SYNOPSIS:
A college boy Su-min is looking around paintings in a gallery when he hears someone screaming for help. That’s where he first meets a high school girl, Hyun-jin. They soon meet again in a park, and she realizes he is gifted; he can read people’s mind. They unexpectedly run into a kidnapping case and she is getting sure about his supernatural power. Hyun-jin tags after him, and tries him in many different ways to figure out his gift. He thinks she is so annoying and frustrating; however he finds himself feeling something about her. Later on Su-min and Hyun-jin go to an amusement park and she never stops testing him even at the park. Since they see the kidnapping suspect by chance at the park, they get a step closer to real state of the kidnapping…
MOVIE REVIEW:
For starters, this film could have been like a pilot episode of a television series, because for the most parts it involves the discovery and showcase of hidden talent and power, establishing the characters for almost an hour before the narrative decided to shift gear and get into the thick of the action, wrapping everything up just under 80 minutes, making room for a lot more to be explored should there be a running television series.
In some ways the title is therefore a misnomer of sorts, because most of the time we see only Su Min (Jin Goo) demonstrating his ESP like abilities ranging from the reading of minds and memories to projecting psychic attacks and mind control. Really cool powers to be having, but that too made him a kind of loner, since his ability to make friends is curbed by his innate reading into the person's true intention. However he soon finds himself having his hands full when persistent schoolgirl Hyun Jin (Park Bo Young) insists on following him wherever he goes, and using her high intellect to coerce him into a form of showing off his powers. Talk about the power of manipulation indeed!
There are some nice touches of comedy in the way the film was shot, often bridging onto the subsequent scene where the punchline gets delivered. Those who can't get enough of the good looking hunks and beautiful babes are encouraged to check out the pairing between Jin Goo and Park Bo Young as they do share a X-Files Mulder-Scully like relationship in their investigations to look into a kidnapping case, with Bo Young's Hyun Jin trying her best to convince the reluctant hero in Jin Goo's Su Min to use his abilities to assist in the case.
If not for the twist that came in the finale, this film would likely suffer from being just another science fiction tale with a great looking cast, but with little substance. There's also a beautiful anime segment contained within that probably was included to assist in keeping the budget under control from getting some special effects worked into it, and it provided some back story into the mysterious Hyun Jin who just leapt into Su Min's aloof lifestyle spent in art galleries.
Definitely recommended for those who prefer their movies a little light in mood, and personally, though chances are terribly slim, should there be a television series spun off from this, I'm sure I would be interested enough to pick up where this had left off!
SPECIAL FEATURES:
It's a bit strange why there is a void of subtitles in all the features, so unless you understand the Korean language, you can only follow the images and imagine who's who taking turns to speak, and just exactly what they're talking about. The Making Of runs 17:38, while the Interviews with the main leads run 10:22. A TV spot running 30 seconds is also included.
AUDIO/VISUAL:
Presented in an anamorphic widescreen format, the visual transfer somehow looked a little too bright, and seemed like it was shot on video for television instead. You also have two options in the Korean language audio, either in 2.0 stereo or 5.1 surround, but unfortunately no scenes in the movie to be able to max out the speakers of yours.
MOVIE RATING:
DVD
RATING:
(Subtitle the extras, please!)
Review by Stefan Shih
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