[비즈한국] The sudden death of a mother. The family left behind is inevitably thrown into confusion. In particular, the daughter Seo Jun-kyung (Seo Hyun-jin), who had exchanged cold words during her final meeting with her mother Mi-ran (Jang Hye-jin), is distraught that there will be no 'next time' with her mother. The same goes for her father Seo Jin-ho (Yoo Jae-myung), who quit his job a few years before retirement to spend more time with his wife in the hospital, and her son Seo Jun-seo (Lee Si-woo), who hasn't been able to show a sense of responsibility as a graduate student without clear goals. But... not long after Mi-ran departs, love finds all of them.
For Jun-kyung, who claims she is comfortable being alone, the man next door, Joo Do-hyun (Jang Ryul), approaches her. As a neighbor, he is a man who happened to recognize Jun-kyung's loneliness. Jin-ho catches the eye of Jin Ja-young (Yoon Se-ah), a guide he met on the 35th-anniversary travel package he intended to take with his wife. Ja-young, who also carries the pain of losing a spouse like him but is living her own life with resilience, gives Jin-ho new energy. And what about Jun-seo, who could never be confident in front of his girlfriend Yoon Sol (Kim Sha-na) despite loving her, even though she is so different from him? He ends up spending an unexpected night together after a confession from his long-time female friend, Ji Hye-on (Dahyun).
The problem is timing. Even if someone is dead, those who remain must go on living. However, the continuation of that life, which should be natural, sometimes becomes a source of guilt for those left behind. An obsession arises that they must mourn the departed to some extent. And even love? Jun-kyung, the daughter, feels a flutter when Do-hyun approaches but wonders, 'Is this right at this timing?', and Jun-seo, who throws a grand birthday party for his girlfriend, blames himself as hopeless. So, the guilt of the husband, Jin-ho, is even greater. Having found new love shortly after his wife's passing, Jin-ho even goes to the confessional at a church, feeling as if he is committing adultery, even though he isn't.
Of course, the young priest who hears Jin-ho's confession also delivers a 'refreshing truth,' saying that the departed Mi-ran would not want Jin-ho to live unhappily, but if you think about it carefully, it's doubtful whether one could view it so rationally if it were one's own family. If a mother passes away and the father, who had been devoted for a long time, falls in love with a younger, prettier woman within a few months, could that ever be viewed with kind eyes? It's easy to fear the gaze of others, not just from the child's perspective, but for oneself as well. Therefore, no matter how great a love appears, it's uncertain whether one could be truly brave in the face of that love, prepared to endure the criticism.
'Love Me' depicts the story of those who have lost love, and their families, growing as they each begin their own new love. Can love save people? At first glance, the drama seems to say that love saves everything, but it isn't telling such an easy, fairy-tale-like story. Rather, this drama tells you to first look into yourself as you deal with love. There is a reason the drama is titled 'Love Me' instead of 'Love You'. For instance, Jun-kyung. Jun-kyung had been lonely for a long time. After her mother lost a leg in a car accident while running an errand at her request 7 years ago, Jun-kyung was consumed by guilt watching her mother become a different person due to endless self-loathing, and she ran away from that relationship. A person who runs away from their closest relationship loses the room to hold onto other happiness. Look at Jun-kyung's narration in episode 2.
'I wanted to say don't go. To the me from that time. I wanted to hold on. To stop. If I ran away like this now, I would keep running away. Pretending to be fine, pretending that nothing was wrong. That I would continue to be lonely alone.'
'Love Me' does not tell a salvation narrative where love is a cure-all. It simply offers small encouragement to those who are still clumsy at love but have decided to try their best to love, asking, 'Why don't you try being brave?' It gently caresses their inner selves as they lead up to that decision. Although the ratings are low, the various emotions of life that this drama makes one face seem to deeply resonate with a small group of viewers. The acting of prominent actors like Seo Hyun-jin and Yoo Jae-myung plays a big role in this, and the delicate directing of PD Jo Young-min, who has captured the multifaceted inner lives of humans surrounding love in previous works like 'Do You Like Brahms?', 'The Interest of Love', and 'Eun-joong and Sang-yeon', also contributes. While it may seem heavy, the little black comedies placed here and there are also why 'Love Me' is fun to watch.
I recommend 'Love Me' to adults who are exhausted from pretending not to struggle, pretending not to be lonely, and pretending that everything is fine. May it be a small comfort to those who were unable to be honest in order to be 'fine,' but became even less 'fine' as a result.
Siapakah penulis Jung Soo-jin?
Ia telah meliput dan menulis tentang film, perjalanan, dan budaya populer melalui berbagai majalah. Meski tidak ingin tertinggal oleh tren, ia telah menjadi sosok dari 'masa lalu' yang hanya bisa menebak klise usang untuk adegan berikutnya saat menonton drama terbaru. Saat ini, ia sedang berusaha menemukan kembali kepekaannya sambil hanyut dalam dunia OTT yang luas, dan keinginan terbesarnya saat ini adalah dirilisnya paket berlangganan OTT terintegrasi.