17th Completed Drama: White Christmas

White Christmas
Synonyms: Monster
Episodes: 8
Country: South Korea
Aired: Jan. 30, 2011 - Mar. 20, 2011
Network: KBS2
Duration: 1 hr. 5 mins.
Genres: Mystery, Psychological, Thriller
Viewers Rating: 8.7/10
My Rating: 9.5/10
MyDramaList Link

Synopsis: Susin High School, nicknamed "Prison High," is an elite school attended by the top 1% of students in the country. Their stellar marks are the result of constant pressure and a strict punishment system, to the point where students avoid from any activities outside of studying. It is in this atmosphere that seven students and a teacher remain at school for the winter break, joined by Kim Yo Han, a psychiatrist who was forced to take shelter with them after he was involved in a car accident nearby. At a time when everyone else is celebrating Christmas Eve, the students realize that the anonymous letters they each received were not the result of a harmless prank; there was a murderer in their midst. A question lies unspoken: are monsters created, or are humans born monsters?

Cast: Baek Sung Hyun - Park Moo Yul

Lee Som - Yoon Eun Sung

Kim Woo Bin - Kang Mi Reu

Hong Jong Hyun - Lee Jae Kyu

Kwak Jung Wook - Yang Kang Mo

Kim Young Kwang - Jo Young Jae

Sung Joon - Choi Chi Hoon

Lee Soo Hyuk - Yoon Su

Kim Sang Kyung - Kim Yo Han

Review

Contains a lot of spoilers!

General Impressions:

It's hard to find dramas that can be so mind blowing and amazing that it keeps you on the edge of your seat during every single episode. Although White Christmas was short, it was absolutely amazing. I was going into this drama hoping for a lot of death, but when the first actual "death" happened, I was really upset over it. They were one of my favourite characters of White Christmas, and it was awful thinking he was no longer around. Anyway, these sorts of psychological dramas are very hard to find, and you'll never be able to find anything like it.

Story: 10/10

The story of this drama was epic. 7 (actually 8, including Kang Mi Reu) students remaining behind at school during the winter holidays because of letters that were sent to them, because of the sins they had all committed going towards the death of a student. That itself is just an amazing synopsis and was enough to pull me into the amazing world of White Christmas. It's full of thrills, laughter and anxiety, which is all the elements needed to make a great psychological drama.

Acting/Cast: 9.0/10

Everyone in this drama was amazing. Previously, when I watched Hyde, Jekyll, Me and High Society, I didn't have much respect for Sung Joon as an actor, but now, I have a lot. He played his character of Choi Chi Hoon exceptionally and he definitely was one of my favourite characters of the series. I don't know what happened to his acting over time, but at least I know he's done one well done character. But, of course, Kim Woo Bin (who played Kang Mi Reu) was, by far, my most favourite character. From what I've seen, this is Woo Bin's first drama and he did a superb job. His popularity is definitely understood. I also want to give my hand to the actors who played Yang Kang Mo and Lee Jae Kyu, because their acting was so great to watch. The only actor I had a problem with acting was Lee El, who acted out the character of Oh Jung Hye. I liked her at first when she was messing around with Mi Reu, but her acting dropped rapidly when she came across Kim Yo Han. I don't want to see that happening when a character suddenly changes. If the character changes, the acting still shouldn't.

Music: 10/10

I loved the soundtrack to White Christmas, it was such a lovely listen. My favourites were the Opening Sequence, Is That So, and the one track I don't know the name of but happened during most intense scenes. Although I do wish the staff of White Christmas made its own soundtrack for the drama, but I still loved most songs in it, so I don't mind all that much. Not much else to say, but listening to the entire soundtrack without the drama is such a great thing to do.

Re-watch Value: 9.0/10

I would love to watch this again, but this drama wouldn't be as thrilling to watch when you know what is going to happen. That's the problem with most thriller-psychological dramas. Once you've watched it once, you'll never be able to return to a state of ignorance towards the series, and enjoy it as much as you did the first time.

Final Verdict: 9.5/10

Besides Lee El's sudden acting change, White Christmas was a great ride to watch and I would most definitely recommend this drama to anyone. Anyway, I enjoyed watching White Christmas and it's the most compelling drama I've seen. Also, Kim Woo Bin with red hair is extremely sexy.

Jae Kyu, Mi Reu, Chi Hoon, Young Jae + Kang Mo.