Mad Concrete Dreams Review
- 1 day ago
- 5 min read
Some people would describe this drama as an "underrated gem"; some would say this was an absolute bullshit drama... And I'm questioning what the point of it all was.
What are your thoughts on this mad mad drama?
The only thing I'm familiar with Im Pil Sung is "Persona", a drama with IU where he was the director and screenwriter. It was a bit weird, and not my favourite, but this didn't stop me from watching "Mad Concrete Dreams".
One thing that was similar to "Persona" is that this drama was also very weird and sometimes more absurd than anything else.
The scenes were beautifully shot and created a perfect atmosphere.
However, some of it made it quite predictable, especially if you watch dramas religiously. Mild spoilers: As an example, Su Jong says goodbye to his brother-in-law, who gets a slow-mo effect of him walking away. It was too obvious that he's going to die soon.
Other times, they would forget that there is a deaf character in the drama. As funny as those scenes are, it was quite painful to watch.
Why are you acting like you're giving representation, and cannot do a bare minimum?
Directing: 7/10
Synopsis:
When Gi Su Jong, Min Hwal Seong's only hope, is in danger of having his building auctioned off, Hwal Seong suggests that they use the empty basement of the building to stage a fake kidnapping. However, as the fake kidnapping turns into a real one, things get more and more complicated, leading to an extreme situation. (MyDramaList)
The characters of the drama are pretty unlikeable, but that is not the only issue with "Mad Concrete Dreams". Having morally grey or bad characters, it's fine, but as we come to this messy plot, it becomes hard to watch.
It starts pretty confusingly; nothing you would expect from the first episode after reading the synopsis, but seemingly going to that point.
And we get to it, after just a few more episodes, but now everything suddenly snowballs into complete chaos.
Characters get into more and more accidents, and their world is falling apart, but they're so unlikeable, so maybe not having a happy ending is fine?
What threw me off the most is how many sideplots we have and stuff happening, but characters have barely progressed since episode one. The police are useless, and there is a bit of gang stuff, but we already have "Real Capital" acting like one, so why add extra side characters?
This drama had to have 10 episodes maximum; I'm not sure why they have two more.
The soundtrack of "Mad Concrete Dreams" does not fit very well, but there are just a few songs in it.
Let's get into the spoilers...
Overall: 5/10
The first episode made me question if it's the right drama. Here we have a struggling family both financially and psychologically. The husband is running around to keep everything in check; the wife wants to fix their problems, but also blames everything on her husband, and a deaf teenager is there too.
On top of it all, the husband is now entangled with "Real Capital," which wants to take over his building, but you can forget they exist most of the time.
So where the hell is kidnapping?
It does happen, very suddenly, and it ends as fast as it started. That plot finishes in one or two episodes, and we still have a long way to go till the end of this drama. What is going to happen now???
The answer: A mess, where even the creators of this drama don't know where they all end up. Get a bit of everything, so people don't notice the plot holes...
Suddenly, Yi Gyeong realises that her husband is cheating; she remembers bits from her kidnapping, and the cafe owner also finds out about Su Jong's shenanigans.
I needed to continue watching, so I see Yi Gyeong get revenge on all those scumbags...
It wasn't as exciting as I imagined, though.
After 10 episodes of running around, killing one another by accident or not, we have finally reached the conclusion. Hwal Seong, who was their friend and had an affair with Seon, dies, but knowing that Yi Gyeong is pregnant, does one last good deed for her by saving her life.
The police officers have a very wild and wide picture of what happened, but of course cannot do anything about it.
And most importantly, Su Jong and his family are all safe and sound.
This is where we should have stopped; however, two more episodes are even more ridiculous than the previous ones. For some reason, there is an open ending, kind of hinting at season 2, but we'll probably never get to see one (not that there's much of a need).
The story is not a masterpiece, but at least there is no time to get bored, as a lot of things are happening.
This was the curse and strength of the drama.
Storyline: 6.5/10
The characters are extremely unlikeable, except for that police officer, who gets killed in a second or first episode.
Gi Su Jong seemingly does his best for his family, but somehow gets intertwined with Hwal Seong's plan to fake kidnap his wife. At first he looks appalled by the plan, but because he needs money, he agrees to it.
That's how he gets into more and more absurd situations in his life.
However, he is better than his cheating wife, Seon. It's even quite hilarious to see how she's acting like she's on a high horse, when she was the one who betrayed her husband first.
There is a bit of backstory about how Su Jong got his building, but we never saw anything from Seon's perspective.
The reaction from Su Jong when he finds out that his wife wants to see the phone felt like an ad... "It's waterproof, and insured!" as Seon tries to destroy the phone and acts erratically, while her husband stays nonchalant and does not even think that there is something compromising until he sees the video.
The scene was done without any emotions and just felt weird, and this explains both of the characters perfectly. They are horrible separately and greedy/bad together.
The daughter, Ki Da Rae, is deaf. It's explained that she knows how to read lips, but it's funny how even the creators forget that she cannot hear.
The monologue scene, where she's telling Yi Gyeong to forgive her parents, was ridiculous because of that reason. Yi Gyeong is still learning sign language, but somehow perfectly understands what Da Rae is showing her?? Make it make sense!
The villains were not evil enough and were just background characters who came out when the writer needed some filler. They never explained properly what they actually are doing, but somehow we just have to believe that they're scary, as they kill people.
Su Jong and Seon were the real villains of this whole mess, and maybe that's the message they wanted to give.
Police officers were absolutely useless to the storyline, as they didn't even manage to find out what happened to their colleague at the very beginning of the drama.
None of the characters has a good backstory or is developed; they do not change even after the many accidents and killings, and it was a waste of time to follow them.
Characters: 3/10
The soundtrack wasn't the best.
Taeyong's "Bitter Sweet" felt more like an idol song rather than for the drama, and "No Savior" did not completely match it either.
Min Ji Woon's song had an interesting vibe, but also did not leave me with a lasting impression.
Music: 4/10
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