10 Greatest South Korean Romance Motion pictures, Ranked

Winter is slowly approaching, and getting cozy with a blanket and a movie is the last word wintertime exercise. One of the best sorts of films to look at in such a setting are, undoubtedly, heartwarming romantic motion pictures. Followers of cozy romance movies have a big film library to select from, however how about giving an opportunity to some South Korean ones?

South Korea is understood for its romantic K-dramas with unimaginable tales and slow-burn love, however its romantic characteristic movies are inclined to take a backseat within the eyes of worldwide audiences. This is sensible, as Ok-dramas span a number of episodes and permit viewers to get to know the characters significantly better. Nonetheless, romantic characteristic movies from South Korea have the identical sentiment however convey their love tales significantly better. They are a fast rollercoaster of emotions, heartwarming and heartbreaking alike, making them best for these chilly winter moments.

10 ‘Bungee Leaping of Their Personal’ (2001)

Directed by Kim Dae-sung

Certainly one of Korea’s biggest action stars, Lee Byung-hun, can be a well known heartthrob amongst South Korean film followers. He began performing in 1991 and has had varied roles since, from cold-blooded vigilantes to romantic leads. Certainly one of his distinctive roles was within the romantic drama Bungee Leaping of Their Personal from 2001, which was a bit controversial on the time. Although imperfect in some methods, it is an fascinating love story that depicts the concept of getting “the one,” an individual that is meant for us.

Lee Byung-hun and Lee Eun-ju play two younger college students, In-woo and Tae-hee, who get to know one another and fall in love. When their romance blossoms, issues appear to be going nicely, however instantly, Tae-hee will get concerned in a automobile accident and dies. In-woo, heartbroken, continues his life, and 17 years later, the story exhibits him as a highschool trainer. When In-woo will get a brand new pupil, Hyun-bin, he notices similarities between him and his former love, Tae-hee. The story unfolds, depicting struggles with self-acceptance, self-discovery, and the concept that there’s all the time that one particular person in somebody’s life.

Bungee Leaping of Their Personal is at the moment unavailable for streaming.

9 ‘Candy & Bitter’ (2021)

Directed by Kae-Byeok Lee and Kate Jopson

Candy & Bitter is without doubt one of the newer South Korean romantic comedies that comes from Netflix, which produced some nice Ok-romance motion pictures over the previous few years (nice examples are Love and Leashes and twentieth Century Lady). It portrays a pair, Da-eun and Hyuk (Chae Soo-bin and Jang Ki-yong), who develop into shut after Da-eun takes care of him on the hospital the place he’s her affected person. They enter a relationship that quickly turns into long-distance as a result of Hyuk accepts a job in Seoul, whereas they reside in Incheon.

Hyuk’s touring backwards and forwards places a pressure on their relationship, evolving the story right into a extra complicated evaluation of emotional neglect—each of oneself and their accomplice—the working and overworking tradition, and long-distance romance. The twist on the finish is one other nice a part of what makes Candy & Bitter rewatchable and relatable. Although many viewers really feel that the ending is disappointing, it exhibits that blissful endings aren’t all the time practical and that romance is typically like that.

Watch on Netflix

8 ‘At all times’ (2011)

Directed by Music Il-gon

At all times is a melodrama starring So Ji-sub and Han Hyo-joo, who have been on the top of their recognition at first of the 2010s. So Ji-sub performs a former boxer, Cheol-min, whose tough exterior slowly will get damaged down by a blind lady, Jung-hwa (Han Hyo-joo). They meet at his new job, a parking attendant sales space, the place Cheol-min sits and observes the world passing him by. Jung-hwa is optimistic and relentless in tearing down Cheol-min’s partitions, however their romance has rocky moments and chilly durations.

This romantic drama has all of it: a great-looking powerful man with a sort coronary heart, a wonderful lady whose life did not go as deliberate, however she would not quit, and an unbreakable bond between the 2 that tugs on the heartstrings. The performances in At all times are excellent, if not a tad overdramatic, however, as any fan of South Korean dramas will know, that is the way it’s finished over there. Letting the emotion in with out judging the melodramatics will assist viewers take pleasure in a splendidly made romance.

Watch on Viki

7 ‘Moonlit Winter’ (2019)

Directed by Lim Dae-hyung

Moonlit Winter is a touching drama that covers many subjects, from coming-of-age to forbidden love. Yoon-hee (Kim Hee-ae) lives within the Korean countryside together with her teenage daughter Sae-bom (Sohye). Sae-bom finds a love letter in her mom’s possessions someday, which she discovers was despatched to her mother from a girl named Jun (Yuko Nakamura) in Japan. Seeing her mom’s loneliness, Sae-bom decides to reunite her mom with the Japanese girl, awakening a decades-old romance that remained hidden for therefore lengthy.

Whereas the film follows Sae-bom’s maturing and compassion, it additionally provides Yoon-hee a second probability to lastly reside as the lady she all the time wished to be. This second life, in addition to assembly her past love, Jun, encourages Yoon-hee to embrace herself and make bolder selections that make her blissful. Whereas it is a film a few queer romance, it is also a love story that encapsulates extra than simply romantic love. Moonlit Winter is a visually attractive and touching romance for anybody searching for an excellent cry.

Watch on Tubi

6 ‘Be With You’ (2018)

Directed by Lee Jang-hoon

One other So Ji-sub romance, Be With You, is without doubt one of the hottest motion pictures of 2018. This may very well be due to him or due to his co-star Son Ye-jin (Crash Landing on You), who was the lover of the romance style on the time (and stays for therefore many people). Be With You is a remake of the Japanese drama of the identical title, and even the trailer for this film is a tearfest.

The film follows Woo-jin, who’s unexpectedly left to lift his son alone after the untimely dying of his spouse, Soo-ah. Earlier than dying, Soo-ah makes a promise to return within the wet season. Woo-jin quickly realizes that Soo-ah miraculously manages to satisfy that promise, however when she does return, her reminiscence is wiped. Woo-jin should present Soo-ah why and the way they fell in love, reinventing their romance and getting one other probability to carry one another earlier than it will get too late. As the publication London Korean Links said, “When you’re not blubbing uncontrollably at varied factors on this pretty factor, you’re a heartless brute.”

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5 ‘The Magnificence Inside’ (2015)

Directed by Baek Jong-yeol

Physique-switching motion pictures are frequent, however The Magnificence Inside takes that premise to the next degree. This film, starring Ok-drama hero Park Seo-joon and At all times‘ Han Hyo-joo, revolves round a furnishings maker, Woo-jin, who wakes up as a distinct particular person on daily basis. Regardless of the gender, age, race, or nationality, Woo-jin’s life transforms considerably each time he wakes up; this, nevertheless, would not change his character, as he all the time stays Woo-jin on the within.

Woo-jin begins frequenting a furnishings retailer the place the attractive Yi-soo (Han Hyo-joo) works. He visits her on daily basis, although she would not know he is the identical particular person each time he visits. When he wakes up a good-looking man someday (Park Search engine optimisation-joon), he decides to ask Yi-soo out on a date. How Woo-jin and Yi-soo later handle their relationship leaves viewers to see whether or not magnificence comes from the within. This quirky romantic drama was primarily based on an online social series of the same name that starred Mary Elizabeth Winstead.

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4 ‘Failan’ (2001)

Directed by Music Hae-sung

Choi Min-sik could also be South Korea’s most well-known export with regards to actors, however Oldboy is much from his solely function. This actor’s achievement record is lengthy and spectacular, as he continues to behave and convey life to new and thrilling characters. Earlier than he made Oldboy, Choi Min-sik starred in an fascinating (and admittedly heartbreaking) romantic drama titled Failan. To see him as a love curiosity was enjoyable, although he needed to be some kind of gangster even in a romance.

Choi portrays Kang-jae, a gangster who lacks any sympathy for others. He is chilly, impolite, and careless, but additionally cowardly with regards to doing actual gangster work. Alternatively, there’s Failan (Cecilia Chung), a Chinese language girl who involves Korea searching for her remaining family members. Failan’s household is all gone, however she desires to remain; Kang-jae indicators marriage papers to assist her settle in Korea, although the 2 by no means meet. Kang-jae and Failan are attracting opposites—he is chilly, and he or she is heat like sunshine on a winter day. Failan writes love letters to Kang-jae however by no means dares to present them to him; when Kang-jae lastly sees them, his transformation by Failan’s heat turns into extra apparent. The film beautifully exhibits that love can discover anybody.

Failan is at the moment unavailable for streaming.

3 ‘3-Iron’ (2004)

Directed by Kim Ki-duk

Kim Ki-duk, the director of 3-Iron, is a well-known title in South Korean cinema. Although he handed in 2020, his motion pictures go away a everlasting legacy due to how uncommon they’re. Kim’s most well-known motion pictures embody Pietà and Spring, Summer season, Fall, Winter… and Spring; two contrasting motion pictures which carry a novel stamp. The romantic drama 3-Iron is in between the 2, tackling social themes just like the therapy of outcasts and home violence and depicting the ability and delivery of affection in tragic and desolate locations.

3-Iron follows Tae-suk (Jae Hee), a drifter who sleeps in individuals’s homes whereas they’re gone. He by no means steals something—in truth, he takes care of the houses. When he breaks into a house he thinks is empty, Tae-suk runs into the lady who lives there, Solar-hwa (Lee Seung-yun). After witnessing Solar-hwa’s husband bodily abusing her, he beats him, and the 2 run away. For almost all of the movie, the 2 do not communicate to one another, and Tae-suk is a grasp of hiding and being a ghost-like presence. This touching drama is extra than simply romantic—it tries to indicate achievement in those that typically really feel alone.

Watch on Tubi

2 ‘Il Mare: A Love Story’ (2000)

Directed by Lee Hyun-seung

Keep in mind The Lake Home with Sandra Bullock and Keanu Reeves? The touching romantic drama about two individuals corresponding by way of the mailbox of a lake home was initially a South Korean romance titled Il Mare. Lee Jung-jae (Squid Game) and Jun Ji-hyun (Kingdom) star as time-intertwined lovers who fall for one another by way of their mailbox correspondence. This fantasy spin on a love story carries an apparent message—that love transcends time and house and all the time finds a solution to join individuals.

Jun Ji-hyun performs Eun-joo, a girl proven leaving a wonderful seaside residence referred to as Il Mare. Whereas packing, she locations a Christmas card in her mailbox, asking the following resident to ahead her mail to her. The one that receives her card, nevertheless, is Sung-hyun, the first-ever resident of Il Mare; by way of additional correspondence, the 2 understand they’re two years aside however dwelling in the identical home concurrently. They assist one another by way of varied private points whereas slowly falling for one another. Fortunately, Il Mare has an exquisite ending and is a wonderful romantic film good for a comfortable evening in.

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1 ‘My Sassy Lady’ (2001)

Directed by Kwak Jae-young

When My Sassy Lady is talked about to South Korean viewers, most would agree it is essentially the most well-known romantic comedy that hails from their nation. Its main stars have been in high type when the film got here out, and its distinctive mix of quirkiness, attraction, comedy, and romance is not groundbreaking, however it created a mildew for quite a few motion pictures in a while. The main man, Cha Tae-hyn, is a well-known face in South Korea—a comic, actor, singer, and actuality present star; a likable and relatable character. His co-star, the sassy lady in query, is Il Mare‘s Jun Ji-hyun, one of the most prominent actresses of the time (and as we speak).

My Sassy Lady follows Kyun-woo (Cha), a faculty pupil who rescues a drunk lady from falling off a practice platform one evening on his solution to a date. Her title isn’t talked about; all through the film, she’s often called The Lady. Kyun-woo and The Lady begin a relationship of ups and downs from that evening on, however its tumultuous nature binds them nearer collectively, they usually fall deeply in love. Many who’ve watched My Sassy Lady have proudly proclaimed it their favourite romantic comedy.

My Sassy Lady is at the moment unavailable for streaming.

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