Jayati Bhardwaj, Delhi

The Korean film industry has seen a rise in diversity and quality, with engaging storylines that have a lasting impact. 2023 has been a great year for Korean cinema; it released a lot of great content that hit the OTT platforms and cinemas worldwide, including India. I had the privilege to watch a few in the theatre. And I must say, it was indeed an experience. In this article, I’ll explore some movies with Romance as the main or sub-genre released in 2023 that are worth adding to your ‘to watch’ list!

Past Lives

“It’s true that if you leave, you lose things, but you also gain things, too.“ -Nora’s Mom

Past Lives is an American romantic drama written and directed by Celine Song. The movie takes inspiration to an extent from Song’s life, making it a semi-autobiopic. It revolves around three main characters and their interactions with each other: Nora, played by Greta Lee; Hae Sung, played by Teo Yoo; and Arthur, played by John Magaro. The movie deals with themes of love, reconnecting, fate (운명 in Korean, a theme/word/lore constantly used throughout the film), choice, loss, and longing. 

Nora, one of the main characters, was born and raised in Korea, where she met Hae Sung, her childhood friend for whom she has a complicated form of love and affection. However, her family immigrated to Canada when she was pretty young. Subsequently, she moved to New York and established herself professionally as a writer, marrying Arthur, another fellow writer whom she met on one of her writer’s retreats. Another theme the movie deals with is immigration and the notions that follow along with it, for instance, being torn between two cultures. The constant state of unsureness that the nostalgia one craves is what one wants or is just the temptation of comfort and familiarity with one’s homeland. 

The movie shows what love means to different people- the complicated love relationship Nora, Haesung and Arthur share. To all three, love means something different; all three-hold utmost respect for what the other feels while validating and choosing what they think is for the better. Past Lives is one of my absolute favourite releases of 2023; it is an honest, delicate, and fantastic movie. The characters are relatable, especially to people in their twenties and thirties. They are emotionally intelligent and share tremendous chemistry.

Our Dating Sim

Our Dating Sim is a feel-good BL romance movie adaptation of a series of the same name. The story revolves around two characters, Lee-Wan, played by Lee Jong-hyuk and Shin Ki-tae, played by Lee Seung-gyu. These two best friends spend most of their time together; however, Lee-Wan has a crush on his best friend and longs to be in a relationship with him. Hence, he confesses his feelings on his graduation day, which goes south. The movie then takes a year’s leap, Lee-Wan, now an illustrator, and Shin Ki-tae, who is a team leader at a gaming firm. They ended up working together on a project.

The series and the movie gained much popularity among people who love watching BLs and attracted new fans. And got me back into my binge-watching BL era. The story is swift and to the point. It does not involve significant conflicts; the movie just oozes with great visuals, chemistry amongst the actors and cuteness. It is a must-watch when looking for something light and a no-brainer to watch.

_{Picture Credits: MyDramaList}

Soulmate

“To like someone, you gotta be courageous. I’m working up the courage to say this.” -Ha Eun.

Soulmate is a coming-of-age story which explores the nuances of friendship and romance as the main characters grow up and deal with their respective struggles. The movie is a South Korean adaptation of a Chinese film of the same name. The story revolves around two girls, Go Ha-eun, played by Jeon So-nee, and Ahn Mi-so, played by Kim Da-mi. And Hum Jin-woo, played by Byeon Woo-seok. 

The movie explores the friendship between Go Ha-eun and Ahn Mi-so over 16 years. Both of them have different personalities and take on life; Ha-eun is thoughtful and more reserved, whereas Mi-so is outgoing and bold. Together, they bring each other warmth, comfort and strength. However, things started going south with the addition of another person to their equation, Jin-woo. Soulmate talks about the bittersweetness of friendships and romance; it delivers its sweetness and pain, further portraying the importance of such experiences. Furthermore, it talks about what it truly means to have a soul mate. It explores the struggles of long-distance and longing. The movie is beautiful and a must-watch. I warn you, though you will cry, I did for hours.

_{Picture Credits: MyDramaList}

My Worst Neighbor

My Worst Neighbour is a slice-of-life romance-comedy; it is a remake of a French movie called “Blind Date.” It is a story about two people: Seung-jin, played by Lee Ji-hoon, who is an aspiring singer, and his neighbour, Ra-ni, played by Han Seung-yeon. The movie revolves around Seung-jin moving to a new home where, on the first night, he encounters a woman’s loud cry that comes from next door. Ra-ni is an eccentric character who is determined to chase any new tenant away. She is confident that she’ll be able to push the new neighbour, Seung-jin, to move away as well.

With thin walls, Ra-ni’s determination and Seung-jin’s will to put up a fight, the story unfolds with the two bickering. The characters develop a bond over time, sharing about their lives without knowing each other’s names and faces since they talk through the thin wall. The movie is light and a fresh change from thriller and melodramas; it talks about the daily struggles of the characters. I like that the characters start as friends, and then they slowly develop feelings for each other, overcoming the question of whether what they feel is real or not since they do not know each other’s names and faces. The movie is fun and relatable to watch. It also talks about unpredictability and lack of concreteness that comes along with adulting, and one’s dreams, which I believe a lot of people will be able to relate to.

_{Picture Credits: MyDramaList}

Killing Romance

Killing Romance is a part comedy, part thriller, part musical, and part poignant romance movie directed by Lee Won-suk. The story revolves around a celebrity called Hwang Yeo-rae, played by Lee Ha-nee, who is adored by the public. However, she decided to do something for herself for the first time in a long time after the release of her movie which turned her into a laughingstock amongst the public. She decides to go on a trip to an island called Qualla. There, she meets Jonathan Na, played by Lee Sun-kyun, a wealthy entrepreneur and an environmentalist with whom she falls in love and marries. The movie then has a time skip where Yeo-rae and Jonathan return to Korea after seven years. The film then starts unfolding, showing the true nature of Jonathan, a controlling narcissist to whom Yeo-rae is just a trophy put in his house. Yeo-rae is unhappy with her life but cannot speak of her struggles because of the embarrassment she’ll have to face in society. She then meets her neighbour Kim Beom-woo, played by Gong Myung, a 24-year-old man constantly trying to get into Seoul National University. Together, they try to execute their plans to kill Jonathan.

The movie felt like a fever dream. It is one of the most innovatively directed Korean movies; it is hilarious and horrific. The film portrays some traumatic themes in the most unserious way, which is highly thought-provoking, including the trauma Yeo-rae goes through in her abusive marriage. The movie made its world festival premiere at the Far East Film Festival in Italy, where the film made its world festival premiere, where it was described as “a cross between Memories of Matsuko and the films of Wes Anderson… that screams ‘cult movie‘.”

_{Picture Credits: MyDramaList}

Share your thoughts on your favourite Korean movies of 2023 in the comments section.