Cheongchun-manhwa

As my family was watching this video, my father constantly asked me, "Is this a sequel to "My Tutor Friend"?". Sure, the main two characters are played by Kwon Sang-woo and Kim Ha-neul in both movies. And I honestly don't see the difference between the characters in both movies, maybe except the fact that Kwon Sang-woo's character is much dorkier in this movie.

But, this is not another "My Tutor Friend"! The movie is about two childhood friends Ji-hwan (played by KSW) and Dal-rae (played by KHN). Typical, typical set-up. Two are obviously meant for each other, but there's the too-perfect-to-be-true boyfriend in the way. Ji-hwan is a Jackie Chan wannabe with a job-drifting father. Dal-rae wants to be an actress- but she has to get over her tremendous stage fright first. The first half of the movie was a snoozer, filled with slapstick comedy, typical plot and countless cliché situations.

Then comes the second half of the movie, which really surprised me. This movie, literally translated, is called "Teen Girl Manga" or something close to it anyway. No way did I expect all that melodrama after a first half of cheap comedy. Though it was really out of place (in my opinion, at least) this part proves to be worth sitting through 50 minutes of comedy. I have never seen Kwon Sang Woo act better. It just blew me away because all of his acting before this seemed mediocre.

The scenes with those child actors are pretty good (the kid who plays Jihwan is that kid from "Annyeoung Hyeonga", right?) and the supporting cast is great. This movie is pretty hard to swallow, though, being that the best part is the last 20 minutes or so. Otherwise, the stars don't really get a chance to shine because everything in this movie is so cliché. Another romantic comedy with a sugary happy ending. Just like "My Tutor Friend", ain't it? (starting to notice this trend in Korean movies. Whatever happened to the really sad ones?)