Ineo gongju (2004)

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Where are all the mermaids in My Mother the Mermaid?! Blatantly false advertising! This Korean film still has a fantasy element, mind you, but it's time travel. So this young woman who is still living with her parents, has real trouble dealing with her mother. But then, no one finds her easy. She's crass, stingy, perpetually angry, and abominably judgmental. And she likes swimming , ergo the title. Anyway, after the length of an act getting to know these people, our protagonist goes to her mom and dad's home village, somehow crossing into the past where she can witness their courtship and perhaps come to understand her mother better. Here's the thing. Though her teenage mom is a much nicer, happier person, and her daughter does come to some kind of understanding, I don't think WE do. I don't think we can understand how she became such a curmudgeon, nor is the romance all that believable. Even the time travel story isn't particularly justified, since the daughter can do nothing to change history, and is absent from the proceedings for long periods of time (doesn't help that the actress is playing a dual role as the young mother too). It's like she's occasionally haunting a flashback. While there's a good human story in there, it mostly lies in the present-day and its ambiguities (well played by Go Doo-shim). The past doesn't connect as meaningfully as it should. 4 years 10 months ago