Keulraesik

The story involves a girl, whose best friend is dating a guy that she secretly likes. She one day finds a diary and letters from the past that belonged to her mother. The story then shifts to the past where the mother is a young woman who falls in love with a guy, but she herself is arranged to be married with the guy's friend. There's a parallel between the past and present and the story shifts back and forth between two romances. I found this movie to be a well-executed Korean melodrama. The cinematography is quite beautiful. However, it is rather cliche in some parts (as some aspects of the director's previous work feels a bit repeated here), yet as a movie itself, it is a well-filmed, nicely delivered piece of work. It is kind of unfortunate, however, given the popularity and the expectations given to the movie due to the director's more accomplished, previous work, "My Sassy Girl," this reviewer couldn't help but feel somewhat disappointed. If I hadn't seen the previous work and saw this movie for the first time, I might've given higher praise. As it is, however, the movie almost accomplishes in being a truly great movie (as opposed to good, which it is). Occasional inventiveness in composition and atmosphere and timing is excellent. The movie does tend to be a bit predictable (particularly if you know what kind of themes the director has presented in his previous work) and admittedly I saw the ending coming sooner than I probably should have (althogh it didn't really distract me from enjoying it either). One can't help whenever one sees a rainy scene or when a certain Pachebel music comes out, one is reminded of a scene directly from "My Sassy Girl" (As "My Sassy Girl" actually pokes fun at melodramas) Without some of those distractions, it may have resonated a lot more strongly as an original piece of work. In terms of characters, they are certainly memorable, and the romantic elements (while, not as multidimensional or as deep as the director's previously mentioned work) are convincing. There are some historical backdrops to go along the romance that gives the film a somewhat a denser, almost epic, if not nostalgic, feel, yet doesn't really go in the way of an epic (which itself might not have been a bad direction to go). Some of the attention to detail are also pretty well done. Overall, though, I enjoyed the film as a romantic melodrama, while being a bit hampered by tough expectations and some cliches, the characters and the romance certainly leaves a nice impression.

What can I say about The Classic, except that I never thought I'd like such a film. Cheesy romances featuring teenagers are really not my usual viewing, but The Classic was just beautiful.

I am not familiar with Korean cinema, and have never seen 'My Sassy Girl' so I cannot comment on how it measures as a follow-up. But as a movie standing on its own, it was a touching, tear-jerking and humorous 2 hour journey for me. The cinematography was outstanding, and paired with an equally impressive soundtrack it created beautiful scenes of the Korean countryside, as well as enhancing the generally poignant, nostalgic mood of the film. The acting was first class all around in my opinion, the movie could've so easily gone overboard with bad-acting considering the general plot of the movie, but never once did I find myself irritated by the lead female. The casting was perfect, and I was absolutely charmed by the characters of Jun-ho and the hilarious Tae-su. There were also a lot of comical elements in the movie which had me laughing off my sofa, making the characters endlessly endearing. The film takes us through a journey of many years in the past from when the characters' parents first meet, and had me bawling my eyes out at the end. The modern day story is just as good too. The film also finishes with what I consider two big surprises which had me thinking about the movie for ages afterwards.

All in all, I am really surprised that I liked this film. After considering why this was so since I really don't like romantic/comedy dramas, I came to the simple conclusion that this was just great filmaking, where the watcher gets utterly lost in the movie. It may not be very realistic, and however long we analyse it and it's clichés at the end all we know is that we were moved and entertained by this movie.

Technically speaking, this film showcased beautiful cinematography, convincing acting, and an overall continuity that brings viewers so deeply into two stories which become one, that it resonates long after viewing the film. This movie takes place in flashback format and the quality of the production is proven in the fact the the movie is seamless and smooth that even watching it without subtitles (which I did!), the story was still so easy to follow. Classic is not strictly just a love story, but a story about humanity and relationships of all kinds: friendship and the bond between children and parents. I am reminded of "Amelie" for it's lightness of spirit and dips into the imaginative and the fanciful. An underlying belief in romance rules the characters in both films. Classic is a complete package, there are no loose ends and instead at the end, you can take a deep breath and feel satisfied. I think that this would be a great foriegn film for someone who doesn't like foreign films to see because the actors portray the characters and their stories so convincingly that you can read the humanity without understanding the language. The quality of the acting and entire composition of the movie make it universal. It's inspiring to know that even in 2003 a film can be created that is truly timeless.

I know that "Classic" is cheesy and at times, very cliche. But the film acknowledges this fact when the character of Ji Hae reads the letter that her mother's first love, Jun Ho, had written to her and she states how cheesy it is. And yet, she decides that she'll not call it cheesy, but instead, call it classic.

The intent of this film is not to enlighten or to be original. Love is not original. It is the most common of emotions. The point, rather, I think, is to show how it is possible for love to be like the way it is between the characters in the movie. Through the good and the bad, love is worth it. Yes, saying that love is worth it is very cliche and cheesy. But what the hell. Life is a goddamn cliche in itself and if you're not ready to accept that, then well, what can I say?

I can say, "Go watch 'Classic' and cry or vomit. Either way, you'll feel better."

Oh, by the way, nice acting by Son Ye Jin and Jo Seung Woo. They set up a truly believable dynamic.

8/10 is my score for this pretty love story. Reminded me of the story of how my parents met in Korea. I am glad to see Korean cinema improve.

So a lot of people have compared this director's work to his previous work My Sassy Girl which came out about 2 years before this one did. There have been many comparisons between this one and that and while there are similar themes in choice of music and themes I would say it is like comparing apples to oranges. MSG was funny and then got dramatic hence it is a romance/comedy with some drama (if anything, i would call Windstruck MSG 2). This one was mostly a dramatic romance story with a few very classical clichés. There is enough foreshadowing that you can guess what is going to happen if you pay any attention at all and have seen any Korean drama, but the director still does an excellent job in telling the story.

The main characters do an excellent job acting and bringing out the character's emotions. The story is beautiful and so is the music. Enjoy it for what it is, if you have a heart at all you'll be teary eyed. You'll know what is coming and you'll still be floored by it, thats how good it is. Even the ending, which I thought was a bit over the top, is the only way you could have ended a classic.

I am a little hesitant to say that this is a date movie, definitely not for a first date. I would think that any emotionally sensitive human being is not going to be particularly happy throughout most of this movie until the very end. Such is a melodrama.