Beware of this post if you have not seen the movie. Spoilers on the way!
To the Gen-X, this is something of a feel good movie that hinges on fantasy and reality. It brought back lots of memories. High school girls crushes on college-age guys, while male classmates would just ask, "What about me?". And then there is this so-called first love - and first break-up.
Twenty-Five Twenty-One revolves around the story of two young adults, Baek Yi-jin (Nam Joo-hyuk), a young man whose Chaebol family went bankrupt during the 1998 IMF crisis in South Korea, and Na Hee-do (Kim Tae-ri), a high school fencing prodigy, who met in an unusual circumstance, became friends, then lovers. But whether they ended up with each other or not is untold in the story.
The drama opened with Na Hee-do's daughter, Kim Min-chae discovering her mother's diary and began reading them. She learned that Na Hee-Do also has a roller coaster relationship with her own mother who seems to disapprove of her fencing passion. She also got to know of her mother's passion for her sport, her inspiration turned rival turned friend and grit and determination to win. Then she reconstructed the story of friendship and love between her mother and Baek Yi-jin.
It was a bit frustrating at the end. Maybe the writers were rushing towards the finish line. Some said they revised the script. Why can't Yi-jin and Hee-do's love survive the distance? Bummer! There are too many tears wasted, from the actors and from the viewers.
At the end of 16 episodes, we have to idea who Min-chae's father is. The father must have a Kim surname. Where was he in the story?
What happened after their goodbyes? What about those good times wherein they inspired each other to live life to the fullest? Is it that easy to love and let go? Are thank yous enough? Why can't they be together? Is there a 3rd party involved?
The reality is, those 35 and above can always relate to this, high school love seldom lasts. Think of your own high school reunions and those love teams in the past. I can say this based on my own observation, but never the experience.
What can you say of Twenty-Five Twenty-One's ending?
