Personal Favorites

A perfect story. The standard against which I measure almost everything else I see.

Objectively one of the most flawless dramas ever produced. Exceptional in every possible way: story, acting, music, production design... It continues to age well and will probably remain a timeless classic for decades.

The first Korean drama I ever watched. The storytelling and character development blew my mind. Poor soundtrack choices were completely forgotten amid the exceptional acting and profound story.

The best of its genre. The Train purports to tell a story about parallel worlds and instead shoves us head first into a fascinating examination of the makings of fate and personal responsibility and the spiraling-out effect of every decision a person makes in their life. That with some fantastic acting made this one of the most compelling dramas I've ever watched. The story never goes where you think it will. And they never miss a chance to peel back the skin and have a closer look.

This story is so intricate and unexpected that it feels mythical. The characters are wholly developed and endlessly fascinating. Every corner is explored. Every thought and emotion is considered. Every inch of screen is perfectly used. The most well-told story I've ever personally come across.

Far more than it appears to be. Besides being a brutally sharp action thriller with an excellent political mystery and some great spycraft, The Veil is also an unflinching examination of the personal toll combat trauma can take on an individual. Namgoong Min performed a full vivisection on the broken machinery of a human weapon. Hard to watch, wholly worth it.

I've always wanted a disaster story set in the distant past. Zombies in the Joseon era was definitely that. Usually a more highbrow zombie story will spend a lot of time on "the humans are the real monsters." And this one did that, yes, but not in the cliche way. Figuring out the zombies was such a major factor; but so was the insanely dangerous court situation. The pacing between the two was flawless.

Hugely epic. Not ever the story you think it will be. The characters and their individual journeys are what matters here. And that is done so, so well.

Continued and wrapped up season 1 perfectly. My only complaint was that they opted to not give us a season 3, while still leaving the ending open for it. Nevertheless, it doesn't necessarily need it to be considered "done."

I forced myself to watch this slowly, as it deserves. One of the most beautiful stories I've ever seen. A difficult, ugly subject matter presented in a lovingly crafted box made of extraordinary human beings treating each other with tenderness, selfless devotion, courage, and love. I can't wait to watch this again in the spring.

Modern thrillers tend to be a dime a dozen. You watch one and you enjoy it, but then you more or less forget about it. This is different. And I prefer this one to the Korean version. Among many other excellent factors -- fantastic acting, viscerally brutal cinematography, etc -- this movie holds society by the scruff of the neck and forces it to take a long look at the ugly reality of romanticizing murderers. This without an ounce of scoldy moralizing and with the strongest emphasis on the outstanding story.