Love Phobia has all of the ingredients that can drive Westerners away from Korean movies - a gimmicky, unbelievable plot about a girl named Ari, who pretends to be an alien from outer space, and her boyfriend, Jo Kang, who either pretends to or actually does believe her. Naturally their love is so strong that by the end of the movie this nonsense turns out to be true, conclusively demonstrating that Koreans must live in some alternate universe unknown to you and me.
Luckily, what Love Phobia also has is a beautifully told love story that makes it possible to suspend disbelief and let the story lead the audience wherever it wants. All of the seemingly silly talk about aliens and ghosts turns out to be deep conversations between two kindred souls who have found a way to share their deepest hopes and fears. Ari believes in these things because she needs to believe in something that's better than what the world has to offer her. Jo Kang understands Ari, so he willingly follows into her fantasy.
There is a tearjerker ending that I won't describe. By the time it rolls around, Love Phobia has made a convincing case that these two people belong together. The fact that they might not be together for long is a tragedy, but far less tragic than if they had allowed their phobia to keep them apart. It's not a particularly earth-shaking discovery for a romantic movie, but it's one that this particular romantic movie makes extraordinarily well.
Luckily, what Love Phobia also has is a beautifully told love story that makes it possible to suspend disbelief and let the story lead the audience wherever it wants. All of the seemingly silly talk about aliens and ghosts turns out to be deep conversations between two kindred souls who have found a way to share their deepest hopes and fears. Ari believes in these things because she needs to believe in something that's better than what the world has to offer her. Jo Kang understands Ari, so he willingly follows into her fantasy.
There is a tearjerker ending that I won't describe. By the time it rolls around, Love Phobia has made a convincing case that these two people belong together. The fact that they might not be together for long is a tragedy, but far less tragic than if they had allowed their phobia to keep them apart. It's not a particularly earth-shaking discovery for a romantic movie, but it's one that this particular romantic movie makes extraordinarily well.