[HanCinema's Film Review] "My Ordinary Love Story"

Eun-jin (played by Kang Ye-won) has had a long series of abortive efforts at genuine romantic relationships. Ever met somebody who says that bad relationships are just learning experiences until you find the right person? Eun-jin is the opposite of that. Listening to Eun-jin detail the first six romances of her life, it's pretty inescapable that we're dealing with a woman who has become horribly bitter and jaded by the entire dating process. Her current boyfriend, Hyeon-seok (played by Song Sae-byeok) is remarkable mainly for being able to get in with her at all- he has no apparent personality traits.

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This is a clue by the way. While "My Ordinary Love Story" is nominally a romantic comedy, the narrative at its core is a mystery. Eun-jin has been able to accept that this is a good relationship eventually leading to marriage for some time now- yet her past relationship experience has taught Eun-jin that she is simply not very good at detecting when men are actually awful liars until unshakable proof is provided. Which has also caused Eun-jin to interpret anything as proof of infidelity because she's just waiting at this point for a man to show his true colors.

In spite of the obvious humorous elements, when deconstructed at any level, "My Ordinary Love Story" ends up turning into something really dark. The movie explores how absolutely impossible it is for a relationship to go anywhere when trust issues exist, yet Eun-jin herself has at this point turned into a walking trust issue, because goodness knows it's easier to despise a person than give them a second chance they probably don't deserve.

Then we get to the explanation behind Hyeon-seok's odd behavior, and that ends up being even darker than the trust issues. It's so dark, in fact, that I'm not sure how well it places with the rest of the film. Is this a sign that love means being able to accept even the worst possible secrets, or more that true love means discarding the shame attached to the necessity of our having to be two-faced in society? Does Eun-jin hate men, or does she hate the way society encourages men to act?

Coupled with the rather ominous implications of the final ending, I'm not really sure where to place "My Ordinary Love Story" on a broad emotional spectrum. Fortunately the genre elements are all strong, so it's an easy enough movie to recommend. The movie doesn't present an overly idealized view of romance- even the glimpse we get of love at first sight is adorable mainly because it makes so much sense (consider the main thing these two characters have in common). The construction of the mystery as well is excellent- there are quite literally clues everywhere.

The only trouble is the product as a whole is so weird that I'm not completely sure who this movie is for. It's not really quirky in a cute way. The heroine is mildly deranged and the leading man is emotionally closed off. Identifying with either of these people is a bit of a troubling sign for the typical filmgoer. Do I really come off like that? Well, the good news is, the ending does at least give the impression that it's OK to have negative personality traits.

This review was written by William Schwartz as a part of HanCinema's PiFan (Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival) coverage.

"My Ordinary Love Story" is directed by Lee Kwon and features Kang Ye-won and Song Sae-byeok.