Reviews

As a side note, the two main stars of this drama are not correctly displayed in the cast information. It stars Ha Ji Won and Lee Jin wook, who are shown far down in the cast list.

While this drama is predictable and slow, it's a good one for Ha Ji Won fans because her character in this drama is probably the closest of any to her real personality. In great dramas like Empress Ki or Secret Garden, she does a superb job playing impressive, tough women. In this drama, she's not only beautiful, but her personality sparkles and she is super cute. If you want a great drama, look elsewhere, but if you want to spend time with a fictional version of the real Ha Ji Won, this is a way to do it. This drama is just a vehicle for her to shine on the screen.

If you don't want to watch a love story, then don't watch this drama, because it's a pure example of the genre. It's about two people who meet as young teenagers, then are separated. The guy spends the next 20 years looking for his lost love. The lead characters are played by 3 different actors/actresses in 3 time periods ten years apart.

The adult actress is Kim Sa Rang, who was Miss Korea in 2000, and is still a beauty.. It's a really sweet story, one that hooked me on k-drama, and if you like this genre, you should like the series. Reviews on other sites were much more positive than the ones on this site.

This is the story of how a greedy and shallow woman is transformed by love. In order to appreciate this movie, you have to get past the first part, where actress Shu Qi plays a very unlikable character, who uses her policeman friend to clean up her messes with no regard for his feelings. If you can persevere through that, she eventually realizes that her former life is worthless, and that he is the only one worth caring about. Then the film becomes a beautiful love story. Shu Qi does a great acting job in this movie. Watch for the scene where she is drunk walking down an alley. It's a long scene done as a single shot. If you're going to watch this movie, watch it until the end. It's worth it.

There are lots of good kdramas, but only perhaps a dozen or so which really stand out as better than the rest. While this one doesn't get that much credit in many lists of top kdramas, I think it is in that top dozen. It's got plenty of intrigue and suspense, lots of medical operating room gore, money driven power plays, and a very nice romantic story anchored by the beautiful Kim Tae Hee. This is a drama well worth watching.

I've watched over a hundred kdramas, and this is in my top 5. The story is about the relationship between a young piano prodigy and his mentor, and the piano playing is the best of any cinematic portrayal I know of. Their relationship is based on a shared love for music and his fascination with his very sophisticated mentor. She is in a loveless marriage, and gradually succumbs to his emotional directness and honesty. Those who are put off by the idea of a younger man/older woman relationship won't like this series for that reason, but anyone open to an unusual relationship should love the combination of sophisticated realism, romance, and great music.

I've watched over a hundred kdramas, and this is in my top 5. It's a little complicated at times going back and forth between events today and most of the same characters 20 years ago, but it hangs together, has great action scenes and a very nice romance. Also a great soundtrack. Totally recommended.

There are lots of kdramas with similar plots out there, but this one is almost unique. It's about the love of a woman for a child not her own, who is willing to put her life on the line to save the child, who is in mortal danger from her own mother. It's a heartbreaking, yet fulfilling story with great acting by Lee Bo Young and the child actor. It puts anything Hollywood does to shame, and is well worth watching.

I've watched over a hundred k-dramas and this is my number one. It has everything - it's a love story, it's a sci-fi, it's a murder mystery, it's a comedy - and everything is done to perfection. Jun Ji Hyun is a great comedic actress, who portrays a shallow, ditzy mega star who gradually becomes a different person as she falls in love with her mysterious neighbor.

The production values, wardrobes, cinematography, sets and soundtrack are all top notch. The characters' apartments are to die for, and Jun Ji Hyun's signature lipstick started a worldwide run on the brand. Apparently based on the comments, this drama doesn't hit everyone the same way, but for me, this one has it all.

Actress Ha Ji Won is amazing as a super tough, smart, and beautiful woman who fights her way from slavery to the pinnacle of power in China. One by one, she demolishes powerful enemies using strategy rather than brute force, until there is no opponent left alive. Both the King of Korea, and the Emperor of China fall madly in love with her, and compete to protect her and advance her cause. Ha Ji Won delivers a tour de force performance. I can't think of another role in cinema featuring such a powerful female character. Loosely based on a true story, this is k-drama at its best.

Beryl Markham was one of the most interesting women of the early 20th century, and deserves a better memorialisation than she has received so far. This Stephanie Powers mini-series was an effort made in the 1980s which is limited by the poor resolution by today's standards in the YouTube version. It was originally shot on 35 mm film, so should receive an HD transfer if it hasn't had one already somewhere. Ideally, her story would be a great subject for an updated treatment, as she was a remarkable woman - way ahead of her time.