Picture credits - Marieclaire
“Humans are the scariest.”
Sweet Home is a Korean drama series that aired on Netflix on December 18, 2020. It is a story about how greed and despair turn humans into monsters.
Introduction
Series Name: Sweet Home
Directors: Lee Eung Bok, Jung Yong Woo, and Park So Hyun.
No. of Seasons: 1
Total Episodes: 10.
Genre: Horror, Drama, Apocalyptic.
Based on: "Sweet Home" by Kim Carnby and Hwang Young-Chan (Webtoon)
Language: Korean
Cast: Song Kang, Lee Ji Wook, Lee Si Young, Lee Do Hyun, Kim Nam Hee, Go Min Si, Park Gyu Young, Go Yoon Jung
Synopsis - Spoiler Alert!
Cha Hyun-Soo is a student who is bullied in school, which causes him to be an outcast. He lives his life like a hermit, rarely leaving his room. Hyun-Soo doesn’t really talk to his father, mother, or his younger sister. After an unexpected incident, his entire family died in a car accident. Due to financial shortages, he is forced to sell his family home and move to an old, dilapidated apartment called "Green Home Apartment".
Hyun-Soo spends most of his time playing video games. He decides on a particular day to commit suicide, as that would be the day, he will exhaust all his finances.
A mysterious phenomenon occurred in his life. Humans are turning into monsters, which is not only happening all around them, but the whole world is experiencing it. Hyun-Soo and other residents of the apartment lock themselves inside the building in the hopes of protecting themselves.
Cha Hyun-Soo meets Pyeon Sang-Wook. Pyeon Sang-Wook was a mysterious man with half of his face scarred. The other residents feel uncomfortable being close to him due to his gangster aura.
Lee Eun-Hyeok is a man who leads the people of the green home apartment. Seo Yi-Kyung is a young woman who is a firefighter. Jung Jae-Hun is a Christian believer who fights monsters with a sword.
Hyun-Soo gets infected by the virus, which later is revealed to be a curse. He tries to fight the monsters around him as well as the monster in him with a new will to live and protect the survivors in the apartment.
The final episode ends with Seo Yi-Kyung revealing that she is an ex-special force agent and the residents who survived being taken in a truck. Lee Eun-Hyuk chooses to stay back as the building is collapsing and he is having the symptoms of monsterization. And Hyun Soo is being taken away in a military vehicle.
About the Director
Lee Eung Bok is a famous director who has gained many nominations for his work at the Baeksang Awards. His notable projects are Dream High, Descendants of the Sun, Goblin, Mr. Sunshine, and Sweet Home. His project, "Descendants of the Sun," won the Grand Prize of the Baeksang Award in 2016.
Personal Opinion
Sweet Home is more action and character development-driven than my initial assumption that it is any other apocalyptic series or movie. People turn into monsters. Humanity has to survive, but in the midst of it all, Sweet Home asks one important question: "What does it mean to be human?" and explores it throughout all the episodes.
It shows the best and the worst sides of humanity-the will to survive that can unite or turn people against each other; the will to be humane as a way of fighting against the circumstances, but also using the horrifying situation as an excuse to abandon empathy.
This show tells us how humans with greed and selfish intentions can be more dangerous than some monsters. And how monsters can also be helpful and save humans too.
Famous Dialogues
"There are monsters that don't harm humans" - Hyun Soo
"But will there be humans that don’t harm monsters?" - Jung Ui-Myeong
"When someone is sure about keeping a promise when it's hardly possible, then there is a good chance it is a lie." - Lee Eun-Hyuk
"Not being afraid of death and wanting to die are different things." - Ahn Gil-Seob
"Humans are the scariest"- Kim Sang-Ho
The Bottom Line
The major arc of this series is embellished with a metaphor. Sweet home in a deeper sense uses monsters as a representation of humans' deep negative thoughts and emotions. It is just as dark, destructive, and dangerous as the fictional entity that symbolizes it.
The monster depicted in the series takes the form of humans' hideous nature. To put it in simple words, humans breed these monsters through the greed and despair we allow to grow inside us. It is up to us for these monsters to kill the remaining humans and take over.
Hyun-Soo’s case itself is the most profound example. His living in despair and having no faith in humanity could have easily turned him into a monster. But for the sake of saving the children and others' gratitude towards him for saving them helps him in resisting the process of turning into a brutal monster.
This series is for anyone who is into the thriller genre, with an in-depth take on humans' mental and emotional side. It is one of the greatest and bone-chilling Korean series I have ever watched, and I would recommend others to watch it as well. If you have watched this series or intend to watch it, there might be a second season.
My ratings for the show - 4 on 5
You may watch the show on - Netflix
Written By - Melita Pinto
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