SYNOPSIS:
Jae-Kyung was born with a silver spoon in his mouth with no
goal in life. He's to inherit his grandfather's fortune when
he turns 18. However, he's shocked to learn that his grandfather's
will require him to graduate from Boram High School, a no-name
backward school set in the middle of nowhere, if he wants to
inherit his fortune. The only way to inherit his fortune without
a certificate from his school is to get expelled. As attempts
to get expelled get him nowhere, he started to fall for the
class monitor named Eun-whan. Will he loves her to the point
where he doesn't care about his grandfather's fortune anymore?
Will this rude, spoiled boy able to win his love?
MOVIE
REVIEW :
Hyun
Bin is that young handsome lead actor in the popular romance-comedy
Korean drama “My Name is Kim Sam-Soon”. Fans of
his, who cannot wait till his latest drama to be available
in the local market, will certainly love to watch their idol
in action in this movie “Millionaire’s First Love”
– released in Korea, Feb 2006, according to online resources.
I
wonder if it is because of Hyun Bin having a “spoilt,
rich brat look”, which leads him to portray as someone
from a wealthy background again but of a slight difference
though. In this movie, he is a high school student who is
looked set to inherit a massive fortune from his deceased
grandfather. Jae-kyung, his character here is like a prince
going to be enthroned yet behaving like a wild horse without
reins. Self-discipline, respect and etiquette are lost on
him who seems to only intent of having fun from indulgences
of drinking, clubbing and the many things he plans to do with
his soon inheritance to come. But before he is entitled for
his inheritance share, he must fulfil a condition. That is
to arrange him to go to a rural town to complete his high
school education and successfully graduate from Boram High
School.
Upon
his arrival at this totally new rural environment, Jae-kyung
shows evidently his total distaste and contempt of almost
everything (the school with shabby amenities, the old house
– his lodging here, his country-bumpkin like classmates).
And unknowingly, he gradually learns to accept, adapt and
appreciate the things around him. The girl, Eun-whan, whom
he had earlier bumped into at the hotel lobby back in the
city, turned out to be his new class monitor. Well, to some,
the same old yarn (that is so typical in teary-weepy love
romantic Korean movies/drama series) that consists of all
the essential elements – having the 2 leads falling
in love, tragedy struck and so on, begins to spin.
Despite
this familiar storyline backbone, I would say that as the
story unfolds, it brings surprises and “there is always
more than one side of the coin” to almost every Korean
script rings true again. And anything that is thought to be
trivial may often turn out to be not less than none. If you
are not touched by the endearing love between Jae-kyung and
Eun-whan that is sealed with an inevitable parting from the
beginning, then perhaps you can try to figure out how both
of them are related in the first place. Was it a mere coincidence
that he saw her at the hotel lobby and what is the real reason
behind his grandfather’s intention to send his grandson,
Jae-kyung there of all places?
Within
this nearly 2 hr movie, we can see Hyun Bin’s acting
skills being tested thoroughly that requires him to portray
from a rebellious chap at the start, slowly maturing to someone
who learns to face his now dredged-up but was once forgotten
painful memories. Conclusively, he, not just an eye-candy
for the female fans but has proven to be a pretty much good
actor who can express and handles his emotions well.
Having
a compatible on-screen partner like Lee Yeon-hee (acts as
Eun-whan) is, not only virtually pleasing to the audience
but more importantly, it can almost hypnotize the audience
momentarily to feel for this pair of fateful young lovers
and the sufferings they have to undergo for and after the
final parting.
To
many, it may be the first time to know of this young actress,
Lee Yeon-hee. She may just be an ordinary sweet-looking girl
but she can just be a potential, budding artiste in the near
future.
MOVIE
RATING:
 
Review
by Alicia Tee
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