An American Girl's Reviews of Foreign Films and Korean Dramas

Crown Prince Lee Shin is only 19 years old and in high school, but the royal family is pressuring him to find a bride. After his secret ballerina girlfriend of two years turns down his proposal, he accepts the elders' request: to fulfill a promise made between his grandfather, the late emperor, and the grandfather of a common girl, Shin Chae-kyeong. Unfortunately, there is not much in common between the two art school students, and the free-spirited Chae-kyeong only reluctantly accepts the arranged marriage in order to save her family from debt. Will Chae-kyeong be able to find love with her new husband, or will the ex-girlfriend worm her way between them? What happens when the former Crown Prince, Shin's cousin, arrives back at the palace, along with his ambitious mother, Shin's aunt? How will the monarchy survive under modern-day scrutiny?

*This drama really had a promising start, with all the resistance typical of reluctant new love, but that soon petered out. The writers took many elements of historical dramas I dislike and put it in this modern day drama. The political machinations bogged down the plot, and I ended up skipping nearly every scene with the ex-girlfriend; the actress and the character were completely unappealing. (It's the first time I've ever skipped any part of a drama.) I did enjoy the grandmother's character – she is what everyone wants to have in a grandma: sweet, caring, naive about but willing to try new things. There were also a few cute moments between Shin and Chae-kyeong, but overall I found her character rather weak, and the ending was not satisfying. The person who ends up ruling comes as a surprise – perhaps that was the writer's intention – but the character's previous involvement throughout the show didn't quite justify the choice in my mind. The reveal wasn't an “oh, of course!” moment, it was more of an “oh, I suppose that would work.” I probably won't watch this again.*

Friday, December 16, 2016

TDrama to Watch: Just You (2013)

Just You (2013)

Grade: B

39 Episodes, 40 minutes each
Viewing Platform: Netflix

Cheng Liang Liang is a happy-go-lucky, clumsy, slightly messy, naive girl who believes the best in everyone and every situation. She is working at a local advertising company, about to celebrate her best friend and coworker's engagement to another coworker when the new owner/boss arrives and shuts down the festivities. He declares there is now an anti-offfice romance policy, and anyone in violation of the policy will face termination. Liang Liang can't stand Xi Yi's interference with true love, so she and her friends concoct a plan: make the fastidious new boss fall in love with her so he is forced to withdraw his policy! But what happens when Liang Liang realizes all the time spent wooing her boss is actually magnifying his good qualities? Will the employees start to quit in order to pursue romance when Liang Liang falters? What happens when Xi Yi's ex, the girl behind the “no romance at work” policy, comes back into his life?

*I loved the cheesy action, cartoon-like sound effects, and heart-pounding “will they kiss or not?” moments in this drama. It's not quite up to Kdrama standards, especially when the music cuts out and starts in again at random moments, but there are a lot of fun elements in this show. The primary reason this drama didn't earn a higher grade is because it is JUST TOO LONG. There is a lot more character development, but the plot's pace suffers as a result. The character development also slowed down the romantic progress between Liang Liang and Xi Yi, which was annoying, and I did not understand why Xi Yi's parents were separated in the first place. I thiiiiink his mom had to be on the run for writing a fraudulent check that his dad cashed in order to try and dig themselves out of debt, but after the set 3 year time period ran out, he still hadn't paid off the debt, so she had to stay on the lamb? Then 20 years later she forgives him for missing out on raising her only child – that was very hard for me to believe. I did like the second male lead's motivation, though. The writers even have him come out and state that supporting Liang Liang's choices in love is how he showed his love for her; his sacrifice was cast in a noble light instead of the typical masochistic light. If you can handle an extremely long drama, this one is pretty good, with a decent ending and a great on-screen kisser (Aaron Yan from “Fall In Love With Me”).*

Thursday, December 1, 2016

ChDrama to Miss: My Amazing Boyfriend (2016)

Chinese drama

My Amazing Boyfriend (2016)

Grade: C+

28 episodes, 40-45 minutes each

Tian Jing Zhi is a second female lead actress, vain about her beauty yet perfectly willing to lead a slightly less than luxurious lifestyle. Some of her money goes toward digging wells in Africa so villagers can have clean water to drink. After her latest boyfriend breaks up with her, Jing Zhi is in a terrible car accident, with the driver and passenger in the truck involved dying at the scene – a truck transporting a mysterious dormant body from a local museum. What happens when Jing Zhi shows up unscathed in the hospital with the museum piece missing from the scene of the accident? And what is going on with the mysterious man who followed her home and her heart racing at the sight of him? Will Jing Zhi discover the truth behind her latest boyfriend dumping her?

*While this drama had a great start, with plenty of lighthearted cartoon drawings added to better illustrate a character's mood and decent background music, it kept a dark feel throughout and had a terrible, vague ending. The first couple episodes had so many similarities with the kdrama “My Love From Another Star” I thought it was going to be a total rip off, but eventually this drama did distinguish itself from the kdrama. There was a lot of violence and murder, plus it's hard to get over the scenes where we have to watch the characters drinking the immortal man's blood. (I also hated his haircut and did not find him attractive or charming). The girl's character was kind of annoying, including her voice, and I ESPECIALLY disliked how the actors were often dubbed over, with the new audio not quite syncing up with the movement of the actors' lips. It wasn't terrible, but I wouldn't watch this again.*

Friday, November 18, 2016

SFilm to Maybe Watch: Our Sister Mambo (2015)

(Singapore Film)

Our Sister Mambo (2015)

Four sisters, all with names inspired from their father's favorite actress, are still living at home while trying to find their place in the world. The mother is delightfully obsessed with Korean dramas, as well as intent on finding her daughters good husbands. Mambo surprises everyone when she decides to quit her job as a lawyer to pursue her true passion: cooking. Will Mrs. Wong allow Mambo to pursue her dreams, or will her practical side become an overbearing burden on their family? What happens when the youngest daughter June starts dating the son of Mrs. Wong's office enemy? How will Mambo's dinner invitation to her sister Grace's love interest, the divorcee with a child, go over with the family? Will Rose ever settle down?

*Indian films are the only ones I've watched where the actors slip in and out of English dialogue – this film switches between English, Cantonese, and Chinese, with a handful of Korean phrases just for fun. It's a little bit difficult to keep up with it, since the English phrases do not have subtitles while the lilt in their voices, the vocal pattern, is decidedly Chinese. It was a clean film, but it also lacked tension – nothing bad happens to anyone. Aside from the mother's disapproval, the family had very few altercations, keeping the feel quite calm. Basically, it's a bit on the dull side, but sometimes that can be a nice break. I might watch it again.*

Saturday, November 12, 2016

Kdrama to Miss: Prosecutor Princess (2010)

Prosecutor Princess (2010)

Grade: C+

16 Episodes

Spoiled, materialistic Ma Hye-ri agrees to study law after her father threatens to kick her out and make her own living. Unfortunately, she doesn't make a good first impression when her boss finds out she skipped an important training meeting to go skiing and attend a luxury handbag and shoe designer launch party. At the resort, Hye-ri has her purse stolen, loses the shoes she bid for, and bungles prosecutor Yoon Se-jun's efforts to capture an evasive suspect. She does meet an interesting man, the lawyer Seo In-woo who offers to let her stay in his suite after Hye-ri loses her hotel reservation. Soon after, Hye-ri discovers the prosecutor training and overseeing her cases is none other than Yoon Se-jun, and he knows Hye-ri is the reason his suspect, a man he'd been chasing for nearly three years, was still at large. Hye-ri is soon ostracized and given little to no case work because no one will take the naive, fashionable prosecutor seriously. What happens when her mysterious benefactor In-woo appears, offering more help and guidance? Will Hye-ri be able to win the approval of her co-workers and her father? And why is In-woo so interested in Hye-ri if he knows she has feelings for someone else, even offers to help her win that man's heart?

*Hye-ri's character has a bit of a “legally blonde” vibe at first, what with the cute skirts, frilly office décor and airhead-like optimism. It was difficult to like the materialistic girl, even after a few flashbacks reveal she was once very fat and had all the emotional issues that go with it. It wasn't believable though, what with the comical, almost cartoon-like fat suit she wore while trying to express a serious, difficult period in her life. The music was annoying as well, repetitive and banal, and the plot was SO SLOW. I had a difficult time finishing this because it was just so boring. It wasn't as bad as “Nine: Nine Time Travels” but it was close. The love interests were confusing as well. I'm starting to think it's better to write love stories as clearly defined “A likes B, but C likes A” - not this nebulous “I think I have feelings for him, I've acted like I do for more than half the show, but maybe I actually like the guy that was helping me win the first guy's affections...” I won't watch this again.

Saturday, October 29, 2016

KFilm to Miss: Enemies In-Law (2015)

Enemies In-Law (2015)

Han Chul-soo causes an accident on the freeway evading police who are after his criminal parents, but instead of fleeing, he saves Park Young-hee from burning wreckage. Young-hee is the daughter of a police officer, she and her sisters are police officers, and Chul-soo's parents are the only culprits Young-hee's father would like to catch before his retirement. Chul-soo vows to become a police officer himself, much to his parents' dismay, in order to prove himself worthy of Young-hee. What happens when Young-hee and her sisters close in on a serial killer and the killer knows it? Will the outlaws and officers have to work together to keep their family members safe?

*As exciting as the premise may sound, it is based on the tired Romeo-Juliet trope, and I actually stopped the film in the middle to go do other things because I was so bored. The thief parents had some amusing antics, tricking their way past police and guards, but it didn't make up for the lackluster plot. I also didn't like the serial killer's profile: a thieving, raping, murdering criminal, and the movie shows too much of those details. It's despicable, yet at the same time, with all the talking about it in the movie, it loses most of its shock value by the end. That subject matter should never feel commonplace, because it is horrific. I didn't like this movie, and I wouldn't recommend it.*

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