We’re back with a new K-drama review, this time all about the wonderfully dark crime drama ‘Beyond Evil’. The JTBC show was directed by Sim Na-Yeon and written by Kim Soo-Jin who also wrote ‘Mad Dog’.
This show was a wild ride from start to finish. If you’re into crime dramas at all, definitely keep on reading!
Plot
The 2021 series ‘Beyond Evil’ tells the story of two police agents trying to catch a serial killer who was active twenty years ago and has struck again.
Shin Ha-Kyun portrays agent Lee Dong-sik. His sister was a victim of the serial killer twenty years ago and the entire town still believes him to be the killer despite having no evidence to prove that claim. Even his friends are still on the fence on whether or not he killed his sister.
There’s a new cop in town with the arrival of Han Joo-Won (Yeo Jin-Goo). He’s the son of Han Ki-Hwan played by Choi Jin-Ho. Han KI-Hwan is very high-up in the National Police Agency and is about to become the commissioner general.
Han Joo-Won is there, very much with a chip on his shoulder, to try to solve the cold case. He’s pretty convinced that it’s Lee Dong-sik who’s the serial killer. They’re assigned to be partners and it causes a lot of tension. Though, it seems that Lee Dong-sik is thriving on it, causing even more chaos. It’s not like he’s acting very innocently.
The thing with small towns is that usually everyone’s a liar. They all have stuff to hide and promises are made to people who don’t deserve it. Blackmail is very efficient and used often. It’s rather insane, really.
There’s a lot more to the plot, but I think that in this case, it’s better to just jump in it so you can experience it yourself.
Overall
Shin Ha-kyun and Yeo Jin-Goo (‘Start-Up‘, ‘Hotel Del Luna’) did such an amazing acting job. They really helped carry the story and dialed the intensity up a notch. The energy between the two crackled with energy. It was brilliant.
The screenwriter did such an amazing job with this one. I was at the edge of my seat, not knowing who to believe or where the story was going next. It was a master showcase in tension and how to tell a story little by little.
I wasn’t the only one who really enjoyed it. ‘Beyond Evil’ was nominated for six Baeksang Awards and ended up winning three. They won Best Drama, Best Screenplay, and Best Actor for Shin Ha-kyun.
Also check out the OST on Spotify because it was awesome. There’s music by Choi Baek Ho, BIBI, Sunwoo Jung Ah and Car, the garden.
Take a look at the trailer here.
The drama is currently available to watch on Netflix.
