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Reviews
Baekmanjangja-ui cheot-sarang (2006)
For the title, a surprisingly good movie.
First of all, let me preface this with that I am not a fan of Hyun-bin and his work. That being said, this movie introduces a new first time actress Lee, Hyeon-hee. At times I felt like punching myself in the face because she was so adorable. Her tears conveyed emotion to me, not Visine eye drop solution. I will be eagerly awaiting any new movies she will be in.
Moving on to the actual movie, I was afraid this would be some sort of corny excuse to plaster the media with Hyun-bin's face; however, the movie itself is quite good.
The short but sweet love story really picks up in the 2nd half of the film. I would cry and laugh at the same time our lead and ingénue did. Very few movies leave me satisfied at the way the movie concluded, this is one of them.
Give it a shot, if not for the surprisingly good movie (albeit horribly titled) then for the ridiculously cute actress in her acting debut.
La-i-eo (2004)
Hilarious movie to native speakers.
This movie is straight-up humor dealing with some ridiculous situations. It is about a man (Manchul) who is played wonderfully by Jun Jinmo who was the mysterious helper in the comedy hit 'Shes on Duty' Manchul unfortunately falls in love with 2 women, and have to lie about various situations to keep them from finding out he is instead married to another women. The movie really turns exciting when Manchuls poor unemployed best friend finds out about his Mormon-esquire fantasy life. Not all, but some of the jokes can only be truly admired if you are native to the motherland, even if that is not the cause one would thoroughly enjoy their nearly two hours of enjoyment. The ending may not be what you expect, and the subtitled version that I've seen circulating may not be the best, but it will make do. I give this movie 8 out of 10 stars, it would have received a 9 if it had a better resolution between the ingénues. Enjoy!
Aneun yeoja (2004)
A Diamond in the Rough
I have to say coming in to this film my expectations were pretty low. And the first few scenes my expectations were met every way. I felt that because it had no A-List actors the movie was going to bomb, boy was I wrong. Nayoung Lee plays her role perfectly, and in hindsight (which they say is 20/20) I can see no other actress who could have played it. I honestly did not know this actress before this film, and during it I was confused as to whether she was supposed to be blind or not. Just due to the way she looks, and acts. In fact, I had to say she looked very odd. But aside from the initial reaction, she melted into her character and was great. The character development of this film was spectacular, all romantic comedies from the motherland all try to have a dramatic scene in the rain with everyone crying and such, this movie uses a blend of awkward 'getting to know each other' time and the occasional dramatic yelling and screaming over the pitter patter of cg rain, to produce a ... awesome end product. Sorry couldn't think of a better word. I feel this is more a sappy "guy who likes to watch sappy chick flick" movie then a regular chick flick, but all you ladies are welcome to get your ben and jerrys and settle down in front of the computer or TV because your heart will be warmed up instantly by this cleverly written and directed diamond in the rough.
Yeokjeone sanda (2003)
Ha Jiwon does it again!
First I have to say, this is not My Sassy Girl, or is it 100 Days with Mr. Arrogant. Now once you stop expecting every movie to be greater than those two, you can sit back and enjoy another adorable romantic comedy from the mother land. The movie is about a guy who has horrible luck, after a meeting with some crazy lady he finds himself in another world where he is a superstar golfer, married to beautiful Ha Jiwon, and so on. He finds out that this new life, though much better than the previous has its own problems. As he looks for a way back, he attempts to fix a marriage that his other self messed up in this world, finds out his dead father is not really dead, and that his best friend is now his worst enemy. It sounds very dramatic, but only to add to the humor level. The film has its moments of brilliance, and is overall a great movie. You have to love the cameo by Lim Chang Jung, the star of Sex is Zero. I believe the two leads in this movie fit their role perfectly, and I have to say Kim Sung Woo is lucky playing opposite Ha Jiwon.
Nae-sa-rang ssa-ga-ji (2004)
Ha Jiwon takes her place as the new Jeon Ji Hyun
This movie was excellent, Ha Jiwon is delectably adorable and plays the role perfectly. Ha Jiwon really has established herself as one of Koreas new hot actors. She is very cute and it helps that all her characters play on the characteristics that she can embody so easily. My personal favorite scene is the sailor moon scene. That is all I am going to say because I do not want to ruin anything. If you liked My Sassy Girl or Sex is Zero you will really appreciate this. The subtitled version is decent, it is not as good as the directors cut 'My Sassy Girl' quality, but if you cant speak the language of the motherland, you have little other choice. This movie introduced the actress Ha Jiwon to me, and has led me to watch all of her other films in turn. The films are, Ditto, Sex is Zero, Reversal of Fortune, Love so Divine, and Phone.
Nae yeojachingureul sogae habnida (2004)
Prequel falls short of legendary name
The widely heralded prequel to the Korean mega-hit My Sassy Girl falls immensely short of its predecessor. A few funny scenes keep this from getting no stars. My favorite is when the audience realizes she could have taken off her handcuffs at any time. I wont say anymore, don't want to ruin it. Like the other comment pointed out, the first hour is drawn out comedy, and the second hour is just full-on drama. Neither of which is very good, character development is very weak in this film, and I can honestly say this was the worst romantic comedy I have ever watched from the motherland. Instead of watching this movie, I suggest watching one of the other recent romantic comedies, such as Someone Special, or Reversal of Fortune, or even 100 Days with Mr. Arrogant.