The NYAFF is on a roll this year with their selection of romantic comedies. Of the three I’ve seen I’m surprised to say that I’ve enjoyed them all, which is very rare for the genre. The latest one that has done the rom-com genre justice is the Korean flick, All About My Wife, a remake of an Argentinean film titled A Boyfriend for My Wife.
Korean’s Yeon Jeong-In (Im Su-Jeong) and Lee Du-Hyeon’s (Lee Seon-Gyun) are seven years into their marriage after meeting in Japan during a series of earthquake tremors, and things aren’t looking good. His wife has evolved from a quite, mild-mannered minx into a high maintenance, outspoken and aggressive housewife and he’s about to snap. Since Lee Du-Hyeon is too much of a coward to ask for a divorce he asks for a job relocation in order to get a break. Long and behold Yeon Jeong-In shows up to suffocate him again. Since he can’t mention divorce, Du-Hyeon comes up with a plan to get his wife to fall in love with another person, his neighbor Jang Seong-Gi (Ryoo Seung-Ryong) aka Casanova. Seong-Gi realizes that Jeong-In is no average woman and so he accepts the challenge of seducing Du-Hyeon’s wife thinking that he himself is incapable of falling in love. You can guess how it all unfolds.
Directed by Min Kyu-Dong, All About My Wife is another quality romantic comedy from the far East. It’s chock full of mostly innocent humor and awkward moments but all of it is hilariously effective. The reason the movie is so successful is because everything is in sync: the script is well written, the direction is top notch, and the acting is applaud worthy. Mind you, this isn’t an Oscar nominated type feature, just a good old-fashioned fun time at the movies.
The premise for the film may not be that original but its delivery totally is. The love triangle that develops amongst the three main characters is wonderful to watch, especially since you can feel the chemistry amongst the actors. While both leading men clearly provided all the entertainment, I have to tip my hat to Im Su-Jeong, she was so good that I got a headache while watching her performance. Movie wives are an interesting breed and she takes the needy/nagging wife role to another level and crushes it with ease. It’s no wonder Lee Du-Hyeon wants to escape her soul sucking but loving clutch.
The entire picture was extremely entertaining and even the dramatic parts were quite engaging but I
do have one nit to pick with the film, it felt too long. It’s possible that I was tired but I think 120 minutes is stretching it for a romantic comedy. But here’s the problem with me having an issue with the duration, there isn’t anything I would actually cut, it’s already tight film and the story flows very well-especially for being predictable. Maybe all it needed was a quick laugh during its dramatic stretch, I don’t know, but I think you’ll find that it does feel like a long movie.
Overall, I was really happy with the outcome of All About My Wife as will most fans of Korean cinema or the genre itself. It’s an eccentric and zany romantic comedy that’ll keep you in high spirits from start ‘til finish, and that includes the sidesplitting scene during the first part of the credits. If you happen to see it playing at your local theater, festival, or streaming online, grab a date and sit them down to watch it immediately, you’ll both be in for a jolly good time.
Rating: Though a perfect date movie, it’s alsoa good old-fashioned fun time at the movies (7.3/10)
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