I have a simple rule while watching any movie or TV show. There is a certain level of engagement that I require to sit through the whole thing. If it does not engage me to this minimum level, I leave it regardless of how critically acclaimed it is or how successful it has been commercially. This saves me a lot of time. I save the viewing time and I don’t write about it so more time saved.
There are some shows that just meet the threshold or barely make it. There was a very popular crime show but when I started watching, I found it so bad that I could not go through with it. So I just fast forwarded to find out who the killer was and that was the end of it. I will never mention it again.
I feared I will have to do the same thing when I started watching the South Korean crime thriller Stranger (Korean :비밀의 숲). First few episodes were quite run-of-the-mill using very predictable stratagems to keep the viewer engaged. Even the plot had very obvious tricks – one character is about to say something important and is interrupted and this omission causes a whole series of catastrophes. There were some slow motion sequences as well that the Soap Operas use all the time. Fortunately, just as I was about to give up, the show increased its quality by a 1000. The script became tighter and direction much more watchable. By the time I started watching Stranger : Season 2, I was completely hooked.
Stranger revolves around the public prosecutor Hwang Si-mok (Cho Seung-woo; Korean : 조승우) who has strong character shades of Sherlock Holmes. Due to a brain surgery done in his childhood, Hwang Si-mok is unable to feel any emotions or empathy but his cognitive and deductive skills are remarkable. The good thing about Stranger is they do not overplay this card so we don’t get to see Hwang Si-mok demonstrating his brilliance in every episode. Most of the time he behaves like a normal prosecutor exhibiting his brilliance occasionally. Second lead is played by Han Yeo-jin (Bae Doona; Korean:배두나) who is a Police Lieutenant.
The first season starts with a murder that seems like a robbery at first but later on is revealed to have deeper connections with the corruption and bribery in the Korean government. Things get more complicated with an attempted murder of a prostitute and another murder of a young prosecutor. By the time the truth is revealed, the show has managed to get a complete grip on you.
Second season starts with a low profile. It mainly deals with a problem that has great significance in South Korea – the power struggle between the Police and the Prosecution. There have been many meetings held between these two institutions to resolve long standing issues. There is a case of accidental drowning at a beach but it does not assume any significance till later on. After about half of the season is over, a prominent public prosecutor is kidnapped. This starts the plot on a gripping tale of suspense that promises to have a thrilling finish.
There are a number of remarkable things about Stranger. I am a bit tired of watching American crime shows now. There is a limit to how many times you can watch the investigating team arriving on the crime scene with the immortal question, “what have we got?” followed by someone rattling at high speed all the relevant details. Stranger bypasses all this because it comes from a different culture. The police behave differently and so do the criminals. There are some high speed chases but most of the time the investigators are looking for files, going back to the crime scene for more clues and in general not finding the way easily. This struggle of the investigators to find the right path makes they more real and relatable, unlike Sherlock Holmes who is a superhero and will solve all problems in no time. It’s also the locations. I have seen everything from Las Vegas Strip to Times Square in hundreds of Hollywood movies and TV shows. It’s nice to see the alleys and walkways of Seoul for a change.
Finally, as the COVID pandemic has revealed, the truly developed countries that can successfully battle a pandemic are Germany, New Zealand, Australia and South Korea. It’s high time that their cultures got some mainstream recognition.
Stranger is streaming on Netflix.
