Over the Rainbow

Rating: 8/10
Year: 2002
Genre: Love
Director: Ahn Jin-Woo
Cast: Lee Jung-Jae, Jang Jin-Young

If you take a look at Lee Jung-Jae's filmography, you'll notice that most of the films he partcipated in are either romantic comedy or pure romance. Over the Rainbow is not an exception too. Once again, Lee takes a romantic lead role in this warm and passionate romance movie.

Because of a car accident, Jin-Soo (Lee Jung-Jae) is suffered from partial amnesia. He remembers himself, his career and his friends, while he forgets who is the one he loves most since college days. He can only rely on his friend Yeon-Hee (Jang Jin-Young) to bring his precious memory back. The story follows his quest of memory retrieval, which is similar to what you can expect from a detetive thriller, but in a melodramatic sense. Although the answer of his true love is too obvious, this film still provides an engaging viewing experience since the plot is organized in an absorbing way that succeeds in arousing your attention wholeheartedly. The flashbacks are very pleasant and refreshing, they make you remember how innocent and pressure-free your college days were (for those who have completed college...). It is the most wonderful part of your life since you don't have to worry about money or career.

Amnesia is not treated as a kind of disease in this film. Jin-Soo never feels despair after he knows he has lost his memory, on the contrary, he tries his best to recover his lost memory actively. It is promoting an optimistic attitude that is very encouraging. Another interesting discovery is the occuptions of the two protagonists. Jin-Soo is a weatherman and Yeon-Hee works at a lost and found department in the train station. A weatherman is supposed to forecast while the lost item attendent's job is to preserve the past. Therefore, to a certain extent, Jin-Soo represents the future while Yeon-Hee is the symbol of the past. It seems wise for Jin-Soo to ask for Yeon-Hee's help as she is the keeper of the past.

Lee Jung-Jae's role is pretty much similar to what he has done before in his old films, there is no real surprise for him. As compared to him, Jang Jin-Young's performance is more eye catching. I am not sure why, she just reminds me of Shim Eun-Ha somehow. Yes, their appearances are very different, but in terms of the style and the gesture, they seem to belong to the same school.

Over the Rainbow will not give you lots of surprise, but it is definitely a very comfortable and relaxing flick. The use of "Over the Rainbow" as the main theme enhances the thesis of the film well - Our memory is one of the most precious treasures we have. While we should always plan ahead for our future, on the other hand, we should not ignore the past. Past memory is not some kind of residue that is disposable but instead a very important asset we should value.

Cool guy(s) - Jang Jin-Young

Reviewed by: Kantorates