This review may contain spoilers
A rather thought provoking story of Anna.
Just completed this drama today and I'd say the drama used quite a thought provoking way to tell its story. It's overall a very depressing and gloomy story to the point that I also felt affected as the story progressed... So Lee Yumi played by Suzy actually reflects many moments of our lives under certain circumstances. She came from a very ordinary but loving/supportive family, while she could have also lived a very peaceful and mediocre life but I think what really made her change was in fact meeting Colonel Philips's wife who was hinted as delusional by her husband...The wife had taught her a lot of things and a few of it is how to keep a poker face and not allowing other people to guess what she is thinking or perhaps even lying... All of this had influenced her a lot even though she wasn't aware of it herself. One would be when she was in a ballet school and at that moment she is seen lying very comfortably already. Honestly, she could have been honest about her background and just ignore people's gossip but she couldn't because all along she felt her false/delusional character setup would breakdown...
I could relate to her feelings when she wanted to live up to her parents' anticipations and lied about making it to college which I think I would have also done the same if I was in her shoes. I do think in her own generalisation, she has been thinking how everyone would just look down on her if she had been honest about her situation. For her marriage, I do think it's really the same type of people attracts each other but obviously her husband was even more evil and ambitious, even resorting to locking her in a mental hospital to protect his achievements.
In the last episode, she was seen burning the car and her husband which was a relief where she finally decided to break away from her own shell and go live a quiet life which she yearns.
Overall, a great drama of a rather underrated genre! Yumi did all this because she thought this the only way to get respected in society and able to live a comfortable live which she didn't after living a life of a copied identity.
Was this review helpful to you?
Was this review helpful to you?
something that every viewers might look forward to watch
Anna is something that is too far from any plots in kdrama land. this drama is different based from my expectations. there were no cliches, romance, just focusing on how lee yumi changes her life they way she lived during her high school year, until she grow up being a art professor. portraying what Ripley Syndrome really looks like. the plot was very interesting, to be fact. and this drama is something that other viewers might get some higher expectations, but in the end, it might be something interesting. bae suzy also acted this role very well! I was really impressed by her acting skills and most especially she proves me how she made her acting career very known to other kdrama fans. I think its not really advisable to watch it again, unless if you really would want to deeply know how and were things happened in each episodes, since it was a fast forward paced drama for me.Overall, the plot of the story seems interesting to look forward into. such a masterpiece, I say. But I hope other people might get the chance to watch this drama, because again, this drama has a potential to explain how lee anna's disorder is quite hard to handle. People might have this opportunity to recognize this mini series as this type of cases are very rare and thanks to this drama, I get to know and understand what Ripley Syndrome looks like.
Was this review helpful to you?
One of the best drama i have watched in a while
Anna, I will say is one of the best drama i have watched this year, It’s a slow show but with a great story line.I want people should see this show as more than just a korean drama, It teaches a lesson and also shows the realistic part of life.
It’s not a romance drama( Thank God) I like how the plot just focused on the Female lead and everything she has been through.
Like i said before, It’s like a lesson,.
1: Don’t live your life to people’s expectations, Including your family.
2:Lying is bad, No matter how you try to justify it, It will come back to meet you.
3: Don’t be eager to become like someone with the mindset of rich people are living well.
Was this review helpful to you?
will a better life make a person happier?
what a suspensful yet poetic ride, following Yumi from child to full grown adult was something I didn't know would be this good.there's heavy moral ambiguity throughout the watch, to what lenght is something okay or too much? Is what Anna did acceptable? Personally she wasn't perfect, could have made better decisions but still rootable throughout.
the perfect antagonist of our story was Hyun Joo, she's neither good nor that bad but is out of touch and can be quite annoying. however she's really smart, it always seems that she says the right things, all encounters with Anna, I find myself agreeing to Hyun Joo more.
throughout I felt the heavy inspiration to Parasite 2019, cinematography points like putting characters on the dark or splitting characters with different status. another one is the use of symbols, you really had to pay attention to get some of them, so it was fascinating when I do get it. lastly is it's nuanced tone, like the film, it doesn't tells you whose wrong or right, shows a situation and lets watchers decide.
I've said this over and over again but watching Suzy act is an honor, pure perfection in giving Anna to life.
Anna despite it's flaws like it's very very slow progression or lack luster character development, is a series that us insightful and thought provoking, builds up a great suspensful story keeping viewers intrigue, highly recommended!
Was this review helpful to you?
Was this review helpful to you?
Best of Bae Suzy
A great show overall! But it was a little short. If it was just a tad bit longer, like maybe 8 episodes, the viewers could get a better understanding of the characters and how the plot plays out.If we just had a little more details in the plot here and there, it could have been a very strong story.But the story itself was pretty basic. I feel like we could have had more plot twists. The plot twists that were there weren't the best in my opinion. It wasn't strong enough to make the viewers feel something. I feel like the writing of the drama could have been a little stronger. They should have added more provoking lines. But either way, it still turned out pretty well. The ending was OK. I would have asked for a better ending. The ending just seems a little bland. It could have been more action-packed and left us with a cliffhanger, maybe.The acting was good, if I may say so myself. I've seen a few dramas that Suzy has acted in, and this is the best. With this drama, you can definitely see how Suzy grew as an actress. I want to see her in dramas to come to see how much she improves! I think Suzy did a great job on playing Yoo Mi. She really brought out the best and worst of Yoo Mi in a great way. The rest of the casting and acting was pretty great as well.
I almost forgot but I just have to comment on the music. It's so good. I really like listening to these kinds of "classical" (?) I'm not really sure like orchestra type of music music and the OST is really giving me those vibes. I find it really enjoyable to listen to!
But if you are bored and looking for something like Inventing Anna but in a K-drama version, I would recommend this. I'm a sucker for these kinds of dramas, so that's probably why my rating is pretty high LOL.
Was this review helpful to you?
THEY SHOULD HAD RELEASE THE ORIGINAL
A drama that had great potentionals but was ruined for literally stupid reasons. The fact they cut so many scenes and they create so many plot holes just doesnt make sense to me, i mean i get that some scenes sometimes have to be removed so the length of each episodes is "correct" , but here they just vanished two whole episodes, they left very important information out and they created plot holes, WITHOUT A REASON.The storyline is very interesting, how can a small lie effect everything in you life. I am not a huge fan of poor girl tries everything to become rich, but here i actually enjoyed the plotline. The characters were very interesting, but due to the problem with the cut scenes, some of the backstories werent accurate at this version, and its sad to watch characters like that being wasted. The acting was very good, Suzy didnt disappoint once again, actually all cast was good.
I dont have much to say, unfortunately this drama was ruined for me. While watching the 6 episode version I wasnt very happy about the final product and then it was announced that this drama was meant to have 8 episodes and i realized why i wasnt satisfied, but still having watched the first version, i wasnt very interested to watch the full length after.
Anyway do yourself a favor and forget this version exist, go watch the full length instead, i wish i had watched that first too.
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Competence
You know, I love this platform. There’s so much limitations everywhere else it’s ridiculous. So glad me and my fellow cofounders put in the time and effort to create something much needed for our community. A congruity of fans,writers, critics. A union if you will, vast creativity expl-Anna shows us the upbringing of a young woman that trapped herself in an entirely different life from what started as a single lie back in her teens to a web of lies,theft,bribery, and manipulation. A woman who was brought up in lower class but aced in everything she put her mind to, putting her in schools and extracurricular activities as the rich. But what could happen when someone who was once seen as this prodigy suddenly falls flat and experience repeated failure for the first time? Someone that received attention from everyone now becomes humiliation, suddenly is taken off her high horse. Finances begin to become a barrier that keeps her a level under others. How does a compulsive liar begin? What surroundings could’ve shaped them into someone that effortlessly takes on a background that was never theirs? How far can they go before it all comes crashing down, if ever?
This drama is a very compact short series that showcases extremely flawed efforts at perfection leading towards putting on a face to make it further towards your goal, to fulfill the expectations of those that are counting on you, to obtain stability and a foothold that’ll support what you truly wish to do that’ll be impactful instead of looked over or stepped on. A very grounded story showing us the darker outcomes of constant failure instead of the usual upbeats of “get up, try again!” or moping around with constant misfortunes on the hardworking innocent to grab sympathy.
In case you need to see this from me specifically(for crying out loud you’re talking to yourself) or for the 30th time, this drama is severely underrated. It may not look as such from my overall score but that’s only because we are used to the general rubric here. Sevens now look like they’re a waste of time , eights look like there’s still ALOT of room for improvement, so on. A unique spin of character roles that hits as hard as you can relate. Sharp cinematography with, i admit, choppy edits at times. Well detailed production with i must say very fitting castings. I don’t know nor will i pretend to know anything about the Bae Suzy controversy but luckily i know great quality performances when i see it. Yes, take a breath of relief or shout at others “As i FUCKING said?!”, you will get that from her here.
This doesn’t deliver us the typical protagonists nor the typical anti hero/antagonists. Simply ordinary people that sometimes succumb to screwed temptations. Surroundings that don’t always work in your favor but you have to push forward. Injustice in an unfair world to begin with. Backgrounds one can only accept and work towards new and refreshing beginnings. Inherited cruelty , favored benefactions. Ironically enough it’s a breath of fresh air into reality, see it as people that are thrown dirt and told to make something out of it. An attest to morality, there are shameful yet humane acts on every end of the spectrum.
This series requires both your full attention and a rewind button at your fingertips. There are many small details that even i have to still go back and look out for, not every action or decision has it’s reasoning or hints handed to you. There are hiccups every now and then where there’s just no natural build up at all and at times just feel like there’s key moments still missing to get the full picture of what’s happening. Mirrored reactions and weirdly relatable characters thrown in abruptly to bring out self reflections.
Would i say Anna deserves everyone’s attention? No. Those who have watched, see what i did there? Not intended but I’ll take the credit. See what i did there? Listen, if you’re going to give this drama a go, watch how it was intended to be released. There’s literally no reason to skip out on the director’s cut that provides alot more context no matter if it holds any interest of yours, it’s the original. It’s not for everyone. Beauty in the mundane doesn’t appeal to everyone. All I’ll say is if the synopsis alone interests you at all, you’d be doing yourself disservice by missing out on the ride this drama takes you on. Just watch out for deers. See wh-
Was this review helpful to you?
a short review.....
I binge watched it so I don't have many complains because I can handle some plot holes.This drama gave me so much anxiety. It really kept me on my toes! Suzy's acting really touched at times I cried with her. I don't know why people say her acting is not good they should watch this drama. I binged watch this in one sitting. I really couldn't stop myself from watching the next episode.
Also the background music at times was good, was making me anxious lol.
There were some things that I didn't understand. But I heard there will be an extended version in August so let's wait.
Was this review helpful to you?
My most awaited kdrama screenplay ever
Anna (if I can watch the extended version) probably going to my favorite drama list not because it is fun but the sheer dialogue it possess that I am very much enjoyed as a viewer. I always think kdrama's quality is always subpar due to their screenplay being over the place. You don't know where to focus on but Anna give me that. Just watching a character walked through life like watching in a lense or reading a novel. Then you see her interaction with different characters and within that space there's intensity and emotion that you can't help but wonder just how painful it was to be her? You can feel the pain because you're able to see front row and understand her deeply than the other characters around her thus we sympathize with her. This is what Anna is all about.In order to make this drama work, the acting of the actors have to be top notched and especially for Suzy who took the solo lead, I can say she is the best Yumi/ Anna I can imagine. She perfectly nailed this role and I can't wait to see her acting in the future. Jung Eunchae also is my other favorite as she embodies someone who is a prideful upper class person to a tea. All other actors gave their best performance here.
Director Lee Jooyoung is new to the field of filmmaking but her sense as a director- screenwriter is worthy of praise. The pace, the script and the overall tone of the drama are all so great. I actually think she should continue working more on movies. The details from background to sound are all elegant and suited the mood of the vain Anna who wants all things beautiful. Kudos to the team.
All in all I am happy to watch this kind of kdrama and I think this will be a precedent to more high quality ones in the future.
Was this review helpful to you?
okay
This is my first time writing the review, so I hope you understand.The storyline is okay, but the acting is a chef's kiss, last two episodes are way too slow for my liking and I didn't like them as much as starting 1st 4 episodes. Yu-mi's childhood lesson ig is the most important part idk why nobody noticed that but in the first ep, she learns about poker face, don't let your expression show on your face, this scene was emphasized so much. I liked the drama overall but could have been a movie.
Was this review helpful to you?
