PrettyCarEye

The drama had moments of brilliance, but struggled to maintain an even mood & tone throughout the narrative. The sequences featuring the father were tonally dark and foreboding. They, with the help of some rather chilling music, imbued emotions (mood) of fear, dread and terror in both the characters & the audience, but as the narrative shifts to other sequences, such as the work sequences (esp FL's) or the romantic sequences ... the tone changes significantly, like 2 different dramas were being spliced into 1 show, rather than it being one cohesive story. A romcom with moments of lightness & humour VS a dark psychological thriller. They don't go exactly hand in hand, do they? That's why it feels like the pace slows down at some points, because this tonal shift is jarring & disorientating. For the romantic & other sequences to maintain the same dramatic tone, they would have to be presented with a moodier atmosphere and edgier, less innocent (in behaviour/action) protagonists. Eg, Cruel City.

Acting wise, the actor who played the psychopath blew his role straight out of the water. His mannerisms, his body language, his voice, the way he enunciated certain words ... he totally embodied the character, and it was the most appropriately terrifying performance ever. I truly would never want to encounter this man (the character) in a dark alley. Brilliant! I'll definitely be seeking out more of this ahjussi's work from now on.

This drama was definitely an ambitious project for TV, and network TV at that. I think the story would have played better in a movie format. The director would have had more creative license to maintain the same mood & tone throughout, as well as delve even deeper into the lead characters' complicated emotions. They did an excellent job peeling back the layers of the father's psyche, as well as Hyun Moo's, but with the leads we only got just beneath surface but not far enough.

It's available in full and completely subbed on illegal streaming sites.

I'm still watching this drama, but I concur with all your points, esp the one regarding the actor who plays the father (his portrayal is magnificent!) & the musical score! That one note piano sound that plays in every scene where evil is about to be unleashed ... chilling! He, coupled with that music, strike fear and terror in my heart & I love it!!!

Yeah! I was like HOW could he not tell she wasn't a robot ... esp when he touched her head or held her hand? Human beings are warm to the touch!!! It's one of the fastest ways to tell if someone is NOT dead. Didn't he feel her warmth? Why would a robot be warm to the touch? Ok, so she wore the metal body suit around her chest area, but when they hugged, couldn't he smell her scent? Feel her breath against his cheek? The writer simply toyed with ideas she had no clue how to deal with on paper! Silly drama...

I think the term you're looking for is 'mood & tone'. Mood & tone is like the personality of a drama or movie, and is created with the use of lighting, set design, colour filters, camera lens filters etc. It's what distinguishes one production from another, and what places K-drama squarely at the top of the drama pyramid (because they're good at this). Chinese & Taiwanese dramas all look the same because they don't seem to have mastered this aspect of TV production yet, even though they have good production values overall.

Yup, sounds about right!

Kinda like me and drinking. Every time I get a nasty hangover, I swear to God I won't ever drink alcohol again, but that's just BS.

(And no, thankfully I'm not an alcoholic yet!)

I'm an unapologetic binge-watcher. I think binge-watching was specifically invented for me because when it comes to my entertainment I need instant gratification!!! I can not imagine enjoying a drama so much and having to STOP and wait for episodes!!! That's mindboggling to me! :-) I'm an extrovert so I need my fix fast! LOL I don't have the patience or wherewithal to wait week by week. Even with Western series, after the first season, which I'll watch week by week to see if I like the show, I'll wait until ALL seasons air and then I binge watch the whole thing if it passes my litmus test!

All my friends who are agonizing now about how long they have to wait for the grand finale of Game of Thrones??? I laugh in their faces. I don't have those problems! I watched GoT S1 week by week when it first came out and the struggle was dreadful. I certainly learned my lesson then. Now that 2019 is the last season, I will binge watch it once everything wraps. As for Asian dramas, I'll binge watch any & all of them. It doesn't matter the episode count, as long as something about the drama catches my interest, I'll watch it. I have kinda sworn off 50 - 100 ep dramas, but it wasn't because of the ep count but how repetitive, draggy & tedious the plot usually becomes, plus certain cultural aspects that I can't tolerate (ie, possessive, meddling parents!). If a really engaging, innovative 100 ep drama comes up, hells yeah I will binge watch the shit out of it! ;) I tend to love long dramas that have an amazing romance & OTP so that would be a dream for me; those ones I can watch all day! But that's too much to ask of most Asian dramas.

I'm a whole grown adult pushing 40 so I DO have a life, but I make time for the things that make me happy! It helps to preserve my mental health. I never have a problem with any streaming sites because I use very strong popup & ad blockers. I watch a lot stuff on kissasian with no disturbances at all so you better get with the programme, girly! Life's too short to be a victim of that ish!!!

If you have adblocker you can enjoy dramas for free on Viki without any pesky intrusions!

Re PTW ... I have the same problem! (wince). But I've resolved to do something about it in 2019!!! What I do now is that I add a note to everything that gets added on there! When I'm in the mood for a particular drama or movie, I read my notes and it becomes a lot easier to actually pick something from my list, rather than a recommendation on the forums or search. Try that and see if it works for you!

I use Kocowa on occasion and I'm not in America! VPN is your friend! :-) I pay for mine, but its cheaper than the Kocowa subscription!

Thank you!
(Please put your answer behind a spoiler tag)

It's not a film for the casual moviegoer who just wants to be entertained, but for people with a deep appreciation for cinema as an art form. It's a film about the meaninglessness of life, but also about finding hope no matter how far that journey may take you. 7/10

Did this have a happy ending?

Finally, an Asian movie about marriage that isn't about cheating spouses & how horrible married life is! Relationships are difficult, and not just romantic ones. But if both parties are invested and make an effort to understand each other, relationships can grow into something special. I like this message.

The North Korean agent looks too well fed and healthy. The vast majority of North Koreans, even high ranking officials, have that emaciated look ...

What are you talking about? His hairstyle is hot! :p

The woman & child/children ALWAYS survive in Korean movies. Pay attention next time and see if I'm lying. I honestly would have loved it if the pregnant woman got bit or even the little girl. Not because I'm a cruel zombie monster myself ... but because all their stuff is always so darn predictable! Killing these characters off & leaving Gong Yoo & Ma Dong Seok as the survivors would have been a far more mindblowing ending.

So this movie was really great, but really quite predictable! I could tell who was going to survive and who would become zombie meat from the beginning. It's the same outcome in pretty much every South Korean film of this nature. What would have been really mindblowing is if only a certain character survived ... or just someone else totally unexpected! But I guess that wouldn't sit very well with Korean audiences. :/

This guy is the real MVP.