“A Love” is about pure love, so true, but some would also say an out dated kind of love. I know a lot of people who watched this movie may think it’s so commonplace, but I think that gave the movie an even more desperate feel. The Korean dialect used in this film is from Busan – a dialect which is commonly associated with men who are considered to be blunt and tough guys. It’s not surprising than that this move was directed by Kyung-Taek Kwak, whose most popular work to date is 2001’s “Friend” - featuring tough Busan guys. After the success of “Friend” Kyung-Taek Kwak made several less successful films. He has recently complained on tv about the criticisms received about the similarities between “Friend” and “A Love”. I would think what director can make this kind of old fashion love story if not him?

The story is centered around In-ho and Mee-joo. It has been 10 years since In-ho parted from Mee-Joo - a girl that hell fell in love with as a child. Now they randomly meet again as high school students. They make a promise to protect each other, as they both came from tragic backgrounds. One day Me-joo is forced into an apartment by a gangster named Chi Kuan. Me-Joo’s mom owes money to Chi Kuan and he tries to take advantage of Me-joo because of her debt. In-ho finds out about Chi-Kuan’s plan and appears at his front door.

He talks Chi-Kuan into going for a walk and he then stabs Chi-Kuan with a knife. In-ho is now imprisoned for several years. When In-ho finally gets out of prison he lands a job with a construction company and eventually becomes the right hand man of the owner. This is when In-ho crosses paths with Me-joo again as she is now the mistress for In-ho’s boss. Jin-mo Ju (who played In-ho), in the past, has been known as a good looking actor with not so great acting skills, but in this movie he was just brilliant. He expressed intense love so well and used a Busan dialect to make his character even more realistic. In a way the film is somewhat like a music video for Joo Jin Mo, so you can’t help to be fascinated by his performance. Kim Min Jin, a native of Pusan, played the vicious scamp - much better than his previous performance in “No Mercy For The Rude”. Female actor Si-hyeon Park, played Mi Ju, and she seems to be getting better with each performance.

If someone wants to love or be loved sorrowfully, I would suggest you watch “A Love”. For those that complain that the love depicted in this movie is so old fashioned, I would say love of this nature is what we often dream of. A big thumbs up.