Ms. Apocalypse

Story: Kim Yeong-mi (Lee Yoo-young) is an accountant at a factory. Her colleagues make fun of her behind her back because of her peculiar look and appearance. She also lives with her mentally disturbed aunt and therefore does not have it easy. On top of that, she is secretly in love with her colleague Do-yeong (Roh Jae-won), who embezzles company funds. So far, she has been able to put the stolen money back using her own money, but she had to take an additional part-time job to do so. Eventually, her aunt dies and Do-yeong also shows up at the funeral service. He tells her that he knows that she has covered for him. But now he wants to turn himself in and pay her back the money in the near future. However, shortly before he can turn himself in, the police catch up with him and also question Yeong-mi. In the end, she has to go to prison for complicity too. Through the police she finds out that Do-yeong has a wife who he has kept secret so far. When Yeong-mi is released again, Yoo-jin (Lim Sun-woo) picks her up from prison. She is the wife and tells her that she will pay her back the money. Yoo-jin is in a wheelchair and paralyzed from the neck down. Because of her demanding nature, none of the nurses wants to work for her anymore. Yeong-mi accepts the offer to live with her and take care of her a little bit in return. That’s also her only option as Yeong-mi's cousin sold her aunt's house and so she has nothing now. Against all odds she and Yoo-jin get to know each other better and better over time and learn a lot about the pain in each other’s lives.

Review: "Ms. Apocalypse" is peculiar in many ways. Still, not a single aspect is negative. It starts with the fact that the movie begins in black and white. This makes you think you're dealing with an art-house drama, but the mood and atmosphere are generally far too cheerful for that. The tragic life of the protagonist is always portrayed with a nice portion of joie de vivre and humor. When Yeong-mi is released from prison, the story plays out in color. It is difficult to put in words what the story is about because there are numerous twists and turns, even though none of them can be called that in the classical sense. After all, we don't really expect anything when it comes to the plot. It’s more like we get to see some excerpts from the lives of the two main characters and always learn something new about the people who make life difficult for them in whatever form. In addition, the movie is also about love, but "Ms. Apocalypse" is not a romantic flick. The only common thread might be that Yeong-mi wants her money back and tries to get back on her feet. However, this turns more into a subplot for the viewer, because we are mainly interested in how the two women grow with the challenges they have to face and how the relationship between them develops.

Yeong-mi is a weird character, but anything but unsympathetic. Simply a little bit naïve, but then again not really, if you look closer. She is helplessly in love and not very popular among her colleagues because of her unusual behavior, but she is sensitive to the turmoil of life and the suffering of her fellow human beings. Accordingly, she is clearly the anchor of the story and carries us through the various insights into the other characters. Yoo-jin disguises her pain of not being able to do anything on her own by snapping at people and even grossing them out with her manners. No question, she has some serious problems and some of her decisions may not be completely understandable, but they are human and make her believable as a character. Somehow you can feel with her despite her arrogance, and at some point you even start to like her. This kind of character development is what makes "Ms. Apocalypse" so appealing. Lim Sun-woo ("Intruder") also deserves praise for the fact that she is able to portray her role in such a multi-layered fashion, even though, playing a paralyzed person, she is only allowed to act with her face.

The real star is, of course, the somewhat seemingly lost Yeong-mi, portrayed by Lee Yoo-young ("Dr. Brain"). After she gets a new hair color from a friend of Yoo-jin and matching bright clothes, the transformation into an eccentric is complete. There are more than enough hints that "Ms. Apocalypse" doesn't necessarily want to move you to tears but instead tries to show how life can put a smile on your face despite its obstacles. Thus, the protagonist always gives us the impression, also thanks to her sensitivity, that everything can be looked at with a bit more ease. Even the love triangle, which should lead to some problems one might assume, is resolved in an amazingly easy-going way. The two women do not make life difficult for each other, but instead support each other, even if it might look differently at the beginning. In addition, there are some entanglements that are quite exciting too. Yoo-jin witnesses how Yeong-mi has to deal with her cousin, while Yeong-mi is present when the supposedly runaway niece is found again and turns up pregnant.

In terms of craftsmanship, the drama is well-done. Female director Lim Seon-ae has previously written storyboards for movies such as "Forgotten", which clearly shows. The movie has a good flow, the scenes line up very naturally, and there is never a dull moment. Moreover, the characters are all interesting, especially their interactions with each other. You always feel like they are truly acting based on personal motivation. Despite the already mentioned drama, the pacing as well as the mood seem high-spirited. A sometimes playful and sometimes warm soundtrack also contributes to this. Here and there, we get a few pretty funny scenes too, which once again put a light-hearted twist to the serious problems of the individuals. This ensures that the end comes much sooner than you would expect. The events literally fly by, which is ultimately also thanks to some small surprises as the characters, especially Yoo-jin, hide a lot of emotional baggage.

As you can see "Ms. Apocalypse" is a bit of a surprise. Anyone expecting an art-house drama will be amazed by the movie’s approachability and lifelike individuals. As a viewer, you simply become part of the lives of two very different women who don't conform to stereotypes and have to maneuver their way through a world that constantly puts problems in their way. Not earth-shattering ones, but the kind that can make your life miserable nonetheless. They master a few of them, but when it comes to others they have to admit defeat, for better or worse. Just as these things normally go. All this may sound unspectacular, but it is implemented in a fascinating way – using enough eccentricities to create an individual identity for the movie but also a sense of approachability so that you never get bored. "Ms. Apocalypse" is one of those movies where you only realize later on that you have actually watched a drama. That's how life-affirming the story and the characters are.

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