Let see what i remember in "A Moment to Remember" (Korean Movie)

Here comes another “what on my thoughts” about this movie….

This is the first time I want to really write seriously but the ideas goes on like I don’t know “where should I start?”

I watched it yesterday since it was Saturday and it is the time of the day I can pamper myself a little and write.

This movie reminds me of the American movie of Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore the “50 first date”, like this movie the lead girl named Su Jin played by the actress Son Ye-jin also suffering from the Alzheimer’s disease.

To make it easier for me to write down my ideas, I manage to search some pictures first and from there, this blog post goes on….

The story starts like this;

A beggar is talking to the man named  Choi Chul Soo played by the actor Jung Woo, he was sitting in the waiting area in the train station; the man look dirty and delinquent while the beggar holding a cigarette and asked him…

“Do you have a light?”….

Chul Soo just looks at the beggar and didn’t answer…

 a simple question like that gives an important essence to the story…

Sitting in the other side of the chair is Su-jin holding two train tickets looking depressed and frustrated; the beggar also asked her “Do you have a light?...”

Su-jin just looks at the beggar and didn’t answer also and walked in the near by telephone booth; inside the booth she cried desperately and continue to walk until she reach a convenient store; buy a can of coke and walk away immediately on her way out, Chul Soo enter the convenient store too. As Su-jin walks home she notice she forgot her coke and return back to the convenient store as the moment she enter the convenient store he bumped in to Chul Soo and she saw he is holding a can of coke, Chul Soo looked at her sharply and open his coke can as Su-jin looked at the counter and saw her coke can is not there anymore thinking that the delinquently look man in front of him stole her coke can, not even intimidated in Chul Soo presence, she snatched the can of coke in his hand and drink it in front of him, she even burp in front of him and even return the empty can back in him. Chul Soo even drink again the coke of can just to found out it is really empty, he shake it, crumpled it and dumped in the garbage and smiled sarcastically while still gazing at Su-jin back as she walks away…..

When Su-jin is in the bus, she found out she forgot her wallet too, she return again to the convenient store just to found out that she left not only her wallet but her can of coke too, feeling so embarrassed as she recall of what she did earlier snatching the can of coke of the man she doesn't even know...

That is how they met; seriously I thought it was a comedy romance story setting aside the weird start of the story but it was not, it was a HARD drama with a mixture of comedy romance, not too bad genre for me. The comedy brings a different attack in the story so it doesn’t bore the watcher.

Then how they met again and the weird sequence how they have the connection and how it became deep; honestly, it was hard for me to elaborate so let just make use of the picture I collect, here goes ….

Chul Soo work is a “foreman” in other term they called it a “carpenter”

Su-jin father is the head architect, assigned in the construction of a building where Chul Soo works as a foreman. Su-jin father loves her daughter so dearly and stay by her side in her hard times, visiting the contruction site with his father that is the time Su-jin saw Chul Soo once again, discovering he is a worker of his father and one of the construction workers.

Su-jin is a men dress fashion designer and one time a friend of her asked her help in the construction of his office and she called her father for help and her father promised to send her someone who could fix the problem but reminded her the one he will send is short tempered and violent person but she seems to not mind it at all…

The worker her father send finally came, when the elevator open she was too much shock in surprise to saw it was Chul Soo, looking so arrogant and so full of himself, he go directly in the site and done his job not seems to mind her so she think that this guy may not remember her anymore but in her much surprise while she is waiting in the vend machine for her coke, Chul Soo suddenly appeared snatch her coke like she did in the first time they met, drink it in front of her, burp in front of her and return the empty can back to her. While she is walking back home it made her smile remembering what had happen.

Now let just go on to the next picture. I'll becoming more concern in details, the danger here is it will make this blog post so long... hehe... This the moment when Su-jin bag is snatched by a snatcher and Chul Soo helped her out, open up the door of his car to stop the motorcycle of the snatcher, the scene is intense in ACTION, the snatcher flew all the way to the street and walk away injured. As both Su-jin and Chul Soo pick up her things on the foor, Chul Soo noticed she has so many pencils in her bag; makes him asked a question "Why do you have so many pencil in your bag? Do you sell them?" she answered "I always forgetting where do i put my pencil so i have as many as i can"...

As the fascination of Su-jin to Chul Soo progressed; she even make a way how to meet again Chul Soo, accompany by her girl friends and co-workers as well, she planted a plan that she and her friends will act like they were coincidentally walking by in that street and coincidentally she and her girl friends bumped into his group. Makes it really obvious to Chul Soo that she likes him and he entertain the feelings. They even hold hands in the entire time they are together...

And day by day they are so happy and their relationship progressed like this.....

They even have a game; a weird one like the one that is played in a gambling place, they even had a chant like something they have to say while changing each position of the ace cards; the chant is like a rap and it was quite long so it is hard for me to remember it. Su-jin have to guess where is the "heart of ace" if she does not got the right answer, he will give Chul Soo a price " a kiss in his cheek"...

The weird part start, in this scene she got lost in a familiar streets but still manage to found her way home and she met someone in her past related in her past relationship makes her remember all of the memories of her past and makes her even come back in the places she and her ex lover used to live and it hit her and she felt brokenhearted like it was just happen yesterday....

She talked to Chul Soo for she thought he might console her but she is wrong; he said that LOVE fades away and it really happens, feeling so saddened, she walks away, Chul Soo managed to follow her and when he do, Su-jin already realized and admit he was right and they came back in their "kulitan moment" once again.... 

As their relationship deepen and progressed, from the request of his father that he want to meet Su-jin boyfriend; Su-jin started to became demanding and she wanted "security", she demanded him to marry her but Chul Soo don't want any commitments, he didn't even want to meet Su-jin parents, for he is not whole, he belong to a broken family, he has a mother but he don't even considered her as his mother for his life is too tragic when he was still living with her and the memories that her mother leave her pains him even more, he don't want to be tied up but Su-jin is too persistent, convincing Chul Soo everyday that they have to get married...

Conversation i can't foget:

the first day....

Su-jin: You love me right? I know you love me then why don't you want to marry me

Chul Soo: It is not that easy. You can't stick to love alone; Love can fades away...

the next day....

Su-jin: It is hard to say I LOVE YOU...

Chul Soo: I'm getting tired of this! Will you wake up, will you? You're a princess and I'm a beggar...

the next day again...

Su-jin: Can you live without me?

Chul Soo: If we live together, can we die together, too? We come and go alone. That's LIFE...

Su-jin: (CRYING.... T.T)

Chul Soo: why are you such a cry baby. Did you lost your family? Did your country leaves you?

the next day AGAIN...

Su-jin: Why don't you want to marry me?

Chul Soo: because you're too confident; it scares me

Su-jin:  if you love me why can't we just marry? 

Chul Soo: Life is cruel. If we get marry today, you never know if we can be truly happy.

Until the day when they have a date and Su-jin invited her family and join them in their dinner. It shocked his father since Chul Soo is one of his worker; Su-jin goes to the wash room while his father and Chul Soo talked man to man. Chul Soo is ready to leave the place and give up Su-jin while the people outside the restaurant shout and they found Su-jin lying in the ground unconscious, they bring her to the hospital and the doctor said because she was too stress and she need a rest; Chul Soo goes to her bed to check her but as she saw him he hug him very tight and they both look to his father, with the "strong evidence" that her daughter is "madly in love" in this guy, he permitted the marriage and lead Chul Soo to no choice at all but to marry her....

Then they get married and their family LIFE starts as fine but there are moments she forget the stove is open and what she cooks boils non stop and Chul Soo will be the one to close the stove and Su-jin will say sorry to him and he will immediately forgive her...

in that time when they already married; Chul Soo is not a "carpenter" in profession anymore; this time he is already an architect, before he marry Su-jin he take an architect exam and passed in it in just first take but still Su-jin father talk to Chul Soo and give him a "father and son" talk ....

Su-jin father talking to Chul Soo after a family gathering in Su-jin house:

Su-jin father: What are you now? an architect? i knew you can do it....

                    but do you know that a CARPENTER is a very decent job, Did you know Jesus Christ? he is a Carpenter, When you are a true Carpenter you know the wood by its texture, you hold it and feel it and you know its texture not its appearance and when i saw you i already see your texture, you understand me? so, take this hammer and be the best carpenter you could ever be....

As a loving wife, beside her own work when she has a time, she is devotedly helping his husband in his work...

As the story goes on, their married life started to rattle by the weird things she experiencing like being lost in familiar places, sudden head ache....

She dicided to go the doctor and have her check up, IMR and CT scan is done in her and the doctor tell her she has a genetic disease called Alzheimer’s disease....

And her journey and battle in this disease starts as she first deal it on her own without letting his husband and her family knew about it for she don't want them to be worry...

She decided to quit her job for she knew in the future she cannot function well in work; she make his husband believe that he wanted to stay in their house and be just his housewife makes Chul Soo agreed in her idea and say to her "That is more fine to me, I'll bring home the bread and butter and you just stay in house cook for me and wait for me till i go home..."

She became a loving housewife; making sure that she surely providing everything her husband needs; it makes his husband worry if staying in the house will bores her but she just smile and shook her head gives his husband a relief....

When Chul Soo is at his work in the lunch time with his workers; he boastfully let out his lunch box prepared by her wife but to his shock it was both rice. He started to got worried, he knew that her wife is seeing a doctor so he decided to go to that doctor and asked him personally and then he found out....

As Su-jin case became worst; she felt that she broke the heart of the man she truly love calling Chul Soo by the "name of his ex-boyfriend"; she knew it hurts him a lot even that is not her intention to called his husband by other name and in all names by the name of his "ex-boyfriend" and she even say "I Love you" to him uttering the name of another man....

Su-jin: Yeong min....

Chul Soo: yes? turned to her and face her (expressionless)

Su-jin: I love you...

Chul Soo: me too

Chul Soo walks away the house and as he closed the door he cried (seeing a man cried like that; i imagined Toya crying helplessly for Nagaisa lost in Clannad, i felt they both cries the same amount of tears)

Chul Soo talk to Su-jin doctor because of what had happened;

Chul Soo: she already fortgot me

Doctor: that is normal in her state, her recent memory is the first one she will forget, you are the recent memory...

Chul Soo: she called me by the name of his ex-lover and says me I Love You; now i don't know who she really loves, me or her ex-lover? 

Doctor: I'am not the one in your body, my body cannot feel what is true, you are the one she used to love, you're the one supposed to know the truth....

Just an clarification before we go to the next picture; Yeong min is Su-jin ex-lover, he is already married but Su-jin still decided to have a relationship to him, they supposed to be together and leave but Yeong min didn't arrive in the train station leaving Su-jin broken hearted and she only left the train ticket in phone booth on the way she went to convenient store and there she bumped with Chul Soo.... 

Yeong min is the owner and CEO of the company where Su-jin works, when he returned from Paris because his business there, shut down, he permanently stay in the company and he is already divorced while Su-jin is already married to Chul Soo by that time but still he let Su-jin knew he was already divorced but Su-jin immediately walks away and didn't mind it at all...

It gives a complications in their marriage when Su-jin quits her job and her recent memory is slowly erasing, Yeong min goes into their house to return the things she forgot but the memory that is active in Su-jin mind is the memory he still have a relationship to Yeong min, when she saw him, he let him in and treat him as if he is his husband, still confuse, Yeong min didn't know how to react and Chul Soo suddenly came and punch him, angrily he punch and punch him, Su-jin tried to stop Chul Soo but she forgot she still holding a knife because she is cooking, she unconsciously push Chul Soo and accidentally slashed him in his arms makes Chul Soo even more angrier, he pulled Yeong min outside the house and punch him, punch him and punch him more until blood is all over his nose and face ( i really thought he might kill him) Su-jin manage to follow them and watched the scene as her sight became blurred and she is confuse to who is being punch for in her eyes it was Chul Soo is the one who is being hurt, luckily Su-jin family arrive and the mother of Chul Soo came too so Chul Soo stop punching Yeong min and that is the moment Su-jin collapsed and get unconscious...

That is also the day that Su-jin family know about her case; that they admit it runs through their blood and their willing to get their daughter back  not be a burden to him but he refuse....

Feeling that she is all ready a burden in his husband life and he hurt him badly she felt she needed to leave.... 

here goes the heart melting, tear jerking letter done by Su-jin for Chul Soo before she leave...

WARNING: this will really make you CRY, prepare a roll of tissue (just a piece of advice)

Ok, here is the final photo. I admit i exaggerated my assumptions, since I found the movie sad, i expect that Su-jin might die and will left Chul Soo in the ending of the story but here is the true ending....

Who says there is no HAPPY ENDING in a hard drama movie.....

Chul Soo packed his things, carrying his luggage and ready to leave their home as he check the mail box and found a single letter that interest him; it came from Su-jin, she wrote everything she remembered for she is scared maybe it will be the last day she will remember everything like that so she wrote it down, she even remembers the highest mountain and the second highest mountain in their country and wrote it in the letter.  Using the letter as his hope, Chul Soo drive places to places as finally he reach the place he's been looking for...

A nurse lead him to the room of Su jin as he saw in the mirror a picture of them.... 

This is the only pictures left among all the pictures that Su-jin teared out, place in the mirror in her room in the hospital where she is taken care of...

Then the nurse lead him to the veranda where Su-jin sit quietly sketching something on his drawing pad, as the nurse tap her shoulder and say to her she has a visitor, she face Chul Soo and the drawing pad drop on the floor, Chul Soo get the drawing pad and look what she draws and as he turn the pages back wards from the children like drawing as he turns in the first page, it was a beautiful sketch of his face and he return the drawing pad to her and she asked;

Su-jin: Who are you?

Chul Soo: I' am Choi Chul Soo....

As they both dine in the dinning area....

Chul Soo only looking at her observing her while she eats as she suddenly speaks....

Su-jin: I.... smell something so familiar, i smell it before... smell like... my father?.... my uncle?....

(looks at the guy in front of him)

Chul Soo: crying (T.T)

Su-jin: why are you crying?

Chul Soo: get his shades, put it on and face her again and smile....

Chul Soo said to the nurse if she can go out, the nurse permit her and she told the nurse to bring her in a place....

the convenient store where they first met.....

as she comes near the door, Chul Soo open it for her, he is holding a can of coke for at least to remind her the first time they met but she just passed through him; she saw faces that seem familiar to her, at the counter (it was her doctor), she turn over to the janitor (it was Chul Soo teacher) and the buyers (which is her family- her father, mother and her sister- in a teary eyed looking at her)

....and even the mother of Chul Soo is there which he already forgiven despite of all what she done to him in his childhood because it was Su-jin request) 

makes me remember that scene; the essence of the lines is unforgettable.... (makes me Goggle it)

Su-jin talking to Chul Soo (dealing with his mother situation about accepting his mother and help her out in her debt, let her out in the prisoner since she was his family....)

Forgiving... isn't that hard. It's just... giving away just one plain room in your heart. My grandpa said so. A true carpenter... is the one that can build a house in his heart. But in the house you've built. So well in your heart... You gave all the rooms away to your mother and to your hate. And where are you? And you're shivering outside the house. I understand. I know it's hard to forgive. But... My dad remembered that piece of wisdom... and forgave me when I almost ran off with a married man... and he permitted our marriage so easily. You know why? Forgiving... is giving your hate just a little room in your heart.

going back; sorry i lost you a little for that.....

and finally Su-jin look again to Chul Soo face and asked...

Su-jin: "Is this is heaven?....

Chul Soo: (smiling) Yes

pulling her hand and let her in the car, while driving Su-jin happily feel the air and gazed at the surroundings as Chul Soo gave something to her; it was a crave wood (pattern from Su-jin face). Chul Soo threw it in the garbage as Su-jin notice it for the first time (the moment they just boyfriend and girlfriend) and Su-jin retrieve it from the garbage can and return it to him (in the moment they have their dinner date and the meet Su-jin family)

holding the wooden crave in her hand looking at it....

Chul Soo suddenly says.....

"I Love You"....

Still suffering from her disease, hearing those words....

Su-jin hugs Chul Soo even when he is still driving the car, she sweetly let her face touch his face like she use to done before and Chul Soo looks satisfied and happy.... =))

 Beggar:  Do you have a light?....

           

             You know you always need light, like this chunk of cigarette it will be just a chunk of cigarette without light so you don't have to loose light in the end of every darkness there is light....

            This cigarette will always be chunk....

            when will i ever smoke this?....