Il Mare is a Korean romance about two lonely singles who have a romance through letters. The catch is that they are separated by two years in time (he is in 1998 while she resides in the year 2000) and the only way they can contact each other is through a magical mailbox at Il Mare, the oceanside house both reside in in their respective time periods.
I've heard a lot of hype about this movie...especially about the time-travel aspect in the plot. I was expecting it to be flashy instead I found a quiet steady drama yet it wasn't original or particularly moving. Its strength lies in its restraint.
Many commenters have noted the ingenuity of the time-travel aspect...but I was less impressed with that having seen it used before in another movie with a couple that had more chemistry (The Love Letter starring Campbell Scott and Jennifer Jason Leigh). The lack of chemistry and character development is the fatal flaw of the movie. We see that Eun-ju and Sung-hyun are lonely people but besides that we don't really get a sense of who they are. Given the plot they cannot interact really except for a couple of scenes, such as when Sung-hyun meets Eun-ju at a train station in the year 1998 when she has no idea who he is. These scenes should have had a bittersweet tenderness, yet they merely fall flat. In a movie like this, the leads do not need to have crackling chemistry but we need to be able to see that they belong together.
Individually the performances are good, if a bit bland. The dialogue is...not as sappy as some movies, but not at all witty or innovative. despite its plot gimmick, il mare is nothing but a traditional romance who's only notable point is its austerity. The film doesn't force the romance on us, it takes its pace unfolding it..first as a friendship only near the end indulging in the sapfests. But in being so restrained about it, the film also doesn't really give the audience something to root for. If you don't really expect much from this kinda genre you might enjoy it but if you want to be swept off your feet and moved to tears this isn't the film for you.
I've heard a lot of hype about this movie...especially about the time-travel aspect in the plot. I was expecting it to be flashy instead I found a quiet steady drama yet it wasn't original or particularly moving. Its strength lies in its restraint.
Many commenters have noted the ingenuity of the time-travel aspect...but I was less impressed with that having seen it used before in another movie with a couple that had more chemistry (The Love Letter starring Campbell Scott and Jennifer Jason Leigh). The lack of chemistry and character development is the fatal flaw of the movie. We see that Eun-ju and Sung-hyun are lonely people but besides that we don't really get a sense of who they are. Given the plot they cannot interact really except for a couple of scenes, such as when Sung-hyun meets Eun-ju at a train station in the year 1998 when she has no idea who he is. These scenes should have had a bittersweet tenderness, yet they merely fall flat. In a movie like this, the leads do not need to have crackling chemistry but we need to be able to see that they belong together.
Individually the performances are good, if a bit bland. The dialogue is...not as sappy as some movies, but not at all witty or innovative. despite its plot gimmick, il mare is nothing but a traditional romance who's only notable point is its austerity. The film doesn't force the romance on us, it takes its pace unfolding it..first as a friendship only near the end indulging in the sapfests. But in being so restrained about it, the film also doesn't really give the audience something to root for. If you don't really expect much from this kinda genre you might enjoy it but if you want to be swept off your feet and moved to tears this isn't the film for you.