Notable Cast: Gong Yoo, Jeon Do-yeon
Lee Yoon-ki is one of those directors that not a lot of people know about, sadly, but he has always been one that I get excited for every time he has a new project in the pipeline. Given that two of my favorite performers from Korea, Jeon Do-yeon (Secret Sunshine) and Gong Yoo (Silenced) were attached as the two leads, admittedly I began to quickly over hype myself for said film. It came out finally on Blu-ray in Korea, and well, I left the film, equally satisfied and annoyed.
A Man and A Woman is the story of... uh... a man and a woman (yep) that meet by chance in a foreign country. The two people are very lonely and that is quite apparent by their nature in general. Both, coincidentally, are sending their children off to a trip with a schooling group. Afterwards, the woman is without a ride, and grows worried for her child, as he has special needs, so the man offers her a ride to go to the place where their children will be staying, to allow her to have a since of relief, and during their car ride there, the two seem to hit it off. Essentially, a romance occurs, which is in no way a spoiler at all, and it is quite obvious where things are going, so nothing more is needed on the plot.
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| A Man |
On the other hand, one thing that made me happy, and annoyed me, was the score. It goes from being absolutely chill inducing to cringe inducing and visa versa over and over again. One second, the music moves you and sinks you further into this forbidden romance, and then it's as if the orchestra is just goofing off and bashing you over the head with their instruments, completely unaware that they are still recording the score and the director decided to just use what they had. So many cues that just felt so out of place that I often found myself laughing, and that is never a good thing, when unintentional.
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| A Woman |
In the end, I enjoyed the film, but there are so many little problems scattered about that the film ends up being a delicious treat spoiled by the fact that someone decided to sprinkle (insert something considered universally disgusting here) all over the top. No one wants that, though I am sure there's that one guy (you know who you are). I think it is safe to recommend this film to fans of the director, but at the same time if you are just looking for a film to watch by the man just watch My Dear Enemy.
Written by Josh Parmer
Not a great review. Is English your second language>
ReplyDeleteI somehow agree. I put too much expectations on this film. But yeah, it has absurd things here and there. And boy... It's boring for me. The lines were too little,well nothing much to understand since it's a cliche movie. I am disappointed.
ReplyDeleteJeong Do-yeon and Gong Yoo were magnificent in this poignant story of forbidden love. They performed their roles well as the lonely, needy, harassed parents of special needs children, trapped in loveless marriages. It was obvious that they eventually fell deeply in love with each other, but sacrificed their personal needs in the interest of their less than happy marriages and special needs children. As I watched the end of the film, I could not help but wonder if these sacrifices would not lead to endless affairs and bitterness towards their spouses and needy children in the future.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I ultimately enjoyed the film, one of its biggest weaknesses is how increasingly implausible the characters' repeated encounters become. Without spoiling the story, the fact that they continually manage to track each other down despite the enormous distance between Finland and South Korea stretches credibility and becomes more distracting as the film progresses. Still, there is enough charm and entertainment value to make the experience worthwhile, even if several smaller problems prevent it from reaching its full potential. It feels like a delicious treat that has unfortunately been ruined by a thoroughly unpleasant topping. Fans of the director will likely find plenty to appreciate, but newcomers may be better served by starting with My Dear Enemy, which offers a stronger introduction to his work.
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