Rom-com 'Crazy Romance' reminds people of their own romance

Actor Kim Rae-won, left, actress Gong Hyo-ji, and director Kim Han-gyeol after a media conference for the romantic comedy "Crazy Romance," Tuesday, at Gwangjin-gu, Seoul. Courtesy of NEW

By Lee Gyu-lee

There seems to be no such thing as a perfect breakup, nor a perfect relationship.

Although people tire of going through the same cycles, they still manage to find themselves in new relationships and go through the cycle once again, hoping that this time things will work out.

The new romantic comedy film "Crazy Romance" reminds people how crazy it is to fall back in love, but is still worth trying to find one's "ordinary romance."

The film revolves around two co-workers ― team manager Jae-hoon (Kim Rae-won) and new team member Sun-young(Gong Hyo-jin) ― who bond over the stories of their recent breakups.

To ensure the story would be realistic, director Kim Han-gyeol noted that she had to collect the stories from people around her.

"I tried to share a lot of these relationship stories with the cast and the executive producer who helped me to develop the script."

"Among those stories, I took stories that I thought would be interesting to film. The film is not based on one specific person. I wanted to draw sympathy from audiences, as anyone can and has had a romantic relationship. So I developed the script based on that purpose."

A poster for the film, which is about a man and woman finding their way back to romance, despite their heartbreak and distrust stemming from recent breakups. / Courtesy of NEW

Gong plays Sun-young, a headstrong character who is honest, straightforward with her opinions and disillusioned with love. After numerous relationships, she has become cynical and pities Jae-hoon for having such a hard time getting over the breakup.

"When I first read the synopsis, I thought the character has a distinctive personality," Gong explained.

"But as I was filming, the language and expressions that she uses were a lot more explicit and blunt [than I'd expected.] And that language included some things that many wouldn't really say out loud."

But it's that candid, straightforward coolness that draws laughs from the audience, as well as the actress herself.

"At first I thought the character Sun-young was a normal character, but later I realized that she is not after all. In some sense, she could be fierce. But it was a new experience and it was pretty satisfying to act out those expressions as the character."

For Jae-hoon, the devastation from his breakup with his ex-fiance still haunts him as he was so dedicated and honest in the relationship, which leads him to suffer the harsh aftermath.

"What's attractive about Jae-hoon is that he has such a genuine and innocent personality. Since the first time I read about the character, I took in this role as a devoted lover who's always truthful and honest in any circumstances," Kim said.

Going by the book of terrible mistakes from a heartbroken person, he makes habit of drunk texting his ex-fiance and regretting it the next day.

"I don't think it's pathetic or embarrassing," Kim said about his character's endless attempt to get in touch with his ex.

"I personally have not had such an extreme breakdown (from ending a relationship). But the character is the combination of my personal characteristics and Jae-hoon's tenderhearted characteristics. I wouldn't call it lame, because it's about how two imperfect people come together. I think that process is what most ordinary relationships and romances are all about."

As opposites attract, Sun-young and Jae-hoon find themselves being drawn to each other, even though they try to hide it.

"This film is about two people examining each other wondering, 'Is he or she the one?' 'Can I trust this person?'" Gong said.

"But neither of them wants to be the first to make a move. People in their early 20s would not be embarrassed to be completely dedicated to their significant others and would have such a passionate relationship. But those times are over (for these characters)."

The film realistically and comically depicts the hesitation and process of falling back in love despite their heartbroken experiences from previous relationships, along with sidetrack comical sources of office life that most audiences can relate to.

"For those who believe they can't fall in love again or those who have forgotten, this movie will get them to remind what it's like to start a romantic relationship which sometimes could be dumb but heartfelt. The film has a lot of relatable components for anyone who has experienced love and relationships," Gong noted

A scene from the film. / Courtesy of NEW

Dubbed as the queen of rom-coms, Gong is well known for her lovely characters in numerous romantic comedy series and film which most of them had a huge hit such as "The producers" (2015), "Master's Sun"(2013), and "Love Fiction"(2011).

Kim also has a long filmography with romantic melodramas, including TV series "Black Knight" (2017) "A Thousand Days' Promise" (2011), before taking on the masculine, tough-guy characters in recent films.

"It felt a little awkward when I first began shooting this film because I haven't done a romantic film for a while. But I soon settled in with the help of the production crew and Gong," he said.

The director expressed her excitement for casting the two veteran actors with huge recognition from the romantic genre.

"I am a huge fan of both actors, so I always wondered how it would turn out to see them together in a romantic piece," the director said.

"I was impressed by how accommodative they were to each other to support the roles. After all, the film features the return of rom-com 'queen' and 'emperor,' so I was thrilled to see their work together," she said.

The actor and actress have previous experience working together in drama "Snowman" in 2003. Gong talked about their reunion after 16 years and how it affected her.

"We both started our acting careers around the same time and are a similar age who met each other at the very beginning of our career. Then we met again about 15 years later, and a lot has changed. So I had 'I'm a lot better (in acting) now' attitude to show that I've become a mature actress. And I think this came to play effectively in playing the role of the film."

Gong lastly added that this film will bring back the romance to people at just the right time of the year.

"I think the film is coming out at the right time and I have a good feeling about this, hopefully. As it's getting chilly, it's around that time that people would seek and hope to have someone by their side," she said, adding that this will be interesting to watch for anyone who has experienced romance at least once in their life.

The film is scheduled to hit local theaters on Oct. 2.