My Love, My Bride is basically a movie that details what comes after the romantic comedy. It opens on Yeong-min (Jo Jung-suk) trying to propose to his girlfriend of four years Mi-yeong (Sin Min-ah). Things don’t go very well, but the film then cuts ahead to the two as the newlyweds. At first things seem pretty perfect, but the joy doesn’t quite last. The two argue over various things, and both struggle to keep the marriage afloat as they pursue separate desires. Yeong-min is tempted by an arrival of an old friend, and is considering pursuing his first passion, poetry. Mi-yeong, on the other hand, is feeling unappreciated.
The movie is pretty straightforward. It’s separated into vignettes that focus of specific annoyances that arise in the course of the primary couple’s marriage. Yeong-min suddenly gains special awareness of all the women around him, and is considering becoming unfaithful. Mi-yeong struggles with how inconsiderate her new husband seems to be. He gets annoyed over her nagging. The two have trouble communicating. The film paints a very sober picture of marriage, focusing down on the little problems that can add up into a real rift between a married couple.
It’s a very interesting idea, one that is hardly tackled in commercial cinema. The film eschews the more cinematic struggles of couples just falling in love, and looks for the drama within the day-to-day existence of a couple that has already gone through the requisite romantic trials more typically seen in movies. The movie is at its best when it sticks to very simple realities. It is smart enough to realize that to a couple in trouble, a raised toilet seat is as dramatic and relationship-threatening as any other romantic crisis.
What the film lacks is follow-through. When it comes time to resolve these problems, the film doesn’t really do much to show how the couple deals with these problems. This gets especially sticky considering how close the characters come to committing infidelity, and how many secrets are still left between them by the end. The film pushes a message that seems overly positive given what has already transpired between the couple. Though the idea is endearing, it doesn’t feel entirely earned in the context of the movie.
But it might all still be worth it given the bold narrative choices that the film makes. This is a movie that manages to find the comedy and drama inherent in moments that feel altogether mundane. The direction is sharp enough to really highlight the internal struggles of these characters. A lot of credit ought to go to the actors. This film, as part of the SineAsia line of movies, is dubbed in Tagalog. But the added layer of translation does little to change the overall effect of the actors’ performances. Jo Jung-suk’s facial expressions do a lot to sell Yeong-min’s frailties, which ground the character even as he makes terrible choices. Sin Min-ah is terrific as the young wife, her entire body expressing her dissatisfaction with her current situation.
My Love, My Bride doesn’t feel entirely satisfying, but that might be part of the point. This isn’t a movie about clear resolutions. This is a movie about what marriage can really be like, how it isn’t a constant, neverending honeymoon. Still, the film might have done better by suggesting more of an edge in its final moments. While the hopeful ideas expressed are certainly appreciated, this is a film that for most of its runtime finds the bittersweet beauty of harsh reality. Just a tinge of uncertainty in the end might have given us more to chew on.
My Rating:
