''Perhaps Love'' () is a 2021 South Korean

comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

film, directed by

Jo Eun-ji Jo Eun-ji (born February 10, 1981) is a South Korean actress. She debuted in the gritty Im Sang-soo film ''Tears'', and has since become better known for her supporting roles on film and television, such as in ''The President's Last Bang'', ''My ...

for Next Entertainment. Starring

Ryu Seung-ryong Ryu Seung-ryong (born November 29, 1970) is a South Korean actor. Ryu began his acting career in theater, subsequently becoming one of the most versatile supporting actors in Korean film and television. In 2013, he headlined '' Miracle in Cell N ...

Oh Na-ra Oh Na-ra (, is a South Korean television and film actress, known for her roles in ''Yong-pal'', ''Hyde, Jekyll, Me'', ''Flowers of the Prison'', '' Man to Man'', ''The Lady in Dignity'', and ''Sky Castle ''Sky Castle'' (; stylized as ''SK ...

and

Kim Hee-won Kim Hee-won (born January 10, 1971) is a South Korean actor. Since 2007, he has played supporting roles in films and television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which ...

, the film revolves around a best selling writer named Hyeon who has been in the slumps for 7 years. Then he meets an aspiring author Yoo-jin, who brings about change in his values. It was released theatrically on November 17, 2021. On box office it ranks 10th among the Korean films released in the year 2021 in South Korea, with gross of US$4.36 million and 514,260 cumulative admissions.

Cast

as Kim Hyeon, a best-selling author who has fallen into a slump *

as Mi-ae, Hyeon's ex-wife *

as Soon-mo, Hyeon's best friend and the head of a Sunmo publishing company *

Lee Yoo-young Lee Yoo-young (; born December 8, 1989) is a South Korean actress. She debuted in the film ''Late Spring is a 1949 Japanese drama film directed by Yasujirō Ozu and written by Ozu and Kogo Noda, based on the short novel ''Father and Daugh ...

as Jeong-won, Hyeon's neighbor *

Sung Yoo-bin Sung Yoo-bin (born 25 July 2000) is a South Korean actor. Filmography Film Television series Web series Awards and nominations References External links * * * 2000 births Living people South Korean male televis ...

as Kim Seong-kyeong, Hyeon and Mi-ae's son * Mu Jin-sung as Yoo-jin, an aspiring author ;Cameo *

Oh Jeong-se Oh Jung-se (born February 26, 1977) is a South Korean actor. He is best known for his roles in the television series ''Missing 9'' (2017), ''When the Camellia Blooms'' (2019), ''Hot Stove League'' (2019), and ''It's Okay to Not Be Okay'' (2020) ...

as Nam-jin, an ex-best friend and rival writer of best-seller Hyeon *

Ryu Hyun-kyung Ryu Hyun-kyung (born March 10, 1983) is a South Korean actress. She made her acting debut in 1996 at age 12 as the younger counterpart of the protagonist in the SBS TV series ''Oxtail Soup''. In 2010, Ryu drew attention with her supporting rol ...

as Hye-jin, Hyeon's current wife

Production

''Perhaps Love'' is the directorial debut of actress

. On May 2, 2019, it was revealed that

has been cast in upcoming comedy film tentatively titled as 'Not the Lips'. Filming began on June 4, 2019, and was wrapped up on September 13. The film was released 2 years after its completion.

Release

The film was released theatrically on November 17, 2021. In April 2022 the film was invited at the 24th edition of

Far East Film Festival Far East Film Festival is an annual film festival held in Udine, Italy. It is one of the most important events promoting Asian Cinema in Europe. It focuses mainly on the films from East Asia East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which i ...

at Udine held from April 22 to 30 2022. In July 2022, it was invited at the

21st New York Asian Film Festival The 21st New York Asian Film Festival began in New York from 15 July with the opening film of the festival '' Fast and Feel Love'', a Thai film by Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit. The 21st edition was celebrated as 20th anniversary of the festival a ...

, where it was screened at Lincoln center on July 26.

Reception

Box office

The film was released on November 17, 2021, on 1192 screens. As per Korean Film Council (Kofic) integrated computer network, the film ranked first on the Korean box office in the opening weekend. it is at 10th place among all the Korean films released in the year 2021, with gross of US$4.36 million and 514,260 admissions.

Critical response

Bae Hyo-joo reviewing for Newsen praised performances of Ryu Seung-ryong, Oh Nara and Kim Hee-won and wrote, "''Perhaps Love'' evokes sympathy and laughter from viewers. The actors' sincere acting, witty yet realistic dialogues and scenes, and witty directing bring about 100% pure pleasure in a long time."

Accolades

References

External links

* * * {{Daum movie, 128599 2021 films 2020s Korean-language films Films postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic South Korean comedy-drama films South Korean LGBT-related films LGBT-related comedy-drama films Gay-related films Films about divorce Films about families Films about writers Films set in Seoul Films set in Gangwon Province, South Korea Films set in South Chungcheong Province Films set in Lithuania Films shot in South Korea Films shot in Lithuania 2021 romance films 2021 directorial debut films Next Entertainment World films