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Rating:

Changing Partners is an immoral romantic comedy. Yes, it’s immoral—very immoral. Most romantic comedies are about untainted and unselfish individuals falling in the purest sort of love. Changing Partners isn’t about that trite mushy stuff. Instead, its plot revolves around married people having extramarital affairs. le gasp.

But if you can get get over the fact that each of Changing Partners’ four protagonists is having an affair, you’ll probably enjoy it. The film features fantastic dialog. I don’t want to give any of its best bits away, so this is hardly a proper example, but:

Yuna: *speaks korean* *random english words:* Perfect! 100% Percent! *speaks korean* Congratulations!
Minjae: Does everyone in your business talk like that?
Yuna: Huh?
Minjae: You seem to mix in English all the time.
Yuna: *silent grr*
Minjae: It sounds pretty retarded when you use English like that in a sentence.

The film’s acting is good: the adulterers and the adulteresses have great chemistry. In fact, Changing Partners includes three tastefully done hot (as in not-for-children) scenes. ;) The film’s soundtrack and cinematography were also well done.

Anyway, as an immoral romantic comedy, Changing Partners features pretty, wide-eyed, and innocent-looking characters doing the following shady things:

• intentionally? destroying property in foreign countries
• blaming one’s poor behavior on inanimate objects like the moon
• and of course, having an affair

Due to the four main characters’ poor behavior and due to frequent occurrences of random deadly tragedies in Korean films, at one point, I honestly thought that all the beautiful protagonists would get electrocuted and die. However, and quite fortunately, I was wrong. But that was a tense moment for me—I was really scared for them.

Overall, Changing Partners is an entertaining film. It’s unique and almost like a breath of fresh air, because—really—how many screenwriters think of saturating a romantic comedy with extramarital affairs and actually make the plot work? Not many, I bet. Even though the protagonists in this film are cheaters, it is easy to become wrapped up in their lives and to empathize with them. However, loathing or pitying any of them is difficult because they’re all having affairs. And Changing Partners progresses in such a way that everyone is doing the same naughty thing at exactly the same time. The timing of events makes the film unrealistic, but it also makes everything easier on viewers’ consciences. So… watch it.

Movie Facts/Stats:

Title: Changing Partners (지금 사랑하는 사람과 살고 있습니까?)

Length: 116 minutes

Release Date: 8/15/2007

Language: Korean

Creator: Jeong Yoon-soo (정윤수)

Cast:
Han Chae-young (한채영)
Lee Dong-geon (이동건)
Park Yong-woo (박용우)
Uhm Jung-hwa (엄정화)

Best Scene: running about in Hong Kong

Weirdest Scene: merry-go-round cars

Trailer: Courtesy of YouTube (in Korean - no subs)

Rating:

If you have an ounce of curiosity in you, watch this video. It’s a heart-wrenching melodramatic MV cum short film. It’s a seven minute love story, a quintessential Korean tale with a sequel. If you don’t know what a quintessential Korean music video is—if you haven’t been forced to bear witness to KiSS’ Because I’m a Girl (여자이니까) then you must, in order to expand your cultural horizons, “continue reading this post” and spend less than ten minutes indulging in SeeYa’s “Shoes” (구두 kudu).

On second thought, it’s not that great. There’s something about it that’s annoying and cliché, but if it were original it wouldn’t be quintessential. It would lack some of that overbearing passion and insanity that drives characters in MVs like this (and its sequel). The final line of the chorus, “because I’m your girl, your girl who knows no one besides you,”* wouldn’t hit nearly as hard.

In the end, “Shoes” may seem like just another sad Korean MV. But it isn’t. Despite being saturated with drama, it remains poignant.

*
너 하나밖에 모르는 네 여자이니까 The translation isn’t exactly a literal one, but I think that it conveys the idea in English with more clarity than a lit. translation would.

Subs courtesy of WithS2. Watch an HQ version without Subtitles?

Rating:
Unstoppable Marriage is an alarmingly witty romantic comedy. Take note, it skimps neither the romance nor the comedy. Stereotypical girls prone to swooning over corny lines will love it as will guys who enjoy slap-stick/“ha ha! you just got pwned” entertainment. But the amount of hilarious bits greatly outnumbers the amount of mushy ones.

There’s nothing particularly original about Unstoppable Marriage’s plot. Boy meets girl. Their backgrounds are vastly different. At first, they hate each other and their families hate each other &c. It’s all rather classic, very Romeo & Juliet. But the way in which this film executes the typical romantic storyline is exceptional. The details, the acting, the dialogues, characters’ mannerisms—they make Unstoppable Marriage hilarious. If you watch UM and fail to laugh, you have a problem, plain and simple.

While insanely amusing, Unstoppable Marriage has its flaws. The soundtrack is completely forgettable—it’s more like what soundtrack. Most scenes are without music. The cinematography is boring. But at least the director didn’t get creative and make things terrible. There’s also this one scene with a fellow named Andrew—if you’ve seen the film, you know—it makes a person want to gouge her eyes out, “Ah! What happened to this movie? This is terrible! When will this scene end? These people can’t act! Oh!” Other than those things, it’s all good.

Let’s get to know a bit more about the main characters:

Sassy Pretty Girl Eunho played by Eugene (유진)
Occupation: paper doll maker by night; pilot by day (despite her wretched sense of direction)
Trademark: intelligence; ability to pwn aristocratic snobs

Momma’s Boy/Pretty Boy Kibaek played by Ha Seok-jin (하석진)
Occupation: sketchy doctor; pants-wetter
Trademark: immaturity (he’s a pants-wetter, after all); charm

Kibaek’s Momma played by Kim Su-mi (김수미)
Occupation: snob; golf course creator
Trademark: cursing in English (Happy Shit); ability to discuss culture in French gibberish (her foreign language skills alone make this movie a must see!)

Eunho’s Daddy played by Im Chae-mu (임채무)
Occupation: fortune teller; traditionalist
Trademark: ink stone fetish

Movie Facts/Stats:

Title: Unstoppable Marriage (못말리는 결혼)

Length: 115 minutes

Release Date: 2007/05/10

Language: Korean

Director: Kim Seong-wuk (김성욱)

Worst Scene: Andrew and dolls

Best Scene: French, art, culture, wine, & dinner

Trailer: Courtesy of Youtube (in Korean)