Modern Boy (2008)

I just watched this movie, Modern Boy (모던보이), which was released in October, 2008, in Korea. When I first saw the movie's poster/trailer, I was intrigued most by the movie's historic setting (Seoul in 1937) and wanted to watch it since then.

The movie, directed by Jiwoo Jeong (정지우) and based on an award-winning Korean novel 망하거나 죽지 않고 살 수 있겠니 (Trans: Can You Live and Not Be Destroyed or Dead), portrays a love story between two unlikely lovers, who live during one of the most turbulent and uncertain times in Korean history. It moreover notably recreates the city scenes of colonial Seoul (then called Gyeongseong; 경성) in a scale that was not attempted before. The two lovers are played by a famous actor named Heil Park (박해일) and an actress named Hyesoo Kim (김혜수).

Jiwoo Jeong, in my opinion, did a good job in capturing the atmosphere marked by hidden ironies and contradictions present in Korea during that time. I particularly loved the scene where the couple slowly travels on a street car while the darkness ominously engulfs all around it. The movie starts with a comical twist but becomes very serious in the end.

Perhaps this was to be expected and appropriate.