Woo Young-woo is so wholesome.

The first half had unbelievable writing quality. I especially admired how it simultaneously developed the overall narrative and cases while still finding ways to seamlessly weave in personal development for the main character throughout. And so many intricate details. That was pure genius. As an aspiring writer I'm kinda jealous at the feat they pulled here tbh.

Unfortunately, the show couldn't maintain that level of quality in the second half, at which point it settled for… "still pretty damn great".

Massive kudos to the person who made the subs for this on Netflix, a certain Cho Hyun-soo apparently. Good subs help tremendously when listening to foreign media, and these subs were among the best I've ever seen, translating everything that's written on screen flawlessly, and even providing context for some jokes that couldn't translate well from Korean to English.

I'm not sure if a 2nd season of this show really makes sense but hey, I'm open to being wrong.

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This is secretly—but actually not so secretly—gay lmao

Easily the most outrageously ridiculous premise for a body swap story I've seen so far, and I've seen quite a few. Guy falls in a hotel pool and wakes up 200 years ago in the body of the Queen of Joseon? Get out of here!

And yet… it's pretty good and funny
There are Some lulls here and there but this is entertaining, even though it's a bit too much sometimes. Starts off really funny but the comedy makes way for a lot more drama in the back half of the show.

The action wasn't very good. Lots of shuffling around with lots of cuts so the fights were a mess. It was hard to tell exactly what was going on. They probably rushed the filming for them.

But Shin Hye-sun is firing on all cylinders here. Great wide-ranging performance. I knew the minute I saw her in a supporting role in The Legend of the Blue Sea that she was way more talented than her role let on, and well I feel validated now!

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Refreshingly low-key

Kim Seol-hyun headlining a romance drama? Yes please! Such a rare sight.

They sure were trying their damn hardest to make her appear as average-looking as possible (unflattering makeup, messy hair, ill-fitting clothes), but as it became quite clear it just wasn't achievable, halfway through it's like they just went screw it and gave up lol. Then cue other characters going like "wow you're so pretty" well no shit, do you have eyes?

This is actually, and surprisingly, very well written with many complex characters and dynamics, although it is a bit contrived at times. I really enjoyed how mature it was in its themes. It's pretty much entirely devoid of cheese (but definitely not drama), so rest assured that you won't find any of the usual kdrama clichés here, so if you're looking for something different from usual kdrama this is one of them. Feels more like a slice of life drama, with a side serving of darker moments.

I think this series's strongest suit is the writing, especially character interactions, while its weakest would be tonal consistency.

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Child actress is a revelation, rest goes downhill fast.

Started off well but became too clumsy in the second half.

They really overplayed the intensity of some dramatic scenes. It's hard to explain but it's like they tried to portray some events happening to the characters as PTSD-inducing, or just really affecting them in a major way, but… they weren't all that intense to begin with. Made them miserable but it's just blown out of proportion, and it happens more than once. Just took me out of the story.

Choi Soo-young did a great job, but it's the child actress who was astounding. The fact that this thing works overall and has any weight (emotional or otherwise) whatsoever fully rests upon her shoulders.

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One of the best kdramas out there

Korean revenge stories are basically a subgenre of their own at this point and this is another one you don't wanna miss. After the very good My Name (2021) we have yet another—and bigger—winner in the form of this newly-released title (it says 2022 but it finished only a couple weeks ago)

Watch the first episode and tell me this is boring. That's right, you can't.

It's also full of surprises. Don't expect much action though, that's just not what this is about.

I think what sets this story apart from other revenge stories in this genre is the fact that we follow the antagonists quite a bit. A lot of screentime is dedicated to them actually, and yet it works so well because they're so colorful, dynamic, and multi-layered as they progressively sink deeper into the protagonist's schemes. We even see glimpses of humanity here and there. It's a delight sometimes to simply watch the chaos that seems to follow them around unfold. Their lives are a hypnotic, convoluted mess to watch, and it's definitely what I enjoyed the most in this show.

Well, aside from the acting. The leads killed it of course but a shoutout too to the young actresses playing the main protagonist (Jung Ji-So) and the main antagonist (Shin Ye-eun) in their school years, now that was some brilliant acting. They'll be ones to watch for sure.

Word of warning on the first episode though: it gets pretty intense. Sexual assault, torture, psychological abuse… I've seen worse, graphically, but due to the context, the amazing performances and directing and the score here it's just so… harrowing. So yeah, trigger warning I guess.

But it's really well made, and necessary. How else are we gonna root for someone who's essentially dead set on ruining a bunch of people's lives in return for what they did?

Because they deserve it. Without question.

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Second leads in this ruled!

Fun romance/drama/comedy with a few unexpected creepy suspense moments.

The secondary leads Jae-jin and Hye-sun killed it, completely stealing the show from the leads in this.

Unfortunately for the ML, I wish the FL had chosen the other guy. Lol. That's never a good sign. I don't know he was more down to Earth and cool. The ML was too controlling. But it still works I would say. I liked the Mountain Spirit's role in the story, and the FL was really, really good.

This show excels at nothing but does a lot of little things right that do add up. The story progresses well.

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Amazing historical blockbuster with great performances and action

Against all my expectations going in this is easily one of my favorite new watches of the last couple of years. And I'm really picky with my 10 ratings. I love discovering new unexpected personal favorites like this!

Same historical backdrop as the The Handmaiden too… coincidence? I think I like that time period.

Due to the long runtime I came in with a pack of pistachios to eat whenever I figured it'd get boring (read: when Jun Ji-hyun wasn't on screen, or so I naively thought) but then I couldn't find any time to actually crack them open because I got fully invested like 5 minutes in and promptly forgot about them.

So this was pretty popular at the Korean box office, currently resting in the all-time top 10 by admissions as of 2022, and I can see why.

What it lacks in distinctive style it compensates for with lots of twists and surprises, varied, dynamic characters, and a compelling story akin to Inglourious Basterds (another one of my favorite movies), making it an instant classic in my book.
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Stunts - 90/100 | The set-piece during the aforementioned "assassination" is delightful, splendid execution and editing. Hollywood proving once again that lots of their ginormous budgets are flushed down the toilet... This movie looks and feels like a historical blockbuster for a mere fraction of the money.

Narrative - 96/100 | Ha Jung-woo shines as the enigmatic killer-for-hire 'Hawaii Pistol' for sure, if he keeps this up he's gonna be my favorite Korean actor soon enough, and Lee Jung-Jae (from Squid Game) also brings his A-game to this.

Fight Choreography | No real fights.

Enjoyment - 98/100 | Of course you have to like war espionage stuff but it's crafted really well with a smart, well-rounded script that has multiple pay-offs and high-impact action beats. The attention to trivial details in this movie is lovely, and makes the world feel much more real.

And then, well, if you've ever wanted to watch Jun Ji-hyun play a hardass sniper infiltrator (who wouldn't?), now's your only chance.

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Disaster of a movie

It's like a shittier version of Underworld: Evolution, and Underworld: Evolution is already incredibly shitty so I'm not sure what that makes this.

How anyone can manage to make even Jun Ji-hyun bland is beyond me, like at this point it takes special skills to achieve this as I thought it to be impossible.

And then you somehow notice that this is a Hong Kong American French Chinese Japanese co-production starring a Korean actress playing a Japanese girl speaking English directed by a French guy and jesus what even happened to this movie
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Stunts - 57/100 | The CGI blood is bordering on parody quality here and frankly they should have embraced it. Go full Sin City on that movie!

Narrative - 34/100 | That Alice actress must have lost a bet or something. The bet: say the most outrageous things possible with a serious face. No one could have acted this role and made it work. No one. Congrats Chris Chow, your writing talents (or more accurately: lack thereof) shall not go unnoticed. Genius-ly bad script.

Fight Choreography - 46/100 | I like the exaggerated style they were going for with the action and understand what they were trying to achieve, but it's an utter failure of execution regardless with the nauseating editing and crappy shot continuity.

Enjoyment - 40/100 | Look, it's got Jun Ji-hyun in a lead role playing a 400 (500?) years old vampire dressed like a schoolgirl slicing monsters left and right with a katana, with horrendous CGI blood splattering everywhere. Just for that alone 4/10 is the floor here.

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I last watched this a decade ago and I remembered it being more violent than it is. A lot of the violence happened off-screen (like Sympathy for Lady Vengeance). Or maybe I’m just more used to it now.
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Stunts - 78/100

Narrative - 86/100 | Incredibly well-rounded script, intricate characters, and fully-realized villain that unfortunately don’t do much for me on a personal level... BUT this film is so well-crafted and delightfully twisted that it’s a great watch no matter what. Park Chan-Wook is a wizard behind the camera.

Fight Choreography - 88/100 | What is there left to say about the hallway scene? Hundreds of YouTube comments reading something along the lines of "best fight scene ever" having thousands of upvotes summarize it quite well, albeit being a bit short on the descriptive parts. The scene is so stylish with the groovy music, our main character here never abandoning, cleaving through ranks and ranks of featureless thugs, fighting for his life. And falling.... And standing up again! It's all filmed in one beautiful take, and results in one rough and truly unforgettable fight scene.

But mark my words, this fight scene is not even in the top 5 reasons why you should watch this movie.

Enjoyment - 76/100

Overall 8/10

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What a blast!

I love how this movie takes itself seriously and presents a well-flowing narrative that keeps you on the edge of your seat constantly, and not because of contrived reasons but because of dynamic and varied characters with their own goals... AKA a well written movie.

The plot and main beats are quite predictable but that doesn't detract from the movie at all. The zombies' traits are clear, and played to both their strengths and weaknesses.

Huge praise should be given to the stunt crew who made it all believable by throwing themselves like the batshit crazy people they are on every object in that movie. They're scary and completely insane and I loved it!

The contrived setting adds to the movie immensely.

Incredible work and a worthy addition to the zombie genre. It has emotional gravitas too which is also quite the rare sight in this genre.

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Came for the action, stayed for the story

I don't know why a lot of people praise the action in this movie, I must commend them for their dedication and it sure must have been quite the effort to stage it and film it, but it's shot in a horrendous and chaotic way. We lack proper perspective or setup for most of it. It's hard to follow when it's first person as well. I think action works at its best when it's a series of "push - release" moments that, in combination with great framing and editing, create a kinetic flow to it.

The motorcycle chase scene in particular stands out as the worst. It's just a mess of shaky cam, awful under-cranking which seems like they actually cut some frames out, and weird editing.

I mean, a lot of the action shots are continuous but they still manage to make it look less slick and coherent than many movies with five times as many cuts. I guess I should blame the camera work.

In fact, this movie is living proof that shaky cam is a lot worse than having many cuts in an action scene. Hong Kong director Corey Yuen is at the opposite end of the spectrum, his action movies have lots of cuts but due to the steady camera work (and precise editing through the cuts), the action stays coherent throughout.

The worst combination is, of course, both of these extreme issues joined together (see: most of Hollywood productions)

HOWEVER, I loved this movie. Came in for the action, stayed for everything else.

The narrative used a lot of wonderful "push-pull" dynamics. If only the action did as well...
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Stunts - 70/100 | Not sure exactly how they filmed some of those stunts which is a plus I guess? This movie is an example of something impressive done behind the camera resulting in... something relatively good on screen but not anything more than that because it's hard to actually see it.

Narrative - 81/100 | I was almost dreading the action-filled finale because the story really drew me in. A great balance of action and drama, shock and tenderness, romance and animosity. It's melodramatic at times but I didn't mind.

Fight Choreography - 67/100 | What I said in the stunts category also applies here. What the action scenes lack in cohesiveness though, they compensate for in terms of violence.

Enjoyment - 84/100 | Kim Ok-bin is the MVP of this movie. Or rather, I thought both actresses playing her character were the MVPs of this movie. But then... apparently she played both versions of herself. How on Earth did they manage to make her look so different before and after plastic surgery?

Or is it what Patrick Stewart refers to when he says "Acting." in a deadpan tone?

If you liked either of LA FEMME NIKITA or THE MAN FROM NOWHERE, be sure not to miss this one.

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All this for a bowl of noodles!

But man, what a bowl it was, so worth it.

Really glad I watched this because the editing in this movie is simply splendid, especially the first two-thirds. Well, except for the foot chase.

I love how so many oddities made their way into this movie. From odd objects the main character managed to fabricate, to intricate and idiosyncratic life habits the girl had, it was great and creative. Like the toy robot in the elevator, amazing! All those sequences of the girl going outside with the biker helmet were sublime, so well made. Great directing.

The ending, although good, was the weakest part of the movie for me. I guess I was so blown away by the rest that I was expecting a bit more.

I have never seen CAST AWAY and now I just found the perfect excuse.

At least this time the American movie came first... Usually it's the other way around.

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Incredible example of contradictory filmmaking

I actually think there is A LOT to talk about with this movie, and that is… concerning. Concerning because with a title like this, you'd expect something straightforward. Also concerning because I feel like the original intent was to portray this whole plastic surgery situation in South Korea and Kpop superficialism with… an introspective inclination, perhaps? But along the way, the purpose got completely lost.

Never thought I'd sit down to write a 1000+ words essay after watching a cheesy Romcom like this, but here we are.

The conflicting/mixed messaging in this movie is a real sight to see. Wonderfully contradictory. It's just bonkers, and I love contradictory filmmaking! Well, actually, I didn't love this movie. But I loved how contradictory it is with its own self. I don't regret watching this for one second because it's so captivating how tone-deaf the whole ordeal is! It's hard to put a rating on this because I really enjoyed it for those reasons, but let's be honest here, it's not well made.

Let me try to summarize this.

According to this movie, being ugly is bad, being pretty is good, but it's bad if your good looks are fake, although looking good ultimately is a good thing even if it's bad that it's fake, because feeling good about yourself is good even if it's bad that you weren't good-looking before, which is why you wanted to look good in the first place.

And you have to accept that about yourself… I think?

Some horrible messaging in this movie (I may have missed a few):
- Being fat means being clumsy and ugly and worthless, even if you're talented
- If you're fat, tough luck. Kill yourself or get plastic surgery/find a way to get pretty, those are your only options for a better life
- You need to be good-looking to feel good about yourself
- You need to be good-looking to have any form of success
- You don't deserve the person you are infatuated with, even if they like you in return, unless you're good-looking which then becomes acceptable

Interesting messaging in this movie:
- You should accept your flaws as they're a part of you (contradicts above, more on that below)
- You should strive to be better and work on yourself
- You should be more assertive with others concerning your well-being
- Being a good person at heart matters (see the dad resolution)
- Knowing what you want and working to get there pays off
- Having actual talent pays off, being a talentless hack doesn't, even if you're pretty (also contradicts above)

So in light of this, it's funny how this movie clamors for so many things that are in direct contradiction with each other:
- She definitely has a better life now that she's pretty. It fixed most problems in her life, but at the same time, she looks at what she left behind and sees what being herself before brought her. But she was so explicitly and unequivocally miserable. Which one is it, movie?
- Her love interest says to his henchman at the end that they're all assholes for refusing to see Hanna for who she was all along. Wonderful right? Except it's a classic case of do as I say, not as I do. He only cares about her post-surgery, and while he wasn't hostile to her or anything before, he was still only using her and that's it.
- To continue on that, the movie makes a point of saying that who Hanna is inside is what matters (but only now that she's gorgeous, like shown above), then we see her "ugly" best friend lining up for head-to-toe surgery after she's seen what it did for her friend's life. It's shown as a good thing as she's finally fixing up her life. LMAO that's so tone-deaf. Incredible!
- Being fat sucks so much it ruins your life and you should kill yourself. But you should also accept that about yourself… What the hell
- The movie tries to show that talent trumps good looks, as Ammy fails because she's a talentless hack while Hanna succeeds because she's a good singer, but in the process of doing so makes being pretty a requisite of success as she failed earlier because she was ugly… which contradicts its own message as it's not just about talent. Moreover, Ammy doesn't really, actually "fail", she's simply not as successful as Hanna in the end. She still had her moment in the sun, for a talentless hack that's a far cry from failure. And I do mean talentless, even after years of practice her voice still sounds like a broken accordion.

A few positives I noticed
- Kim Ah-joong was actually quite good in the lead and gave a great, funny, varied, and expressive performance. Definitely not cast only because of her looks (ironically).
- Lots of hilarious comedy moments, the morality of them notwithstanding. There's some good fish out of water moments after she gets her surgery, in a "oh you sweet summer child" manner.
- The song "Ave Maria" (actually sang by the lead) is hella, hella catchy

A few negatives
- Script was uneven and by the end nothing makes sense
- Obviously, the epic mixed messaging
- The fat jokes are really, really unfunny
- The fat suit looked like shit
- Too much melodrama
- Main romance sucked

On the subject of the main romance, how can she have a crush on the guy even after she hears him say he's only using her because she sings well and that they have to tolerate her? He literally says that, she hears him say it, and yet she still has a huge crush on him as if nothing happened? Wow. When that happened I thought "oh so she's going to fall for some other guy when she's pretty right?" Love triangle or something? Nope. I guess then that she pursues him only because he's good-looking? I can live with that, it would further reinforce the overall irony of this movie. No matter what he does for her at the end, he's still a prick who was using her when she was fat and only came around because she's hot now.

And finally, in the most insane of ironies (add it to the pile), as if this movie's conflicted messaging couldn't get any more blurred, lead actress and singer Kim Ah-joong has had multiple, expensive plastic surgery done on herself. I'm not judging her for it, but it's so ironic in the context of this movie… You can't write this shit up! Or apparently you can?

Recommended because it's just a fascinating watch.

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Instead of drawing inspiration from Hong Kong like in the previous installments, they went on to make an actual Hong Kong movie this time.

But with barely any of what makes them great.

Also, where’s Zhang Ziyi?

Not that I dislike Shu Qi but that’s not what I was promised at the end of the last one!
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Stunts - 81/100

Narrative - 51/100 | Lesson number 1 when making a Hong Kong Triad movie: length should be 90 minutes, not 120 minutes, unless there’s an interesting dynamic going on like in the previous movies. This sequel was excruciatingly boring because it’s half an hour too long. And the absence of Shin Eun-kyung severely hamstrings this movie. Clearly, she was the central pillar that made this whole thing work, at least for me.

Fight Choreography - 78/100 | Steady camera with exciting athleticism always gets a thumbs up from me on the fighting front. Shu Qi is obviously doubled but they did a good job with it. Minus points right there because of the huge missed opportunity of having Ken Lo be the final boss in your movie and not have him throw a single kick. -sigh- It is our lot in life as Ken Lo fans to suffer, is it not? He always plays overconfident mob bosses so why the hell don’t they make him back up that confidence? He certainly can. Oh well, enough ranting about that…

Enjoyment - 42/100 | Hold that thought, still got one more in stock. The translator was so annoying, I couldn’t figure out whether she was a comic relief character or one you’re supposed to root for... or totally hate? I’m lost on this one.

I’m all for their attempt to make a girl empowerment movie but it just falls flat on its head. Stick with the previous entries in my opinion, you get a fully-developed character that’s much more interesting. And a better story. And better comedy. Better everything.

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Female crime boss wants to get married to uphold a promise, cue the confusion as she orders her men to search for a viable candidate.

Blend in the famous Hong Kong Triad power struggles/dynamics with South Korea’s perpetual game of Genre Musical Chair and you get this, whatever this is. I liked it!
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Stunts - 83/100 | Somebody high up in the creative team is a fan of Hong Kong movies. They even included the staple humorous sidekick that we all love to hate (more like hate tbh)

Narrative - 68/100 | (Melo)Drama, Crime, Action, Comedy all merge together to form a weirdly functioning mess.

Fight Choreography - 68/100 | Only part that I wished they had studied better in their efforts to replicate fights from the best school of action cinema. Still, there was an attempt here, with a brutal end fight sequence that was pretty decent. Performers had it in them I think but the editing… bleh. It really was all over the place and the fights were hard to follow, which is the opposite of what you’d want. I liked the wire bits though.

Enjoyment - 79/100 | I was surprised by how much depth the main character had. It was really fun to see her struggle with basic life stuff and yet, be so respected and feared by her peers. Funny and yet intense central performance by Shin Eun-kyung. She’s a stone-cold certified badass.

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