All About Eve

Cast:

Jang Dong Gun
Chae Rim
Han Jae Seok
Kim So Yeon

I was all the ime curious of why the drama was called "All About Eve" I thought the main character's name is Eve but hey, obviously korean names were used in the drama. I even asked my mother, who watched the dubbed Tagalized version of the drama in local channel from time to time. So, I told myself, I have to watch it! Only then, I learned that the Eve they were pertaining to slices into two meanings: the morning show in the story and the biblical figure's metaphor for women.

First of all, this wasn't as enticing as novel Koreanovelas because this was dated back into 2000. The setting is always and forever in Seoul but they did some shots in England, which is a very important place in the story. My friend lent me the Chinese dubbed copy, so I can't give their Korean names in the story. I will use their names in the Tagalog version to make things simplier instead.

There is always dichotomy in the story because of the two powerful "Eve." The good and the bad. The rich and the poor. The loved and the heartbroken. The talented and the lucky. I can say, they balance human nature.

Let's start with the good one. Nicole, played by the cheerful-eyed Chae Rim had a sunny, rainbow-colored life. She has a hardworking and loving father. Even if she doesn't have a mother, she has her Aunt (not biological) around. She has a bestfriend named Warren who's been as good as an older brother to her. She studies in a good school, wears signature clothes, lives in a good home and eats very well. She is cheerful, kindhearted and a crybaby.

The bad one is Erica. After her mother left them when she was 6, her father barely cared about her. He often gets home drunk and beats her. She is the reckless and rebellious one. When her father died, Nicole's father fell into her pitiful trap, offered to help her and decided to take her in.
She leveled up with Nicole. They went to the same university, took the same course. She became ravenous for wealth, attention, love and fame. She wanted everything that she never had and most especially, everything that sweet and fragile Nicole has. As the turn of events went on, she became greedier and more evil. No one can stand in her way. When she wants something, she uses her beauty, talent and her pitiful life stories as webs to get that person trapped so that eventually, she gets what she desired and aimed for.

These two characters are on the opposite poles. One an angel, the other a devil. It can even be a metaphor for South and North Korea but that's beside the point. The point is, they are extreme protagonist and antagonist. But even if they are so much different from each other, the irony lies on the fact that they share a lot of common things. They both wanted to be in the mass communication stream. They worked in the same television station. But most importantly, they love the same people. They complement each other. They're like two hands joined together. The left and the right way. But these occurred not because of fate, not because of coincidence. There must be something or someone who contrived a way.

It was Erica's unstoppable greed. She went against Nicole. She always put on a show to be with Nicole. She challenged Nicole in her one long sacrificing game just to find out how powerful she is. She loved Warren (Han Jae Seok) just to be able to hurt people who are getting in her way and trying to tell her that she is nothing but a pitiful person. She eventually left Warren and aimed for the bigger fish, Kenneth (Jang Dong Gun) when she knew that he likes Nicole and he is the successor of MBS, his father's television company.

All characters did have a role to play. Some drama/shows oftentimes make way for new characters just because there is a hot actor/actress in the limelight and they need to cast him/her so they adjust the storyline for that. That is so popular in Tagalog telenovelas. The story complicates because of too many names, too many people around. Useless people. Only good for visual feast, only ornaments of television.

If I will choose my favorite character in the story, who else? Jang Dong Gun, because he is very handsome, he has a cute smile and a brushed-up look. Haha. He looks perfect. Kidding aside, I didn't like him just because of his looks. I like him as Kenneth. The easy-going, happy-go-lucky but not so happy-go-lucky, prudent, sensible person. He is in between being mature and juvenile.

He is somewhere in the middle of serious and stupid. He might appear as someone who takes his job lightly but if you really see things in a different manner, he is very hardworking. But most of all, I like his patience. He is not a boss who will power-trip just to get what he wants. He goes with flow but in a good way. He doesn't force people. He waits. He knows what he wants but still waits, even if there were a lot of opportunities to grab the bigger stake, he just sits in his office, ponders and waits.

If there will be something that I learned from watching this beautiful and really engaging soap opera, that is you can't force love. It is possible to learn how to love a person but you have to bear with time. You can't force it right away, then and there. You can't kiss a person and say that, that person loves you already. Patience is really a virtue.



Lapses, loopholes? They are inevitable. I don't like what they did with Warren's character. They made him a robot, a living zombie. I disliked him. I disliked him more that I did for Erica. He is what you call the epitome of "stupid, bobo, tanga" Love is a powerful emotion. Although, like what he said about love, that it is never right or wrong, it is all or nothing, he still never should have loved one person at the expense of hurting more than one. Well, as the song goes, love moves in mysterious ways. What was pitiful about him was he never saw the light. Well, I take that back. He did learn and realized about Erica's evilness but instead of putting a stop to it, he was blinded by it.

Miscellaneous comments? If Warren was blinded by the "light", Nicole's father didn't have the chance to see it. He was the most stagnant one in the story. There wasn't a transition in his character. He remained a loving father to Nicole and a helpful and understanding to the pitiful Erica. Oftentimes, he was the one blamed by Nicole's aunt for bringing an evil woman into their lives. Well, this next one is not at all important, but Kim Jung Eun is in this soap. She looked pretty, much much pretty than her days in Paris.

Jang Dong Gun and Kim Jung Eun

I recommend this movie for the impatient, the greedy and the power-struggling people. How can I ever forget, newscasters and broadcasting wannabes should get tips in this one, too. I must say, there are a lot to know. :)