East of Eden

East of Eden is a complex heart-wrenching tale about love, family, vengeance, justice, and sacrifice. The story begins in a small mining town during the 1960's. Lee Ki Chul, an honest hard working miner becomes a threat to his power hungry manager Shin Tae Hwan. Lee Ki Chul, a man who only wants what's best for his fellow workers goes head to head with Shin Tae Hwan. Shin Tae Hwan, a man obsessed with greed and power resorts to the worst means by making Lee Ki Chul and his family suffer. When Lee Ki Chul suffers a terrible fate at the hands of Shin Tae Hwan, it is the start of an ongoing feud between the Lees and the Shins. The fateful day arrives when the wives' of Lee Ki Chul and Shin Tae Hwan both give birth to a son at the same time and at the same hospital. Lee Ki Chul's wife conceives another son Lee Dong Wook. Shin Tae Hwan's wife conceives their first born Shin Myung Hoon. It is the birth of these two sons that begins the next generation of this family feud. Lee Dong Chul, the eldest son of Lee Ki Chul, takes it upon himself as well as his younger brother Lee Dong Wook to one day bring Shin Tae Hwan to justice after what he did to their beloved father. Shin Myung Hoon inherits the same cruel intentions as his father and naturally becomes Lee Dong Wook's nemesis. The new generation of this feud is well established, but once a terrible truth is revealed about the fateful day when Lee Dong Wook and Shin Myung Hoon were born, things take a frightful turn for the worst. This terrible truth adds more complexity and heartache to this ongoing family feud and both the Lee and Shin familys' worlds are turned upside down.Tensions run highest when love and family loyalty are put to the test. This is an epic tale of the sons suffering the sins of their fathers and doing everything in their power to set things right for the future generation. East Of Eden with it's amazing cast of characters will fill you with an intense range of emotions as the story unfolds.

What impressed me the most about this drama is that it's really a Catholic story hence the title "East Of Eden" and a certain biblical reference in the climax of the story. One of the characters is a Catholic priest who is there to advise the key characters in their darkest hour. It is the priest who recognizes the strengths and weaknesses of the other characters and advises them to choose the right path.The countless sins of Shin Tae Hwan build one on top of the other and carry on to the next generation. And last but not least Lee Dong Chul is truly the "Christ" figure of the story as he puts others before himself and sacrifices for his loved ones. East Of Eden clearly demonstrates the harmfulness of sin and how it effects us all.

This is actually my first really seriously intense k-drama I've seen thus far. Certainly a big change from the usual quirky romance comedies I've enjoyed lately. East Of Eden can be seen as an epic love story, although it touches base on other issues like family relations and the cold cruel side of the business world and not to mention it's packed with lots of action and choreographed stunts. This adds for more variety and makes this drama pretty much a "whole package" deal that's enjoyable for a wider audience range. I wasn't completely satisfied with certain aspects of the story particularly with a few characters, but nothing overly disappointing. Overall I was impressed with the story and I loved the ending despite many that would disagree. In fact I can understand why the ending would be disappointing to many but if you really understand Catholic morality, the ending makes perfect sense. Perhaps which is why my opinion would be considered biased since I am a Catholic. To me it truly was a happy ending. East Of Eden is a definite must-see for all!!

I'm on Eps. 27 right now but I have to say so far: 3/5
Wished there was more romance development with Dong Chul and Grace. I really hated his mother many times. She's is just so annoying sometimes and loud and cranky! I know that's her character, but enough is enough already. Film definitely outdid her role. The story line keeps getting more intense and complex (as a drama should) but I'm already half way there, and I hope it ties everything at the end and not be a mess like many dramas (aka "Boys Over Flowers"- that's another story I do not want to get into.) I know that the (actress) daughter of Hansae Daily will leave before the drama ends, so I hope she left in good story pace with a love interest (the prince?) and we just don't see her gone and hanging. Also, very poor acting on the Non-Korean actors, mainly Mike. He needs more acting lessons, but a cute hottie halfie.
And the Korean actors definitely need to improve on their English. If a drama/film is going to use and speak this much English (film was very international-diff places, ppl, languages) please speak it clearer and pronounce each word, not just clump the words into a slur and long run on sentence. It does really annoy me when people try to speak English and cannot. I don't care about accents, but gosh lots of bad English I couldn't even understand unless I read the subtitles. (In ep 26 I think, the one fake Chinese mob guy, who's really Korean, spoke very good English!! I loved it! It was when he went to meet w/Dong Chul and the other guys in a conference).

The film definitely needed new actors for children characters: 1) Dong Chul starts off as a 5 year old kid. The actor for that role I believe was a little too old and independent and intelligent for a 5 year old. Even though here, many people could argue kids these days are getting a lot smarter. It's just hard for me considering he's a young boy in a desolate coal mine village with uneducated people. No offense.
2) Ki Sun (sister) as a younger girl. 2nd mother got knocked up before the father died, so the baby girl should only be a year younger than the second son. Instead as children, we see a very young girl. The eldest brother is 15 (very good actor who looks 15) and young brother is 10 yrs old (looks and act 10) but the sister we see a very wide age age between the brother and her. Even though they should only be a year apart.
3) Tae Ho (Ji Hyun's son w/"enemy"). First 3 years passed, then 2 years passed. So he should be 5 yrs old now. Instead the film uses the same actor kid for both ages 3 and 5. I wouldn't had really mind them using the same actor since he did talked more as a 5 year old in the film than he did when he was "3". But I do mind, because compare to (see #1) Dong Chul who also started off as a 5 year old, we see drastic comparison. Dong Chul's speech and mannerism is so much more developed. He's running around, speaking full sentences to adults and following his father around. But Tae Ho is still a baby needed to be carried by his parents, sleeps in a crib, etc. Barely can talk. What is up with that? A good film (drama) should be consistent. If they are going to have smart 5 year olds, then keep all 5 years old the same level.

Another thing with the Age thingie is that, gosh everyone should be much older now. I guess it's okay with the parents, by putting white stuff in their hair to dictate their aging, but there was a part where Dong Chul was working (owned) the scrap metal place and his mother comes with food to celebrate his right hand man's (traitor guy with scar on face) birthday. He said he was 30 years old. This is the problem here. How can he be only 30 years old. Dong Chul should be at least 30 already so he had to be older since as kids when they first met, Dong Chul was only 15 and the rest of the gang was older than him. Come on think about it. First like 10 years passed, then 3, then 2 (these are the ones I remembered) so at least 15 years passed, so Dong Chul who escaped at 15 should be at least 30 now right??

These are minor details that people probably didn't pick up or didn't care about, but it bothers me when a film (which I expected to be very good) is not even consistent or considerate with these minor details. I'm sorry if it sounds like I am just complaining a lot but I promise to write a better, positive review once I'm done with the series!

Have fun watching!

Although this story was very long, I have to say it was very addicting. The storyline of "Switched at Birth" has true depth. Not only that but to know this fact from the beginning and the anxiety of waiting for how both switched sons turn out and how their reaction of finding out (along with the main character Dong-Chul's Story line) is, as I had said- Addicting!! I have to express my disappointment in the end. I will not write any other spoilers on here- All I will say is I cried at the end. Drama worth watching!!!

East of Eden is the first Korean Movie I actually watched all Episodes...okay cut to the point..I'm just totally in love with Song Seung Hun...I think he's the best Korean actor ever..he's got the laugh, the look, the tears, the hair...he's got everything that only makes it easier for the acting..the acting came out naturally...okay this movie is the totally the best ever...

East of Eden is a very heavy, dramatic, emotionally draining drama. The synopsis appealed to me every single form when I came across it. Switched babies? Cruel fate? Suffering? There's no question that this is a melodrama through and through..and I am so there. It was also a perk knowing about 98% of the main cast from their other drama productions. I honestly do not know how the casting director was able to get so many big names to act in EOE, but props to them. The acting throughout the drama was high class because of the careful selection. At times though, the acting was too polished and it came off as overdramatic. It did take me about 6 months to finish East of Eden because I couldn’t handle watching a whole slew of episodes in one sitting. It was a little too depressing and too heavy on my feelings at times. However, I was able to get through all the tears and eventually finish it.

The writing did become a little awkward and draggy around the middle, but I think that had something to do with the new writer taking over from the one who became sick. If you paid attention close enough and knew the characters well enough, you could tell that there was a contrast between what the new writer had in mind opposed to the original one. I think because of those creative differences, it did affect the drama and did strip it of a few layers. Example, in the beginning half of the drama Dong Chul’s mom tried very hard to get him on the right track and away from the mobster life style. But in the 2nd half, after the time skip, she seemed to turn a blind eye and no longer cared. Those kinds of changes make me mad because I think it added more complexity to the storyline and gave Lee Min Sook a firmer role as a strong, bold mother who wants her child to life a righteous life. I thought it was more realistic and admirable.

However, I do not fully blame the new writer for the inconsistent writing of the drama. I think Lee Da Hae’s decision to leave in the middle of production also made a huge impact on the drama. I’m sure it was not easy for the new writer to deal with something like this in the middle of filming when they had the plot already laid out: Lee Da Hae’s character, Hye Rin, shakes up the Lee brother’s relationship. And you know what makes it even juicier...that are not even brothers! Perhaps if they continued to make love the center focus, it would have kept and drawn in more viewers. Who can honestly say why they stopped watching East of Eden except the viewer themselves. In my opinion, despite its flaws, it was definitely worth watching until the very end. The first writer got me hooked and once the second writer was comfortable she was able to reel me in.

Wow...where do I start? I loved this drama. I'd probably rank it number 1 or 2 on my list. I started watching this as a result of boredom, only to find myself pleasantly surprised. Honestly speaking, the first 2 episodes start out slow and there is a lot of crying. It was quite disturbing for me to watch until I got used to it. Afterwards, the story really starts. It's about 2 brothers out to get revenge for their father who died a wrongful death, only later to find they had purposely been switched at birth. Surrounding this story contains many other stories that are intertwined to create a suspenseful, wonderfully created drama. Even though it was 56 episodes, it never seemed to drag, each episode making you want to watch more and more. The music itself was amazing. Each character had their own theme, each song making you feel a different way when watching. There's probably so much else I can say, but I'll stop. So..anyone who's reading this...go and watch it!

Song Seung Hun - as Lee Dong Chul, the son of coal miner union leader Lee Ki Chul. After he personally heard Shin Tae Wan order to bury his father in the mining area, it had been his life goal to take revenge for his father's death.

I am totally in love with Song Seung Hun and I try my best not be biased when I give comments about him. People are saying he don't deserve the daesang for this drama but after watching it, I do believe he does. He may not be the "best" actor in Korea but you can see that he did give his all for this drama. He went all out with the action scenes, crying his way through the drama scenes, smiling once in a while to ease my aching heart because he looks so sad through out the drama (ok, so that last one is just for me.. =P). But everyone had to admit that he did do his best and I'm happy he did well. I'm looking forward to a lighter project for him next, not something this heavy. I want to see a happier Seung Hun. ^_^

Yun Jung Hoon - as Lee Dong Wook, grew up to be the young brother to Lee Dong Chul but is actually the real son of Shin Tae Hwan. A reckless boy who promised his brother to study hard and get Shin Tae Hwan by law. Graduated from Seoul University and passed the bar exams, he became a prosecutor that eventually crosses path with his brother and real father.

Yun Jung Hoon has a very charming face. Playing a younger brother to Song Seung Hun fits him well. With his soft features and cute dimples, he needs extra effort to act angry but he does have his shining moments. Specially after he discovered that he's the real son of Shin Tae Hwan, I think he stepped up in his acting more.

Park Hae Jin - as Shin Myung Hun, the real son of Lee Ki Chul but with the twist of fate grew up to be the son of Shin Tae Hwan. He's naturally kind hearted but Shin Tae Hwan is constantly grooming him to be just like him.

I think Park Hae Jin did quite good specially being a newbie. He's just way too thin, he needs to get some meat on those bones. And he's even more gentle looking than Yun Jung Hoon. I feel like he's going to break when he was being dragged and beaten by those goons. I also saw him as one of the guests in Family Outing and he's a shy young man. He and Han Ji Hye looks so good together.

Lee Yeon Hee - as Gook Yong Ran, the only daughter of the casino tycoon Gook Dae Hwa. She's free spirited and does what she wants on her own. She fell in love with Lee Dong Chul and eventually became his wife.

Watching Lee Yeon Hee, I had to constantly remind myself that she's only 21 years old. She takes on roles that are more mature than her age but she's doing fine. Not really great acting and still has a lot to work on but she has charm and I would like to see her in a cute role in the future too.

Han Ji Hye - as Kim Ji Hyun, childhood friend of the Lee brothers and Shin Myung Hun. The first love of Lee Dong Wook but married Shin Myung Hun, the man that loved her since childhood.

Out of all the girls in this drama, I think Han Ji Hye did the best. She was able to absorb her role from the poor orphan girl to becoming the ambitious mother that is totally the woman counterpart of Shin Tae Hwan. I didn't think much of her acting from her previous works but this time, she did really well.

Lee Da Hae - as Min Hye Rin, the illegitimate daughter of the chairman of a very popular newspaper, Han Sae Daily. She had a very hard life being an outsider in her own family. She got tied up with the Lee brothers but ended up with no one.

I really felt sad when Lee Da Hae decided to leave the drama before it ends. I really liked her from before but I honestly felt turned off when she didn't fulfill her obligation. I'm sure it's a pretty hard decision for her but one that must be done. She must be going through some hardship while filming the drama because you can see it in her acting. She's bland to the extent of being boring. I still like her though, I even waited for the release of her new music video with Taiwanese singer Wilber Pan. Still pretty... I hope she picks a much lighter and more cheerful project next time.

Jo Min Ki - as Shin Tae Hwan, the evil tycoon that will do anything to gain power and money. The arch enemy of Lee Dong Chul and wanted him dead for so long.

Now this is great acting! I hated him while watching the drama but loved him when I saw him in the behind the scenes clips. He's a funny man in real life! He's definitely one of the reason why East of Eden became a great drama, because of great actors like him is in it.

Lee Mi Sook - as Yang Choon Hee, Dong Chul's mother. Strict and cold woman that loves both of her children more than her own life.

Another great actress! The older generation in the drama hold so much strength that gave this drama it's well deserved high rating.

Yoo Dong Geun - as Gook Dae Hwa, the casino mogul and father of Guk Young Ran. He "adopted" Lee Dong Chul to become his right hand.

Special mention is always deserving for good actors and Yoo Dong Geun is one of them. Love him, hate him, it's all there in the drama.

Kim Bum - as young Lee Dong Chul.

It's not that big a role for Kim Bum appearing in only a few episodes in a 56-episode drama but he surely shone. His great acting was so notable that I felt bad he didn't get any award for it. I'm sure he will have more chances in the future to show his acting prowess and with all the work lined up for him, I'm so looking forward for this young man to shine brighter in the future. Being the young Song Seung Hun is perfect for him!


Summary

Lee Ki Chul, a coal mine union leader was killed in an explosion and was announced to be an unfortunate accident. But his son Lee Dong Chul know better, he heard it directly from Shin Tae Hwan ordering his father's death.

Lee Dong Wook and Shin Myung Hun, two babies born on the same day and the same hospital suffered a crazy twist of fate when their lives were inter-changed. The nurse Yoo Mi Ae wanting revenge for her child's death killed by Shin Tae Hwan switch the babies and turned their lives up side down.

With the sole aim to put Shin Tae Hwan down, Lee Dong Wook worked so hard to become a prosecutor to judge Shin Tae Hwan by law. But when he came to know that Shin Tae Hwan is his biological father, it almost made him want to go crazy. The man he hated most in his life is his real father.

On the other hand, knowing the truth gave Shin Myung Hun the freedom to be free from the evil Shin Tae Hwan. He was opposed to his father's evil ways from the very beginning. He now have a chance to change Tae Sung Group and make it a clean company.

Lee Dong Chul lives for the people he loves. He takes the blame for a wrong doing of his brother that changed his life forever. He became a "dog" to Gook Dae Hwa to go back to Korea and help his brother make his dreams come true. Until the very end, he gave up his life for his brother.

I have to say that this is one of the best dramas I've ever watched! I usually stay away from heavy dramas because they're usually boring and too melodramatic for my taste. But this revolves around family and not just about love which made it more interesting. From episode 1, I enjoyed every moment of it already.

Of course there were parts that was dragged too much and repetitive (kidnapping in every other chance they get?! what are they thinking?). But it's a 56 episode drama and what can you expect? There are scenes that I also find odd like Dong Chul getting beaten to a pulp multiple times but he never get hospitalized even once. Everybody got treated but not him. He's the invincible Lee Dong Chul, lol! XD Another thing that I didn't like is the ending. I don't know why they have to make Dong Chul brake his promise of protecting Guk Ja? Who's going to protect her now?! It's a totally unnecessary ending in my opinion.

But whatever, this drama definitely have it's shining moments in between that makes up for every flaw it may have. Definitely a must watch for all Korean drama fanatics out there. ^^

Rating: 9/10