Saturday 6 August 2011

REVIEW: Baby and Me (Korean Movie, Prime Entertainment: 2008)


This being the first Korean film I have ever watched, I wasn't really sure about what to expect...

I remember seeing the above title picture on DramaCrazy and it really caught my interest, it looked like it could be a very entertaining movie.
BUT, typical me, still didn't bother to watch it until my friend Safi recommended it!
(The fact that Jang Geun-Suk is in it also helped push me to press the play button).

Rebellious high school student Joon-Soo's (Jang Geun-Suk) bad behaviour had led his parents into a state of such despair that they decided to run away and let him realise the affect his actions have when he is left to deal with the consequences alone.
Naturally, I thought this was a very extreme measure to take in order to shock your child into good behaviour...then I remembered it was a comedy.

As you may expect of any rebellious teenager worth his salt, Joon-Soo sees this as an oppurtunity to have a HUGE party and rushes out to his local supermarket to stock up on booze! Hooray!
BUT THEN...he turns around to find a cute baby boy in a trolley, left alone with a note saying his name is Han Woo-Ram (Mason Mun) and that he is none other than Joon-Soo's SON, now to be left in his care by the mother who simply cannot cope any longer.



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I first saw Jang Geun-Suk in the Korean drama You're Beautiful. (I have only watched 3 episodes of it so far, I began it in order to see Lee HongKi's acting skills, but stopped it when I realised the story was like a combination of the Japanese dramas Hana Yori Dango and Hanazakari no Kimitachi e)
I was instantly caught up by Geun-Suk. He has something very charismatic about him (and very beautiful eyes!! o_o) ...and Geun-Suk certainly has a lot of that charisma to offer for his role as a classic bad boy.

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ENJOYED- Jang Geun Suk's casting as the rebellious kid who is thrown in at the deep end, forced to care for his son who has no one else.

- The character Kim Byeol (Byeol Kim...funny how it's just the actress' name backwards!) It's actually quite unusual for me to like a female character...I find most girl characters in dramas to be too squeaky and annoying unless they are the protaganist and are, therefore, given enough substance as to not get on my nerves. However, I like the fact that she is independant, powerful and the (unwanted) voice of reason and morality in Joon-soo's life. I also love the infatuation she has for Joon-Soo from the very start.

- Baby Woo-Ram is insanely cute (and I'm not that keen on babies and children!)
DISLIKED- As soon as I first heard the voice given to baby Woo-Ram (voiced by Park Myeong-Su), I was really appalled. I thought it was so unnecessary to do this, even though after a while I did get used to it, I'm still not fond. However, I can see why they chose to do it...it provided comedy. Plus, Myeong-Su is one on of my favourite Korean Comedians, so if anyone had to do the voice, then he is a good choice. (Rhyme!!)

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OVERALL, I did enjoy the film. All the characters were very well casted and, even though the film is a comedy, it goes very deep into many different problems. Of course, there is the general lesson learned by Joon-Soo. He begins to understand the worry that parents go through for their children and contemplates how much stress he must have then put his own mother and father through during his adolesence. The issue of accepting ones responsibility and the importance of doing what is right is also addressed. One of Joon-Soo's friends, being in a severe state of poverty, is given a lot of coverage too which adds even more emotion to the film.
I also NEARLY wanted to cry at one particular point...so that proves that it does tackle some fairly heavy stuff.
One of the things that kind of brought this film down a bit for me was actually Jang Geun-Suk's acting skills during the really emotional scenes...quite frankly, he wasn't very good (I'M SORRY, but it HAD to be said!)
Maybe I need to see more of his work in order to make a better judgement, but that's really how I felt whilst watching this.
I also generally felt there was a certain something missing from the film...but I really can't put my finger on what it is. (Yeah...I'm a very talented film reviewer!! :/)

Despite all of this, I would recommend this film to anyone who is in a I-don't-want-to-think-I-just-want-to-watch kind of mood (which I am a LOT of the time, to be honest!)
I say this because it sports a fairly simple narrative (but it has a lot of depth so it doesn't get boring) and is just a genrally entertaining and heart-warming watch.

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