kdrama - Dong Yi

before my usual review stuff, i have to say, this drama is super long and hence my blog was quiet for a bit.

official website:
http://www.imbc.com/broad/tv/drama/dongyi/

drama title:
동이 (同伊) / Dong Yi

main cast:
Han Hyo Joo as Choi Dong Yi
Ji Jin Hee as King Sukjong
Bae Soo Bin as Cha Chun Soo (Dong Yi's 'bro')
Jung Jin Young as Seo Yong Gi (Dong Yi's dad's friend and court official)
too many names and faces. check out this link to associate them: http://asianmediawiki.com/Dong_Yi

synopsis:
Dramatization of life of Dong Yi, who lived in olden Korea, who rose from commoner to dowager queen status.

it's kinda long, cos there is lots of stories from her childhood, to working as a maid in the court, then getting promoted to court lady, and finally concubine.

my score: 9 out of 10.
at least, that's the score for the first 2/3 of the drama. she had to run for her life as a child, and then to fight the court schemes when she started out in court, all the while looking for evidence to prove her dad's innocence (and also her brother who died together with her dad. Chun Soo is actually not her real bro, but a close follower of her dad who managed to escape with Dong Yi, and has sworn to protect her)

why you should watch it:
some of the schemes and counter schemes are truly in the realm of the brilliant. there is one more brilliant counter scheme towards the end of the drama, but by then you are pretty much drained and hoping she is dead.

there's not much eye candy and most of that is covered up anyway. so this is really a drama that appeals to those who appreciate the slow build up of evidence that leads to conviction of the guilty parties, who are not sitting idle to be caught, but always finding ways to eliminate the evidence or Dong Yi and her pals, whichever comes first.

there is also quite a bit of comedy relief, so that it's not all about police and thieves.

movie - harry potter and the deathly hallows: part 1

IMDB:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0926084/

movie title:
harry potter and the deathly hallows: part 1

main cast:
daniel radcliffe as harry potter (harry)
rupert grint as ron weasley (ronny)
emma watson as hermione granger (hermy or her-my-knee)
ralph fiennes as lord voldemort (voldy or moldy)

synopsis:
this is already book 7 adaptation and you dont know what the storyline is? go read the book!

harry turns 17 and basically becomes an adult wizard. so he and his 2 trusty sidekicks go off to fulfill prof dumby's mission. SAD (Search and Destroy) Voldy's remaining horcruxes even as the world they know crumble to the Dark Lord and his minions (deatheaters). FYI, 2 horcruxes already destroyed - Tom Riddle's diary (by harry) and Marvolo's ring (by dumby).

part 1 deals with finding and destroying the locket, then understanding the deathly hallows symbol.

even as they make headway, Lord Voldy isnt sitting back. he found the epic Elder wand by raiding prof dumby's tomb.

my score: 8 out of 10.
there is just so much to watch in this movie. whether it is the kids growing up and getting horny, or the special effects (7 harry potters!) and the great threesome adventures (some were just twosome).

why you should watch it:
the death of a house elf. the story of the deathly hallows. the 3-man (actually, 2 men and 1 woman) raid on the ministry of magic. ronny splinched. Lord Voldy zapping ppl to death. and lots more.

kdrama - My Princess

official website:
http://www.imbc.com/broad/tv/drama/myprincess/index.html

drama title:
마이 프린세스 / My Princess

main cast:
Song Seung Hun as Park Hae Young
Kim Tae Hee as Lee Seol
Park Ye Jin as Oh Yoon Joo
Ryu Soo Young as Nam Jung Woo

synopsis:
another twist on the concept of having a royal korean monarchy - this time, discovering there is still a direct descendant living today. hence a drive to reinstate the monarchy.

pro-monarchy is the old and dying chairman of a conglomerate (personal reasons) and the president (political reasons). against is the chairman's grandson and the opposition party. in the case of the grandson, the reason is money. his grandpa is going to donate everything to society and the new monarchy!

the princess is caught between the 2 sides, to be or not to be? and how to be? luckily, she has a good advisor in the form of her prof (also her ex-crush) and others who support her.

it also develops into a great love story between the princess and the grandson.

my score: 9 out of 10.
sparks fly between the 2 leads. the story is engaging as things keeping changing and you never be sure if she can make it as a princess until the last episode.

why you should watch it:
if you're a girl, there's no better reason than post-NS Song Seung Hun. i think his army stint just made him more mature and hotter.

if you're a guy, there's no better reason than Kim Tae Hee. she really sparkles here. watching her is like watching porn (pun here!)