Amor Oculto (2023)

Why do people hate it? It's beautiful!

I know, I know, though people might be like " This drama is so problematic" due to its age gap, like an old man dating a teenager, but that's what make it interesting. And besides, the chemistry is just cute and adorable, you can't say anything about that.
People also say about the " adult Sang Zhi" which she said she is already grown up but shows no sign of it, and even says about her baby voice. But like I said, this is an actress, Zhao lusi's natural voice is a baby voice, so you can't just blame the actress, or maybe blame the character. All the character act so well, even the first scene, while they judge Sang Zhi character's appearance, why don't they talk about her acting. She make it pretty funny, and she act pretty well, that scene make me laugh. She even cries pretty easy too!
Overall: this movie is worth a watch, but for people who doesn't mind the ML and the FL's 5-year age gap

Leia Mais

This easily shot to the top of my favorite modern Chinese drama list, with my favorite actress in tow. Zhao Lu Si is nothing short of amazing in this romance where her character is crushing hard on her brother's best friend. If it were anybody else, the FL will probably come across as clingy and annoying, but she just does it with the right amount of sass.

First time encountering Chen Zhe Yuan in a drama but he's not too shabby himself as the doting big-bro type who is totally clueless in the love department despite his handsome looks since he's pretty focused on working to clear his father's debts. Of course, the difference in age while one is still a minor in itself is a tricky situation, when treated the wrong way. But we learn that Jia Xu does not even express any romantic interest in Sang Zhi until much later when the FL was in college.

I believe the drama made this distinction as clear as day to make all those accusations of pedophilia or grooming baseless. You can't accuse Jia Xu for encouraging Sang Zhi's affections when he is oblivious and does not even see her as more than a younger sister. The feelings of the FL has always been one-sided until they both got older and the show demonstrates this in several occasions.

In other aspects, the parents are not caricaturally cruel but had the appropriate amount of concern for their daughter's well-being as well as being supportive. There are no over-the-top characters and most are well-rounded. The pacing of the plot suited the narrative, and there was no blinding inconsistencies that I can think of. There was the right amount of fluff, angst, comedy and romance in this drama that I enjoyed watching it from beginning to end without touching the FFWD button.

Last but not the least is the swoon-worthy OST that I barely even notice in other dramas, but here, it serves as a delightful backdrop to Sang Zhi and Jai Ju's platonic-to-romantic journey.

Leia Mais

Pure, Wholesome, 10/10

I love that this drama did not have unnecessary drama and focused on the main couple. Their development was splendid and their moments are super cute. Zhe yuan and Lu si look really good together and their acting was great too The story is relatively simple though I did enjoy Jia xu's backstory and the drama of it, but it's alright this is still an extremely wholesome romance telling of two great characters.
The OSTs are also really good. Wang Su Long and Lu si's duet was so sweet and Ma Bo Qian (sang yan)'s vocals??? SO GOOD
10/10 recommend for those who just want a lil fluff in their life HAHA

Leia Mais

This kind of drama is like enjoying a cup of hot chocolate and some smores... MUST WATCH!!!

As the title suggests "Hidden Love," it revolves around hidden affection for someone. I appreciate the natural acting and the overall mellowness of the drama, creating a cozy atmosphere like enjoying a cup of hot chocolate and some smores.

Initially, I was hesitant about the love story, given that the female lead grew up with the male lead, starting at the age of 14. It felt a bit awkward, even though the male lead didn't romantically see her at that time. However, as the episodes progressed, I realized that the female lead also felt the same way. The one-sided love seemed hopeless and awkward, especially considering they had known each other since her adolescent years and he was in his early uni/college years

I won't give away too many spoilers, but it's worth watching as the drama unfolds and evokes genuine emotions (likeee GENUINE)

This drama struck a chord with me, particularly as someone with little to no romance in real life. It beautifully captures the essence of one-sided love, making it a must-watch for those who enjoy heartfelt stories.

Leia Mais

Proving Zhao Lu Si's acting genius, once again

This show has set the bar for Asian dramas for me.
Realistic, sweet, funny, heartbreaking, bittersweet and romantic.
The actors who play the FL and ML are brilliant. The connection between the two is amazing. The interactions are so natural and charming that it looks like entire scenes were ad-libbed by the actors. I wouldn't be surprised. The scenes between the FL and her brother are the same -- completely natural and adorable. The subtle physical comedy that Zhao is able to do, playing off her costars into those scenes is amazing. Just a few tiny examples: the wedding scene with her brother when they're at the table - the look they give each other while they're clapping; her expressions with the missed kiss at the skating rink. Whenever she watches the ML do something, her expressions of confusion are hilarious. I haven't mentioned the actor playing the ML yet, but he did beautifully in this drama too. The ML is roguish, loveable, heartbreaking. Will watch this again.
Special mention to the actor that plays the brother. He made his character hilarious.

Leia Mais

Feeling conflicted

It was very much a wholesome slice of life/coming of age show driven by characters and not plot. It was a bit slow and dragging at times. The way they handled the age gap thing made me uncomfortable for 90% of it. I thought her being in high school went on for way too long and they got too close for my liking. I would have been much more comfortable with their relationship had he simply been her tutor, not paying much attention to her outside of that and her having a very simple one sided crush on him instead of this brother sister relationship they developed. And also if the timeskip was longer than just 2 years and they had pretty much forgotten about each other until they meet again by coincidence and then fall in love. There‘s just not enough of a difference in maturity between 16 and 18. Everything was the same as it was before and adding to that, she was not a very mature 16-18 year old either.
I also don’t like how quickly DJ accepted not only that he is in love with her but also made the choice to pursue her. I was hoping he‘d be more conflicted and ponder it for longer. I was totally with the brother and thought his initial reaction was very much warranted, but was then disappointed to see him pretty much accept it right away after punching DJ a few times.
It‘s unfortunate bc I liked both actors and characters individually, their chemistry was actually very good too and they had some really sweet moments towards the end. But I was on the fence about them throughout the whole drama.
Overall, it was enjoyable but too many major issues to rate it too highly.

Leia Mais

HIDDEN LOVE

Rekomendasi banget, alur ceritanya sangat menghibur dan menyenangkan. Saya akan menunggu Season 2 nya, tolong hadirkan.
Atau gak saya menunggu YuanLusi satu projek lagi pokoknya saya akan menantinya. Saya sangat menyukai Duan Jiaxu yang mandiri, juga Sangzi yang sangat menggemaskan. Agensi manapun tolong persatuan Chen Zheyuan dan zhao Lusi kembali. Kami sebagai fans YuanLusi sangat menantikannya. Ntah bagaimana lagi saya harus mendeskripsikan karena saya sangat menyukai semua pemeran hidden Love termasuk sang yan dan juga mama papanya, Youxu, Wetv, Tencent, IQIYI Netflix dan agensi manapun tolong persatuan kembali pemeran-pemeran hidden love

Leia Mais

It weirdly works!

OVERALL
If you 1) are looking for a FL-likes-ML-first love story, 2) are into the older-guy, younger-girl trope, 3) like when FL is "innocent", and 4) can get over the fact that ML and FL meet when she' s a minor (and played by an actress who looks like she's 10), then this drama is right up your alley. If any of the above bother you...maybe still give it a try? It worked for me!

THE STORY
So, not going to lie, the premise of this drama is everything I hate. I'm really not into stories where the FL pathetically pines for the ML for 2/3 of the drama, I don't like FLs that are "innocent" (because 9/10 times, they're just childish and immature), and I'm not particularly into the older-guy/younger-girl trope. The only reason why I decided to give this drama a try is because of the controversy (it had pretty polarized reviews on YT). I wanted to see what everyone was talking about.

The main issue people had brought up is that FL starts out looking like a literal YOUNG child (definitely younger than the 14 she is supposed to be), while ML is the main actor (so adult actor), and it feels very wrong to see any scene between then two or imagine them getting together later on. Giving these comments, I was expecting something huge. But while it was off-putting, it wasn't that bad, imo. These scenes with the child actress are just a few flashbacks, and it's just FL liking ML (not the other way around), so...I just took at as a silly girl doing her thing.

I'm not going to say this is the drama of the year. The plot is very basic (almost a non-plot, revolving entirely around FL's unrequited feelings for ML...until they stop being unrequited), and the core of the story (a girl crushing over some guy for years) remains something I'm just not a fan of. But I was truly pleasantly surprised by some aspects of this show:

- First, FL is thankfully not the childish/immature type of "innocent" girl. I think the writers did a good job of giving her a bit of character, a bit of youthfulness, a bit of maturity. She feels very 3D and likeable.
- The writers also did pretty well in cutting out the pining, so FL doesn't look that obsessed with ML and her unrequited love is easier to swallow
- While I had trouble buying that FL started loving ML as a pre-teen (just looked liked admiration to me, like when girls become fans of idols), I liked how the drama shows ML finding out he likes FL and the extent to which she loves him. Overall, the relationship between the two is also very sweet and caring, and rooted in respect. It's a bit cringey sometimes, but on the good side of cringe.
- The secondary characters are all pretty cool additions to the show (which is rare, they're usually useless and annoying). I LOVED the relationship between FL and her brother, as well as FL and her parents. ML's friends were fun too!
- The ending scene is honestly the funniest innovation of a common cliché ever. I loved it!
- Finally, the overall vibes of the show are totally my style. No childish quirks or annoying music. Feels more mature and raw.

Bottom line: I didn't expect to enjoy this drama and I did, so if you're like me, just give it a try!

THE ACTING
Good, all around. I love Zhao Lusi. Nothing else to say haha ML was also pretty impressive, and it was my first time seeing him. The child actress was great too (but she did look WAY too young for the part). On the chemistry department...it was okay. Could have been better, imo, if the writing focused a bit less on FL's age and her being young.

THE MUSIC
Alright, I guess, though nothing I'd listen to on my own!

REWATCH VALUE
Oh, it's high. I've already rewatched it once (with some skipping, I won't lie, but still)!

Leia Mais

Feels like youth all over again

Hidden Love was my first ever introduction to C-drama's and I like that I was able to pick a good one it really made me have the feels, love shivers, and nostalgia of youth if you are into rom-com or romance in general this show is one of the best one I would even say for beginners for drama's in general though the episode count may look scary at first it worth the time these are those drama that make you want to watch what would happen next and make you sit back down when you want to stop that feeling of anticipation of what's going to happen wtih the characters make you want to continue and not stop I cried a few times and maybe so many others but its a drama worth picking up and finishing and something to watch when you are bored and need a bit of energy.

Leia Mais

You'll need a lot of tissues ??

Such an amazing drama, really recommend you watch it.Zhao lusi and Chen zheyuan have such good chemistry in the bts. such an emotional drama too. lovely, overall tbh. ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️?❤️?❤️??❤️?❤️?❤️???❤️?❤️?❤️??❤️?❤️?❤️?❤️❤️?❤️?❤️?❤️❤️❤️❤️?❤️?❤️?❤️?❤️????????????????????❤️?❤️?❤️?❤️?❤️?❤️?❤️❤️?❤️??❤️??❤️?❤️?❤️?❤️?❤️?❤️?❤️?❤️?❤️?❤️?❤️????????????????❤️??❤️?❤️??If your still reading this then love you so much!!!!!!!!!!

Leia Mais