Ane-eui aein-eul mannada (2006)

Director:

Tai-sik Kim

Writers:

Jun-han Kim (co-writer)
Tai-sik Kim (writer)

Release Date:

26 April 2007 (South Korea)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

There isn't anything called adultery, there's only love.

Plot:

After realizing that his wife has been cheating on him, mild-mannered stamp maker Tae-han leaves his small seaside town of Naksan determined to track down his wife's lover, a taxicab driver from Seoul named Joong-sik.

Plot Keywords:

Kim Taisik | Lover | Love | Jealousy | Film Line

Awards:

2 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Kwang-jung Park	...	Tae-han
Bo-seok Jeong	...	Joong-sik
Eun-ji Jo	...	So-ok
Sung-mi Kim	...	Eun-soo
Dal-su Oh	...	Taixi driver - Deja-vu
Yun-soo Yoo	...	Karaoke manager
Chul Park	...	Radio commentator
Mi-sun Jin	...	Yakultwoman
Hyo-jeong Kim	...	Modiliani
Michael Arnold	...	Biker
Yoo-jung Woo	...	Cafe girl 1
Eun-mi Lee	...	Cafe girl 2
Ju-chul Jang	...	Repairman
Kyung-eui Lee	...	Student
Sang-wuk Shim	...	Photographer

Also Known As:

Driving with My Wife's Lover (International: English title)

Runtime:

92 min

Country:

South Korea

Language:

Korean | Korean

Color:

Black and White | Color | Color (Kodak)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

South Korea:18 (original rating)

Filming Locations:

Gangwon-do, South Korea

Company:

Film Line

Interesting artistic film...

Driving with My Wife's Lover is about a man named Tae Han who discovers his wife is cheating on him. He finds out the man is a taxi driver named Park, and decides to go out to Seoul where he jumps in his cab and asks to be taken back to his seaside town. It's a long drive, and Park (unaware of who Tae Han is) immediately takes a liking to the sullen Tae Han, referring to him as Brother. The cab breaks down, and while waiting for the tow truck the men play badminton, eat watermelons, and go skinny dipping. After Park drops Tae Han off in town he turns around and heads to Tae Han's house where he proceeds to sleep with his wife. Tae Han, meanwhile, steals Park's cab and heads back to Seoul, to the restaurant that Park's wife works at.

This is the type of movie that you would find playing in one of those art theaters. There are some off the wall scenes (like hundreds of watermelons suddenly rolling down a hill) and heavy symbolism (the affair happens to take place during a scorching heat wave). But I really enjoyed how all the characters were so different from each other, and reacted to the events in different ways.

Park the cab driver was flippant about his affairs, proclaiming that monogamy is unrealistic, and love just happens between two people and it can't be helped. Tae Han on the other hand is sullen, miserable, wrapped in jealously and uncertainty. He knows this is a situation he has to deal with, but uncertain on how to approach it.

Park's wife (I forget her name) is probably the most likable yet sympathetic of all the characters. She is a brazen girl, boldly flashing her naked body in the middle of the street as her husband drives away, but quickly falls apart when she realizes that her husband is cheating on her. In contrast, Tae Han's wife is shown to be somewhat selfish, insecure and clingy. When Park discovers that his cab has been stolen all she can say is: "Do you love me or the cab?" Aas a whole, Driving my Wife's Lover is much better than I expected it to be. The actors are wonderful, and the music particularly good. It's almost like it's mocking the situation the two couples are in. My only problem is the ending. It was so sudden, I wasn't sure what exactly was resolved in the ending scene. Still, I would highly recommend it.