[비즈한국] After watching 'Can This Love Be Interpreted?', I didn't plan on writing about it in this column. It's not pleasant to harp on about the flaws of a piece of work that many people labored over. Throughout the entire watch, this series provoked confusion and annoyance, and I didn't think it met the criteria for this column. I changed my mind only because, despite everything, I judged that there was 'something' there that compelled me to binge-watch all 12 episodes over two days. To be more precise, it's because I fell for Kim Seon-ho all over again, and I couldn't let his efforts go to waste due to my weak fan heart.
'Can This Love Be Interpreted?' (Can This Love) is an unpredictable romantic comedy that unfolds as multilingual interpreter Joo Ho-jin (Kim Seon-ho) takes on the role of interpreter for global top star Cha Mu-hee (Go Yoon-jung). The meeting between Joo Ho-jin and Cha Mu-hee begins as a 'dark history.' Before becoming a star, Cha Mu-hee went to Japan to track down her cheating boyfriend, met Joo Ho-jin, and Ho-jin ended up interpreting her long-winded, messy story. Ho-jin, thinking he would never see her again, also spills the secret of why he visited Japan—an old, unrequited love. It's a common story. Telling secrets you haven't told anyone else to a total stranger in a foreign place. Naturally, they become entangled again.
When Ho-jin meets Mu-hee again, her circumstances have changed completely. Mu-hee, a then-unknown actress, had shot her first leading role in a zombie film, suffered an accident where a wire snapped during the final shoot, and woke up after being in a coma for 6 months. During those 6 months, her movie character 'Dorami' became a global sensation, turning Mu-hee into a global top star literally overnight. She is still dizzy from adapting to her sweet success, but for some reason, Mu-hee keeps seeing hallucinations of Dorami in real life. While being crushed by these hallucinations, she meets Joo Ho-jin again on a reality dating show filmed across multiple countries, and they inevitably end up sharing secrets with him once more.
In truth, Mu-hee had a crush on Ho-jin from their first meeting when he helped her through an embarrassing situation. After meeting again and going through a series of events, she likes him even more. However, although Ho-jin is fluent in many foreign languages like English, Japanese, Chinese, French, and Italian, he either fails to understand the 'language' Mu-hee is speaking or is too busy denying his own feelings and pushing her away. Just as Ho-jin finally turns on his green light, Mu-hee, who carries long-standing trauma about not being loved, pushes him away. Can these two, who are unable to be honest about love due to complex family backgrounds and other factors, actually fall in love? The key to the drama lies in how thrilling and tension-filled this process is portrayed.
Honestly, 'Can This Love' is a show that would be harder not to succeed. It's a Netflix original series featuring the beautiful visual chemistry of Kim Seon-ho and Go Yoon-jung, the high reputation of sisters Hong Jung-eun and Hong Mi-ran as writers, and gorgeous locations spanning Japan, Canada, and Italy. How could one not watch it? But... it's strange. I thought I had grown accustomed to the boldness of modern dramas that tell you to throw logic and probability out the window, but even so, coming from the Hong sisters, this lack of probability is odd. The only reason I watched until the final episode past the halfway point (aside from my affection for Kim Seon-ho) was pure stubbornness. A stubborn desire to see how they would tie up all those loose plot threads they left hanging.
There are many issues, but the Dorami hallucinations are an important setup in this drama. While the love story between Ho-jin and Mu-hee is the main plot, the reason why Cha Mu-hee, who grew up suffering under the thumb of her extended family and carrying all sorts of tragic narratives, sees Dorami and how she overcomes it is directly linked to facing the emotion of love honestly. Yet, they just brush Dorami aside and squash it like that? It's even different from the typical K-drama trait of 'muddling through everything at the last minute.' It's because there isn't even a single line of explanation for the details of the plot points they crushed, making it impossible to accept. I feel like I want to demand answers from the Hong sisters.
The cliches of the romance genre where characters are boringly pulled apart and reunited due to communication errors, as well as the utilization of sub-characters who should be building tension or providing variety, also make one tilt their head in confusion. Let's say the 'Romance Prince of the Archipelago,' Kurosawa Hiro (Fukushi Sota), who appears as Mu-hee's partner on the reality dating show, does his job well enough even without creating tension. The existence and backstory of Shin Ji-sun (Lee Yi-dam), Ho-jin's long-time unrequited love and the program's PD, serve no role other than to pad the main couple's story, and the sudden romance between Ji-sun and Mu-hee's manager Kim Yong-woo (Choi Woo-sung) feels like nothing more than filler to fill up 12 episodes. And how much did it elicit a dry laugh when the long-standing estrangement with his mother (Choi Hee-jin), which seemed to influence Ho-jin's inability to be proactive in love, was resolved so feebly?
Well, even so (aside from pure stubbornness), the reason for watching this drama to the end lies in the great performances of the lead actors. Go Yoon-jung's dazzling beauty and charm blend seamlessly with the glamorous top star Cha Mu-hee, drawing exclamations. The 'Human Chanel'-esque bling-bling fashion within the show will also catch the eye. And above all, Kim Seon-ho. His deep, reliable voice, which is so well-suited to the profession of an interpreter, captivates viewers. I was hit once again by his affectionate eyes and soft expressions that convey sincerity. It is Kim Seon-ho's voice and gaze that make even the incomprehensible story somewhat acceptable.
The final reason I watch the drama is the beautiful scenery of the locations that make you crave travel. The view of Mount Fuji captured at a glance in Enoshima or the Cascade Mountain view that unfolded like a pictorial on Banff Avenue in Canada is overwhelming. Besides that, there isn't a single place that isn't stunning, such as Maligne Lake in Jasper National Park, one of the famous spots in the Rockies; Heritage Park in Calgary, where the autumn foliage is as beautiful as a painting; and the Piazza del Campo in Siena, Italy, which helps set a romantic tone. Surely, if this were during the COVID era, it would have been a 'must-own for travel replacement' piece.
Well, no matter what I say, the numbers since the drama's release are enough to call it a success. 2nd place in Netflix's global non-English TV category within 3 days of release, entering the TOP 10 in 76 countries worldwide, and sweeping 1st place in major Asian countries including Korea, etc. However, as everyone knows, the performance and buzz of a Netflix release don't necessarily correlate with the quality of the work. I sincerely hope the Hong sisters do not become buried by these results. Since the lingering impressions of the past works I enjoyed remain strong enough not to completely give up on the Hong sisters, I will pin my hopes on their next project.
Rating ★★☆
One star for the charm of Kim Seon-ho, who hits me softly, and another star for the beautiful scenery. Half a star for Go Yoon-jung, who was pretty to begin with.
Who is writer Jeong Soo-jin?
Covered and wrote about films, travel, and popular culture while working for several magazines. I don't want to fall behind on trends, but I've become an old-school person who predicts obvious cliches in the next scene while watching the latest dramas. Currently drifting through the vast OTT world in an attempt to regain my lost touch, my current wish is for a unified OTT subscription plan to be released.