Warning!
It´s mandatory to watch the whole MV before reading this review.
written by: Budy
Now that you’ve watched it – or if you’ve already done so way before my literary intrusion – you’ll understand the need of my previous warning.
“Please Don’t” narrates one of those stories in a music video that you really want to go into without spoilers. As a second heads up, I may say that this will likely be my longest and most serious MV review you’ll get from me. Basically, because my love for this video is ridiculous.
Let me begin by praising the aesthetics of this MV to the high heavens: everything from the subjective shots to the camera movements and the scenes’ transition speed were directed by a mastermind who combined both asian dramatism and subtle technicisms (made up words ftw). My personal favorite? the dark-light contrasts. They are basic but highly effective resources, and when executed by the proper hands, they set the mood intuitively for us. For instance, always assigning our main character the darkest, colder colors creates a subconscious gloomy aura around him. Even without the acting, our minds are inclined to label him as “sad” or “distant”. It’s done everywhere in film, and it works here.
Not kidding
Now, as for the developement of the story, I’m pretty sure that many fans’ expectations were shredded over the walls in the slaughter of whatever convictions they had left. Why? Because we’ve seen countless love stories with sad endings, especially to ballad singles. But we’ve never seen a gay love story like this (“Reply 1997″ aside), especially taking into consideration the taboos of homosexuality in the Korean entertainment industry.
I could spend a million words describing every little scene, but we can sum it up in two main metaphors in two different sets:
1) The car
Seo In Guk‘s character (beautifully interpreted, IMO) finds himself running away with the vision of the bride through a city road at night. But, if we know that he’s not in love with her but with him, shouldn’t both males be the ones escaping, even if it’s just in the protagonist’s imagination? Yes, they should. This is the reason why, as Dasom‘s character (who, i must recognize, did not fail at portraying it) gets sadder and sadder. We get the feeling that she’s not the ghost of a lost love, but from something darker: the inner struggle of our hero to accept himself. And when the revelation strikes the bride, the protagonist, and us, the audience, she fades away, leaving the truth unveiled.
2) The house
Our main character is “trapped” living under the same roof with the groom and the bride. We can make an easy guess and read this situation as a figure for the daily convenience between his feelings and the harsh reality they are opposed to: it’s his painful resignation against the blooming happiness of the couple (talking about contrasts).
I could grow old going on and on about every second of this video, but i’d like to leave the rest to your personal interpretation.
The intention of waking the viewer’s curiosity and creating questions that will never be answered is the goal of this kind of production: if it left you thrilled, then it succeeded. (How much Seo In Guk/Ahn Jae Hyun fanfiction will be written is something no one can answer with certainty)
Honestly, with the flooding amount of videos being released on a daily basis, it’s hard to find jewels like this one trying to catch the remaining rays of attention in an overly saturated market of shiny boxes and weird hairstyles. And yes, I’m probably taking it too seriously but, hey, i think this video deserves it.
McRoth's Residence is a fun blog with quick access to everything McRoth and his friends enjoy. From their fascination for Korean media to their full-fledged reviews on the latest Korean pop music - they'll make sure the hospitality is badass and the content awesome. So, kick back, take a sip of your tea and enjoy your stay.
This MV is the best thing i’ve seen in a while, perfect MV.
it was the same for me,
i was expecting Miss A’s comeback to be something but they failed to portray the epicness their concept needed
Excellent review !!! *-* Thank you. ^.^
thank you for reading o3o
Oh god I love this mv. I watched it because I had nothing better to do, didn’t expect to be so mindblown. It’s perfect.
It is! -u-
The m/v is so well done. Two ladies talked about how you felt so much sympathy for in Guk’s character that when the twist came at the end, it was hard not to accept his hurt and love was real. Just so fantastic.
Yeah, I think I know what video you’re talking about. Like, it works really well to observe the reaction of people who are moved by the emotional strings in the video, regardless of its sexual orientation.
I agree with you, videos like these are hard to find today, and not only in the Korean music scene. I must mention that K.Will’s amazing voice is the last finishing touch, that man has got some amazing pipes! And Seo In Guk (rawr)…he’s such a great actor (and singer) and I’m glad he’s finally getting recognized!
Yeah! This entire production – from song, actors, story – was on point.
I also loved the MV one of my favorites for this year in terms of originality. Only topped by Verbal Jint You deserve better… but just barely.
Mine too. I’ve even gone out of my way to show it to people who don’t even listen to Korean music, simply because I like it so much and watching people’s reactions never ceases to amuse me.
Btw, Hyunseung ftw (I recognize his silhouette lol)
after watching this mv, i just want yunjae-junhee to be together…. the characters are really like those in reply 1997 (esp seo inguk’s, all those yunjae frustrated expression) except that they switched place. ahaha. xD
great mv indeed. thanks for your review~ ^^b
thank you for reading o3o
i think everyone can relate to reply 1997 xD
i honestly think SIG is too underrated, i’m glad he’s getting some recon
anyway, seo inguk’s expression since the beginning with dasom shows his frustration… i feel zero love from him to this girl. and it’s actually rather obvious since in the middle when they showed up their rings. notice seo inguk’s expression when it’s dasom who show the ring, and when it’s the guy… when dasom shows up with the wedding dress, you can also see how he’s so unaffected by it, compared to when the guy came to pick dasom. the emotion contrast is rather obvious.
seo inguk is really an amazing actor~ xD
and this song is different from usual k-will’s cheessy melody. i love it.
I read on the official site it was about him not wanting to lose his best friend for the girl. And then I was like “WOW, my grandma was right!”(she never thought it could be gay xD)