s k
I thought the idea of using the twin brothers to interject mystery and suspense into the plot would make this a very interesting movie. In theory, it was interesting and could have worked; in reality, for me, it did not work at all. The idea that each one at different times was in a coma just seemed way too contrived, as did other elements of the movie -- the announcement over the intercom in the hospital describing the musical piece about a woman falling in love with her husband's brother, the ending, etc. It's also implausible that Jin-Woo could have been able to hide his limp (or his weight loss) when he was pretending to be his brother during Yeon's visit (when she came to see Jin-Ho and ended up having sex with him (Jin-Woo), thinking she was having sex with Jin-Ho). And SHE ends up angry at her husband after she's screwing who she thinks is her brother-in-law? Please. And who is SHE to judge her mother or anyone else for that matter? No sympathy/empathy for her whatsoever, and that's always a bad thing when it comes to a movie's lead/protagonist. I also felt that the cutting of this film as well as some of the acting was mediocre. It felt more like a melodrama/soap opera than a true drama. Less than halfway through the movie I honestly didn't care which brother was which, or how things turned out. The brothers were deceitful; Yeon was deceitful. And frankly I'm getting really tired of films about cheating spouses that fail to evoke any empathy for the main character(s).And the ending was just flat out ridiculous. Clearly, the writer(s) and director were at a loss as far as how to end the film, and decided on a cheap "twist" to tie everything together. But as often happens in those instances, rather than tying everything together, it causes everything to fall apart/unravel. Secret Lover is not the worst Korean film I've seen, but it's clearly not the best either.
Desertman84
Secret Love is a South Korean film that is written and directed by Ryu Hoon-i.The story was about a woman who was caught love triangle with her husband and his twin brother while he was in coma.It stars Yoo Ji-tae and Yoon Jin-seo together with Oh Woo-Jung, Ko Yu-Seon,Lee A-Rin,Seo Jin,Lim Hyung-Guk and Yang Eun-Yong. The film starts when Yeon-Yi's husband Jin-woo gets into an accident and falls into a coma two months after their wedding. During this time, Yeon-Yi's life shatters from the seams. She misses her deadlines for work, while she has only videos of her wedding to comfort her. Then Yeon-Yi waits at the airport for Jin-Woo's brother Jin-Ho, whom she has never met before. She is stunned when she meets him, because Yeon-Yi never knew Jin-Woo and Jin-Ho are identical twin brothers. Although Jin- Ho and Yeon-Yi's relationship is cold at first. they soon become attracted to each other. Their relationship becomes even more volatile, when Jin-woo suddenly awakes from his coma.Secret Love is one reason why Koreans are considered one of the most creative in world cinema.The story that involves twins and a volatile one at that provides great interest to the viewer considering its interesting premise which is definitely original and refreshing.The pacing of the film is great considering that most Asian films are somewhat slow and tedious for there is no wasted scene.The acting is also brilliant especially from the leads namely:Yoo Ji-tae and Yoon Jin-seo,who already have worked together from the Asian masterpiece,Oldboy.Attention to detail is definitely necessary in this picture as it can provide confusion to many especially on how the movie ends especially at the conclusion when one wants to answer the question on who among the twins,Jin-Woo and Jin-Ho,does Yeon-Yi end up with.Although this is far from a masterpiece,I do believe that it could be elevated in the "borderline" great Korean love stories ever made.Finally,it also does not fall short in entertainment as it provides romance,drama,mystery and passionate love scenes.I give this film a two thumbs up!!!
petertest1234
The sex scene and web poster looks like the movie by Diane Lane in Unfaithful (2002). Of course, the story is different. I think if Jin-seo Yun replaced by Woo-Jeong Oh will be better. The 3D and CG technique for the twin brothers are good. It does not like other old movies that you can easily see the unmatched by filming at different time and then combine it later loosely. Korean film improved much in the past 10 years. I'd like this kind of Korean films, and looking forward to see more. Other recommended films are "An Affair", "The Lover", "Ardor", "The one you loved", "Happ End". Hollywood film should learn from them as well instead of just follow the typical Hollywood style...
aglobalcitizen
The plot fits the formula for all South Korean movies: love between two people has met the insurmountable obstacles, typical Shakespearean intensity. However, this particular movie adds a new twist to this old dilemma: there are two brothers, who are twins, and one woman that is loved by both. MAJOR SPOILER AHEAD:Are perplexities of the plot that important to this particular movie? Not really, because even I could not figure out between the two twins in the end. I am still puzzled: which one of the brothers survived the fall? Which one did she meet first? Even though one of the twins gives away the answers in the final scene, they both looked so much alike, it was beyond me to figure out who did what to whom and why. The ending of the movie reminded me the story of "Three Billy Goats Gruff" except there were only two of them and no troll. I gave this movie a high rating for the passion alone. There are a couple of steamy sex scenes, but there is more to it then just sex: the actors did show a lot of passion towards each other. Enjoy!