Korean Movie Night: Flu 감기 (2013) Korean

Jang Hyuk, Soo Ae, Park Min Ha, Yu Hae Jin, Ma Dong Seok, Lee Hee Joon

Movie rating: 8/10     Neck score: A

This one came highly recommended by my little brother, who had previously watched it.  He said he got so into it that he was jumping up and down and shouting at the screen, which is common practice for me while watching movies and dramas, but he doesn't typically do.  He totally has mad respect for Jang Hyuk now.  He loved the chemistry between the leads.  He really had been looking forward to showing us this movie, so we decide to have a movie night and watch it.  The problem is, if it made him shout and scream, who does it, what would it do to us, who always shout and scream.  Haha.  He was worried we didn't like it, but we did.  I loved it, but that didn't mean that I hated what was going on during some parts.

It's very shocking on the visuals, and it tries to shock you.  There are some moments that are just gross and make you feel a bit sick, physically and morally/emotionally.  We have a flu virus that is passed on airborne and there is a really gross coughing montage that was designed to make you paranoid and wear a mask always.  Then there was "The Claw" scene that was pure shock factor that was meant to horrify.  It did that well.  There were many times when we were screaming so loud and dramatically that he was worried that we hated the show.  But it was so intense!  Especially where cute little girls are concerned!  Plus medical thrillers about viruses are crazy, with the panic and selfishness.  There were so many evil, selfish idiots who were basically villians, plus mass panic.  It's just a show where the stakes are high and you get so into it that you are yelling at the bad guys and ferociously cheering the heros.  It's VERY engaging and both fun and exhaustin to watch. I do recommend it, especially of you love Jang Hyuk and/or Soo Ae.  They are both great in it.

Korean Movie Night: Sori: Voice From the Heart 로봇, 소리 (2016) Korean

Lee Sung Min, Shim Eun Kyung, Lee Ha Nui, Lee Hee Joon, Kim Won Hae, Chae Soo Bin

Movie rating: 7/10     Neck score: B

Lizabreff summed it up nicely when she said that if it had been anyone with less acting chops than Lee Sung Min, this movie might not have worked.  It would have been superbly campy and not the sweet tear jerker it was.  Lee Sung Min was amazing as a man who has lost his daughter and doesn't believe she was killed in the subway fire like everyone else keeps telling him.  During his crazy search to find her, he finds a crashed surveillance satellite that can trace calls and phone records.  It also has an attitude.  Shim Eun Kyung did an awesome job with the satellite robot's voice, making it sound very robot AI, but also have such character and personality.

He join forces with the robot and goes in search of his daughter, based on phone records and GPS locations.  Naturally, since this was an NSA surveillance satellite, they don't want it falling in the wrong hands, so we've got some bad English speaking actors.  We also have the NIS and KARI involved too.  Lee Ha Nui is the KARI employee, and she is awesome.  Her English was awesome too.  At first, based on the friction between her and Lee Hee Joon, the NIS agent, we were like "couple?" but then he was just a tool, so we were glad that didn't happen.  Ew.  So, it definitely had an agenda.  It was very anti-surveillance and pro-personal privacy protection.  No one seemed to have a good opinion about the NSA.  The NIS wasn't very favorable either, for that matter.  They definitely made a statement about the issues about privacy in the digital age, as well as corruption based on the power of having the sort of information that would be stored in such a remarkable surveillance satellite.

So it's going to put you through all the emotions.  I described it to my brother as "a tear jerker, but funny" and that is true.  The robot is so sassy, and Lee Sung Min is great and a little crazy.  Ryu Jun Yeol's bit part was funny.  That wig, haha.  Then all the crying parts.  It's good.  But really, it is a silly concept, so it could have been so bad so easily, but it wasn't.  It was a funny tear jerker and it was good.

239. Legend of the Blue Sea 푸른 바다의 전설 (2016) Korean

Jun Ji Hyun, Lee Min Ho, Sung Dong Il, Lee Hee Joon, Shin Won Ho

Drama Rating: 6/10     Neck Score: A

Why did I start this one?  Not for Lee Min Ho (obviously).  I do like Jun Ji Hyun, but not for her either.  It was because of Jo Jung Suk's cameo.  Also, Sung Dong Il was the bad guy.  Because of those two alone, I endured the rest of this.  Actually, it was much better than I thought it was going to be.  I actually really loved it up until the last half of it.  I liked the premise with fate repeating itself and flashing back and forth from their past lives to their current lives, etc.  So when the show was about the mermaid, I loved it.  When Sung Dong Il was the main bad guy, I loved it.  He is just an amazing actor who could take a psychopath and make him sympathetic.  Then the makjang took over with the evil mom and "hyung" (who totally looked younger than Lee Min Ho) and I actually forgot that she was a mermaid.  Now if the whole thing were about that makjang and not about the mermaid, I would have been fine with it, I like good (haha, I mean bad) makjang.  But when makjang takes over a different genre, then it becomes a problem.  I really forgot she was a mermaid (it wasn't important any more at that part) and I forgot he was a conman.  I always struggle with Lee Min Ho the most when he's being sad and serious (or mopey).  He is fine acting like a conman, and they were an adorable couple, but every time he cried I am not moved.  I just can't believe it.  He's not a good crier I guess.  I would be like "oh no, Lee Min Ho is sad now" and proceed to check the latest Twitter updates.  They wrapped up all the makjang really fast, as they realized that it was out of place, so our villain didn't even get the ending he deserved.  He was too cool to be wrapped up in that sloppy manner.  Sad day.  The last episode was really boring and drawn out.  Whatever.  So by the end of it I wasn't even paying attention that much and was playing Go Stop while watching.  So, while it probably started out a 7 or an 8, by the end it was probably a 5 or a 6.  Jo Jung Suk was a 10.  He outshone everyone in the scenes he was in.  I was like "who is that squid next to him?" when he was interacting with Lee Min Ho.  He was just too charismatic.  Overall everyone was great and the show was good, it just had the sloppy writing in the second half curse, like most dramas do.  I did wish that Tae Ho (aka my Shin Boo) had more screen time.  He makes good faces.