Film Review: Love, In Between

Released in 2010, Love, In Between is a melancholy love story with a dark existential undertone. This film is NOT for children as there are intense sexual content and VERY graphic sex scenes. Shin Eun-kyung (pictured above right) is one of my favorite Korean actresses. She is mesmerizing to watch and I'm just obsessed with her art! After watching her in the kdrama, Flames of Desire, and then watching her in this film, I was surprised to see her range of emotions.

This is a story about an odd love triangle.Yun Ji-Seok (played by Jeong Jun-Ho pictured above and the only man) is a university professor who teaches architecture. You can tell he has a deep passion for the arts and you can also tell that this is a highly intense emotional man but he tries very hard to control. His beloved wife So-Young (played by Shin Eun-Kyung, pictured above right) is an OBGYN and she loves her husband tremendously. They seem to have a perfect marriage. He has a very high sex drive and almost sexually mauls his wife in the first five minutes of the film.

However, when she surprises him by going to his office she doesn't find him there but finds instant messages from a female student which suggest a very friendly relationship. She discovers the girl is Su-Ji (played by Shim Lee-Yeong, pictured right) and decides to follow her around. She follows her to her yoga class in order to spy on her and find out more about her. Su-Ji is very loveable and sweet to So-Young and So-Young finds herself befriending her. She goes through emotions where she hates Su-Ji and where she's sympathetic towards Su-Ji.


A really good scene is where So-Young and Su-Ji are riding in the same car when Su-Ji gets a call from her boyfriend. Su-Ji calls him sweet names which is normal. Meanwhile, So-Young secretly dials her husband and gets a busy signal. The look on her face when she gets the busy signal is priceless. She is enraged but must be as unsuspecting as possible while Su-Ji is sitting next to her. As the story progresses, So-Young's friendship with Su-Ji strengthens and Yun Ji-Seok is stricken with an incredible choice especially when an event arises that no one can ignore.





The music is lovely as it's usually dominated by a piano with minimalistic melodic lines that sound empty. I thought it was a perfect effect it highlighted the dark existential undertone I believe exists in this film. On the surface, the film appears to be a basic love triangle but I believe, as the title suggests, it aches at the notion of a different kind of love; not true love and not just brotherly love but a love that exists in a world with individuals who have exercised their right to be free regardless of the consequences. This freedom then makes them vulnerable to the effects of their choices which aren't always at the hands of others but by their own hands.

I like to watch movies for free online before purchasing them so I've embedded the movie from hulu below. You can also purchase the DVD at the very bottom of this post. However, please note that this particular DVD has a Region code of 3 so you will need an all region code DVD player (Considering all the foreign movies I have, I've already bought one. Very handy!) in order to view it. I can't wait until Ya Entertainment or some other company decides to manufacture this film so Americans can enjoy this great movie. Enjoy! .-_-