dragynfaerie
USA
Wasn't Expecting Much & Not Much Is What I Got
First things first, this is my genre. All things supernatural, horror, and psychological thrillers are my jam. They make me happy. Somehow I knew from the trailer that Hellbound wasn't going to make me happy, but like a moth to a flame or a cat to a shiny thing... well you get the picture.
The story had potential. It was obvious from the trailer that the supernatural was going to be on the back burner and the story was going to be more humanistic. It's a slice of life with CG monsters. In a series this short either the story has to develop quickly and you forego character development or your characters have to grow by leaps and bounds. Neither happens in Hellbound. The fault lies squarely on the shoulders of writer/director Yeon Sang Ho. The first 2 or 3 episodes are spent setting us up the characters that disappear by the end of the 3rd episode. You really only know what happens to one. Unless I dozed off, you get no closure on the main character in the first few episodes. I mean none. He's just gone. Then the story jumps 4 years and the 2nd set of characters are tied to the first by the only character from the first 3 episodes to still be around.
The writing was disappointing. I felt like Yeon was trying to preach, but couldn't figure out how to start his sermon. So he floundered, changed his mind, and started again. I don't know if he wanted to take on zealotry and idolatry or religion in general. It really did seem like he was trying to sneak in a message. Yeon also fails at directing. It's a dark series and I don't mean the subject matter. Even when the characters are outside on sunny days, the shots were dreary. We get it. Bad times ahead. Honestly, some scenes reminded me of film school projects. I'm starting to feel the same about Yeon as I do about M. Knight Shymalan, concentrate on the writing son, leave the directing to someone with more talent. Train to Busan may have been a happy accident because of the cast not his talent. But, hey, the visual and sound effects were great!
The cast does a good job with the material given. However, there is no character development. Park Jung Min gave a solid performance. Overall, his character may have been the best written or well rounded followed by Yang Ik Jun's character. Kim Hyun Joo was window dressing. Her character was a caricature of a strong female lead instead of actually being one.
I scored the music high because it does a great job supporting and setting up scenes. The rewatch value is 0. If you have ever read any of my reviews, you know I almost always say I rarely rewatch a drama. I can tell you with absolute certainty that unless inebriated, paid, or under duress I will never watch Hellbound again. Mind you it ends on a cliffhanger so I may watch part 2.
Overall, it's a 5.5- 6.0 primarily because the visual and sound effects and because there is something there. I like the idea of the story but it's just not told very well. I'd only recommend it to die hard supernatural genre fans like myself. For the average viewer I'd say skip it or at least wait to see if there is a season 2 and then watch them together.
The story had potential. It was obvious from the trailer that the supernatural was going to be on the back burner and the story was going to be more humanistic. It's a slice of life with CG monsters. In a series this short either the story has to develop quickly and you forego character development or your characters have to grow by leaps and bounds. Neither happens in Hellbound. The fault lies squarely on the shoulders of writer/director Yeon Sang Ho. The first 2 or 3 episodes are spent setting us up the characters that disappear by the end of the 3rd episode. You really only know what happens to one. Unless I dozed off, you get no closure on the main character in the first few episodes. I mean none. He's just gone. Then the story jumps 4 years and the 2nd set of characters are tied to the first by the only character from the first 3 episodes to still be around.
The writing was disappointing. I felt like Yeon was trying to preach, but couldn't figure out how to start his sermon. So he floundered, changed his mind, and started again. I don't know if he wanted to take on zealotry and idolatry or religion in general. It really did seem like he was trying to sneak in a message. Yeon also fails at directing. It's a dark series and I don't mean the subject matter. Even when the characters are outside on sunny days, the shots were dreary. We get it. Bad times ahead. Honestly, some scenes reminded me of film school projects. I'm starting to feel the same about Yeon as I do about M. Knight Shymalan, concentrate on the writing son, leave the directing to someone with more talent. Train to Busan may have been a happy accident because of the cast not his talent. But, hey, the visual and sound effects were great!
The cast does a good job with the material given. However, there is no character development. Park Jung Min gave a solid performance. Overall, his character may have been the best written or well rounded followed by Yang Ik Jun's character. Kim Hyun Joo was window dressing. Her character was a caricature of a strong female lead instead of actually being one.
I scored the music high because it does a great job supporting and setting up scenes. The rewatch value is 0. If you have ever read any of my reviews, you know I almost always say I rarely rewatch a drama. I can tell you with absolute certainty that unless inebriated, paid, or under duress I will never watch Hellbound again. Mind you it ends on a cliffhanger so I may watch part 2.
Overall, it's a 5.5- 6.0 primarily because the visual and sound effects and because there is something there. I like the idea of the story but it's just not told very well. I'd only recommend it to die hard supernatural genre fans like myself. For the average viewer I'd say skip it or at least wait to see if there is a season 2 and then watch them together.
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