A Moment to Remember-
This sappy movie was the one of the most popular chick flicks
to come out of Korea in 2004. The plot involves a love story
between two opposites. Soo-Jin, is an annoyingly feminine
daddy’s girl. It’s love at first sight when
lays her eyes on the ultra macho construction worker Chol-Soo.
Chol-Soo is tough and sexy, and just what she needs after
her recent break-up with her ex. As chance would have it,
Chol Soo is foreman at one of her dad’s building sites.
Even though Soo-Jin knows her dad would never approve of
the match, love compels her to chase after the manly foreman
anyway. She finally gets him after a few very silly and
stereotypical courtship scenes.
In one scene, Chol-Soo valiantly saves Soo-Jin’s stolen
purse from a motorcycle bandit. He then proceeds to drive
her home in a very cool beat-up jeep. She acts totally helpless,
hanging on for dear life as the dirty jeep speeds along
the highway. She dons his welding mask for protection. Beneath
the window of the huge iron mask, she’s making a cute
doe-eyed expression that seems to say, “I’m
a helpless little girl who needs to be saved by a knight
in shining armor.” I assume this is where all the
teenage girls start sighing, but come on, how corny can
you get!
In another scene, he’s teaching her how to swing a
bat at some kind of baseball driving range. Again she’s
completely useless in her secretary skirt and stiletto heels.
He has no choice but to come behind her and show her how
to swing the bat. He wraps his studly body around her and
they zoom in on the grinding bodies. I’m sure hordes
of teeny bopper girls swooned over this scene, but all it
got from me was a big roll of the eyes. PULEEZE!
Even though Mr. Tough Guy insists he doesn’t want
to be tied down, Soo-Jin decides that it’s time for
them to get married. She stages a surprise dinner with the
family because she wants to come out of the closet about
who she’s dating. Her dad is furious when he finds
out who her boyfriend is and Chol-Soo is put under a severe
interrogation. The weak-hearted Soo-Jin can’t handle
the situation and faints from extreme stress. Both men soften
up and decide to accept each other after they see how vulnerable
Soo-Jin is. After the wedding, daddy’s connections
help Chol-Soo land a more prestigious job as an architect.
Then, tragedy strikes the newlyweds when the 27 year old
Soo-Jin gets diagnosed with (GASP!) Alzheimer’s disease!
(YEAH, RIGHT!)
This is one of those movies that really reinforce male/female
roles in Korean society. Men are supposed to be tough and
protect their women. (This attitude probably stems from
years of war and Confucianism.) Women are meant to act meek,
vulnerable and cute. Furthermore, the plot perpetuates an
unbelieveable female fantasy that some tough guy would turn
out to be so talented and devoted. In real life, manly men
are usually just jerks. A Moment to Remember was so over
the top, I wanted to turn it off halfway through. It really
makes a statement however, about what Korean audiences want
to see. I guess all you have to do is cast a sexy heartthrob
as the leading man and poof! You’ve got the magic
formula for good ticket sales!
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