BeaSP
Portugal
Priest {Review}
It's been a long time since I binge watched a Kdrama and for some reason this one caught my attention. And no, it wasn't because I was searching for something similar to 'The Guest'.I just wasn't in the mood to watch the regular rom-com dramas.
This time around I wanted to watch something darker. Like a drama with a dark concept minus the possibility of dwelling into an overly depressing plotline.
At the time I concluded this was the perfect fit.
I won't lie tho, at first I couldn't decide between this and 'The Guest'
since both appeared to be quite similar with the possession/hot priests elements. But trust me, they're not! (I checked at least 5 episodes of it after finishing this series).
And just by comparing the trailers I could immediately see one was way more obscure than the other. Which helped me choose.
I decided to take a risk and go for the less popular.
Top Questions most people ask about the 'Priest':
•Is it too scary to watch?
A: It depends. Personally, I didn't find it too scary. This drama for sure has its own creepy scenes. As a horror movies enthusiast I can say I've seen way more dreadful possessions and exorcism rituals than the ones that were portrayed here.
•Does the Medical genre overshadow the horror factor?
A: Definitely not! Obviously, it plays a role in the drama but it's not too significant. Don't expect to see business-like hospital politics/corruption or surgeries that last for far too long. The demon is the centre of it all.
•Can it be compared to 'The Guest'? Do they even reference it or do any special appearance?
A: I hate to bring it up again. But sadly 'Priest' comments' section is bombarded with questions of this kind. Which is comprehensible since it aired right after AND they're both from OCN. But the answer is NO. There's no comparisons to make besides the fact both are about priests, possessions and exorcisms. The approach and execution of the rituals is completely different.
Sadly, no. There's no special appearances. Nor do they make a reference whatsoever. Father Mateo does not show up (It would've been so cool tho!).
•DoEs It HAvE AnY ROmAnCe?
A: MaYbE. This was a surprise for me since I was avoiding that specific genre. You'd have to see for yourself.
•Is it worth to watch?
A: If you're into this genre I'd say go for it! This is not a masterpiece but I can assure you it's quite entertaining for what it is. I think it was a bold move to mix two opposite concepts: medical and supernatural possessions. It could've gone terribly wrong. It's one of the components that makes 'Priest' so unusual.
My Thoughts on:
-The Main Characters:
Oh Soo Min ( Yeon Woo Jin)
At first he seemed to be a bit inexperienced when it came to perform an actual exorcism. I was worried I wouldn't be able to take him seriously as an exorcist priest. But thankfully he went through a character growth.
He ends up having an unexpected bittersweet storyline (that caught me by surprise ).
Although he knew very well what his responsibilities as a Catholic priest meant he never forgot that at the end of the day he was only human.
Moon Ki Sun (Park Yong Woo)
Although I loved his bromance with Oh Soo Min a.k.a Father Michael, I couldn't help but feel like there was something missing about his character.
I don't know if it was just the way it was written but sometimes he would appear kind of dull. And I guess that's probably because we end up not knowing too much about him.
I don't recall seeing his backstory or getting to know the reason why he became a priest in the first place.
In my opinion there was so much that could have been added to his character. He deserved more development.
Side note: One of the few things we came to know about him is that he's great at Boxing. And for a Priest he's very athletic. Always in good shape.
Ham Eun Hi ( Jung Yoo Mi)
Well, I must say her skepticism annoyed me in the first two episodes. But I understood it was just part of her character. She's a doctor after all.
Even with proof right in front of her eyes she will disregard every supernatural occurrence as some psychotic disorder or a fuzzy illusion caused by fatigue.
Despite that, she gradually grew on me. I came to admire not only her personality but her strength to keep going.
She continuously fought for what she thought was right even when people said it didn't matter.
The Demon {Whose name we shall not mention} :
No, it's not Voldemort (Even though he's no demon. At least technically speaking). And no, it's not Park Il Do.
For the sake of spoiler alerts his name shall remain unknown.
What can I say... I wouldn't consider him particularly strong or undefeatable like he's supposedly portrayed. He's just, really really reaaaally sneaky. And loves to outsmart everyone. Like any demon would.
In the beginning I thought he was creepy and gave me the chills. With every passing episode the spooky factor was maintained but he gradually became less scary-looking (after his face reveal). I mean, it scared me more what he could do rather than his real appearence. If that makes sense.
Speaking of his looks, I seriously don't know why he looked like that. I also would like to know more about his origin.
-The Supporting Characters
Overall everyone was great! Even though I enjoyed watching the dynamics of the Regia 634 team (their team work strangely reminded me of the squad of 'Lookout' - if you watched it you'll know what I'm talking about).
I wasn't too fond of the medical staff only some characters here and there.
-The Writing:
The writing wasn't exceptional. As I previously stated, some characters weren't fully developed.
Somewhere in the middle there was a twist that I thought could be a disguised lazy writing tactic (or not, I'm just assuming). Fortunately, it worked out within the direction the plot was headed.
-The Exorcism Rituals :
In this, I liked the variety of rituals. It was not just splashes of Holy water, crosses above the forehead and holy sanctified shoutings. Although you will hear it, lots and lots of screams. Count in some evil laughter as well.
Final thoughts :
To be honest, I never expected to enjoy watching this drama so much. It got me completely hooked.
There was never a moment of boredom and the plot kept me interested. I was entertained until the very end.
Like I mentioned above, it isn't perfect. It definitely has some flaws. But those flaws don't turn it into an unwatchable mess.
The number one aspect that I appreciated the most was the unpredictability of the events and the main leads relationship.
Fun Fact: Did you know that Yeon Woo Jin and Jung Yoo Mi were the main leads in the Horror Movie 'The Tunnel 3D'?
Apparently this was not the first time they had worked together. They were reunited once again for another thriller.
Anyway, I hope this review helps you decide whether or not watching this might be worth of your time.
I wrote this review on another site but I decided that I should post it here as well.
Thank you for reading and happy binge watching!
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It is the crazy love lines, hilariously unexpected turn of events,the classcial music used in every funny moment and the slow motions that makes it even more hilarious, and of course it´s the characters chemistry and charismatic sense of humor (amazing acting from the entire cast) that makes ´Marriage, Not Dating´ an interesting and unique drama , just like its title.
Another wonderful thing was the lovely ost, my personal favourites were ´Stop the love now´ by Ben a.k.a BeBe Mignon and ´Love lane´ from the rookie girlsband Mamamoo ^^
To keep it short this drama features a good mix of romance and comedy that never fails to make you laugh out loud and keeping you interested of what´s coming next.
P.S- I really enjoyed this drama. It became one of my favourite rom coms´ so far ^-^
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I really enjoyed the storyline and the acting was surely great, the whole cast was very good, especially Park Bo Young, she did an awesome job portraying both characters perfectly.
For those interested in watching this, i can assure you that this drama isn´t a waste of time, if you enjoy a fairly good romantic comedy ( by the way, i really liked Jo Jung Suk character despite trying to look stern and being cocky, his hilarious jealousy moments and cuteness overload will make your heart melt) mixed with paranormal/ghostly stuff (not scary at all,really) this is a MUST. Also, one of the highlights of the show is it´s unexpected twists and the bitter sweet ending will make you feel all the feels!
God, i miss it already xD Enjoy fellas!
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I don´t know about the previous live action dramas ( maybe someday i´ll give it a try as well) but I was not expecting this drama version to be soooo good! The producers and the whole cast managed to improve some details of the story telling by focussing on and expanding every characters´ back stories, personalities and emotions in a very charismatic way, unlike the anime version ´Hana Yori Dango´, that payed more atention on the main roles instead.
Not to mention the ost was extremely catchy. Loved it! I coulnd´t stop singing along whenever such songs as ´Paradise´ (Almoooost Paradise! xD), ´Stand by me´, ´Because i´m Stupid´, and ´One more time´came on. They were stuck in my head for days.
The only, tiny thing that i didn´t fully apreciate was the final episodes near the ending.. in my opinion they dragged it a little too much with that unnecessary final obstacle between the main charecters, because let´s be honest, they already had enough throughout the entire show. However, it was still a great ending.
Now, some of you might be asking: Is it worth a rewatch? My answer is definitely. Every element present in it is what makes it a classic in the history of dramas. So if you have it in your ´Plan to watch´ list or are considering to add it, then don´t miss it.
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