World Reviews Now!: 2020

Review - Extracurricular (TV Series, 2020)

Saturday, August 1, 2020 | Posted by The Entertainment Geek

I was in the mood for a gritty, gory crime/thriller, and this one fit the bill!

“Dreams are expensive.”

The Rundown

Behind the name: Literally: Human Class, 인간수업

Country: South Korea, 2020

Genre: Gritty, Thriller-ish, Crime

Production: Studio 329

Director: Kim Jin-Min

Writer: Jin Han-Sae

Distribution: Netflix

Cast: Kim Dong-Hee (as Oh Ji-Soo ), Park Joo-Hyun (as Bae Gyu-Ri), Jung Da-Bin (as Seo Min-Hee), Nam Yoon-Soo (as Kwak Ki-Tae), Park_Hyuk-Kwon (as Jo Jin-Woo), Seo Ye-Hwa (as Na Sung-Mi), Kim_Yeo-Jin (as Lee Hae-Kyung) & others

Hate it or Love it? Love it

Synopsis in a Sentence: Oh Ji-Soo is a top student with a stellar record--he keeps a low profile and stays out of trouble, while maintaining a side hustle that’s enviable to any prostitution ring, until he’s blackmailed by a fellow student, and then his life, and the lives of everyone he knows, start to unravel...

On Writing: The Plot

The story is sooo original! Especially for the South Korean TV industry that shies away from the gritty bits of society. It shows everything; bares it all out, and captures the nuances of issues from the societal and individual angle, reflecting the “ungodly” aspects of society that’s part and parcel of every community and country, and the reasons behind the developments of such aspects. It’s a great story, well written, craftily captured, and fabulously executed.

Three cheers for the plot!

(4.5/5)

On Acting: The Cast

A very well cast crew!

Oh Ji-Soo is brought to life by Kim Dong-hee, and he is very good, very credible, in showing the nuances and layers of the character’s state of mind. It’s easy to develop empathy for such a layered character in such a gruesome business. And it’s a job well done!

Bae Gyu-Ri, played by Park Joo-Hyun, is the numb daredevil, and spoilt rich kid, who has no qualms with blackmail, and Park does a top job of it.

Seo Min-Hee is the girly girl/or the subject of the story, and actress Jung Da-bin relays her so well, she’s relatable and understandable and annoying in good balance.

Bully, Ki-Tae is Nam Yoon-Soo in this drama, and he’s so convincing, we think of him as a heartless hoodlum which means, great job, actor!

And for the adults in the series, the home room teacher, Jo Jin-Woo, played by Park Hyuk-Kwon and Detective Lee Hae-Kyung illustrated by Kim Yeo-Jin, are fabulous and give authentic renditions of their characters.

So overall, a very well played cast!

(4.5/5)

On Production: The Creativity

Production is very nicely suited to the genre. The music selection is fabulous, and creativity is exceptional. Everything from the script to the cast is brought together by the production and it’s a job so well done, it’s almost unreal.

Shoutout to the production team behind the scenes who never get enough credit for what they deserve!

(4.5/5)

On Resolution: The Conclusion

It ends so well, we’re wondering if there’s a season 2, and we hope there is, but even if there isn’t, it’s a realistic resolution, and it’s very well done.

(4/5)

The Verdict: An enlightening, thorough, nuanced, and gritty rendition of society!

Overall Score = 17.5/20

Posted In 2020, Crime, Extracurricular, Gritty, South Korea | 0 comments |

Review - Hotel del Luna (TV Series, 2019)

Saturday, April 11, 2020 | Posted by The Entertainment Geek

It looked like a fantasy and was the 10th highest rated Korean TV series in cable TV history, and, importantly, I wanted to see some of the actors in action!

“Narrator: Feeling sad and disappointed is only natural when witnessing disappearances. When a flower withers away, just like it dreams of a new blossom, you’ll live, meet, and love again.”

The Rundown

Behind the name: Previously, "Guest House of the Moon"

Country: South Korea, 2019

Genre: Fantasy, Drama

Network: tvN

Director: Oh Choong-hwan

Cast: IU (as Jang Man Wol), Yeo Jin Goo (as Goo Chang Sung), Shin Jung Geun (as scholar Kim Shi Ik), Bae Hae Sun (as Choi Seo Hee), P.O (as Ji Hyun Joong), Kang Mi Na (as Kim Yoo Na, the high school student), Lee Do Hyun (as Ko Chung Myung), Lee Tae Sun (as Yun Woo/Detective Park), Young Soo (Park Yoo Na as Princess Song Hwa), Kim Kyu Ri (as child Man Wol), Kim Kang Hoon (as child Chang Sung)

Compare to: Hotel Blue Moon

Hate it or Love it? Enjoy it!

Synopsis in a Sentence: A young and promising hotel manager is forced to take his first job out of college working for a paranormal hotel — a hotel for ghosts and spirits in transition to the afterlife — where he meets characters that make him solve cases between the physical and spiritual worlds.

On Writing: The Plot

It’s a story about death, and the afterlife, and overall, the purpose of life, love and the lessons we learn along the way.

It’s a series of short stories from different perspectives; young and old, rich and poor, and in between. Perhaps the best feature of the plot is that it is nuanced and quite deep, yet entertaining. It neatly and perhaps expertly wraps up drama, comedy, fantasy, issues like good versus evil, right versus wrong, life versus death in a way that is magically un-didactic and un-preachy. And this alone is a massive feat!

But the plot goes beyond these overall themes to tell stories of sacrifice, suicide and spirituality that are very well written and executed, enabling us to think of a greater purpose, of life and death and everything in between! All wrapped up, of course, in a couple of love stories. Overall, a plot well done!

(4.5/5)

On Acting: The Cast

The characters the actors portray are round characters-- good and bad, layered and yet sometimes predictable--but the execution of these fairly complex characters tells of the great talent of the men and women and children that give these fictional people life. And the award, really, should go to the entire cast! But to mention a few…

IU proves she’s quite the talented actress through these series, as she portrays the (somewhat) threatening yet soft sureness of hotelier, Jang Man Wol in this series. She conjures up believable tears as well as laughter, transitioning seamlessly in the same scene, and really relays a believable character. Guess Korea’s little sister has quite grown into the actress!

Yeo Jin Goo plays Goo Chang Sung, the male lead, and is quite the lead everyone expects. Perhaps his character may be the most one-dimensional of all, but that’s alright, people also like predictability and his character gives the characters a sense of stability.

Really, the entire cast is a great collection of people to watch. And special shout out to the child actors that bring the past to life! A great cast! (4/5)

On Production: The Creativity

The production is a fantasy! It might be the star of the whole thing! Despite the layered plot and the talented cast… well perhaps. But really, the creativity of the production is evident throughout the story, for where the plot may seem to drag out, the gorgeous production comes in to save the day, with marvelous hues and dreamy scenes that transport you back into the fairytale.

Since the series tells different stories, you get to experience the greed, danger, hatred, yet hope, joy, and mystery of life, and that’s all thanks to the marvelous production!

(4.5/5)

On Resolution: The Conclusion

With a plot so well written and a cast so convincingly skilled, and the production so riveting, can the conclusion measure up? Well, yes, really. It wraps the entire story up with no loose ends, and in quite a perfect way, that with all the mystery the world gives us, in life and death and everything in between, it offers us solace in sorrow, assurance in adversity, and gladness in the grief that life can offer us. A job well done!

And then we get a hint at a sequel! With a famous actor! Hoot!

(4/5)

The Verdict: A collection of fairy-tale-like stories that offers analysis and entertainment and hope that is deeper than we think.

Overall Score = 17/20

Posted In 2019, Death, Fantasy, Romantic comedy, South Korea, Top Rated (20-15), TV Series | 0 comments |

Review- Parasite (2019 Film)

Thursday, January 16, 2020 | Posted by The Entertainment Geek

I consume so much media; TV, music, books and film, that I’m not very easily wowed, even by great productions. However, once in a few years, maybe even a few decades, I find a brilliant jewel in a myriad of gems and rocks. And this past decade, I found this film.

This movie is something else; of another grade; an actual piece of art, in film form, that is entertainment, and education, and elucidation, and commentary and beauty. A true, true masterpiece.

Oscar pick for Picture of the Year and Best Director! An Amazing, amazing piece of art!

The Rundown

Behind the name: (Korean: 기생충; Hanja: 寄生蟲; RR: Gisaengchung)

Country: South Korea, 2019

Genre: Dark Comedy, Thriller (Tragi-Comedy)

Production Company: Barunson E&A

Director: Bong Joon-Ho

Cast: Song Kang-Ho (as Kim Ki-Taek), Lee Sun-Kyun (as Park Dong-Ik), Cho Yeo-Jeong (as Park Yeon-kyo), Choi Woo-Shik (as Kim Ki-Woo ), Park So-Dam (as Kim Ki-Jung), Lee Jung-Eun (as Moon-gwang), Chang Hyae-Jin (as Kim Chung-sook)

Compare to: Itself

Hate it or Love it? Absolutely love it! Devour it, Mull over it! Cherish it!

Synopsis in a Sentence: Two families’ lives intertwine; one rich, one poor and then comedy, drama, thriller, and all round parasitism ensue.

On Writing: The Plot

This plot is absolutely remarkable. The base of the story is quite simple, but yet beautifully layered, and nuanced and rich. The story starts with an exposition that gives us the background into our eyes of the film—the poor family who lives in a basement apartment, and everything unravels from there.

The writing takes us through rising action that leads us to experience the pretense, hustle, greed, and fear that life can bring, and we are left with a climax that explodes only to reveal the beauty of its falling action, and a resolution that leaves us thinking through all the layers of real life implications in society.

The writing is so good that it lands on you, transports you, engulfs you into the plot of the story so that when it ends, you’ll need a minute(or two) to deconstruct the staggeringly phenomenal artistry you’ve just been privileged to witness & experience! Wondrous writing!

(5/5)

On Acting: The Cast

Not sure what courage it took for a cast to take this on, because all elements of the film are so perfect that bad acting would stick out like a sore thumb; but of course, the cast matches the plot and production and direction seamlessly, bringing the film to life.

Let’s walk through the cast’s work through the film. There is a scene where veteran actor, Song Kang-Hok, who plays the father of the poor family, Kim Ki-Tae, is coached in acting by his son, Kim Ki-Woo (who is played by actor, Choi Woo-Shik). This is quite a ridiculous scene to watch given that, as one commenter put it; “It’s like watching Tom Holland (Spider Man) give acting lessons to Robert Downey Junior (Iron Man).” In any case, it’s a testament to the cast’s seamless relay throughout the film.

Similarly, we see Park So-Dam and Cho Yeo-Jeong bounce off each other in a scene where they are introduced; Park as a fake “expert” art teacher, and Cho as her employer, the rich mother. We believe them, and though we’ve seen them in many other roles, we believe they are and always will be these characters.

Then there is Lee Sun-Kyun, famous actor, who we see embody his role, and Jeong Hyun-Jun, who does so as well; there are so many people to praise, and they all work symbiotically to produce this great work!

And fun fact, editor Yang Jin-Mo cut this masterpiece of a movie on a no-longer supported, outdated version of Final Cut Pro.

Now, dare we end the praise of the cast without the director, who is arguably the superstar of the whole thing? No. We do not dare. We must...

We have to give a special feature to director Bong Joon-ho, who certainly deserves the best director award and every accolade because. Because. What a mind, what artistry, what expertise to possess to envision and execute such a beguiling art piece. Truly, truly beyond oscar worthy work!

A striking cast!

(5/5)

On Production: The Creativity

It would—could—have been so easy to mess up such a wondrous piece of a work that is the story at the production stage because the nuance is so fine, so delicate, yet the juxtaposition between extremes is so jarring, so stark that it runs the risk of insulting its audience with it’s mundane initiation, yet lambasting the same audience with its sardonic commentary on society. Yet, paradoxically, it does none of that.

The timing & pacing is art, rhythm is art; picture production and sound engineering is science. And synthesised all together, production is genius. The delivery of creativity in its best form. Simple genius.

(5/5)

On Resolution: The Conclusion

Never has an ending been so pretty, so poetic, so perfect. The plot of the movie lands so sardonically sublimely that it is a beauty.

It is hard to deconstruct and determine the exact piece that makes this film a masterpiece, but if mandated, the resolution might be the ace of the whole thing. Remember the exposition? And the climax? And the cast, and the rhythm of the production? Well, the resolution melds them all to become art—literature, music, photography, production and acting—all at their finest. Film at its finest. Pulchritudinous perfection!

(5/5)