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Reviews
The Story of Park's Marriage Contract (2023)
The most generic, nonsensical k-drama
So, I've watched a lot of k-dramas. Over 80, at my last count. And I can confidently say this is the lamest, most nonsense k-drama I've ever tried to watch. I say tried because, despite really wanting to soldier through it, I gave up during episode 9. I just couldn't take any more.
All it's ever trying to do is tick every single standard k-drama box, which it certainly does quite admirably, while completely disregarding all logic or any sense of natural progression in the process. It by and large ignore its central conceit, with the main characters largely adapting to modern life better than my grandparents. Even time travel aside, nothing about the plot makes even the slightest bit of sense under the most basic examination. The corporate intrigue? Ridiculous. The family dynamics? Insane.
I just... honestly can't even. I mean, I watched slightly over half of it because it is entirely inoffensive, but despite being a seasoned k-drama fan with an appropriately high level of willingness to withstand epic levels of nonsense, this was just too much.
Sanae matseon (2022)
Solidly entertaining k-drama that you may quickly forget
Honestly, there is nothing particularly bad to say about Business Proposal. It's generally your pretty standard chaebol-meets-commoner k-drama, with good modern production values and solid acting.
On the up side, it's one of those series where all of the characters are basically fun and likeable, none of the characters are egregiously annoying (okay, there's one weirdo who doesn't add much aside from being weird), and none of the drama derives from the sort of eye-rolling acts of dumb misunderstanding that fuels most k-dramas! And there are some real moments of brilliance in the first few episodes.
On the down side, past a certain point it becomes pretty by-the-numbers k-drama, and while there's still nothing bad to say about it, it stops really doing anything to stand out. That said, with its 12 episode run length, it doesn't feel like it's padded or overstaying its welcome.
Ilta seukaendeul (2023)
Starts out great, and then...
At first, this show is really great! It's everything you want out of a rom-com k-drama. Likeable leads, nice flow, good acting, high production value. It's a bit heavy, but it's to make a point about the state of the insane educational environment currently prevalent in South Korea.
But, wow, when it starts to stray and put more focus on some of the other plotlines (around episode 10 I think it was), it gets real silly, real fast. It really loses all idea of what it's trying to say, and common sense flies entirely out the window in the process. Side characters become complete caricatures, situations become super forced. In particular, the first hour of the finale is wretched. It is, in all seriousness, truly insultingly bad. Literally everyone starts acting completely out of character, in an attempt to create as much random drama as possible when one can only assume they had completely run out of ideas and are trying to fill time until they can get to the proper wrap-up.
Anyway, overall it's worth watching, because it really is quite good for a while, but you might find yourself rolling your eyes a lot as it enters the stretch run, as I did.
Eobiseu (2019)
Utter nonsense, but great chemistry
Abyss is, hands-down, the most non-sensical show imaginable. The story is utterly random, the plot holes are massive, characters will randomly be oblivious or super insightful depending on what the writers need... even by lax k-drama standards, it's a mess. I broke out laughing multiple times at just how unintentionally ridiculous the proceedings were.
That said, the leads are excellent, with great chemistry together, and I dare anyone not to fall in love with Park Bo-Young by the end. The supporting cast is mostly pleasant, and for the most part it's fine escapist fare if you just want to turn your brain off for a while.
Do Do Sol Sol La La Sol (2020)
Cute, but the last 4 episodes are... bad
For the most part this is a cute, pleasant k-drama. Nothing too special about it, not incredibly sensible, but it's easy enough to watch. But near the end it just goes completely off the rails, far more than your typical kdrama-thats-run-out-of-ideas. Maybe do yourself a favour and just cut your losses after episode 12.
The Late Bloomer (2016)
Incredible supporting performances that deserved better.
Okay, so here's the thing -- I watched this film over a week ago, and I'm still thinking about it. Why? Because I get riled up over films that are SO CLOSE to being good, but just... aren't.
The Late Bloomer definitely falls into this category. There are bits of dialogue and interactions between characters which are genuinely top-notch comedy, and the supporting cast put in one of the best ensemble performances I've seen in ages. Seriously. Kumail Nanjiani in particular is fantastic, and J.K. Simmons continues to be the best supporting actor in Hollywood right now.
Buuuuuut... there are six writing credits listed, and it's likely that therein lies the problem. The moments of brilliance are almost completely overshadowed by other bits of writing which are, at best, trite, and at worst completely cringe-worthy. The last twenty minutes or so of the film legitimately don't even make sense, and are among the worst I've seen all year. It really feels like something that was cobbled together from different people who had different ideas of what the film should be, and maybe some of those people were... incorrect.
So yeah, I wish this film was as good as it could have been. A lot of inspired performances and great dialogue that deserved better than what this ends up being.