On Monday February 28 and also on Monday March 7, My Sassy Girl was shown in the Health and Wellness office. Edna Pressler, of the counseling department, ran the event. She explained that she wants to show films concerning issues that may be of interest to young people, and that provoke discussion.
My Sassy Girl was released in Korea in 2001, and it is based on a true story of a young man and his postings on the Internet about his relationship with his girlfriend. It was the biggest box office hit in Korea ever, and since then, Dreamworks has acquired the rights to the film and will be making an American version that is scheduled for release in 2006.
The movie begins with the story of Kyun-woo and how his parents, before he was born, wished he would be a girl. This is extremely peculiar in Korean culture, and the effect on him is that he is a tad bit sensitive and effeminate. He says, “When I was little I wished my penis would get smaller, but it did just the opposite.”
Kyun-woo is a dreamer and a romantic. One day as he was waiting for the train, he “wishes he would meet a girl like the comic book heroines.” And the he sees The Girl (none of the other characters in the movies have names except for Kyun-woo) waiting for the train, drunk on the platform, appearing as if she was about to jump off.
He saves her, and follows her into the subway car.
The Girl titters in her drunken state, and she vomits on a man’s head. Everyone in the train is repulsed by this, and Kyun-woo thinks that she would be just his type if she were not drunk. She calls him honey, and he drags her off the train. He does not know what to do with her, and he does not know who she is or where she lives and he takes her to a motel. As she is sleeping, her cell phone rings and he answers it. It is her mother, and, foolishly enough, he tells her where he is, and she promptly calls the police.
Needless to say, Kyun-woo spends the night in jail. This begins their tumultuous courtship. She is incredibly demanding of him; she insults him and asks him repeatedly, “Do you wanna die?” She beats him and demands that he give her his sneakers because her feet hurt, leaving him to wear The Girl’s pink heels.
My Sassy Girl toys with gender roles as they stand in Korea. Kyun-woo is the woman and The Girl is the man in the relationship. She leads him around by the nose, and even though it is very unusual, it is also very funny. The audience feels sorry for Kyun-woo, and in the end, they both change for the better. The ending is both romantic and charming.
There was some heated debate among the audience about whether or not women in Asian cultures are more dominating than the men. It is well know that men have more power, but there was conflicted opinion due to personal experience. The conclusion that was drawn was that if people are out of their natural environment, they may behave differently than they would in their normal setting.
The Multicultural Movie and Discussion is taking place Monday, March 21 and 28, and Balzac and the Little China Seamstress from China will be shown. On April 4 and 11, Monsoon Wedding, an Indian film, will be featured.