MovieChat Forums > Keulraesik (2003) Discussion > preposterous final scene

preposterous final scene

posted 18 years ago by kiparang5079
23 replies | jump to latest

I was mesmerized by this marvelous movie but soon realized that the final scene was utterly preposterous. How did Sangmin(the son) keep the necklace all these years? Obviously his father died when Sangmin was four or five of age. Did his mother(that is, the woman Joon-ha married after he left Joo-hee)tell him to keep the necklace or at least allow him to keep it, telling him "it is a gift to your father from his first love?" The movie collapses when you realize the absurdity of the situation.

[–] ojinchung 18 years ago

its totally possible that he kept the necklace with him the whole time.

i have things from when i was a kid.

[–] kiparang5079 18 years ago

I am not talking about the feasibility of a small kid keeping a necklace for 15 years or more. I am talking about the significance of the necklace. Obviously Sangmin was raised by his mom after his dad died when Sangmin was 4 or 5. And his mom allowed Sangmin to keep the necklace, probably saying "Try not to lose it since it is a gift to your dad from his first love?"

[–] OCOKA 18 years ago

Sangmin had no idea about the significance of the necklace until Ji-hae told him her mother's story, replete with necklace. Having put two and two together, Sangmin realizes it is in fact his father and the necklace he now has that connects him with Ji-hae. I know it's a stretch, but leaps of imagination are required for most Korean movies...

[–] ma407 18 years ago

I agree with you.. simple concept.. it was a symbol to add a a nice sentimental touch to the end of a sad tale of her mother... so far better than any holiday tale when EVERYONE lives happily ever after.. I loved this movie.

[–] fificremefarben 18 years ago

there is a chance sang-min's mother didn't even know who the real owner of the necklace was, for all she knew it could've been something of sang-min's grandmother's that had been passed to the son, which would provide a feasible explanation as to why sang-min's mother would want her son to have it. But, I agree all in all, it's not really important to know why he has the necklace...just important to know that he has it

[–] 18 years ago

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[–] kiparang5079 18 years ago

Yes, I am a Korean but it was my wife(also a Korean) that pointed out to the goof(as we see it.) So it seems that there is no cultural difference in this matter. But despite that, I love this movie simply too much so that I try not to think about the matter when I re-watch it. In fact, I am just glad that there seems to be quite a number of people who love this movie as much as I do.

[–] 18 years ago

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[–] kiparang5079 18 years ago

What a great lady her mother is!
Maybe Sangmin's mom(Joon-ha's wife) was such a person, too.
Thanks for sharing a wonderful story.

[–] maxwelldemin 18 years ago

We're complicating something real simple here. Joon-ha died and left the necklace to his son, simple. There is no need for his wife or even Sang-min for that matter to know where it came from. My dad passed away a month ago, and he didn't have much to leave his kids except some personal belongings, including jewelry. My brothers, sisters and I were all given particular items as per his will. None of us knows the story behind each peice and probably never will. But I am sure each one had some sentimental value for whatever reason.
This ending is more than feasible.

[–] itsuki77 17 years ago

i guess there are some things that we dont tell anyone, not even to our spouses. A love that is kept deep inside you, a keepsake to remind you of that special place in time. we dont always end up married to the love of our lives, and i happen to know that is true.

So its possible that nobody else besides joon ha and joo hee knows about the significance of the necklace, and quite frankly, nobody else needs to know anyway.

[–] corzolek 18 years ago

Though I enjoyed this movie overall, I too was bothered by the final scene, but for a slightly different reason. Perhaps I missed something big, but it just seemed too much like a coincidence, and therefore too contrived, that the modern Ji-hae’s boyfriend, Sang-min, turned out to be the son of her mother’s first lost love, Jun-ho. It broke the spell of the movie on me. I could just writer the writer wondering, “how could I maximize the emotional punch at the end”. Until that point, the events in the movie seemed quite believable. I think it would have been enough that Ji-hae was able to succesfully realize her romance with Sangmin, without the direct connection to her mother's romance in the past.

[–] rooprect 17 years ago

I'm pretty sure (from the bewildered expression on his face) that Sangmin didn't realize the significance of the necklace until the very end, after he had heard the story. When he pulls it out from around his neck, we see a mixture of shock, disbelief and wonder. This implies that--just like the audience--he's figuring it out for the 1st time.

I have minor gripes with other slightly preposterous stuff (like running back through direct enemy fire, through enemy lines, to find the necklace conveniently in the hands of the dead man), but the ending was airtight IMO. Very clever way to end the movie.

[–] vze32kxa 17 years ago

I find it so funny when it is exponentially more absurd they (the son and daughter) ended up hooking up.. rather then who let who keep the necklace..

[–] chris-westaway 17 years ago

The necklace is the Korean equivalent of Butch's watch in Pulp Fiction.

[–] babygurl74 17 years ago

Actually, it's not that strange. I have jewelry of my mother's...I have no idea the significance, or where she bought them from... I just know that it's hers and that's all that matters.

I think most likely Joon-ha's wife didn't know who the necklace came from. What matters is that it was a necklace he wore often, and when the time came to give away clothes and box away his things, of course his necklace would be kept and be in the possession of a family member.

IMO, Joon-ha's son knew nothing about his father's love life before he married, but knew that his remains were scattered in that lake. I'm pretty sure he also knew his father was blind... and those two elements combined would make it pretty obvious that she was talking about HIS father... whether he knew about the necklace or not. (btw, men don't usually own too many necklaces right? so i'm pretty sure he just put it all together and realized that the necklace his father had was the one the girl was talking about)

[–] christophe__r 17 years ago

You just have to think "That's a million to one shot that those two offspring would meet, let alone fall in love!" But those million to one shots do happen sometimes.

I wasn't really feeling the present day love story though so the end didn't really have any impact on me. I think it might have been that Sang-Min seemed more of a plot device than a character.

[–] nowoman_nocry 17 years ago

Obviously he didn't tell his son about the significance of the necklace seeing as his son had no idea. I doubt he would have discussed that with his wife.

The son lost his father at a very young age. It's more than believable that he kept this necklace with him because he wanted to feel a connection with the father he never got to know.

It's also easy to assume that his father left the son the necklace in his will. Told him his wish was for him to keep it. He might have even told him to give it to the woman he loves (which he does)

[–] ForTheGlory 16 years ago

"He might have even told him to give it to the woman he loves (which he does)"

that was my exact thought.
"give this to your first love. "
very plausible imo

[–] bladeseed 16 years ago

There's many possibilities, but most simply it's just an important momento that sangmin wears. And at the end, he finally realizes the significance of the necklace.

How? Because specific names / events are brought up in the story that allows him to tie up everything together.

You can say whatever u want about Jo in seung's performance, but don't complain about such trivial things.

This thread is what's really absurd.

[–] land-on-the-moon 10 years ago

right.
the Jo In Sung Defense Army is here.
although OP doesn't say anything about the actor, the knives are out! ... speaking about absurd things

[–] land-on-the-moon 10 years ago

What was preposterous was the editing and the final mix - I got a headache!
One love story is intense, alive, heartbreaking, heroic, the other one is barely sketched , and felt somehow forced to conclude the other, in a fairytale happy-ending (and I love fireflies)

...still, one can safely take the BF too see this romantic movie and not feel like a never-understood pink lady :D
Cho Seung Woo does a tremendous job ! Awesome.