I Remember You 너를 기억해 / Hello, Monster
★★★★
The 2015 crime/mystery Korean drama starring Seo In-Guk as Lee Hyeon, Jang Na-Ra as Cha Ji-An, Park Bo-Gum as Lee Min, and Choi Won-Young as Lee Joon-Young.
Get ready or shivers and gasps of alarm! "I Remember You," or "Hello Monster," definitely brings both to the table.
A brief synopsis. As a ten year old, the boy Lee Hyeon lost his family, consisting of his father and younger brother Min, and his memories after a run in with the mysterious (and apparently murderous) convict Lee Joon-Young. As an adult, he returns to Korea to investigate the incident after another case triggers a memory. He meets Detective Cha Ji-An, who evidently has known him for much longer than he has known her, and they commit to finding both Lee Hyeon's brother Lee Min and the culprit Lee Joon-Young.
The greatest Korean dramas tend to explore a moral issue or dilemma of some sort. The question this drama presented was very psychological: What makes a serial killer's mentality? How does a person get to that point? In the beginning of the drama when we first meet Lee Joon-Young (cameo played by EXO's D.O.), it is suggested that what happens in a person's early development will shape the course of his or her life as an adult. However, by the end we wonder if it can be more regarded as a choice, that is- if we can choose our own course and behavior. It's an interesting thought, isn't it? I was fascinated by the deep questions in this drama
I loved ALL of the characters in this drama. They were all so deep and each one played a part for the story to flow as smoothly as it did. The main character list was impressive alone, but the secondary characters definitely contributed what the main characters sometimes could not, such as humor or a neutral ground.
Lee Hyeon and Cha Ji-An were predictable. Still loved them, but they were predictable. The real interest and surprise came from Lee Min and Lee Joon-Young. After all, the story is really about finding them and fixing the problem of the incident that deprived Lee Hyeon of his family. But what if they didn't need finding? Or what if the problem couldn't be fixed? Lee Min and Lee Joon-Young's characters ran the story. They started it and they ended it. That's likely what made the ending so confusing for me!
This drama seemed to parallel quite a bit with SBS's 2014 "You're All Surrounded." They are similar in that there is one large case to solve throughout the series, but it cannot be resolved until the end, so smaller cases are resolved instead until there is enough information to solve that primary case. There also wasn't much of a romance between the male and female lead in either, although it's evidently implied (aka, just not much skinship or sweet-talk). When I found "I Remember You," it was listed under a "Romance" category, and this was a little misleading. The story is about the mystery, not the relationship.
Interestingly enough, I'd suggest that the female leads from both "You're All Surrounded" and "I Remember You" are similar because they have the same type of strength to their character: justice. Cha Ji-An lives off of her craving for justice. Right and wrong are clearly outlined for her. She's a complement to Lee Hyeon's character, whose role seems to be like a scale, weighing options whether they be influences for good or bad and using that to make a decision.
The ending. Oh my goodness, the ending. This is probably one of the few endings I have ever seen for a Korean drama that did not contain a resolution for the antagonist or the problem spurring on the story. As an audience, we naturally want to see the protagonists catch the bad guys and live happily ever after or something like that in order for the story to come to an end. If that doesn't happen, then it's usually the type of ending where the antagonist or problem is taken care of, but at such a large cost that "happily ever after" doesn't have a chance. This ending had neither! I'm not sure whether to be upset or to be happy and grateful that the characters are alive at all. And ending like this is very irregular, because in American cinema it's usually a suggestion to a sequel. But Korean dramas don't do sequels (there may be few, if any, exceptions that I haven't heard of)! So I'm torn in my interpretation of this one's ending.
I really enjoyed watching "I Remember You." I could't put it down! I don't know that I would label it a personal favorite, but it was very thought-provoking and exciting. It gave me chills and shivers when things got creepy (well, it is a drama about serial killers), but I felt like I could breath again after each case they solved. That's how it kept me watching with eager eyes! I'd recommend "I Remember You" to anyone waiting for a thrilling and exciting ride!
★★★★
The 2015 crime/mystery Korean drama starring Seo In-Guk as Lee Hyeon, Jang Na-Ra as Cha Ji-An, Park Bo-Gum as Lee Min, and Choi Won-Young as Lee Joon-Young.
Get ready or shivers and gasps of alarm! "I Remember You," or "Hello Monster," definitely brings both to the table.
A brief synopsis. As a ten year old, the boy Lee Hyeon lost his family, consisting of his father and younger brother Min, and his memories after a run in with the mysterious (and apparently murderous) convict Lee Joon-Young. As an adult, he returns to Korea to investigate the incident after another case triggers a memory. He meets Detective Cha Ji-An, who evidently has known him for much longer than he has known her, and they commit to finding both Lee Hyeon's brother Lee Min and the culprit Lee Joon-Young.
The greatest Korean dramas tend to explore a moral issue or dilemma of some sort. The question this drama presented was very psychological: What makes a serial killer's mentality? How does a person get to that point? In the beginning of the drama when we first meet Lee Joon-Young (cameo played by EXO's D.O.), it is suggested that what happens in a person's early development will shape the course of his or her life as an adult. However, by the end we wonder if it can be more regarded as a choice, that is- if we can choose our own course and behavior. It's an interesting thought, isn't it? I was fascinated by the deep questions in this drama
I loved ALL of the characters in this drama. They were all so deep and each one played a part for the story to flow as smoothly as it did. The main character list was impressive alone, but the secondary characters definitely contributed what the main characters sometimes could not, such as humor or a neutral ground.
Lee Hyeon and Cha Ji-An were predictable. Still loved them, but they were predictable. The real interest and surprise came from Lee Min and Lee Joon-Young. After all, the story is really about finding them and fixing the problem of the incident that deprived Lee Hyeon of his family. But what if they didn't need finding? Or what if the problem couldn't be fixed? Lee Min and Lee Joon-Young's characters ran the story. They started it and they ended it. That's likely what made the ending so confusing for me!
This drama seemed to parallel quite a bit with SBS's 2014 "You're All Surrounded." They are similar in that there is one large case to solve throughout the series, but it cannot be resolved until the end, so smaller cases are resolved instead until there is enough information to solve that primary case. There also wasn't much of a romance between the male and female lead in either, although it's evidently implied (aka, just not much skinship or sweet-talk). When I found "I Remember You," it was listed under a "Romance" category, and this was a little misleading. The story is about the mystery, not the relationship.
Interestingly enough, I'd suggest that the female leads from both "You're All Surrounded" and "I Remember You" are similar because they have the same type of strength to their character: justice. Cha Ji-An lives off of her craving for justice. Right and wrong are clearly outlined for her. She's a complement to Lee Hyeon's character, whose role seems to be like a scale, weighing options whether they be influences for good or bad and using that to make a decision.
The ending. Oh my goodness, the ending. This is probably one of the few endings I have ever seen for a Korean drama that did not contain a resolution for the antagonist or the problem spurring on the story. As an audience, we naturally want to see the protagonists catch the bad guys and live happily ever after or something like that in order for the story to come to an end. If that doesn't happen, then it's usually the type of ending where the antagonist or problem is taken care of, but at such a large cost that "happily ever after" doesn't have a chance. This ending had neither! I'm not sure whether to be upset or to be happy and grateful that the characters are alive at all. And ending like this is very irregular, because in American cinema it's usually a suggestion to a sequel. But Korean dramas don't do sequels (there may be few, if any, exceptions that I haven't heard of)! So I'm torn in my interpretation of this one's ending.
I really enjoyed watching "I Remember You." I could't put it down! I don't know that I would label it a personal favorite, but it was very thought-provoking and exciting. It gave me chills and shivers when things got creepy (well, it is a drama about serial killers), but I felt like I could breath again after each case they solved. That's how it kept me watching with eager eyes! I'd recommend "I Remember You" to anyone waiting for a thrilling and exciting ride!
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