really going back and forth on this one. 7.5 or 8? I liked it, but something was missing. Great fight scenes, decent suspense, nothing real surprising as far as the story is concerned. But, a good popcorn crime movie. I enjoyed it. Crime Noir is my favorite genre and this definitely fits that. But....I just wouldn't say its "Great!!!". But, it was good!
Perfectly adequate crime thriller with a small twist and predictable ending. I enjoyed the time spent watching it and don't regard it as wasted. Just because it was predictable and a little melo doesn't mean you can't sit back with a box of popcorn and a soda and enjoy it for what it was. 7.5/10...maybe 8, but only because of the performance level of the 2 stars, but in particular Son Yi Jin who was gorgeous in this. And make sure you don't turn it off when the credits roll!!
The Good, the bad, and the not so bad. There was some of each in this but the Good, For Me, FAR outweighed the rest. The Good: Gorgeous, Gorgeous, Gorgeous. This show is a visual feast and I don't just mean the beautiful bodies of both men and women so prominently on display. This is so my kind of show. Not for everyone, I realize this. But I have loved old hack and slash, ridiculous and laughable blood spurting, Japanese samurai movies all my life. Love Chinese Wuxia ala Hero and House of Flying Daggers, etc. I'm also am crazy about Tarantino's movies like Kill Bill and Pulp fiction. I also loved 300, Sin City, etc. And A Yaksha is a compilation and homage to all of that. The fights scenes were very high quality for a TV production with 1 ,2, or 3 in every episode! This is a CABLE DRAMA! That means rated R and that means adults only who are not offended when a drama actually dips into reality and shows skin and (lots of) blood (even if most of it is CG). Because surprise, surprise, the reality is, especially during those times, people in all walks of life lived very violently and death and betrayal were a constant. So don't watch this if all that offends you.
Another good. The story is (warts and all), far more realistic in its portrayal of the vicious, back-stabbing, murderous way of lives these people lived. This is no sanitized story like so many of the normal fairy tale sageuks where they ignore or gloss over or carefully keep off screen the fact that the kings of those times were brutal and killed hundreds indiscriminately, including friends, fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, children. It's in your face and on screen in every episode. The powerful men also had 10, 15, 20 or more concubines and dozens of children. In other words, they actually had sex and it was probably not consensual a lot of the time.
This drama shows (more graphically than Hwajung) the complex decisions of betrayal of their closest friends and allies that these people in power made for their concept of "The Greater Good". Even our hero does horrible, irredeemable things because of his "vow of (blind) loyalty". The story was also good just on its own merits as far as the main characters, and I felt fully engaged through every minute of every episode in what was happening to the characters. I loved the fact that every single person in this had good and bad to them. They all did good things and they all did bad things, even the leads, which is so unusual in normal Kdrama where our leads are always pure and good. Of course, the bad were very bad, but I liked the fact that this show also did such a good job of showing the reasons why good people were doing bad things and how no decision is just black or white. Yet, the terrible betrayals they all engaged in were very difficult to watch when every instinct and desire reaches towards that happy ending and redemption. Yet again one of the things I love about cable shows....the complexity of what is right and wrong in these stories. And the price people pay for having to do the things they do....because there is always a price and from the first moment of this show on, there is little question of the prices that will be paid.
The bad. There were definitely some editing problems. Truncated scenes, inexplicable happenings. Yeon seemed to change her mind about Gyeol every other episode towards the end. I don't understand how Moo Myeong was allowed to pass on that message to her in front of Minister Kang and not even be questioned about it. And the 11th episode prior to the very predictable ( but right) ending was just kind of What? Too fast. But my guess is this show was very very expensive to film given how it looks so they had to cut some things short.
Anyway, long winded as usual. If you like the kind of shows I mentioned above, and are in the mood for something VERY different from normal historical Kdrama, give this a try...and TRY to stick with more than 1 episode. Give it a chance. The first episode tries to shock, succeeds, but it actually gets pretty tame after that...which I was kind of sorry about. There is actually only one kiss scene I think in the entire show.
8.5 instead of 9 because there should have been more episodes and a little more cohesive story development at the end. It went off track too quickly. I almost never give 10's so 8.5 is pretty high for a show that needed some work. But, I'm giving it an extra point for effort and originality. Amazing try OCN. I love OCN!
Excellent crime noir. Very fast paced, the movie flew by. Not a surprise ending if you are watching carefully. On the downside, it was a bit too fast paced and crammed with so many plot lines and filmed at such a frenetic pace, added to which they used my most hated filming technique...shaky cam. It would have been nice to see more of how they got from a to b to xyz, yet, even so the film was chock full of enough plot twists and guessing games to keep me happy for a couple hours. And a satisfying ending.
If ever a show deserves to be continued, it's this one. Dark and mysterious, brilliant acting, terrific writing, and, most importantly, for the most part (but for a couple lapses of logic) realistic portrayals of graphic crimes and criminals and the methodologies available to crime fighters as well as the repercussions to them personally from the difficult duties they have to perform. The split second judgments, second guessing, and complex thought processes that result in good and bad decisions and what they have to live with as a result that so many people, inside and outside judge them for were well portrayed here. It is so rare to have a kdrama where they show police/detectives with brains and also show them using proper police investigative procedures (again, for the most part).
This was a smart show with smart characters doing a great job of cracking difficult to solve cases. Each one was fascinating to watch. I wish I had waited for the entire show to post before watching it. This one would definitely be best watched as a marathon, just because the continuity factor is so important. It's too easy to forget things over a week (or more, since viki took so long to post subs on this one). Even switching to only watching every other week to watch 2 episodes at a time wasn't much better. If I get time, I will definitely watch this one again. Hopefully all the missing subs will also eventually appear.
As to the ending, it is hard to leave them like this, but, it is also realistic. The saying that A Policeman's Work Is Never Done was never more truthfully shown than in this ending. I pray there will be a sequel, but do not hold out much hope. We who watched this show and realized just how outstanding it is can only pray that OCN will grant our wishes. Between OCN and TVN we finally have realistic dramas for thinking people. With the vast pool of talent in Korean writers, actors, directors, these 2 cable networks have got a lock on the best it seems. I'm sick of makjang, fish kissing, unrealistic shows. Finally we are getting dramas that reflect truer to life situations, with all the warts, passion, and reality of life. If it has OCN or TVN on it, I'll be watching that show...IF I can find it subbed!!
5.5 and that only out of charity. I too do not understand why No Min Woo continues to take these oddball rolls. He is really a terrific actor but this was just torture watching this. What writer (as well as everyone else involved with this) actually thinks a character like this is romantically and sexually appealing except to some pre-pubescent girl who has no idea what it takes to actually have a male female relationship? It was like watching a cartoon character and not in a pleasant way. I hate being so negative, but it was impossible for me to get past the fact that this drama was mainly about 2 people who were supposed to be falling in love and they spent 90% of the time showing that 1 of those people was not an adult mentally, and then randomly shove in some "adult time" here and there to pretend he actually was. The whole thing was just slightly disturbing. I guess it is a genre that just is not appealing to me. But that certainly is only a personal opinion and others may find it a lot of fun. I worry that, since his last couple shows have been these kind of weird characters, and both have tanked in the ratings that he is being shunted off by The Powers That Be at SM as a way of punishing him (see his lawsuit against them). He is an amazing actor with huge range and since my first site of him in Midas I was head over heels (broke my heart to pieces in that role). Anyway. I hope he gets something with more meat and more power in his next role. He handled both of these last roles very well as far as nailing the character. My dislike of this show has to do only with the story itself, not the performances. I love both the leads.
Right now it's an 8 or 8.5, but I know already that I will be thinking about this movie for a long time and it will end up being the 9 I gave it. For a movie almost 20 years old, it has certainly not dimmed in impact nor shown its age. Beautifully directed and acted. Slow, so achingly slow moving, as we watch Makdong move step by terrible step into a life with only one inevitable conclusion. Painful to watch. For what reason did it have to be this way for him?. He was so innocent and so clean, even to the end and with the things he did, which makes the sense of loss and betrayal so much harder to bear. His search for family in the gangsters he joined, so he could one day have the family he dreamed of at home, treacherously and coldheartedly stolen by a trusted hyung pursuing his own dream. One can only hope that Mi Ae and Bae's dream is one of reoccurring nightmares and reminders of the one they so cruelly betrayed.
I can't even begin to express my thoughts on how brilliant I think this drama is. But boy oh boy is my heart heavy right now. I see that MDL has not adjusted the number of episodes. I hear it has been cut by 2 to 30?
A very sweet and lovely drama, the highlight of it the relationship between Kang Soon-Ok, the mother and the 'mistress' Jang Mo-Ran. The rest of the story pales next to those 2. I could have watched them bicker and tease all 24 hours. They were absolutely adorable! The daughters' stories were enjoyable enough, the grand daughter and her "romances" left me cold and were a total waste of time...absolutely NO chemistry at all there. I liked the conflict with the Assistant cook and the lovely romance with the older daughter, but got kind of tired of the conflict between 2nd daughter and her old teacher. That sort of got like beating a dead horse. Which, of course, was really the moral of the story. Anyway. For those 2 moms, I'd give it a 9, but overall an 8 for me.
I ended up stopping watching this until I did some research on the time period and on the story behind the happenings that are depicted in this film. Then did as much reading as I could on the film itself. Because, frankly, this thing was confusing as all get out. And I watched it with the official subs on DF so it wasn't that. There were way too many people, way too many groups, and way too much going on with very little explanation of why they were doing what they were doing, who belonged with what group and what each group's agenda was, and way too many leaps in time and logic. I think a lot of what could have made this movie better and more easily understood, ended up on the editing room floor. That said, it was a pleasure to watch the acting even if the story was all over the place. I really enjoy dark, gritty movies and had no problem with that aspect of it. The film was certainly better the second time around when I knew more about what was going on and who was who, but, it still was just not put together that well and, as a result, we, as an audience, lost contact with our principle characters. Never a good thing. The core story of the 2 young men was very compelling. Unfortunately, more time should have been spent with them...all that other 'stuff' killed the heart of this story for me. The film definitely ramped up and tightened the story and the performance levels as it drew to an end, but so late. Tragic story, tragic ending. Great performance by Kim Rae Won, and I sincerely appreciate LMH being given the opportunity and for wanting to take on this new role. It's more than past time for him to start taking on a man's role instead of acting like he's still a high school student. This could have been a 9, but, due to the editing and the choppiness of the story, it's a 7 from me. :(
the choice of excellent Korean actors is deep. Why is it I suspect you will have trouble finding this number of Korean actresses to love? Well....if you stick to over 40 you may be okay. :) meow
What an odd movie. I guess what you would call Indie or Arthouse type film? Some terrific performances in a difficult movie. This film was nominated for and won a lot of awards, especially for Gong Hyo Jin. For those of us used to seeing her in dramas, this is a huge departure from her "normal' roles and she is deserving of a lot of praise for her performance. She is mad, sad, and bad and you can do little more than watch in astonishment at the craziness. It was sort of funny, in a weird way. But, I have found that Korean/Asian humor is vastly different, and very definitely an acquired taste. I have not gotten the hang of it, maybe, as I found this movie's dark comedy to actually not be all that funny in much of the film...but then suddenly it would be. Perhaps some of the problem is that a lot of what would make this film more enjoyable is missed because of the poor subtitles (on Gooddrama). This is very obviously a dark comedy and, though I don't speak or understand Korean, I've been watching long enough that I can tell when words are missing and entire sentences have been truncated to one or 2 words or completely dropped. Additionally, when I watched, the final segment's subs and speaking voices did not match up. Anyway, if quirky and adult humor are your bag, you may enjoy it. I can't give it much more than a 6...and that is being kind because of the performance difficulty level. There are several very mixed reviews of this movie online that won't ruin watching it. It won or was nominated for a ton of awards too.
On another note, I wonder if this was the inspiration for the fabulous Kdrama Heart to Heart? LOVED that drama. Must watch it again soon!
As to that last ball of yarn and the note...help me out with your opinions. Who is the short muscular girl with…
Thank you! I like this interpretation. Not sure why I didn't get a notification of your reply as I usually do. Just came across this by accident today.
This is my second try at a Chinese drama, Boss & me the first. I am on episode 23 at this writing and probably…
Oh yeah...those 'passionate' kisses of his were so NOT! The one where she was standing in the doorway by the steps and he dives in...he MISSED! It was SO awkward looking and icky. I have not tried another Chinese drama, and probably won't. Sticking with my K's and maybe try a J here and there. Have watched a couple that were interesting, but still don't feel like K does for me!
Good Action Flick. Thin on plot, but fun, I didn't really care. Lots of shooting and fighting and blood and chases. That's about it. I liked it. It's my kind of movie! :)
Call me a cynic, but I found this film over wrought and over done. The cinematography was spectacular and this film is worth watching over and over just for that. But the cram it down your throat story and cheesy dialogue had me rolling my eyes more than once. I am going to blame this on subbing or the fact that this film may not have been intended for a broader and more educated/worldwide audience. The dialogues and monologues had no subtlety what so ever and seemed to be written for the sole purpose of seeing if they could elicit tears from the audience. The awful prison scene at the end seems like it was written as a propaganda vehicle for Chinese prison systems.
With the face of Ken Takakura speaking volumes that any movie watcher could read, the sappy lines were so over the top my teeth hurt just reading them. This is so contradictory to everything that I value in Asian film, with it's superb subtlety and ability of their actors to speak volumes with just the shift of their eyes or the slightest movement of facial muscles, ...ergo my shock and disappointment in this movie. That doesn't mean I didn't shed a few tears here and there, but, overall, my dissatisfaction rests with the fact that I think I would have loved this film a lot if I had turned off the subtitles and just used my imagination and my eyes. Because this film was definitely a feast for the eyes and I don't think I would have lost anything by watching it that way.
Loved this. You would think that a movie that advertises itself as a courtroom drama MIGHT drag a bit here or there. But, I assure you, it does not. I was so tense and excited I found myself standing up and pacing in front of my screen several times. This movie just flew by. It would definitely be an easy rewatch. I highly recommend you watch this. If even half of the events depicted in this are true (I understand some liberties were taken, but it still does contain actual courtroom events), the Judicial system in Korea is serious f-worded (pardon my English). As messed up as things are here in the USA, this was nightmarish. You would swear it had to be an SNL spoof...but, horrifically for this man, it was not. 9/10 for me (I hardly ever give 10's, so this is not a mark down...for me) :)
It was all I could do to finish this. But I am anal and find it difficult, if not impossible, to stop watching a movie once I've started...so finish it i did though it was So slow, it was like watching paint dry. Arthouse..whatever. You have to WANT and LIKE this kind of thing a lot to endure 2 hours of it. But I stuck through the entire movie, for some reason yet unknown to me! And watched as it went from crawling and pointless to dark and hopeless as we SLOWLY moved deeper into the sad, and seemingly hopeless lives of these people. I guess it was trying to show that the lives of these people basically stopped when that horrific explosion happened that virtually ended any hope of a life for them. Existing is all these people seem to be doing...like the movie...just existing, with no seeming point to any of it. I guess if that is what this movie was trying for, then it was a raging success.
There was a lot of story that could have been told, and told better, for me. This didn't have to be a blockbuster, nor a have a happy ending, nor have a worse ending! It just didn't do these people justice...at least it seemed so to me. If you read about this event, it seems to me that there is a lot that should have been told about what happened.
I am struggling with a rating on this one. While it succeeds in what I can tell this director wanted to do, it's not a movie that most people will want to watch nor be happy with the 2 hours they spent watching it. If I could have watched this movie at double speed, I'd rate it an 8. At the snail's pace I endured, I struggle with a 6. Just me. You may find it different for you.
Good, old fashioned, bad boys movie. A bunch of friends grew up and away and there's the one who turns really bad and the rest who are just bad. A lot of fun. Great Great fights. The old fashioned kind with sticks and stones that break the bones, plenty of knives and tons of martial arts. Very well done. Enjoyed all of that immensely. Very fast movie to watch also. No surprises. GREAT cast. And some surprises in the younger versions who have gone on to bigger things. This is lighter fare compared to Good Friends/Confession. But if you like this kind of movie, and have not see Good Friends, I highly recommend it. This one..... only much much darker and far more emotionally draining.
Another good. The story is (warts and all), far more realistic in its portrayal of the vicious, back-stabbing, murderous way of lives these people lived. This is no sanitized story like so many of the normal fairy tale sageuks where they ignore or gloss over or carefully keep off screen the fact that the kings of those times were brutal and killed hundreds indiscriminately, including friends, fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, children. It's in your face and on screen in every episode. The powerful men also had 10, 15, 20 or more concubines and dozens of children. In other words, they actually had sex and it was probably not consensual a lot of the time.
This drama shows (more graphically than Hwajung) the complex decisions of betrayal of their closest friends and allies that these people in power made for their concept of "The Greater Good". Even our hero does horrible, irredeemable things because of his "vow of (blind) loyalty". The story was also good just on its own merits as far as the main characters, and I felt fully engaged through every minute of every episode in what was happening to the characters. I loved the fact that every single person in this had good and bad to them. They all did good things and they all did bad things, even the leads, which is so unusual in normal Kdrama where our leads are always pure and good. Of course, the bad were very bad, but I liked the fact that this show also did such a good job of showing the reasons why good people were doing bad things and how no decision is just black or white. Yet, the terrible betrayals they all engaged in were very difficult to watch when every instinct and desire reaches towards that happy ending and redemption. Yet again one of the things I love about cable shows....the complexity of what is right and wrong in these stories. And the price people pay for having to do the things they do....because there is always a price and from the first moment of this show on, there is little question of the prices that will be paid.
The bad. There were definitely some editing problems. Truncated scenes, inexplicable happenings. Yeon seemed to change her mind about Gyeol every other episode towards the end. I don't understand how Moo Myeong was allowed to pass on that message to her in front of Minister Kang and not even be questioned about it. And the 11th episode prior to the very predictable ( but right) ending was just kind of What? Too fast. But my guess is this show was very very expensive to film given how it looks so they had to cut some things short.
Anyway, long winded as usual. If you like the kind of shows I mentioned above, and are in the mood for something VERY different from normal historical Kdrama, give this a try...and TRY to stick with more than 1 episode. Give it a chance. The first episode tries to shock, succeeds, but it actually gets pretty tame after that...which I was kind of sorry about. There is actually only one kiss scene I think in the entire show.
8.5 instead of 9 because there should have been more episodes and a little more cohesive story development at the end. It went off track too quickly. I almost never give 10's so 8.5 is pretty high for a show that needed some work. But, I'm giving it an extra point for effort and originality. Amazing try OCN. I love OCN!
This was a smart show with smart characters doing a great job of cracking difficult to solve cases. Each one was fascinating to watch. I wish I had waited for the entire show to post before watching it. This one would definitely be best watched as a marathon, just because the continuity factor is so important. It's too easy to forget things over a week (or more, since viki took so long to post subs on this one). Even switching to only watching every other week to watch 2 episodes at a time wasn't much better. If I get time, I will definitely watch this one again. Hopefully all the missing subs will also eventually appear.
As to the ending, it is hard to leave them like this, but, it is also realistic. The saying that A Policeman's Work Is Never Done was never more truthfully shown than in this ending. I pray there will be a sequel, but do not hold out much hope. We who watched this show and realized just how outstanding it is can only pray that OCN will grant our wishes. Between OCN and TVN we finally have realistic dramas for thinking people. With the vast pool of talent in Korean writers, actors, directors, these 2 cable networks have got a lock on the best it seems. I'm sick of makjang, fish kissing, unrealistic shows. Finally we are getting dramas that reflect truer to life situations, with all the warts, passion, and reality of life. If it has OCN or TVN on it, I'll be watching that show...IF I can find it subbed!!
On another note, I wonder if this was the inspiration for the fabulous Kdrama Heart to Heart? LOVED that drama. Must watch it again soon!
With the face of Ken Takakura speaking volumes that any movie watcher could read, the sappy lines were so over the top my teeth hurt just reading them. This is so contradictory to everything that I value in Asian film, with it's superb subtlety and ability of their actors to speak volumes with just the shift of their eyes or the slightest movement of facial muscles, ...ergo my shock and disappointment in this movie. That doesn't mean I didn't shed a few tears here and there, but, overall, my dissatisfaction rests with the fact that I think I would have loved this film a lot if I had turned off the subtitles and just used my imagination and my eyes. Because this film was definitely a feast for the eyes and I don't think I would have lost anything by watching it that way.
There was a lot of story that could have been told, and told better, for me. This didn't have to be a blockbuster, nor a have a happy ending, nor have a worse ending! It just didn't do these people justice...at least it seemed so to me. If you read about this event, it seems to me that there is a lot that should have been told about what happened.
I am struggling with a rating on this one. While it succeeds in what I can tell this director wanted to do, it's not a movie that most people will want to watch nor be happy with the 2 hours they spent watching it. If I could have watched this movie at double speed, I'd rate it an 8. At the snail's pace I endured, I struggle with a 6. Just me. You may find it different for you.
Excellent performances.