Beautiful World (2019)

Good starts promise a good watch, and this enraptured me from the get-go. I am not big on watching or reading things surrounding school; however, what captured my attention was the highlighting of adults’ struggles when it comes to school violence. This was not about students alone, but teachers and parents too, and I appreciate those shifts in perspective. Furthermore, it did not brush over any harsh details while discussing bullying; neither was it afraid to delve into the cruelty of children, because, let’s face it, some children ARE cruel. But it also prevented painting every occurrence in a black and white stroke.

The life of this drama lay within the situation it had created that allowed the writer to explore the helplessness that is integral to human nature. It discussed how environments shape people, how parents shape children, and how the basic instinct to protect your offspring can have far-reaching consequences. It did not limit itself to calling bullies the scum of the earth, and unfolded their domestic situations and personalities. It depicted many kinds of bullies: one doing it for pleasure, one doing it under pressure, one attacking what they cannot have, and one acting as a bystander. There were also those who redeemed themselves and those that went on with life. Moreover, the relationships the writer had drawn were really heartfelt. My favourite was Moo Jin and his student Dong Soo's consideration for each other. The side stories and characters had a purpose, either acting as an insight into the characters or served to help them grow. Not to mention, I became attached to them, and so will any viewer, I am sure, especially to Dong Hee and Dong Soo.

This drama happens to be one of the rare cases where flashbacks did not become an intrusion because the transitions from present to past and back again were edited nicely. The imagery was great as well, for example: Joon Seok lived in a glass-like house, very telling of the prison-like environment imposed upon him 24/7, and then there was the warmth of Seon Ho’s home. The reference to The Catcher in the Rye was befitting to the topic at hand.

The pacing could be painstakingly slow at times, but it’s a melodrama, so it is a given. I think the writer could have stretched the show to two more episodes to cover the aftermath in a better way, or the given time should have been used more efficiently by cutting out repeated moments and adding in those worthy of being shown. I think Joon Seok’s redemption and new-found friendship with Dong Soo had great power and should have been explored further. Had Seon Ho gained consciousness earlier, the writer could have effectively handled this and could have made it a better story. Aside from that, there were a few questions they never answered, like Seon Ho’s password. I also noticed how the police felt a tad unprofessional with the way they treated the case earlier on.

Joon Seok was one of the most complex characters in the whole show, and I applaud the actor for bringing him to life; I went from hating him to feeling sorry for him till finally wanting a better life for him. The child actors did a brilliant job at their roles, and so did the adults.

The OSTs were soft and very pleasant to the ears, despite the tears they resulted in. I think they will go to my playlist. One of them, however, was a hip-hop sound and would have felt out of place had they used it as BGM, which they thankfully did not. Overall, a sensible choice of background score.

I don’t think this will be one in my rewatch list, mostly because it is a melo and I get impatient easily. However, a few moments tugged at my heartstrings and had great power in their subtlety so I might return to them.

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Beautiful World emanated full of bodacious feelings from the start. What started with a mere bullying scenario for which a 16 years old had to pay a heavy price ended up with completely different case. Young adolescents were involved in despicable act ostracizing their peers, instigating wrong doings, fawning, wheedling and so on. Often the mixed emotions the people of this age feel make them indulge in many activities which they mainly do out of impulse. Knowingly/unknowingly they go through so many changes that can be overwhelming to deal with. Although through dramas, movies or social awareness related programs in schools, parents are always reminded to be extra careful with the adolescent children; however, they are the ones remain in oblivion most of the time. Teenagers are on the otherhand constantly reminded of not getting afraid or to seek adult’s help are often times refrain from doing it since in many cases adults seem blasé or mordant to their problems. The story focuses on the root causes of the problems. Mainly the children who have feeble familial bondage, suffer from lack of appreciation, reared in an ostentatious environment, continuously taught about social stratification are most likely cause violence in their academic life. Sprouting from extreme abomination they have for themselves gradually being passed on to their seemingly weaker peers out of jealousy. When their formidable act goes out of control then interferes the adult (teachers, parents and the authorities) creating foment and coercion instead of bolstering them positively for their won betterment. Eventually they fall into doldrums; either destroys themselves or their supposed same aged victim.

Keeping this the main theme, which I suppose the writer got inspired from the book Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger, the dramatization took place with some usual dramatic formula. Although it ended with a little unexpected twist but still it maintained to retain its main essence till the end. As the very name of this drama, the makers also ended it in a positive note rather than making it into a heart wrenching one, signaled from the first episode. The story dynamics and the pace of progress per episode was interesting all through.

Also liked the little optimistic message it delivered in the end – to always keep our hopes up and only move forward in order to make everything beautiful around us.

Bullying is a sensitive topic and is a wide social problem in South Korea. No wonder they always try to highlight this issue through visual media to indirectly create awareness. The mood of this drama and story writing is commendable by Kim Ji Woo. She has a certain style of writing which I really love. It exudes somewhat similar feel like the drama Memory and later found out she is the screenwriter of both of them. I just did not like the camera work - the peeping style camera angle or the extreme close shot of every face - which actually gave me a headache. Directions, OSTs, acting by the ensembles all were praiseworthy. All the child actors were excellent, mainly Nam Da Reum and Seo Dong Hyun. Seo Dong Hyun was remarkable in playing the negative role. Unimaginable, how he could manage to pull the skill so maturely at such a young age. He was phenomenal in portraying the evil expressions. Nam Da Reum is always exceptional. They both have the brightest future ahead. The actors in their parents’ role all gave their best performance.

All in all it’s a well - written, directed and acted- drama no one should miss.

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