Gutsy, fearless, and beautiful = cinematic mastery
Twelve Letters was directed by the same person who directed Love Me Love My Voice, a drama so all-around painful, in spite of the talent, that I now suspect hands must've been creatively tied with that one. Usually it's on the director's shoulders for whether a show is good or bad, but in 12 Letters it looks like this director was freed from any artistic restraint & was able to proceed on the road to cinematic mastery. This is easily one of the best made dramas I've seen this year.
The drama is only 12 episodes & the story follows two teens who discover a mysterious mailbox which allows them to communicate across time & space via written letters with their future children. The premise of letter writing across time (The Lake House, Griffin & Sabine) is not original, but the presentation of this story took me by surprise.
This drama is gutsy, fearless, & beautiful. I felt very much in an international film festival vibe as I started watching. The first thing I noticed was the cinematography. Natural lighting & no CGI. The main characters meet in Meiwan, an economically depressed riverside town. Each scene reflected the harsh living conditions of the early 90's in the muted earth tones of the surrounding water, mountains, & wet streets. Each scene is a painting. The dark, damp rooms of crumbling apartments & homes contrasted with the brightly lit school room, signifying the sources of hope & despair. The 2 teenage protagonists withstand violent & tragic home lives while trying to see education & university as their way out.
The second thing I noticed was the quality of the acting. No idols here, with young actors obviously serious in their roles. Wang YingLu puts in a powerhouse performance as Ye HaiTang, bringing the audience to the knife edge of her sanity as the horrific stresses in her life threaten to crush her. Zhou YiRan subtly balances the struggles of Tang YiXun, a young man with a strong sense of right & wrong while trapped in a not so righteous living. Both are surrounded by adults they can't trust. They find connection in their shared dream of breaking free from Meiwan. The level of performance these two brought to the screen kept me glued to the show. In fact, the whole ensemble cast was amazing.
Third, the writing deftly interwove two complex timelines. The mysterious mailbox & it's workings became clearer, connecting a 35 year span between 1991 and 2026 in unexpected ways. The first half of the drama largely focused on events of 1991, an engaging story in itself even without the fantasy elements. But by the 5th episode the drama goes back and forth so smoothly that the storyline remained cohesive. Past unsolved questions get answered, with the final question reserved for whether or not to change the course of history, & accept the sacrifice that goes with making those changes. The ending leaves much ambiguity when the mailbox delivers its last letter in a short epilogue. Although it's strongly hinted at what the final outcomes would be for all the characters, the show leaves a suggestion that the mysterious mailbox has moved on. At least, the ending will make you think about it for a long time, which would be frustrating for a weaker drama, but fits this one perfectly.
A quick word on the soundtrack - if you were exposed to North American blues & folk, you'll appreciate the raw emotion of the songs which align very well with this drama. Another surprise that impressed me even more.
All in all, 12 Letters is a fantastic work that's well written, acted, & presented. This year's best for me.
The drama is only 12 episodes & the story follows two teens who discover a mysterious mailbox which allows them to communicate across time & space via written letters with their future children. The premise of letter writing across time (The Lake House, Griffin & Sabine) is not original, but the presentation of this story took me by surprise.
This drama is gutsy, fearless, & beautiful. I felt very much in an international film festival vibe as I started watching. The first thing I noticed was the cinematography. Natural lighting & no CGI. The main characters meet in Meiwan, an economically depressed riverside town. Each scene reflected the harsh living conditions of the early 90's in the muted earth tones of the surrounding water, mountains, & wet streets. Each scene is a painting. The dark, damp rooms of crumbling apartments & homes contrasted with the brightly lit school room, signifying the sources of hope & despair. The 2 teenage protagonists withstand violent & tragic home lives while trying to see education & university as their way out.
The second thing I noticed was the quality of the acting. No idols here, with young actors obviously serious in their roles. Wang YingLu puts in a powerhouse performance as Ye HaiTang, bringing the audience to the knife edge of her sanity as the horrific stresses in her life threaten to crush her. Zhou YiRan subtly balances the struggles of Tang YiXun, a young man with a strong sense of right & wrong while trapped in a not so righteous living. Both are surrounded by adults they can't trust. They find connection in their shared dream of breaking free from Meiwan. The level of performance these two brought to the screen kept me glued to the show. In fact, the whole ensemble cast was amazing.
Third, the writing deftly interwove two complex timelines. The mysterious mailbox & it's workings became clearer, connecting a 35 year span between 1991 and 2026 in unexpected ways. The first half of the drama largely focused on events of 1991, an engaging story in itself even without the fantasy elements. But by the 5th episode the drama goes back and forth so smoothly that the storyline remained cohesive. Past unsolved questions get answered, with the final question reserved for whether or not to change the course of history, & accept the sacrifice that goes with making those changes. The ending leaves much ambiguity when the mailbox delivers its last letter in a short epilogue. Although it's strongly hinted at what the final outcomes would be for all the characters, the show leaves a suggestion that the mysterious mailbox has moved on. At least, the ending will make you think about it for a long time, which would be frustrating for a weaker drama, but fits this one perfectly.
A quick word on the soundtrack - if you were exposed to North American blues & folk, you'll appreciate the raw emotion of the songs which align very well with this drama. Another surprise that impressed me even more.
All in all, 12 Letters is a fantastic work that's well written, acted, & presented. This year's best for me.
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