[HanCinema's Drama Review] "Remember" Episode 10

While the story in "Remember" moves in a fairly predictable pattern, it's a pattern that changes and reorients itself so often that I'm constantly forgetting when the drama just did the exact same plot point practically a few minutes ago. Writer Yoon Hyeon-ho is without a doubt the master of distracting out-of-nowhere segues. Fainting? Never mind that there's legal adventures to be had! Witness intimidation? Wait, there's a gangster showdown at the junkyard! Look, more improbable courtroom theatrics! Melodrama! Witness intimidation again!

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The hurricane of improbabilities in "Remember" is so powerful there's not even any point in engaging them at this point. I'm not competing with Sisyphus in terms of impossible goals here. Although I imagine Satan is probably taking notes right now on the best way to punish me in the afterlife- force William Schwartz to fully document and explain every single improbable thing that happens in "Remember". That's gotta be good for at least a year or two of eternal damnation. In this world, though, I'm just going to remind you all that "conflict of interest" is, in theory, pretty important for lawyers.

That's the main caveat with which "Remember" can be understood and defended- in theory. Because while the legal system is supposed to work in a certain way every country, not just South Korea, has cases where basic ethical standards are ignored because government officials think that reasonable doubt only applies to innocent people. Ludicrous though the trappings in "Remember" are, that's the basic angry sentiment of injustice the drama is tapping into.

That and the melodrama. And credit given where it's due, director Lee Chang-min-I does manage to make the tragic ending here seem more tragic than forced. Mostly I'm just really surprised that the production ended up taking this direction because what conflict is even left at this point? Sure, there's plenty of villains who still need comeuppance but how exactly is Jin-woo's legal team supposed to do anything about that now?

Probably the same way everything has been happening in "Remember" so far. The production team is going to make it up as they go along. As much as I'd like to attack "Remember" for being so obviously out there, lately it seems like a lot of dramas have been dipping into dullness from otherwise strong concepts. Coming from that context, I can appreciate that "Remember" makes such a powerful effort to insure that its viewers don't start to get sleepy.

Review by William Schwartz

"Remember" is directed by Lee Chang-min-I, written by Yoon Hyeon-ho and features Yoo Seung-ho, Park Min-young, Park Sung-woong, Namkoong Min, Jung Hye-sung and Jun Kwang-ryul

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