Pavane

Story: Gyeong-rok (Moon Sang-min) has taken a part-time job at a parking garage and lives a carefree existence. His father, an actor, abandoned him and his mother after becoming famous, and since then, Gyeong-rok has found no joy in life. His colleague Yo-han (Byun Yo-han), who has chosen him as his new friend, teases him about being so joyless. Gyeong-rok's outlook on life changes, however, when he meets the unassuming Mi-jeong (Go Ah-sung). She works in the warehouse of the same building and is ostracized by her colleagues because she is withdrawn and not very likeable. Gyeong-rok wants to get to know her better, though, as he finds her extremely fascinating. Yo-han offers to act as a matchmaker, since his friend is anything but experienced in romantic matters. At first, Mi-jeong doesn't understand what the young man wants from her. She can't imagine that he could be seriously interested in her. Yo-han also warns him that he absolutely mustn't give her the impression that he's being nice to her out of pity. In the end, Gyeong-rok doesn't care about any of that and simply wants to get closer to Mi-jeong. It takes a while for her to warm up, but thanks to her, the young man finally finds his smile again. But no love lasts forever, as Yo-han repeatedly emphasizes, and the first stumbling blocks don't take long to appear when Gyeong-rok wants to follow his dream of dancing.

Review: "Pavane" isn't your typical romantic comedy; you can tell that from its somewhat melancholic and drama-oriented atmosphere. That's what initially piqued my interest, since another lighthearted, colorful romance is far more likely to fall back into genre clichés. "Pavane" takes a different path... until it takes a wrong turn and ends up on that well-trodden track. Suddenly, the other problems with the drama become more apparent. The biggest issue is that the characters aren't nearly as profound as we are led to believe. Added to this — or perhaps as a consequence — is the lack of chemistry between the two leads. The reason the film isn't a complete disaster, however, lies in the serious and mature themes it tackles with the necessary weight in a few moments, even if mostly through brief dialogues.

Let's first look at Gyeong-rok, played by Moon Sang-min (previously only seen in drama series like "My Name"). He's given a small backstory, outlined at the beginning, but it is briefly revisited in only one scene, if I'm not mistaken. He occasionally shares his thoughts by addressing them to Mi-jeong, and we learn that everyone seems somehow "not real" to him until he finds his love, but that's about it. It's never truly clear what suffering plagues him. With Mi-jeong, on the other hand, it's quite clear that she was bullied in the past and still is. Go Ah-sung, also known internationally from "Snowpiercer" tries to give her role more depth, but it falls flat. Mi-jeong arrives at work with unkempt hair and poorly cared-for skin, and her stooped posture also signals that she's different from her colleagues at Chanel and Gucci. But that alone (and perhaps her air piano, which she plays in one scene) seems to be enough for Gyeong-rok to love her as someone who isn't "fake." Far too little.

Furthermore, we learn absolutely nothing about the characters' life circumstances. With Mi-jeong, in particular, the film makes the cardinal error of telling her story instead of showing it. She has to support her siblings because she has no parents, and loan sharks keep coming after her. But the screenwriter deems this worth no more than a few lines of monologue. I wanted to be interested in the characters, but this approach simply didn't get enough out of them. It's very telling that the seemingly superficial colleague, Se-ra, was more successful in piquing my curiosity. Even though she is exploited and hurt, she displays a good heart, so you suddenly find yourself feeling more sympathy for this character, about whom you actually learn nothing, than for the protagonists. She seems to undergo at least some kind of transformation. Not to mention Yo-han, who, for me, carried much of the film, and not just because he brings much-needed color to the story. He is the typical tragic figure who is always in a good mood but is in truth plagued by depression and is actually only looking for true friendship.

Yo-han, portrayed by Byun Yo-han ("On the Line"), is actually depicted rather caricatured, but his downward spiral and backstory are at least made clear through his words and imagination. Rumors circulating within the company also give us some insight into his character. Unfortunately, Yo-han is sidelined at a certain point and only brought back when the script needs him again. Instead, the focus shifts to the growing distance between the two lovers because Gyeong-rok wants to pursue his dream of dancing — an aspect that feels rather tacked on. The problem is that the two have only just begun to grow closer. So there's no foundation yet for this estrangement to feel tragic. Despite all the criticism, what keeps the viewer engaged are a few nice ideas and the themes themselves. Ultimately, the point the drama is trying to make is that even a past love is something you never truly lose if you can remember it with a smile. Loss and suicide are also addressed in a mature way.

All of this could have been far more effective with better character development. My biggest criticism is that "Pavane" tries to do a little bit of everything, and towards the end, the director simply loses control. For example, there's even the cliché of Gyeong-rok getting on a bus and driving off, only to get off a few meters later to explicitly reveal his feelings to Mi-jeong. Ironically — in fact, quite cruelly — the ending would likely have been very different had he not resorted to this cliché. Furthermore, the ending completely failed to engage me. It's meant to be hopeful but veers entirely into melodrama, while director Lee Jong-pil ("Samjin Company English Class") doesn't seem to know how to lead into the credits in a meaningful way, thus simply throwing in several epilogues, at least one of which fails to achieve its intended effect and is rather cringe. Yes, "Pavane" had the potential to be a melancholic love story with depth, but unfortunately there are too many issues that create emotional distance.

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