Korean Drama Review: Dream High 2

If you are able to watch Dream High 1, then you must be familiar with Kirin High School of Art – the school that aims to produce the top Korean idols. This is where everything happened.

Let me introduce you to the characters which, I considered, played a big roll.

Rian played by Park Ji-Yeon

For me, I think she’s the center of the story. She’s pretty and hard working. On the outside, she looks fierce plus the heavy eye make-up, but if you’ve get to know her, she’s playful and gentle. She loves her mother so much even though they always have quarrels. Even though she’s part of the popular girl group HerShee, she’s like a normal girl when in love. She gets jealous and insecurities. But when she cares, she really cares. Her dream is to become an A-Rated actress. However, due to lack of acting skills, she’s being ranked as B. What to do Rian?

Shin Hae Sung played by Kang So-Ra

She’s called the ugly duckling. Rian even said, she’s the epitome of plainness. Yes, she’s the total opposite of Rian. She barely even have make ups. She dressed simply. She’s just a normal student on Kirin Art School plus her intellectual skills. But remember, Kirin Arts School is not merely relying on academics, you should have talent too. Unfortunately, she was embarrassed many times for her unpleasant voice and she doesn’t even dance well. Poor Hae Sung! But even though she lacks skills, she still works hard and tries hard to do things the best way she can. Whenever she’s stressed, she solves math problems. Like seriously? She’s a bit weirdo. Her dream is to become a singer. But what will you do when the song doesn’t want you Shin Hae Sung?

JB played by JB

He’s a cutie. Oh well, I think his role is not so challenging for him because he acts very natural. He has a good, rhythm and blues voice. He dances well. He’s like a Neyo-Usher type. He’s stubborn. He does things his way. He seems to be cold at times but his weakness is girl’s tears. Bwahahaha! (Evil laugh) Isn’t it cute? He’s part of Eden – a boy duo. His dream is to become Korea’s superstar. When he likes a thing, he’ll treasure it so much. He’ll treat it as part of his life, maybe as his life. But nothing lasts forever, when the things you cherish the most were taken away from you, how are you going to let it go JB?

Jin Yoo Jin played by Jinwoon

Rock spirit! That’s his favourite line. Yes, he’s a lover of music – specifically rock music. He turned his back from his parents due to an unfavourable childhood memories. He was once a child star but he considered it as part of his history and doesn’t want to reoccur. He doesn’t have any plan to be famous, not at all; he just wants to play his kind of music. But what if the only way to compete for your special someone’s heart is to be a Super Idol, will you grab it or continue to live by your principle, Yoo Jin?

Si Woo played by Park Seo-Joon

OMG! I like him. Seriously, I find him cute and hot? Lol! That’s the reason why I think he’s a ladies’ man here. Yah, he’s a player. He takes life so easy but he is sweet. I think that what makes players cool. They might treat everyone special but doesn’t it feel good when someone makes you feel special? Uhm, yes. Lol! Oh Si Woo, you can’t please anyone. What will you do when someone you consider incompetent beats you on the heart of someone you truly like?

Nana played by Hyorin

She’s the singer of HerShee and we can’t throw an argument on that. Oh God! She has a powerful voice. Aside from that, she’s very pure at heart. She doesn’t have any greed. For her, what matters is her voice and singing has been her life. But Nana, what will happen to you if one day you woke up and you can’t sing anymore?

Director’s Daughter Lee Seul played by Jung Yeon-Joo

She’s cold. At first look, she looks like a person who’s born out of sadness. One question she asked was, “What if the person that you really like keeps doing things that you hate?” and I myself can’t help but think of the answer. She’s rebellious toward her father but she adores him so much.

Unforgettable Moments

1.       Kim Soo Hyun’s cameo role which reminds me of Dream High 1. Yes, he was Song Sam Dong – the world renowned singer.

2.       IU’s cameo role which reminds me of Dream High again and how cute Kim Pil Suk and Jason’s love story was.

3.       Suzy Bae’s cameo role which reminds me of the brattish-but-kind-hearted Go Hye Mi. She’s pretty, really pretty.

4.       JB and Hae Sung on church. This is one of the sweetest scenes I watched. Can you imagine when your super-duper crush fell asleep on your lap? Not only that, when you fell asleep on your super-duper crush’s shoulder? Then when you woke up, he was singing a song for you? Oh my! I can’t imagine how I would feel. Thinking about it gives me chills! Lol! Happy chills, though.

5.       Director’s daughter performing on stage and gave her father a balloon. Okay, so this scene made me cry. I think I’m just weak on family tie scenarios. I had witnessed how cold-hearted she became because of her hatred to her father but when she went near her father and handed him the balloon during the performance, it moved me. *tears*

Overall Verdict

Story – Very Good

Artists – Very Good

OST - Excellent

Korean Movie Review: The Flu

Casts: 

Jang Hyuk as Kang

Ji-Koo Soo-Ae as Kim In-Hae

Cha In Pyo as South Korea President 

Verdict: 

This film depicts the outbreak of bird flu on Bundang – a suburban in South Korea not far from Seoul. It came from a cargo shipped from Hong Kong containing several illegal immigrants of which one was infected by bird flu. When the cargo arrived in Korea, all the people inside were dead except for one – Moon Sai, a Filipino. The mob’s younger brother who opened the cargo was the first carrier of the virus. The virus spreads fast and should be stopped as soon as possible before it reaches other cities in South Korea. At first, the symptom of the bird flu is just like an ordinary flu but it has no cure. The person infected will cough until it spits out blood and there will be red marks all over the skin until he/she gave his/her last breathe. The plague brought ruckus all over the place. The government and medical experts work together to stop the outburst of the horrible disease. 

In my own point of view, these are the major characters that represent the diverse people of the society. 

Kang-Ji Koo is part of the rescuer team and is very passionate towards his duty. Even if the situation is horrendous, like flying bullets everywhere, he still chose to help and rescue his fellows. He is a person who would not think twice to sacrifice even his own life for the sake of others. Let’s hope and be thankful for people that live this way. 

Kim In Hae is a doctor by profession and a single mother. As a single parent, we all know how hard it is to raise a child and at the same time, how precious the child is for her. I think there’s no mom in this world who would want to suffer her child. Unfortunately, her only daughter Kim In Rae was infected by the bird flu. Her only hope is to produce an antibodies from the survivor of the cargo that brought the virus in South Korea. When the survivor was caught, tests were done immediately to check if he can really produce the antibodies. However, time is playful; Kim In Rae’s condition is getting worse, she’s dying. Dr. In Hae didn’t wait for the result of the test even if it means breaking the rule set by the head doctor. She got the serum and injected it to In Rae. As a mother, you would risk everything for the sake of your child. In Rae recovered from the flu and has become the source of antibodies for the thousands of people infected. By the way, the only survivor was killed by the mob as a revenge for killing the mob’s younger brother. 

President has the hardest role. As the president of a country, you should always consider the situation of the people. President faced a lot of weighing pro’s and con’s. The first plan was to isolate the place and gather all the people in one place. The infected and the uninfected will be separated. Some of the uninfected people are complaining as to why they need to stay on the camp when in fact they are not infected. To stop the epidemic virus, there was an inhumane order made – burn the infected people. This was done so as the virus will only be isolated on the area. Even if there are decisions that break his heart, he has to make a choice. He must. That is his sole responsibility. 

The film is very realistic. The personalities of the characters are natural. This is one of the best films I had watched so far. Thumbs up for this!

Movie Trailer (English Subtitle):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSU2v9bMHOs

The Reason Behind My Film Reviews

Hi everyone! Let me introduce this part of my blog and share a brief history of how this started. 

I am a lover of Asian movies – Japanese, Thai and Korean. I most love Korean movies and series. So yes, I am a fan of Hallyu. It all started when I watched Lee Min Ho’s City Hunter. Come on, it’s Lee Min Ho! Like, who’ll not fall for him? So, after being captured by Min Ho as Johnny, I watched all his other series. I even read reviews and news about him. Then suddenly, I got interested to watch other series as well. I even look for “Top Korean Drama Series” things online. I don’t know, but for me, Koreans are so cute. I mean, their lifestyle and Seoul are wonderful. I really want to visit Seoul someday and go to those cafes I often see on the series I watched. Sounds funny huh? But really, I’m being genuine here.

Aside from being a fan of drama series, I am also a lover of not-a-happy-ending movie. Hahahah! No, I’m not bitter! I just find it moving and more impactful. I also love watching horror movies and on that note, who’s the best? Isn’t it Asian Horror Movies? Exactly! So I enjoyed watching tear-jerkers and heart-thumping movies. Am I weird? No, I’m just being me.

So one day, I realized to write a review with every series and movie I watched. This is not to brag how many movies I already watched, but it’s a way for me as well to remember the story behind those movies. I am not so good on long-term memory. Hahaha!

I hope you’ll enjoy reading my reviews and keep on supporting the film industry. Fighting!