[HanCinema's Drama Review] "Drama Special - Why I'm Getting Married"
By William Schwartz | Published on
Ji-won (played by Park Hee-von) is faced with a frequent conundrum- why is she getting married anyway? Her relationship with Seung-wook (played by Song Jong-ho) is hard to place. They're already living together, and they actually kind of already act like a cranky married couple, too. In early scenes we seem them having petty fights with the kind of self-confidence you only really get from a long-term relationship. Anybody else would to be too scared of running into a break-up. But is that a real relationship? Ji-won doesn't really know.
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Don't confuse "Drama Special - Why I'm Getting Married" for an overly serious drama. The soundtrack features Mocca. And like Mocca, the story has this constant quality of kind of feeling like a fairy tale story even though fairy tale stories are obviously impossible. When Ji-won gooes to the wedding hall, it never really feels like all that much fun. Sure it's a nice looking dress but what is Ji-won looking for anyway? Spectacle? Is marriage, and by consequence relationships, just spectacle in the end? Ji-won doesn't really know.
"Ji-won doesn't really know" probably shouldn't qualify as a funny joke but there's really no other way to qualify the humor in "Drama Special - Why I'm Getting Married". Ji-won's total ambivalence about the romantic situation her life is the main joke. Park Hee-von excellently channels the persona of a woman who's just very confused for no good reason. The fact that Ji-won doesn't know what's going on also works wonders toward keeping the story engaging. If Ji-won doesn't know what a happy ending is supposed to be here, how are we supposed to be able to guess?
Well, I'll give you a hint. It's the magic snowglobe. Yes that's a bit of a goofy plot device when spelled out in print but that's a lot of where the joy in "Drama Special - Why I'm Getting Married" comes from. It makes marriage and relationships feel like these gaudy baubles. Ji-won's adventures frequently feel absurd, yet at the same time, she has to grow up. Ji-won has to learn, one way or another, what real adult emotional compassion is.
And it's not a gaudy bauble. There's one constant sticking point, one serious regret Ji-won has about getting married- and that's where the magic snowglobe comes in. It makes Ji-won realize what's really important. It makes her see that she's ruining love mostly by overthinking. The emotional heart as we hit the climax is palpable- the moment where Ji-won is finally able to verbalize why she's getting married is one of genuine, heartfelt emotional sincerity. "Drama Special - Why I'm Getting Married" simultaneously captures the ambivalence of modern relationships while also successfully grasping what marriage really should be about in the end. This makes for a beautiful, funny drama well worth watching.
Review by William Schwartz
"Drama Special - Why I'm Getting Married" is directed by Kim Seong-yoon, written by Kim Eun-ji and features Park Hee-von, Song Jong-ho, Hong Jong-hyun, Yoon Joo-sang, Sung Byung-sook, Kim Ji-won, Lee Tae-young-I and Lee Dong-ha.
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Staff writer. Has been writing articles for HanCinema since 2012, having lived in South Korea from 2011 to 2021. He is currently located in the Southern Illinois. William Schwartz can be contacted via william@hancinema.net, and is open to requests for content in future articles.