Rattan (2021)

A Fresh Breath of Air (no more c-drama cliches)

Rattan introduces not only a new type of genre (science fiction/fantasy) but completely new character dynamics. We truly have a strong female lead here, someone whose backstory and motive drives the whole plot. In fact, the male lead is more a side character who simply accompanies her on her journey after her revival. Some people might be put off by the foreignness of the drama, the fact that there are no old tropes, and I implore those people to spend a couple more episodes watching before coming to a conclusion. At least make it to the halfway point before giving a critical rating.

For those who are confused about what the plot is, or feel there is no plot, the drama is also of the mystery genre. Over half of the 30-episodes are focused around discovering who the female lead is and why she does what she does. When the audience finally does discover all the information, the second half of the drama leads the audience to a much faster paced plot where Si Teng meets her goal and deals with the obstacles (or rather people) that arise as well as her budding feelings for Qin Fang.

Even if you're not here for the mystery plot, there's still much to savor from the drama: the beautiful scenery, Si Teng's stunning wardrobe, and the adorable slow-burn romance. A lot of the scenery is very uncommon in Chinese dramas, where instead of the old traditional architecture or modern skyscrapers, they filmed in Xinjiang and remote places like Shangri-la City.

ACTING/PRODUCTION:

The main actors, Jing Tian (role Si Teng), Zhang Binbin (role Qin Fang) and Zhang Yichi (role Yan Furui) are all great at their craft and the interactions all feel very natural. Even the child actors for Wa Fang and young Si Teng act very well. If there are complaints about acting from second leads, I do want to remind that the production team for Rattan doesn't have the extensive budget of other dramas like Eternal Love or Ashes of Love, so please be more lenient. In fact, Bai Jin is even acted by the director himself. Even so, the team went through a lot to get good scenes i.e. for the first scene when Qin Fang revives Si Teng, they filmed at a very high altitude, where it's very cold and they had to bring oxygen tanks.

Not to mention, the two leads have great chemistry. Their off-screen interactions are absolutely adorable. When they first appeared in public together to promote the drama, they looked so happy together that the search Jing Tian and Zhang Binbin acting like newly-wed couple was one of the top 5 searches on Weibo that week. There's also a Happy Camp episode coming out soon if you want to see more of them together!

Interestingly, Rattan was a surprise drama, no one expecting the popularity that it currently has. On Douban (the Goodreads of Chinese cinematography), not only does it have a 7.8 rating, it boasts 140k reviewers (most dramas have around 60k and a 6.5 rating; anything over 7.5 is extremely impressive and rare). All of these are testimonies to the greatness Rattan is.

CONS:

Personally, the main issue I have is that the plot can be very confusing, which knocked down the overall rating from 10 stars to 9. The drama is based off of a novel written by Wei Yu and so sometimes knowledge on text doesn't translate well visually without narration. Especially near the end, where it picks up pace, it can get very confusing what is happening and why it has occurred. I feel like more time could've been taken to go over these scenes and the backstory. There are also some unanswered questions like: did Qin Fang ever realize who Shan Zhigang was? Why does Bai Jin hide the fact that he has powers and what exactly is even his role? etc. I didn't mind as much since I could get the general gist, but I can understand how that may be frustrating to others. The drama may have benefited from extra episodes or cutting out whole sections of plot, instead of following the novel religiously (like the last 2 episodes were kinda unnecessary and made me much more confused).

ENDING:

Finally, about the ending, some of you are worried about it having a sad ending. The director actually filmed two endings. The one in episode 30 is more "sad", i.e. Qin Fang and Si Teng don't end up together in the traditional sense (I still don't think its sad though, it has a nice cause and effect circular nature to it), but there's also a special, which provides another ending, which people have enjoyed much more, where Qin Fang and Si Teng do end up together, so no need to have qualms about that if you don't like tragedy.

CONCLUSION:

WATCH THE DRAMA. Whether or not it ends up following your preferences, I believe the freshness of the plot/setting/characters are all worth a try.

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Probably one of the best cdramas in 2021...

I started watching Rattan purely for the scenic shots, did not have any expectations. Having seen Fairyland Lovers and a few other cdramas with fantasy stories in modern setting, I did not have high hopes that this would be good.... It has a much lower budget, 90 million yuan only, and it is only 30 eps, giving me the impression it is a 'lightweight' fantasy drama.

But Rattan has exceeded expectations and this might be in my list of Top 10 Dramas of 2021! It started off light and fluffy (due to the cinematography and initial slow pace), introducing us to the leads in a dramatic opening-- ML almost died in a car accident but his blood revived the FL, and in turn she brought him back to life. We watch the struggles due to personality differences between FL and ML, and FL's struggle to comprehend the new world while the story brings in a host of supporting characters. FL’s arrogant and domineering manner contrast with ML’s soft and submissive attitude was a refreshing watch! FYI, ML was not a submissive man! He did try to abandon FL initially, but when he realized he couldn’t, he then accepted her and became submissive. The chemistry between the leads were off the charts!! It was a smothering watch, like fire and ice. But in terms of plot, there wasn’t much in the initial eps, the focus was on the leads’ characterizations and the supporting characters. Some might be tempted to drop Rattan in the early eps, but if you are patient and persist until ep 9 or 10, the story gets more interesting. By ep 15 or so, the mysteries will draw you in so much, I won’t be surprised if you binge the remaining eps in one day. I watched this while it was still airing and took almost 2 weeks to watch ep 1 to 9. Thereafter, I consumed the remaining eps within a few days until the final 8 eps, where I had to wait patiently for its release….

What EXACTLY is the attraction of Rattan?
==Okay, some spoilers ahead, do not continue if you do not want to be spoiled==

- The scenic shots. The beautiful cinematography first draws you into the story. Director used a lot of wide-angled shots and zoom to show the beauty of nature and its gorgeous sets.

- FL’s cheongsams. She had at least 2 beautiful cheongsams and dresses per episode. And these dresses are not designed by some branded designer(s), but designed and tailored by the design director. Impressive considering the low budget.

- The story and mysteries. This is the MAIN reason I love this drama! Some supporting characters would go missing/die, and I was left wondering if they would be coming back or really gone?? As a fantasy mystery, it has its usual supporting characters with unknown back story. In the identity revelation of Dan Zhi Gang, I was really caught off-guard! Suspected a few possibilities but failed to guess his identity. And in Bai Ying vs Si Teng fight, I also failed to guess Si Teng’s real plan! In most dramas, we get some hint of ‘the truth’ or ‘the plan’ about 1 or 2 eps prior to it happening, but in Rattan, screenwriter and director kept me guessing, and most of the time my guesses turned out wrong, lol! There lies the master stroke of this drama, it keeps you guessing until it reveals the truth. And the truth is not so far-fetched, but it has been there right in front of you, just that you failed to see it…. Which makes it so interesting!

- The main couple’s chemistry ♥ I wish there were more eps, of them just cooking, reading and doing mundane activities. They look so adorable and sweet together!

Special mention on episodes 28 and 29 ♥
Director really blow my mind here! He turned the drama into horror without making it feel out of place, I look forward to him directing a horror drama in future!

Most fantasy dramas start off strong, with weak 2nd half and a rushed ending. Not in Rattan. It deceives you with the initial slow pace and beautiful scenery, plot and pace picks up and 'hit you in the guts' at the ending episodes. The finale of eps 25 to 30 + extra ep with alternate ending are worth re-watching **thumbs up**

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