
I notice a lot of annoying things (which no one will read, thankfully. I write too much), but to be honest, this series keeps you hooked throughout. You want to know where it's going, and each episode ends with a scandalous cliffhanger. Scandalous ! Even if it's a senseless mess at times (the youngest little sister who serves as a sort of pet throughout and then disappears because one really don't know what to do with this character...), I devoured it all in a ridiculously short time. I'm so weak. And any story that doesn't involve virile males in search of action, I'm in.
Useless bonus :
_The heir locked up in a luxury psychiatric hospital reads Le Comte de Monte Cristo and later sends a text message under the pseudonym Dantès. A true fan.
_The shameless advertising for chocolate squares wrapped in plastic (we see it in countless K-dramas) is completely off-putting. Buy a whole bar and cut your own squares !
_From one series to the next, we end up seeing the same places. I recognise the house of the evil rich people and the three sisters' flat on the roof. With that church tower right next to it.
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