2023 Watchlist

This has landed in one of my top shows of all time.   SFD was wonderful- ambitious and expansive- but it also meandered in ways that I didn't always enjoy. While TwDR shares the theatrical exuberance of SFD, it is a much more tightly written and directed affair- I honestly don't believe they wasted a single moment of screen time. Like all Kim-Park outings I've seen so far, the hero of the show is the Power of Story- here, the story of the invention of the Hanggul script. It's a passionate, tender, thoughtful take on the power of language, of ideas, of writing as art and skill and fundamental to liberation, and the creation of political consciousness, because it's fundamental to sharing our humanity over the bridge of time.  And it was just so much FUN. It had me screaming and crying and breathless in anticipation - a real great TV experience, that feels increasingly impossible to find. 

And the actors!I'll admit to being slow to catch on to Han Suk Kyu's brilliance as Sejong, but my GOD, it was like watching a forest catch fire- ember to unquenchable flame. He really gave it all- an indelible and role-defining performance- no other Sejong- not even played by himself, comes close.  Shin Se-kyung is a delight as always; Jang Hyuk is very watchable- though perhaps this isn't the role to which he's most suited. Even my least favourite- Song Joong-ki- showed up in a guest role to deliver the goods. 

Anyway: I challenge you to watch this until the end without sobbing your heart out-storytelling at its most magical. This is why we live.

Was this the year's biggest disappointment for me, personally? I think, yes. Not even Moon so-ri and Kim Hee-ae, leading a talented cast of women, could save the weak script. I think the screenwriter was coming back to the industry after several years, so maybe that had something to do with it. The entire thing felt like it was made from a story board that was essentially a ten line pitch full of buzz words like "female empowerment", "thriller", "strong women leads" and not much else. It didn't seem like a show that was interested in anything, in the end- not politics or power or even women. And why so scared of actually allowing your two leads to be in the same scene? Truly, just- a giant disappointment.

Imagine having the cast that this drama managed to land and then- doing whatever that was. I dropped it mid way- the direction the writing was taking was grating on my nerves- and I don't regret doing that, given what I heard of the ending. Was this Jeon Do-yeon taking a holiday? Or rather a work-holiday just to hang out on set with Kim Sun young and Jang Young nam and Lee Bong-ryun (my mind is once again BOGGLED as I type these names- you had THESE women!!!! and!!!) ? Anyways, low effort performances from all of them because the writing was just that mean and limited in its imagination- these women could do this backwards and in high heels without breaking a sweat; Jung Kyung-ho was outstandingly charming and clearly working the hardest- I loved him in this, no notes. I would love to see them both in a better drama/ rom com movie- this was just enough to whet the appetite, without serving you a meal.

I dropped this two episodes in. Cho Seung-woo, stop breaking my heart by being in unwatchable shows challenge 2k24. 

Watched this with friends who aren't very much into k-movies or k-drama and they all IMMEDIATELY fell for Jeon Do-yeon, as they SHOULD. This is very much HER movie, Sol Kyung-kyu's mean and lean performance not withstanding. I just KNOW Koo Kyo-hwan BEGGED to be in this movie so he could be topped by Jeon Do-yeon on screen, and why wouldn't he? Everybody should be begging. The film itself is- fun, I think, without being too memorable; slick and flash, like you'd expect a film in this genre and made for Netflix to be? There were some inspired cameos- Lee Jae-wook as the younger Cha Min-kyu was on screen for five minutes and completely altered my understanding of him as an actor, and of course Hwang Jung-min turned up to get skewered in his bathrobe for his bestie/sunbae, in the funniest way possible. Esom's Cha Min-hee was underwritten, which was my great disappointment with this movie. Is anyone in Chungmuro more deserving of reparations than Esom? (J/k, all the women working in the industry in the last twenty years starting with JDY herself deserve it)

Anyways- watch it for a fun, if violent, ride and for Queen Jeon Do-yeon.

A lot has been said and written about this instant classic of modern tv, and I don't think I can add to it. I resisted watching this drama for the longest time- 3 years; I was wrong. It's delightful, start to finish; there's not a single wrong note - well, I didn't care for the Big Mystery at all- but apart from that- just perfect. 

(Side note: I understand Kwon Do-eun's 2521 so much better in the context of this show. I think I prefer Do-eun ssi's vision in many ways, but she's got a way to go before she manages to achieve the clockwork-perfection of the Lee Woo-jung and Shin PD formula.)

One of the several Jung Woo-sung thirst-watches on my list this year; I don't remember much about it except that he was Toll, Handsome and spoke very little, if at all? Criminal waste of The Voice of Chungmuro! Half his sexiness is in his dulcet tones. ANYWAY. I believe Han Hyo joo plays a plucky rookie in this- I remember enjoying her though it took watching Moving later in the year for me to be converted to the Cult of Hyo-joo. The movie itself was- boring? I understand both the HK OG film and this were big hits, but like, it was 2013. (Wait, this film did well in a year where the masterpiece NEW WORLD was released???? Astounding.) 

Anyway, watch it for the scene where Woo-sung-ssi has to bend to enter the subway, honestly, there's not much more to it.

This tear jerker  with Jung Woo sung and Kim Ha neul had me- not crying at all? 

I have oft bemoaned the lack of romantic roles in the latter part of Jung Woo-sung's career- if ever there was a man who SHOULD be playing the hot (rich) farmer dad to a brood of humans and animals falling in love with the real estate company CEO (Kim Hye-soo) who has moved next door in order to convert the residents of the rural idyll to sell their land to her "development company", it's him. 

This is not that movie.

No, this is tragedy upon non-linear story telling upon tragedy that left me groaning, but not in sympathy for the characters. I've seen Kim Ha neul in only one other thing (KILL HEEL!!!) and she's just a bit boring, I think. Not that she has much to do in this movie- just play the heterosexual love interest for The Man in Pain. The movie tries hard to convince you that it's a timeless love story, but at some point I was definitely like- that's two hours of my life I'm never getting back. 

I guess you could thirst watch it for Jung Woo-sung being a (toll, soft, handsome) and  bewildered man, but I guess you could also watch 2023's HIT DRAMA Tell Me You Love Me for that. 

This film, based on the real-life experience of German journalist Jürgen Hinzpeter's experience of covering the Gwangju uprising, is probably one of the best historical-fiction films I've seen, I think, in its genre- which draws its strength from the personal narrative, while the political remains understated. Even that was apparently too much-  I understand from Wiki that filming was stopped several times  and this film put SKH on a govt blacklist.   One of the cleverest things about this film was that our PoV character, Kim Man-seob is both an outsider and insider- he's not from Gwangju, but he's not a foreigner like the man he is squiring around either.  It's a great script, and so tightly directed that you're glued to your screen for the entire time. It's dramatic in familiar ways without feeling manipulative- much like 1987: When the Day Comes- another fave. 

Song Kang-ho pretty much sails through the film doing his thing- the everyman thing that works so well for him. (I'll be honest- I think I'd watched so many of his films in fairly quick succession that I was finding it hard to keep track of each individual performance- but I did enjoy this one.) There are some lovely support roles- including one from a baby Ryu Jun-yeol and one brief, memorable scene with Uhm Tae-goo. 

Watch it!

Something about The Attorney didn't work for me- was it the almost reverent treatment given to the protagonist- in this fictionalized version of former South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun's entry into activism and politics? Biopics can't help being a little in love with their heros, I suppose, but despite the uniformly good performances and direction, I just didn't enjoy it as a movie. I suspect it has something to do with the Song Kang-ho aura- when he walks onto the screen you can literally see the "This is THE Song Kang-ho" sign flashing over his head - and in this movie at least, I found it off-putting.  This is not to say that the film is unwatchable- but in my head I'm classifying it as average, rather than brilliant. (I'm in the minority opinion here, but whatever.)

Everybody who loves Joseon-era Shakespearean tragedy raise their hands! Song Kang-ho gives what I believe is one of his most unflinchingly brutal performances as King Yeongjo; he's very ably matched by the unhinged energy with which Yoo Ah In plays Sado. Now, I'm not a Yoo Ah-in fan by any means, but I don't think there is any other actor who could have essayed this particular role. I believe this movie was my introduction to Director Lee Joon-ik's work, and it made me a fan. The movie is incredibly beautifully staged and edited; some of the scenes just play rent free in my head every now and again. Thrilling, terrible- this is, without the irony, poetic cinema. 

I'll be honest- I remember liking the film when I watched it, but now around 6 months later, have very little memory of the details. I remember thinking that it was a film that never quite matched its dramatic potential; I also remember thinking that Sol Kyung-ku and Lee Sun-kyun should KISS (with tongue). Perhaps in another film? Anyway- it felt like a film that got entangled in its own seriousness, and never quite made the cinematic leaps that political thrillers should; *something * was missing, a spark or edge of some sort- that could have made this not just a nostalgia ride, but great cinema. 

I am not sure what I was expecting when I went into this movie, because it's one of PCW's early movies and on the face of it doesn't feel like it fits with the rest of his filmography. My heart was a bit shattered by it though- not because it was a clever story- but mainly for the performances, especially the young Lee Byung-hun. I also noted that this was a pre Jeong Seo-kyung collab era script for PCW, which probably explains why Lee Young Ae's character feels the most awkward and underwritten, and if this was the only thing I'd watched her in, I'd come away with the impression that she can't act to save her life. Luckily for cinema fans, things went uphill from here in the careers of all three. Anyway, that apart, PCW genius for frames and edits is on display with far less unwatchable violence. Is it the softest movie I've watched from director-nim? Maybe the most straightforward one, I think, on an emotional register.  Which is NOT a diss- to tell the truth, I prefer it to some of his others. Watch it, if you haven't!

I managed to watch only 2 of the 3 Vengeance films in PCW's trilogy. I could deal with this one better than Oldboy- mostly because Lee Young Ae is just unforgettable, and the movie very defiantly takes her PoV throughout. (Thanks Jeong Seo-kyung?) Choi Min Sik is equally unforgettable of course- his evil charisma dialled up ten notches in this film where he is unequivocally a monster.  The film was a blast-from-the-past in both good and bad ways; an era when films felt like they were made by actual persons and not by a committee of bots whose heartbeats are actually the NASDAQ index; but also an era where cultural gatekeeping by filmbros seemed at its peak. I feel grateful that PCW seems to have outgrown these films though perhaps he'll always be remembered most for these; for my part I can say, they were An Experience (TM).

ps. 2023's Mask Girl felt like a weak, soul-less copy of this film; whatever else this film is, it is incredibly original in a way the team behind Mask Girl can probably never aspire to be.

I've been hesitating to review this movie because it's one of the most unforgettable things I've watched and maybe the most revolting as well. There's a cruelty in this film, and a giving over to the basest instincts, that still makes my stomach churn a little. A large part of this is of course that Choi Min-sik's performance is indelible- I've never seen anything like it (except other Choi Min-sik performances!) From a technical perspective, I'm sure there's nothing I can add to the accolades this film has received in the last two decades, or the impact it has had on both audience and filmmakers. Has there EVER been a scene so oft referenced/ copied/paid tribute to as the Corridor Fight Scene? (Thankfully nobody has ever tried to get Choi Min Sik or anyone else to eat a live squid on camera again afaik!) But can I just say that I'm fairly glad that early 2000s auteur film vibe is mostly done with- not that there aren't violent, gritty movies made still but I think they're no longer the only kind of cinema considered cool and more importantly there's been an interrogation of those movies and the toxicity they both worshipped and enabled, and that's a good thing. Personally, human evil has never been as interesting a subject to me as human good, and so while I understand the enormous skill behind movies like this one, there's definitely a lack of emotional satisfaction for me, which is probably why I will never rewatch these films. 

You know how sometimes the most mediocre movies allow your favourites to SHINE? This is what Big Match does for Lee Jung-jae. This proto-Squid Game movie is just absolutely silly, breathless action, in love with its own (alleged) coolness, and about forty minutes too long. Lee Jung jae barely speaks ten lines on screen- he's mostly running or using his fists- and yet, this is hands down one of my favourite performances of his. I just rewatched City of the Rising Sun (another movie in which he is luminous) and I feel Big Match made me feel a similar way about him, though the entire movie doesn't even come close to the scope and depth of CoTRS. Still, both Jo Hong-gi in CoTRS and Choi Ik-ho in Big Match share a child-like vulnerability that Lee Jung jae brings out wonderfully.  It's even more impressive in Big Match, considering the script's limitations; there's a delicious economy in his acting that somehow elevates this movie and makes it about something more than gamer boy bait.(And of course, Shin Ha Kyun's deliciously camp Evile Gay performance is another reason this movie passes a sniff test).

Perhaps this is a movie I can truly recommend safely only to fans of either JJ Lee or Shin Ha kyun: but for them I'd say this movie would be like getting Christmas-drunk on an ordinary Tuesday in June. 

I had seen the English remake "The Lake House" with Sandra Bullock/ Keanu Reeves many moons ago, and I remembered that I'd got quite impatient with it, so I wasn't in any great hurry to watch this. This OG Korean version is gently whimsical in a way that the Hollywood version was not; also I think Lee Jung-jae and Jun Ji-hyun generate a different sort of chemistry and charm. It's hard for me to pinpoint what exactly was wrong with this movie when- there's nothing really wrong with any of the technical aspects or the performances or anything, really? It just didn't engage me in any real way, I think, which happens sometimes. I think if you're a fan of sweet, whimsical romances, starring VERY good looking people,  this may be for you; I suspect that my heart is too much of a hard-boiled egg to be melted by a baby Lee Jung jae cooking and eating pasta without sauce, or baby Jun ji hyun looking like a new born fae discovering magic. A me problem, definitely!

This movie was probably about something. I don't know what. 

Not even the great Hwang Jung min playing a luckless, semi-principled reporter could save this for me.

I won't lie- this is my second least favourite of Director Lee Joon-ik's films-though it has all the wonderful hallmarks of his other period films. I think something about the story didn't resonate with me- or it felt like it jumped from thing to thing in a way that left me wanting to feel more but not having the time or space for it as the movie seems to be in such a hurry. Hwang Jung min gives a classical performance as the blind beggar/ swordsman-this is my second fave HJM performance after New World. Cha Seung-won was a little disappointing, I thought? I've seen him do better. It's a fun ride of a film though! So if you get a hold of it, watch it!

I don't know how to put into words how much I loved this movie. It's Shakespeare- it really is. It has bawdy jokes, and sharp political commentary and queer love. It has villains and heroes and most importantly, jesters. It has triumph, and then tragedy, and then triumphs over tragedy. It has Love for Story at its center, and that's what I love about it the most. WATCH IT!! 

I love this quiet little film which seems to be about nothing at all  but is also about everything most important- trying to live a meaningful, useful life which can only be achieved by constant dialog with others- mostly for its performances- Sol Kyung kyu, Byun Yo-han and Lee Jung-eun are all just wonderful. Another hit (for me) from Lee Joon-ik director nim, my only complaint being that the digital black and white was aesthetically unpleasing and I really wish they'd just done it in colour. 

I picked up this "queer classic" out of sheer curiosity- I didn't quite believe that THE Jo In-sung would have actually kissed a man onscreen. I was- wrong?  (It's a terrible, awkward kiss. 0/10 honestly.) This film was also the start of my discovery of the Harlequin Hot Historicals genre of K-movies- though as far as I can tell, this genre PEAKED in 2008-  honestly, even I was a bit shocked by the amount of uncensored bare ass and boobs on screen.  (Yes, even gay gay gay movies have an abundance of boobs in them. Naturally.) This movie manages to be extremely gay and extremely homophobic in the true tradition of queer camp- the king is an evil gay who possibly GROOMED the baby Jo In-sung into becoming his lover; unable to produce the needed heir to the throne, he then instructs his loyal guard to- impregnate- his Queen wife. The predictable happens- Queen and Guard fall desperately in love, and start banging in libraries and on floors, and Evil Gay King becomes even more evil, with devastating consequences for everyone (specifically for Littul Guard, iykwim). 

 OK, yes - ABSOLUTE GARBAGE. 

Unfortunately I'm a trash raccoon, and I fucking loved Jo Jin-moo as the Evil Gay Paedophile King- even villains deserve love, ok? 

So- watch it? Probably NOT unless you are a fellow trash racoon, in which case, get thee to Viki post-haste etc. 

Director Lee Joon-ik takes a break from interrogating  national history to make an intimate, sweet film about small town struggles and strugglers,  in what's probably both nostalgia and interrogation of the personal kind. Park Jeong-min and Kim Go-eun star in this pastry-puff slice of life drama and I know Jeong-min is everybody's baby and fave, but he's NOT  a rapper. In my mind the movie belonged to Kim Go-eun and Shin Hyun-been in a delightful support role as the small-town femme fatale. The  narrative will never surprise you in any way- but it doesn't have to; its sincerity makes up for that. Also- lovely soundtrack- and don't miss the end credits scene. 

I started watching this for two reasons: Jung Woo-sung fever and because I wanted to be a Noh Hee Kyung completionist. Well, it didn't cure me of JWS fever- made it ten times worse actually- but it did completely cure me of Noh Hee kyung. It's THE classic NHK of course-queen of melodrama- but this is also the rawer, unsophisticatedly reactionary version of her- and it felt like scales dropping from my eyes. I joke with my friends that this drama gave me PTSD- but I'm only half-joking, really- because when the trailers for the new JWS/Shin Hyun Been "healing" drama Tell Me That You Love Me dropped, I actually felt like I was experiencing a war flashback, the vibe was so similar. Anyway: it's unbearable in the way all NHK dramas are unbearable to any woman with a thinking brain; Han Ji Min is boring and JWS - admittedly through my bedazzled fan eyes- was really the only thing that made me sit through this. (For context: in one episode he cuddles a lion cub. I am NOT kidding.)

If you haven't watched this 2011 drama, I'd say: good for you, and keep it that way.

This story about revolution is actually a love story. Well, maybe all love stories are little revolutions in themselves. Lee Jae hoon goes all in as anarchist Park Yeol, who plots to assassinate Crown Prince Hirohito, but mostly (in the movie) just succeeds in falling desperately in love with a woman ,Kaneko Fumiko,  whose Wiki page describes her as an anarchist and nihilist. Match made in heaven, and mostly played out in prison- but these characters don't ask for your pity: they want your attention on other things.  

Performances-wise, although Lee Jae-hoon is very watchable, I think it's Choi Hee-seo as Fumiko who's the star of this movie. She's lightning in a bottle in this, much like the woman she plays was, I imagine. It's an unfettered performance, and just lights up the screen every time she's on it. 

This is not one of my fave Lee Joon-ik movies, of the few I've watched- I felt it was a bit too unfocused, and became a bit of a drag. That said, it was an interesting little side note in history that I wasn't familiar with, so I enjoyed it from that perspective. 

Don't really remember much of this movie except Byun Yo-han in armour and eyeliner (sexy) and there was something about boats? 

Sometimes I dream of someone like Director Lee Joon-ik picking up the novel on which this is based and going- HEY I WANT TO MAKE THIS STORY ABOUT A MYSTERIOUS GENDER BENDING PAINTER FROM JOSEON. Unfortunately for me, screenwriter Han Su-ryeon and Director Jeon Yun-su picked up the novel and went- what if we made softcore porn so viciously cruel to its female protagonist that it will win us all the awards. And then they did that. 

ps. congrats to Kim Nam-gil or Kim Nam-gil's body double on having the best ass in SK circa 2008. 

One of the most heartache-y watches on my list this year; the story of a gay man trying to find a place where he can eke out a life with some semblance of freedom and authenticity- away from the city, being a single parent to his niece. When his long time boyfriend/ lover comes to stay, happiness and contentment seem almost within reach in this small community, surrounded by nature- until his sister comes back to claim her daughter; and he's viciously outed by her in their battle for custody of the child. The idyllic paradise of rural Korea turns out to be exactly as homophobic as the City he escaped from; the teacher-boyfriend loses his job post the reveal- there's no place, it seems, however distant, where love and freedom may be found. I cried- the movie is never excessively sentimental- relying instead on silences than words or tears-but the profound loneliness of the protagonist Jin-woo, is played with such heartbreaking tenderness by Kang Gil-woo, that despite the hopeful ending, you're left with an aching sadness of the reminder that there are certain kinds of loneliness  of the heart, that can never be dispelled entirely.

This is a story about two old men in love. It makes perfect sense that one of those men is Han Suk kyu, and absolutely NO SENSE that the other is Choi Min-sik. Anyway: Han Suk kyu seems determined that noone but him is allowed to play Sejong the Great, and you know what? He's very valid for this. I enjoyed this film  about two brilliant men (Sejong and Joseon-era inventor Jang Yeong-sil) trying to outwit an impossibly strong enemy (the Imperial Chinese Empire), and succeeding by the combined irresistible power of Science and Gay Love.  This should be the template for all future sageuks, can MBC please make a note?

A sexy little romance-psychological thriller written and directed by Bang Eun-jin,  in which a narcissistic veteran stage actor (Park Seung-woong) has to reluctantly co-star with an idol-star (Oh Seung-hoon).  Instant dislike turns to something more complicated: perhaps love, perhaps something darker.  This pulp noir movie works largely on the basis of the incredible sexual chemistry between the leads- it has by FAR the hottest kiss I've seen in any k-movie/ drama- and Oh Seung-hoon especially, comes across as a talent to watch out for. (I watched him next in the execrable Believer 2- he did his best to be terrific in an otherwise terrible movie.) On the whole- if you go in without too many expectations, like I did, I think the movie will surprise you in a good way. However, if you have strong icks about certain themes in queer stories- age gaps and power imbalances for eg, it's probably best to avoid.  Personally I'm thrilled that a female writer-director got to make an id-dy film and got the sexiest ahjussi in Chungmuro to wreck a twink on screen. There, if that doesn't push you into watching this film, I don't know what will.

Director Kim Yang Hee wrote and directed this fairly unconventional queer love story- a  married, narcissistic, small-town  poet (Yang Ik jun) develops an obsessive love for a much younger man (Jung Ga-ram), who works as a barista at a cafe near his residence. 

It's hard to shake the feeling that Ik-jun's sexuality crisis is the mid-life crisis of a man slowly boiling to death like the proverbial frog in the cookpot of his inert life. In that sense, this movie was less about queerness or sexuality and more about how hard it is to live a brave life; it often felt like the movie used queerness  as a metaphor rather than being interested in queer lives itself.

It was hard for me to like Hyon Taek-gi, which made it difficult for me to understand why his wife - played with her usual impeccable comedic flair by Jeon Hye-jin- would want to stay in this marriage, much less want to further bind this man to her with a baby. 

Her performance made this movie for me; I love that she comes out of hiding every now and then to play women whom we immediately want to be besties with, and then goes back to her books-and-margaritas only life. Shout out also to Baek Ji-won's delightful cameo as a fellow poet and vicious literary snob. I want to be her in my next life. 

I think I liked the movie more for what it represents- the little indie space that is available for Korean filmmakers to tell queer stories that is NOT the sanitized, de-sexed , ppl-filled world of kdrama, than the movie itself. Still- I hope  writer/director Kim Yang Hee gets to make more films- I think she's got a wry, sometimes sly humour in her story telling that tells you she enjoys the ridiculousness of the mundane- and that's something I don't mind seeing more of. It certainly beats frenching a poodle, just saying. 

A movie that probably sounded great when it was pitched and then just wasn't. It wasn't bad OR good- it just was. I only watched it for Ms.Lee Ji-eun. and that's the reason you should watch it too, if you have a lazy rainy Sunday afternoon and some time to spend on the epitome of emotionally and intellectually non-taxing cinema.

Ngl, I think Kim Eun-hee writer nim is having an extended post-pandemic struggle; while this wasn't the straight up dud that was Jirisan, it was only saved from being that because Kim Tae-ri could make a corpse look alive. (Hehehe).  Once again, writer nim starts out with what seems like a potentially great concept with a chance to explore some of the most pressing issues of our current time, and then- just doesn't. Even more inexplicably, having secured not one, but TWO acting powerhouses in Kim Tae-ri and Oh Jung-se, the series completely failed to  figure out how to make these two work together and then, I think, just panicked about it instead of remedying it. It was an exercise in frustration for me, and had I the time and energy when this was airing, I would have been furiously- FURIOUSLY- writing the fix it fic, rewriting perhaps from ground up. That said, this is entirely watchable for Kim Tae-ri herself, who is a darling, a chameleon, an incredibly unafraid and assured actor, and truly, an international treasure.

You have Lee Byung hun, Jeon Do-yeon and Kim Go-eun in ONE movie, and that's the most boring movie made since cinema was invented.  *slow clap *

(I belatedly realized that the same PD made Love, Lies (2016) which was another snooze fest that I was suckered into watching because of talented women. Park Heung-sik director nim doesn't seem to have made a movie after that, which is probably good.)

THEE loveliest show made this year. A show that got women, really and truly, and went really hard on the concept of found family. Jeon Hye-jin is wonderful as the fierce, funny, Kim Eun-mi, a woman who became a mother when she was just barely over her own childhood; and Choi Soo-young is equally lovely as the headstrong, pragmatic, independent and smart daughter that she raised- with help from her family of the heart. Ahn Jae-wook and Park Sung-hoon turn up to provide the romance in this comedy, though they provide more comedy than romance; but the True Romance of Not Others is the vision of this life built against all odds on the power of love by choice. I love how this show loved the women so hard, how it consistently put them FIRST, and how it consistently refused to defend this choice- they get to be loved without it being dependent on their suffering or saintliness. Devastating that so few people watched this show when it was airing- but if you have the chance to watch it now-it's on Viki- then DO!

This series did nothing that Sympathy for Lady Vengeance didn't already do two decades ago, with far more intelligence, verve and memorability.  Four outstanding performances though- Lee Han-byeol who is a GREAT find,  Nana (No notes except, WHEN WILL THEY LET HER KISS A GIRL WITH TONGUE ONSCREEN, PLEASE SHE'S TRYING SO HARD ) , Yeom Hye-ran as the obsessed mother of the incel Ahn Jae-hong- the last especially a truly terrifying transformation from the gentle loser we're used to seeing from him? 

Anyways, hard no on this one- I have suffered so you don't have to. 

If you told me at the start of 2023 that THE queer movie of the year for me would be one about a homophobic cop who accidentally marries a gay ghost, I'd have probably been like- NO? This movie is SO politically incorrect- with its soap jokes and its slurs- especially at the start- that you don't even realize that a movie this fucking dumb is actually setting you up for a punch to the gut from which you will need  a minumum of 7-9 business days to recover. I don't want to spoil the movie for those who haven't seen it- but trust me when I say *FLEABAG VOICE * This is a Love Story. 

Hwang Jung min, star in a blockbuster that's not cynical, gamer -boy- audience bait challenge 2kforever.

This drama came highly recommended and I gave it a shot though I'm not a fan of sports, sports-movies or sports-dramas. I low key enjoyed it; Namgoong Min's dry, repressed portrayal as the Manager of a besieged baseball team grew on me; and I enjoyed Park Eun-bin's sparkle- but beyond a sort of vague completely unfounded hope that THIS would be the kdrama that made history by having Oh Jung-se and Namgoong Min fuck on the floor, I wasn't too invested. It's a nerdy show, which is actually a nice change from the usual offerings- but it was nerdy about something I have zero interest in, so that was that. 

See review for Part 3.

See review for part 3.

So another Kim-Park writers nim work that left me completely unhinged this year. I had started watching is when it first hit Netflix, before I had much familiarity with kdrama, and I noped out because the aesthetics were so bad. Kdrama bestie Rainhat convinced me to give it another shot, and I am so glad I did. Honestly, after a point, you won't even care about the specific shade of purple blood or the Forever21 discount rack clothing- because the story is just that powerful. Writers nim go for broke in this ambitious epic set in the transition to the Iron Age- tackling the foundations of the idea of the  "civilized nation state" in a tale that's a clever mix of fantasy and history- and of course- contemporary political concerns. I fell hard and fast for almost every individual character in this, not the least for Jang Dong-gun's Tagon- the king who is a calamity (to badly paraphrase one of the show's most memorable lines)- and Kim Ok-vin's equally ruthless and ambitious Taelha. Song Joong-ki plays a double role- I enjoyed him as Saya, the gender-bending schemer who literally grew up in a tower- much more than I enjoyed him as Eunseom- the moral heart of the story. Kim Ji-won was -ok?- as Tanya- who, by the way, is the actual best character and true heroine of the series. 

Anyway- this was another series that had me screaming, crying and dying in the best possible way, and I snorted it like coke over a week in my hurry to get to the then airing Season 2, and I have NO REGRETS about it. WATCH IT!

A decently produced, exquisitely costumed period piece that utterly fails because I don't believe there is anybody heterosexual enough to take a bitter rivalry between Chun woo-hee and Han Hyo-joo centered around Yoo Yoon-seok seriously. Like, literally, who can believe it? And yet the movie spends its entire time begging you to do just that. I think Han Hyo-joo didn't quite pull off her villain outing here- there's something too open and honest about her face, I think- and Chun woo-hee is written without a personality; whatever spark is there in the movie exist when these two interact, which is too few scenes. But mainly, it's just a yawn fest. Not recommended.

This is precisely the kind of k-drama I don't usually touch with a barge-pole; but idk, I was sick or bored, and 2023's k-drama offerings have been mostly abysmal, so I decided to give this one a shot. It was surprisingly funny and I thoroughly enjoyed the shenanigans and chemistry generated by Park Min-young and Kim Jae-wook; but when they finally had an- amazingly hot by kdrama standards-kiss in episode 10 or 11, I knew it was time to stop, as there really wasn't any other hook in the story for me- I wasn't invested in their personal growth as characters or whatever. This was truly one of those shows where I was like- I think it would be fun to see these two pretty people kiss, and that's it. I've been told I've missed some Zizek-quote-in-bed thing, which sounds delightful, but it wasn't, as Jane Austen once said, enough to tempt me.

This got off to a great start- I was truly hoping for something special, even though the Gone with the Wind plot seemed a really odd choice. The combined talents of Namgoong Min and Ahn Eun-jin and their on-fire chemistry seemed like it would help soothe the discomfort with the rest of it- the racism, the misogyny and so on. But they killed the romance for me at the end of this first part when they basically had Jang Hyeon call Gil Chae a whore- there's no coming back for me from that, in terms of romance- I was not interested in a redemption arc for the male hero- Namgoong Min's excellent theatrics and beautiful face notwithstanding- and so this got DROPPED. Love the show for whatever it's doing for Ahn Eun-jin's career as a leading lady, and for the gifsets of Namgoong Min's perfectly beautiful-in-suffering face, but I'm not sorry I dropped it. (Justice for Ryang-eum!!!!)

Was ever a series SO screwed over by a combination of bad ratings and network politics. A much-shortened season 2 was aired by Disney about three years after the first season dropped on Netflix. I think I should thank my stars that my HIGH from season 1 was crushed by season 2 in a very short time frame- I don't think I would have survived the disappointment if I'd had three years of waiting in between. 

Season 2 is a completely different animal from 1: for one, they had to almost entirely recast the MAIN ROLES, including Eunseom/Saya and Tanya- which was the first thing the audience had to adjust to, and with very little actual screen time to do it in. Second, the much shortened season meant that the end product felt like the cliff notes version of the story- the writers put in as much as they could- manipulating time skips,  maintaining a breakneck pace of storytelling, throwing us little bones of story  that were clearly meant to be half-season arcs and not 2 episode featurettes- and it just felt SO SO disappointing. Don't get me wrong- I was still HOOKED, but that was more because I needed to know how it would all end. 

Do I still recommend that you watch season 1? Yes, absolutely, but go in prepared to have very little satisfactory resolution for a story that should have absolutely been treated like Lord of the Rings and was instead lumped and marketed as a  "Korean Game of Thrones", which was the reason for its downfall. Racism + Capitalism sucks y'all.

Here's hoping writers Kim-Park will be able to salvage something from the ruins or even get another shot at it- yes, I'm building castles in the air- but hey, it's been A YEAR for me, let me have this. 

See review for S2.

Reviewing both seasons here: it took this series for me to admit that writer Kim Eun-hee and I do not really vibe. While I enjoy her concepts and admire her steadfastness in ignoring Romance; she absolutely does not get me where I live, which is my heart. In her shows, I always feel the distance between the writer and the character; that distance is sometimes exacerbated by the director- but in different ways. In Jirisan, it was a PD who was obviously more comfortable doing KES melos- flash and tricks; in this show it's the opposite- every frame is a gorgeous painting, but you're always on the outside of it- you can see where the canvas ends and the frame begins. Still- this was certainly not my worst watch of the year, and 12 episodes went by so fast that I didn't even notice it- well, maybe that had something to do with my ffwding through the gore? Two thoughts: why isn't every story a Bae Doona story, and when will the world recognize Kim Hye-jun as the heir to Bette Davis? 

Fun fact: I watched Believer 1 only because I was led to believe that Byun Yo Han had a major role in the sequel; as it turned out, it was more in the nature of a cameo. Yes, I was the victim of false marketing. Apparently, this was co-written by personal hero Jeong Seo-kyung, but honestly I wouldn't have known if I hadn't been told. There's a sort of internal incoherence in this movie- not sure whether that was the effect of writers not meshing or the writers and director having different viewpoints. In any case- the ending which had echoes of Sympathy with Lady Vengeance- felt like it belonged in a completely different movie. 

I haven't seen anything I enjoyed Jo Jin Woong in,  apart from Signal- and fine- he was on-point horrible in The Handmaiden; anyway he wasn't very appealing to me in this either. I generally *do * enjoy Ryu Jun-yeol, but this movie was just so tiresome and heavy-handed that it robbed me of any real pleasure in his competent performance. 

Tl;dr, give it a miss unless you feel in the need of a very specific kind of headache.

Yikes!

A surprise hit! Han Hyo-joo truly just the babest- of -babes in this, charming enough to compensate for Park Hyung-sik's hmm, blandness? I just loved both the characters, and (uncharacteristically for me) was rooting for their romance from start to finish. See how much it helps when the hero is basically aware from the start that the woman is way too good for him and just loves her more for it? More writers should take notes. Anyway, Yoon Sae-bom may definitely be among my top ten kdrama heroines- she's just SO MUCH FUN- and not in a quirky, manic pixie e way, but in a I WILL END YOU RIGHT THIS MINUTE IF YOU MESS WITH ME OR JUSTICE way. HOT. Just SO HOT. 

Story-wise, I realize this drama was a bold move just post pandemic; and maybe that was one of the reasons its politics felt wishy-washy and half-baked. Pacing-wise, it felt a little over stretched toward the end, for me- perhaps an episode or two less would have been perfect. That said, Direct Ahn Gil-ho is definitely one of the PDs whose work I enjoy and I think he made an average script work much better than it would have in the hands of another director.  (Director nim, please never touch a KES drama again though!). Ultimately, I think the show fails a bit because it doesn't quite hit the emotional or intellectual notes entirely satisfactorily? That makes it an easily bingeable 12 episodes, but not a lot more than that. 

Oh and right-my major complaint with this show was that literally nobody had warned me that Jo Woo jin plays stone cold villainous HOTTIE in this, and so that was an unexpected bite in the jugular, so to speak. Why does Chungmuro keep producing movies in which Jo Woo jin is NOT the Glock-wielding hero? Does nobody have EYES? A 21st Century Travesty. 

As though to prove everything I felt about Kingdom and Kim Eun-hee wrong, Ashin of the North GOT me in my heart- straight up, the best offering in the Kingdom series. Everything about this worked for me, especially Jun Ji-hyun as Ashin. God, if I had seen this in an IMAX, I would have been hooting and throwing popcorn and the screen and stomping my feet every time she rolled up. It's a rollicking action movie led by a genuine action-hero-star; but it's also the most thematically coherent of the entire series, for me. Colonization, hunger, greed and grief- everything comes together. PD-nim made the smart decision of letting Jun Ji-hyun do her thing  (which Jirisan PD nim seemed strangely reluctant to do?! Inexplicable.) without sacrificing any of the emotion of the story in service of the spectacle. If you haven't watched the Kingdom series, I think you can just skip it entirely and watch this instead and use Wiki to catch up with a bit of the context/ lore that's needed. 

Is it fair to call this the sleeper hit of 2023? Certainly Disney didn't see it coming, I think! One of the few dramas this year that had me waiting on the next episode, I thought this was the series that reminded me of the magic that happens when a good story meets the perfect director for that story. This series didn't drop a single beat, and made superheros relevant again; it also had some of the most magical romance tracks that I've seen in kdrama- a true feat. This was the series that introduced me to new faves- Han Hyo joo & Ryu Sung ryeong and I'm super excited to see what Lee Jung ha and Go Yoon jung will do next. I'm not particularly excited for a second season though I understand that the original web comic series has enough and more material for several seasons. Anyway, writer Kang Full-nim and Director Park In je somehow got Disney to give them free rein, and the result was one of the most enjoyable drama series in quite a while; but one suspects they've used up the rope allowed and now the only bit left is just long enough to hang yourself with. 

I guess it only took Ryu Seung-wan twenty years or something to finally make a female led film that didn't make us want to jump off a cliff- not enough to get him out of the doghouse - sorry, if you made Veteran, and then plan a sequel, you're just stuck there permanently. Anyhow, everything Kim Hye-soo ever does is better than sex, so I guess I have to forgive PD nim for not letting her make out with Yeom Jung ah for the sake of gratuitous audience pleasing. Despite some extremely violent scenes, I generally enjoyed the rollicking pace of this heist-ish movie. The production was great, the cinematography really good, and it has a killer soundtrack that was used very effectively, but it's the lead performances that really hold this together. Hye-soo-ssi, of course, but also Jo In sung- who's absolutely PERFECT in his role as a sleazy ex military man. Park Jeong-min disappears into his character so effectively that you tend to forget that you've ever seen him in other roles; and little Go Min-si does an absolute star turn as a baby schemer- I hope this awards season will be excellent for her. 

Watch it preciouses and then come tell me about the Hye-soo/In-sung/Jung-ah throuple that is clearly what we deserve in 2024.