milofergusemily Reviews

It's OK Not to Be OK (2022)

superb

[10/10 · 3 September 2023]

T's OK not to be OK is an amazing drama, my words will not be able to do it justice, but it's so amazing I would like to try. The story is about three characters who have lost the courage to find happiness. It is about how many we find that courage and since this isso intimate to all humans.the plot conuntinually probes intimate territory, and it is well done in this way. The three characters have all had a cencounters with monstrousness. In the external world, and then in them selves. Thi aspect of the storytelling is remarkable and a beauriful study. There are scary and horrific moments, and there are plenty of tender moments overall the story. I felt healed by the tale. I am deeply grateful to the people who constructed the story, it is beautifully done. The actors are amazing the photography following intimate moments of relational struggle is also amazing. The setting of the story in the mental health institute really works. The taleis very lovable by the en, but the start is a difficult one as we realize who we have to travel with in order to engage the tail. One character in particular is very difficult to love. I commend dragon studios for supporting this kind of storytelling so thoroughly, I appreciate all the nuances that were tended to, including including in the music and the comedic deer.

Her Private Life (2019)

such well toldUPLIFTING story A CLASSIC

[10/10 · 27 August 2023]

Dukmi knows how to love qnd it is lovely to watch her love.her 'LION" THE ENTWINED SECONDARY STORIES ARE WONDERFUL. I LOVE DIRECTORE OM CHARACTER AND THE OTHR MOTHERS IN THE STORY. I HVR NOT TIRED OF THIS THOUGH I HAVE WATCHED 4 TIME. THE CHARACTERS ARE BAEUTIFUL TO WATCH.

Dukmi knows how to love qnd it is lovely to watch her love.her 'LION" THE ENTWINED SECONDARY STORIES ARE WONDERFUL. I LOVE DIRECTORE OM CHARACTER AND THE OTHR MOTHERS IN THE STORY. I HVR NOT TIRED OF THIS THOUGH I HAVE WATCHED 4 TIME. THE CHARACTERS ARE BAEUTIFUL TO WATCH.

Dukmi knows how to love qnd it is lovely to watch her love.her 'LION" THE ENTWINED SECONDARY STORIES ARE WONDERFUL. I LOVE DIRECTORE OM CHARACTER AND THE OTHR MOTHERS IN THE STORY. I HVR NOT TIRED OF THIS THOUGH I HAVE WATCHED 4 TIME. THE CHARACTERS ARE BAEUTIFUL TO WATCH.

Something in the Rain (2018)

of many kdrmas the most difficult mom qnd music

[7/10 · 12 August 2023]

The romance is sweet, but the roadblocks are truly difficult to digest. The ending, lingers on noxious parents. They are hard to spend time with. The secondary story about sexism in the work place is very good. The objecting mother is very hard to take- she is so destructive and in that way possibly well played. Ocasionally, the music is well chosen, but rarely is this true. Stand by your man stands out as a choice that must be endured rather than savoured he romance is sweet, but the roadblocks are truly difficult to digest. The seondary story about sexism in the work place is very good. The objecting mother is very hard to take- she is so destructive and in that way possibly well played. Ocasionally, the music is well chosen, but rarely is this true. Stand by your man stands out as a choice that must be endured rather than savoured.

Hi Bye, Mama! (2020)

grief work joywork lifework

[10/10 · 27 May 2023]

Watch this show when the time is right. It is in the end one of the best cleansing shows I have watched in a while. Laughter, intriguing plot turns, and yes considerable tears and heart work. It had a very good effect on me and my soul, and really helped me reconcile some of the difficult deaths in my life. I applaud all who brought it into being, and nourished it.

The casting was extremely well done. I am American and I really think Korean actors beat out US actors by a long shot. The leading man wLee Kyu-hyung was profoundly good. He had some really difficult edges to walk in portraying his character but wow! I am a real fan of Park Soo-young - all of the mother's she has played across her career have left their mark on me, but this one was deeply satisfying to experience. Seo Woo-jin was so well directed and was extremely winning. I loved every scene she was in. Shin Dong-mi as the best friend was so enjoyable. Yang Kyung-won from Crash Landing into You was a pleasure to watch in this very different role as a mean exorcist. The camaradie of ghosts took a while to get used to but then I loved them by the end and it was hard to see them go. Other favorite characters were the dad, the medium (shaman) and the husband of the best friend, and of course the doctor who was caught in the terrible time with. Cho Gang-hwa and the loving sister.

That brings us to the luminous Cha Yu-ri[ played.by Kim Tae-hee - her performance made the whole thing believable and it was a plot that was stretched at points, She was wonderful as she welcome the second wife Oh Min-jung who also had a hard job but did it wonderfully - the character was wonderfully played by. Go Bo-gyeol. Lee Kyu-hyung again as the lead male character was a pleasure to experience in every scene the chemistry between him and Cha Yu-ri was the anchor, pleasure and pain wrenching heart of the series.

I am in awe of this drama which traveled the difficult subject of death, with laughter, insight and hope. Very impressive. Thanks so much to all who made it.

Lost Song (2018)

Can not get past the objectification

[2/10 · 20 May 2023]

Breastage is a character in this show. I have tried to watch it more than once and I can not get past this objectification of the female characters.

The idea of the songs, the songstress and the means in which violence and power literally flattens characters is really interesting - but gets stuck on this fault line.

I mean if the male characters were all requred to be walking around with really huge penises, and these were constantly featured as key to their power their costume and stuck in our faces when ever we see them - there might be some equity in the storyline.

I am using this as a means to find some way of communicating how confusing this ' breastage' issue is to a story about feminine power. There is something off in the story message as a result of this issue.

Hello, Me! (2021)

the 37 year old and the 17 year old are too different looking for the illusion that they are the same person to work

[3/10 · 20 May 2023]

This drama has some really wonderful elements and could work. But it is just to hard to merge the time travel characters as one person. Because that is not believable then it strains all the other pieces of the drama.

It is not just a matter of looks. The 17 year old had mastered fame and self love. The way the father dies does not succeed in explaining the difference between the 17 year old and the 37 year old.in these areas. The gap is just too wide and this leaves a lot of work for the viewer.

I think both the older and younger heroine are good but in the end, there is a casting issue as they do not have the same resonance or energy, they do not read as unified enough to make the movie's main gimmick work. This gimmick was a long shot with humans. - They should try a anime version. That might work.

The Good Bad Mother (2023– )

good actors, problematic direction and some other force affecting this drama - not for good

[3/10 · 18 May 2023]

There are very worthy and experienced actors in this series who could probably tell you pretty quickly how this over ambitious storytelling is being messed with. There appears to an outer almost centrifugal force tearing at the telling, pushing it close to being beyond the bounds of human comprehension. Is it a low film budget (highly likely). Is it a steering committee of writer - directors (american TV style) working unorganically to interfere with forced plot device suggestions and story turns. What ever it is - something is wrong and it feels sad because pieces of this story seem very worthy.

Because This Is My First Life (2017)

Extremely cute cat. Going at their own pace these two bypass the pressures of the world around them and commit to being themselves

[10/10 · 22 April 2023]

Going at their own pace these two bypass the pressures of the world around them and commit to being themselves and find each other.

The movie commits to the heroine's pace and in this way succeeds. This is somehow a true telling, yet resists so many anachronisms that make other love tales- it is a bit surprising that it actually works. There is something restorative about the story which really honors the challenges of women (and men) in a modern social world that hyperventilates often on male, female and other traditional roles around work. And what is important.

These characters honor their own pace and autonomic nervous system. Thus it is a wonderfully calming journey. I just enjoyed it and I really enjoyed the cat. It could have been boring but instead it kind of worked on my body chemistry in a way that felt really nice. It is well cast, has very fun moments, and is lovely. The two other couples were also brilliant. The parents were well cast. Thank you to all involved. The references to the movie the Graduate were an interesting twist.

Transatlantic (2023)

this history needs to be told, but somehow the 2020's are too present in the story telling

[6/10 · 11 April 2023]

I am glad to finally see the tale told of the sad loss of the brilliant Walter Benjamin as WWII escalated, but yet somehow the story of his brilliance and then the brilliance of all the other famous artists in the tale, does not do them justice. These figures are lost to some other intent in the construction of this story...this history needs to be told, but somehow this telling is missing authenticity, it sacrifices this for the sake of finding 2020 in 1940.

It is never the less help ful to see the enactments, the tale of these brave efforts does need to be told, especially of the almost misses, the ways in which the US came too close to not helping the struggle.

Start-Up (2020)

even better the second time around

[10/10 · 15 March 2023]

I have many favorite moments in this drama, but the one that pierces me the most, is when the father protests the speed of innovation- not innovation itself. I feel we need that right now.

I like this drama even more the second watch. I feel like things that seemed rough around the edges seem make sense to me this time. I appreciate Nam Do San character as an intimate study of the interior costs of a world built around innovation. I appreciate all the characters and their struggles. But to me his tears were very meaningful.

I am increasingly convinced that Dragon Studio and TVN have brought Shakespeare to life in the mastery they often show in televisual form. I feel this is best watched from this angle. It does not do well to expect it to be a typical (boring) American style narrative television drama. It is much more like Much Ado about Nothing, or a play along these lines. Yet it is brought together by so many directorial choices.

This series is so well done from music, to graphics, to the palette of set, graphics and landscape, that is then manifest in costume -a loving story that is lovingly told. There are comedic teams (the.developers), the dueling Do sams, the parents- so many moments that are just a pleasure to experience.

I enjoyed the beauty of the family love that is at the core of Bae Suzy's storyline . The grandmother - wow, what a wonderful character and actress (and in such contrast to the remarkable awful (but extremely well played villain.

I so appreciated the use of the start up- the language of this as metaphor for the ways the world can become too hard. It was nice to have this softer story told amidst all the hard edges of capitalism and technology. This was very well cast, very well acted, lovingly crafted. I loved how all the faces in the story are enjoyed through photography, angles and framing, Thanks to all who made this series wonderful and nourishing. I personally though all the main characters were well chosen in casting and I enjoyed them.

Moment at Eighteen (2019)

A worthy study of human appearances versus humane being. Needed and well told once accepted in its offering

[8/10 · 3 March 2023]

This study of community centers on two characters who are not who they seem to be. It is a moving examination of the boy who has clear hold of the title "good" and the newcomer who is quickly able to be labeled "bad." The richness of the story evolves as the bully slowly but surely appears and finally at the end of the story lets go of bullying as a life style. The tale is told with a decisive gentleness that takes a while to warm up to but really is the genius of the telling. Like heaven's garden we end up starting with an apparently modern, distracted and destructive community that is slowly and surely delivered into something better. All of the players did an amazing job in their respective roles but I must especially commend Shin Seung-ho. For his moving commitment to the broken pride and suffering intrensic to his roll as he endures abuse at home while navigating the inhuman expectations of social ordering that has gone astray. There is more than one broken person in the story, and more than one character that is healing to watch. I ended up very impressed by this story.

Crash Course in Romance (2023)

Important coverage of an essential issue makes up for any imperfections

[8/10 · 26 February 2023]

This series has ripened into two worthy examinations. The first being the fire like role of gossip and inuendo and it capacities for social damage, and the second searingly important role of academic pressure for young adult learners. What high school students navigate in todays world of academic admissions, the grueling realities of rank in social ordering connected. It has really gotten out of control and proportion. This series set in Korea, examines something happening world wide. The rest of the series provides the cushion for this examination to happen and land, in a loving family order that draws the mathlete star into their warm orbit, and they act as the cushion for the series hard edges of cold sky scrapers and other cold realities. The main characters are not perfect but in the end something works.

Another Miss Oh (2016)

unexpectedly funny and moving

[10/10 · 26 February 2023]

BRILIANT. Good to watch when you have been really hurt. This is a surprise. Often. There are at least 3 zany characters. They are all really good but Ms. Oh's boss is beyond good in her role. Her outfits, her glasses, her troubles and her reactions, all surprising in a good way.

The study of how the collapse of a relationship can trigger the surfacing of another trauma needing resolution, turns into a deep study oF ,HOW school affected the self image, of the women named Oh-IT is A SURPRISINGLY worthySTUDY. The families involved are so enjoyable to watch..

The earnest main character whose authenticity continually gets her into trouble is an amazing creature. I loved the male character's work with sound and the surprising story of his dad AND VISIONS. MANY FUNNY MOMMENTS, LOTA OF LAUGHS. MUsiIC IS G00D.

This is a great series:

Live Up to Your Name (2017)

So much fun. Action, comedy, hospitals, two time periods dueling physicians! What more could you want

[10/10 · 23 February 2023]

I was really taken with this drama which moves between male and female characters, two time periods, two kinds of health practices, two hospitals, two doctors, two elders, and between low and high class.

The two main characters are well cast and each inhabits their role and world and eventual affection for one another so winningly. The humor in this show, is so much fun and sometimes very unexpected. I am a very big fan of the male lead. It is very shocking to see him emerge from his Joson persona into modern version of himself.....I feel the shearing of his locks - really helped me understand something about the price of modern masculinity.

I like how they used music in the show,. I liked how much of the story presented little mysteries of each character often flaws, that were later the opportunity to experience their suffering. I liked how each medicine was honored. I enjoyed how each character was bewildered as they found themselves out of sync with their own time and self.

The costumes and contrasts between past and present korea were also very enjoyable.

The series is a favorite. I return to watch and i enjoy it each time. When I re-watch it, I am struck with how unlikely the storyline is to succeed, and yet the telling is so fun, involving and winning. It is actually very impressive how they make it work. I mention the music again because it is part of this - how are they able to move from almost cheese to exquisite violin. I have just re-watched the core scene where Dr. Heo Im is forced to watch his patient being beaten, the music, the silence - the terrible intimacy of that moment and its pain really seared itself into my dreams. It is an excellently told story and I am grateful to all the directors and actors and technicians who made it.

Mr. Queen (2020–2021)

Shakespear would love this!

[10/10 · 23 February 2023]

How can I do this series justice? I chose it because I loved Live Up to Your Name which also featured Yoo Min-kyu, and the plot twist of looping between time periods seemed similar. There was also so many actors from another favorite "Crash Landing into You."

I was riveted to this show. Belly laughs, Tears. Disbelief, surprise - the music made it into my dreams, the hutz pah of the main character really me think, I finally thought that she/he was very inspiring.

Every single actor was great. The means in which small scenes stole the show. The role of cooking in the show. The never ending visual pleasure of the costumes, architecture, countryside, the choreography, the physical comedy, the class struggle, the human empathy, the government rituals which avoided truth, the scheming and then there are the redeemed players and the tragedy and comedy of love. So much fun.was had. A pleasure to watch all players. Thanks to all who made this series happen.

The Dragon Prince (2018– )

10 starts for Dragon Prince Season1-3, Season 4 what happened?

[9/10 · 23 February 2023]

The firstthree seasons of this series have it all, adventure, humor, pathos. There is something about the characters as drawn and voiced that really works. I love that the show is diversity friendly. I enjoyed the critique of human greed and constant need for a kind of techno power. I felt the plot line was enjoyable and restorative. I re-watched the series more than once. Was and am an eager fan.

It seems that something that was natural and easy, became over thought in season 4. I found season 4 very hard to watch. Something that was really working in season 1-3, was turned off in season 4. It is a shame. Season 4 (mystery of avvaros) took over the name of the series in many renditions. I think that is a shame also.

The Law According to Lidia Poët (2023– )

If you can accept a stretched historical and factual storyline, it is enjoyable

[7/10 · 15 February 2023]

The main character is destitute but wears the most visually intoxicating Italian influenced outfits, she is sexually active but not worried about pregnancy, in pre-birth control Italy. The opportunity to expose 'breastage' is always taken, adding mixed aura to a supposed interest in women's rights....and there are other liberties taken: Accept these items and it is a fun series. The aesthetics of 19th century Italy are very pleasurable part of the show.

The main character is determined for sure, and caged in the categories which caged women of the time - there is a way in which uncaged women (prostitutes and other) are rather immediately protrayed as good and the women who follow the categories of the time are presented as bad, that seems simplistic. This adds a comic book feel to the series: Again once accepted, the series remains enjoyable. Comic book is an very viable art form so this is not necessarily bad.

The objectification of women, despite the series clear commitment to their liberty, seems confusing. But of course as a gratuitous pleasure device it works- as we are of course very used to this device culturally.

I feel the show however does have its most merit as it penetrates into the continued door closing performed by dominant cultural mechanisms, which forces the heroine's side navigations - the intricate undercover journey to address issues with some effect and integrity. That feels accurate to my experience with dominant culture as it manifest with its continued, even comical support of mechanisms for sidelining needed offerings. This study of cultural sidelining, seems like, the most worthy and authentic exploration of the show.

The Chair (2021)

brilliant but ageist

[7/10 · 27 January 2023]

For too long university world on screen has not matched the reality. The complex politics of this drama are unbelievable but actually do match much of university world. Sandra Oh is delightful and accurate- well cast in her role as chair.

I debated about the ageism the first time I watched it. It is true that retirement requirements were rescinded in the early 2000's and thus have kept professors in posts that younger scholars might have won, This was not happening, in 80's and 90's- older scholars did retire. But it is also true that university professors were not/are not always well paid - so the need to work into what might normally be retirement is there -and real. The drama is not quite fair here.

As well the portrayal of aged scholars as out of it is inaccurate - many of them are trailblazers still....so that is unfair.

The ageism seems really visible on the second watching. I could not get past it the second time round.

The other scenario's around diversity and equity seem unfortunately accurate.

The Best of Me (2014)

It is not the actors' fault.

[2/10 · 10 December 2022]

These are good actors.

The decision to cast past characters who look nothing like present characters and not to do anything to match them through costume and make -up, was a decision to ruin the movie. Whoever allowed that - allowed the film to be compromised. Though a light effort was made for female characters, it was not enough. Shame on -the director especially- for doing this to other wise vital and worthy actors.

Any one watching an NS movie is probably looking for his narrative style. The other items about plot and overused gestures would probably continue to be issues - but might have been survivable - without the choice made about past and present characters.

It is hard to understand what happened here. Why did the director decide to ruin this movie through these obvious errors?

Oni: Thunder God's Tale (2022)

This is a primal story.

[10/10 · 23 October 2022]

This is a primal story. Though children will get it and enjoy it - it is also a tale for all. The story gives truth and is told well.

The access points of the story are Japanese mythic characters, nature, and the task of childhood learning about one's role in the world. The need for children to come into their own gifts seems to be better addressed in this setting. It is taken seriously and yet is situated amidst the delight of Japanese aesthetics - weaving play, wonder, movement, surprise, natural delight and suspense.

The revelational parts of the story are many and led me to really examine my species. Is humanity really worth it? I think the answers offered in the story- though simple, within its dynamics really do take.

I appreciated the tender work the story made on my own wrestling match with "us-them" dynamics. The story though Japanese in its main form, is itself a testimony to diversity - including its international support team.

This is a potent story for me. Thank you for telling it. I thank and honor the tellers of this story- all of them.