IRIS (2009)

Again another show that will be forgotten asap. Was great, would have given it a 9 all the way around if it werent for the ending. Put simply... Who the hell wants to remember a story with such a crappy ending. Again i say to writers:
If you want people to remember something, make them forget their own troubles and sadness when they recall what they've watched. If you want them to forget, give them a crappy ending like this one to make them feel like they've just wasted all those hours watching something they wish they haddent. Why bother to put so much time and effort into something that leaves such a sickening feeling behind?

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My first Action drama ever (huge romcom fan), I took a chance due to my new found obsession with Jang Hyuk...

Story: Fast paced and unpredictable, revenged themed, with an angsty love-line thrown in. The ending is WTF!

Acting/Cast: This my first Lee Byung Hun led drama. Well what an introduction it was! Not only is he good looking but he is an amazing actor that was made for this role. He had such an amazing chemistry with Kim Tae Hee. Although I really like her, I think Kim So Yeon kind of stole the show. All of the rest of the lead and supporting actors were perfect. They really casted this one well! Just be prepared to see some characters come and go...

Music: Actually a really good mix that fit when the mood changed (romantic to action scenes).

Rewatch: I loved the entire cast and the plot was exciting so I definitely will watch this one again but not for a bit case the ending left a bitter taste.

Final Thoughts: I dare anyone who hasnt seen this to give it a try if they want an exciting 20 hour ride!

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IRIS drama is about a National Security System agent who attempts to take down a secret organization. After the introductory opening episodes, the missions are similar to what one would find in the American "24" series (excluding the "real time" element), with agents attempting to stop terrorist attacks with the use of satellites and information support technicians.

Of course, this is in the Korean style with some romance and melodrama blended in. Acting is top notch, with Byung-hun Lee in the lead role and a very good supporting cast: Tae-hee Kim (his love interest and fellow agent), Seung-woo Kim (a North Korean agent) and So-yeon Kim (as the gorgeous North Korean sniper). Production values are slick, the scoring is great at times, and the pacing is very fast for a K-drama with plenty of shootouts (a few of which are fantastic) and suspense. Storyline is cliched but the secret organization is intriguing and represents a brilliant little twist on the North/South Korean conflict. Consequently, the relationships between the characters change significantly in exciting ways and the viewer will have an emotional investment in the protagonists. Highly addictive stuff.

Production values are through the roof; various exotic locales, terrific cinematography, blazing gunfights and action scenes…they spared no expense here (for a TV series), and it definitely shows on screen.

Two marines who are friends get recruited by the NSS (National Security System). While there, they meet the primary love interest who is their sub section chief responsible for training them. The 2 friends quickly take to their new jobs as secret agents, and are soon deployed in the field. The NSS is primarily engaged with dealing with their North Korean counterparts, but, it soon becomes apparent there is a shadow organization at work behind the scenes known as Iris…the goal of Iris is too pretty much pit the 2 Koreas (and other nations) against each other, so they can profit and rise to world power.

After the botched mission by the 2 friends/leads, this show basically boils down to a matter of slowly uncovering what everybody's motives are, who's working for whom, who's ultimately good and who's ultimately evil, etc…Along the way, there's your main love interest storyline, the main friendship storyline, people being good and people being evil, characters reconciling with themselves and others over time in regards to what they believe is right and wrong, etc.

This show is very entertaining and highly addictive. I would also like to note that I've always loved the fact that there seems to be no clear delineation between "movie star" and "TV actor" in Korean productions. Main actors and actresses go back and forth between the 2 mediums seemingly at will, and that makes for some terrific performances when you might be inclined to expect less since "you're just watching a television show".

Highly watchable…whether it be for the typical melodrama & intrigue inherent to this Koren Television genre, or for the electrifying gun battles in the rush hour streets of downtown Seoul, or for the story & performances, or for just about anything and everywhere in between.

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daebak!! this show was well done starting with the acting, cast and everything else. i heard this was one of the most expensive movie to be made including fugitive plan b with bi-rain. byung hun oppa did an amazing job as always, he was born to do action. t.o.p was awsome too being this is the first time i saw him acting. he did a great job being the cold assasin. miss beautiful kim tae hee was gorgeous and i loved the romance with her and byung hun shi. lemmie just say it had my favorite kiss scene of all dramas, the bed scene was just hotugo hotugo and the candy kiss and the hotel kiss i mean guys look forward to it. the action, betrayal and intelligence was well edited and directed. kudos to the cast and director.

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This drama was addicting. I watched it completely in two sittings and one all-nighter. The story was a tale of how evil influences can break even the tightest of bonds. The two main leads, Lee Byung Hun and Kim Tae Hee, were fabulous in their roles. Their romance was burning with passionate skin ship scenes and care for one another. Their acting was emotion-filled and made me feel like I was actually there with them in the scene. I also enjoyed the partner relationship between the 2nd FL and the ML, which was actually supportive and caring without being overbearing. The script completely captivated me into this genre of action spy dramas. The action scenes were well-choreographed and packed with high adrenaline gun fights. The ending was tragic but fitting as it was nearly impossible for the ML to have a happy ending after pissing off the underlying antagonists throughout the series. The OST was great, but the cinematography was terrible with random screen zooms and shaky cam.

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Iris is like a taste of Alias, only in male form and a downer story line. I loved the fact that Lee Byung Hun was casted here along with Kim Tae-hee. The story is deemed to be heavy starting from the beginning but just lost me as it was about to end. It got all messy for the wrong reasons and the twists weren’t enough to put fire on my ass and say, “Gaaaaad… that was awesome.”

So I’m leaving the story line behind with all my rants at the backroom.

Why recommend IRIS after saying that?

The cast (I have fallen in love with the antagonist! Why is T.O.P. one heck of a slick villain???), back drop setting (they actually went to different countries just to shoot) and music was all a just a plus points for the series, what made it really recommendable was THE ACTION. As I have mentioned earlier it was like ALIAS. Kick ass and butt full of action. The fight scenes were really eye popping it makes it hard to think that it wasn’t a movie but just a drama. They outdid themselves in the choreography with the fight scenes, battle up gear and stunts. So yes. I am recommending it for scenes with: Judo moves and gun shots. Run-for-your-life-while-bleeding-on-the-left-side-of-your-gut-crazed-looks while guns are aimed dead-on skulls. Even dying beautifully while tears streaming down the face would be pretty much catchy for me.

Have I gone to the other side by having a man’s taste? Probably. Yet, with Iris. I simply don’t care as long as I get one full hour of action.

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Я начала смотреть шпионскую дорамку, для меня первую. Тем более на днях посмотрела фильм "Объединенная зона безопасности" и прониклась главным героем. Он и тут Гг. один из...Ну вот, прошло полгода и я все таки досмотрела эту дораму. И не скажу, что с трудом, она интересная, но получилось только дозировано выдержать сие действо. Потому что рояли в кустах были так навалены, что было трудно протиснуться. Однако, что необычно в дорамах, именно к середине стало логично и понятно, да еще прибавилась та любовно-романтическая линия за которую я болела и поэтому стало смотреться совсем хорошо.
Ох, как же я болела за Ченжуна и Сонхва, хотя и понимала, что ничего у них не будет от слова совсем. Но она призналась в своих чувствах, он их принял и всё. А как она всегда смотрела на него и Сынхи, боль в глазах была такой явной и всем понятной.
Сама идея тайной организации а-ля масоны не просто не нова, а так уж стара как... мир. Так и не понятны остались мотивы "Айрис", хотя поверю и в деньги да власть, потому что даже у северокорейских террористов, окрыленных борьбой за родину, было больше огня в глазах, чем у наемников в последних сериях. Но списать все на одну организацию, никогда не работало. К сожалению, в мире таких "Айрисов" в каждом государстве, и не факт, что не государством и лелеемые.
Ну да ладно, зато есть повод для сиквела.

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