6 Best Movies to Watch From SLL

1. Death’s Game, 2023

When life gets tough, especially without money or opportunities, it can be hard to cling onto life. There’s the real temptation to end it all, but what if Death is tired of this last resort? Death’s Game reimagines life after Choi’s suicide as a video game, whose limited lives function like reincarnation into different save points, and whose game over means eternal damnation in hell. With such an interesting premise from the popular webtoon, some of the best actors in Korea, and no way of being able to predict what would happen in Choi’s multiple, varied lives, Death’s Game reinvents plenty of today’s K-Drama tropes while possibly reconceptualizing how we feel about life and death… if it’s able to stick the landing when the second half drops this January.

Genre: Drama, Sci-Fi & Fantasy

Actor: Choi Si-won, Go Youn-jung, Jang Seung-jo, Kim Jae-wook, Kim Ji-hun, Kim Kang-hoon, Kim Mi-kyeong, Lee Do-hyun, Lee Jae-wook, Nam Kyung-eup, Oh Jung-se, Park So-dam, Seo In-guk, Sung Hoon, Yoo In-soo

Director: Ha Byung-hoon

2. Snowdrop, 2021

	
When Blackpink’s Jisoo starred in her first lead role, it was surprising that she chose a story like Snowdrop. Sure, at the time, stories set in the 1980s were a hit in Korea, with dramas such as Reply 1988 and Youth of May that nostalgically recreated the aesthetics of the time, while also re-examining the loss and the pain under the dictatorship then. Snowdrop does the same, but it adds a more controversial twist– the love story isn’t between innocent bystanders caught in the fire, it’s formed between a South Korean student and a North Korean spy. Writer Yoo Hyun-mi and director Jo Hyun-tak take this interesting premise to chaotic, unpredictable scenes, and it’s a fun ride, at least until the secrets he holds and the politics inevitably brings their childhood to heartwrenching ends. Seolganghwa isn’t a perfect drama, but it’s a story that understands how muddled and confusing the era got, and how much the country should avoid a repeat of state interests acting at the expense of personal freedoms.Genre: Drama, War & Politics
Actor: Ahn Dong-gu, Ariane Desgagnés-Leclerc, Baek Ji-won, Choi Hee-jin, Heo Joon-ho, Jang Seung-jo, Jeong Hye-young, Jeong Sin-hye, Jung Hae-in, Jung Yi-seo, Jung Yoo-jin, Kim Hye-yoon, Kim Jisoo, Kim Jong-soo, Kim Jung-nan, Kim Min-gue, Lee Hwa-ryong, Park Sung-woong, Park Ye-ni, Yoo In-na, Yoon Se-a
Rating: TV-14

3. Behind Your Touch, 2023

When the psychometric powers of the main character are only activated when she touches a butt, you know that Behind Your Touch will be as silly and hilarious as the show’s powers. The K-drama gets into ridiculous moments, oftentimes inspired by other dramas from the action, horror, and romance genres, but done in exaggeration for comedic effect. And the cast really gets into the action, with Han Ji-min and Lee Min-ki’s excellent chemistry and timing able to deliver the jokes written by the team. As the first season will end soon, it’s hard to say if the ending will be as good as its start, but so far, Behind Your Touch takes interesting comedic twists of the K-Drama tropes we all know and love.

Genre: Comedy, Drama, Sci-Fi & Fantasy

Actor: Han Ji-min, Joo Min-kyung, Jung Yi-rang, Kim Hee-won, Lee Min-ki, Lee Seung-joon, Park Hyeok-kwon, Park No-shik, Park Sung-yeon, Suho, Yang Jae-sung

Director: Kim Sok-yun

4. The Frog, 2024

It takes some time for the action to pick up, with the off-putting atmosphere and various character dynamics being opted to be slow-cooked. The choice certainly pays off with an ecosystem of concerning little stories slowly crashing into each other like dominoes, and creating drama that you have to pursue in the next episode. There’s an uneasiness about the whole story largely carried by the settings alone—the rain, the houses, the nearby establishments, etc. It can be a little difficult to pick up on the intricate details at first, and the prodding pace certainly isn't for a lot people, but for those who stay, there is an intriguing story that awaits.

Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery

Actor: Chanyeol, Go Min-si, Ha Yoon-kyung, Hong Gi-jun, Jang Seung-jo, Kim Sung-ryung, Kim Yun-seok, Lee Jung-eun, Park Ji-hwan, Roh Yoon-seo, Ryu Hyun-kyung, Yoon Kye-sang

Rating: TV-MA

5. Strong Girl Nam-soon, 2023

After the success of the 2017 series Strong Woman Do Bong-soon, it makes sense to try to recreate the same magic through a spin-off. Strong Girl Nam-soon has plenty of the same elements that made the original a success – the wacky humor, the love triangle with a cop and a CEO male leads, crimes to solve, and of course, the girl with superpowered strength. However, unlike the romcom approach of the original series, this spin-off is more of a family drama, as the titular strong girl gets lost in Mongolia at a young age – leading to the split of her parents, and the focus on that family dynamic. It still is able to balance the crime element too, with the family’s vigilantism. While the humor can sometimes feel forced, Strong Girl Nam-soon keeps what’s great with the original, but rewrites its plot points to have a more natural and understandable background.

Genre: Comedy, Crime, Drama, Sci-Fi & Fantasy

Actor: Byeon Woo-seok, Gyeongree, Joo Woo-jae, Jung Bo-seog, Jung Seung-kil, Kim Hae-sook, Kim Jung-eun, Kim Ki-doo, Lee Hee-jin, Lee Seung-joon, Lee You-mi, Ong Seong-wu

Director: Kim Jung-sik, Lee Kyung-shik

Rating: TV-14

6. Welcome to Samdal-ri, 2023

For K-drama fans feeling the cold, Welcome to Samdal-ri might be a lovely break in a seaside town in Jeju Island. The show is full of the classic romance tropes we all know and love, like childhood best friends born within minutes of each other, reconnecting when the female lead returns to her small hometown. These plot points are familiar territory, though the show’s tone vascillates wildly as the lead and her sisters deal with crazy circumstances (and react accordingly). However, even as the show and the ladies go through their antics, there’s a careful consideration of how they compare and contrast Seoul and Jeju Island. The resulting plot is familiar, and there are certain plot devices that seem a tad too ludicrous, but it’s a fairly entertaining series, if you can tolerate the strange decisions everyone makes.

Genre: Drama

Actor: Ji Chang-wook, Kang Mi-na, Kim Mi-kyeong, Seo Hyeon-cheol, Shin Dong-mi, Shin Hye-sun, Yu Oh-seong

Director: Cha Yeong-hun