heartbreaking, yet beautiful

This has to be one of the most underrated films of 2022.

The director, Tanada Yuki, did a fantastic job portraying the ups and downs of life through gorgeous scenery and profound dialogue. At times, the pacing felt a bit slow, and some of the scenes seemed to drag slightly, but it did an effective job of creating an emotional experience for the viewer. This film touches on issues of mental illness, various forms of familial and relationship abuse, and toxic work culture. Certain scenes contained heart-wrenching and quite graphic depictions of self-harm and abuse, so be forewarned. The slower paced scenes ultimately allowed the viewer to reflect on the serious issues presented in this film. This movie is relatively short, and the plot isn't that complicated, but everything about it is impactful.

What makes this film amazing is the acting. Nagano Mei truly become the character of Shiino Tomoyo. I could feel her anguish, frustration, and helplessness through the screen. Her character felt like an anchor for the viewer to hold onto. Her reactions felt very real, in the face of tremendous heartbreak and anger. All the characters had fantastic line delivery, but Nagano definitely owned this movie.

Even though this film is incredibly sad, there are elements of humor sprinkled throughout. It felt very real, as life is filled with beauty, tragedy, and comedy. I can't emphasize enough how gorgeous this film is. It's definitely an emotional roller coaster, so prepare tissues!

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An Underrated Piece of Art

As a criminal justice major, I decided to check out this drama to see how the Korean justice system compared to the American justice system. I didn't see many other people talk about this show as it was coming out, so I went in with limited expectations and simply happy to see Kim Soo Hyun act in a slightly darker role than usually. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that this drama was a secret piece of art.
From the first episode, I became hooked on the plot of this show. Rather than just telling a story from the perspective of someone who was wrongfully arrested for a crime they didn't commit, this show goes into the intricacies of the criminal justice system, and the politics that affect the public's opinion. This show addresses so many social justice issues, such as classism within the criminal justice system, corruption within the police force, violence within prisons, and illegal drug usage. It's not a show for everyone, especially those that prefer cute romance dramas, but I still heavily recommend checking it out.
My main complaint for this show would be I wish there was more female representation. All the female characters were either not helpful towards the plot or died. It's understandable that all the main characters would be male because the primary location for this drama is in an all male prison, but I'm still always looking for more representation in kdramas.
Despite that, this show was stunning. It's fairly short, so anyone can get through it quite fast. I hope more people check it out and appreciate this underrated show!

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Worth a Try!

I was initially scared to try this drama. I remember when it came out and everyone complained about it being terrible, so I just decided to ignore it and check out different shows instead. That was until I decided to give it a shot, and I was pleasantly surprised!
One of the biggest complaints that I saw for this drama was that it's confusing. To be honest, it can be a bit convoluted at times because of the parallel universes and eventual time travel. As long as you follow the plot in the first episode and try to remember all the characters, the plot really comes together and makes complete sense.
Something to be wary of when starting this drama is the amount of product placement shown every single episode. Usually with dramas, the product placement is evident, but it's not something that you get hung up on. This show however felt like 50% plot 50% ads. It was almost laughable that the directors didn't even try to sneak in the product placement. Some of the ads were entirely unrelated to what was happening in the show and I couldn't help but laugh at the amount of times any of the actors would gush about a random product in the middle of a dramatic scene. Once you get used to this, the rest of the show becomes a lot more enjoyable.
A slightly controversial opinion, but Lee Min Ho is one of my least favorite actors. Despite being somewhat biased against him, I still thought the drama was adorable, and his chemistry with Kim Go Eun seemed really genuine. The rest of the cast definitely shined in this show as well, and made the series much more enjoyable. Still not the best cast I've ever seen in a drama, but having Woo Do Hwan play a main character honestly made the show 10 times better.
Overall, it wasn't one of the best shows I've ever seen, but I was still hooked from beginning to end. Without spoiling, some of the scenes were absolutely stunning and will remain with me for years to come. Definitely not a show for everyone, but I feel like those who watch a lot of kdramas would appreciate this series.

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