Hey, guys! Welcome back to Film Friday. Today we’ll be looking at one of the first Korean films I ever watched, I’m A Cyborg But That’s Okay. Let’s get to it!
This is an unusual romantic comedy that came out in 2006, and stars Rain as Il Soon and Im Soo Jung as Young Goon who are patients in a mental institution. Young Goon believes herself to be a cyborg and is institutionalised after cutting her wrist open and trying to connect herself to a power cord in an attempt to ‘recharge’ herself. It is seen as a suicide attempt and she is sectioned.
Il Soon is a patient who has behavioural problems and issues with kleptomania and he believes that he can steal other peoples’ souls and attributes, and despite having no sympathy for anyone he quickly becomes fascinated with Young Goon. The film follows the two of them through ups and downs as Young Goon tries to convince Il Soon to steal her sympathy for a while so she will be able to take revenge on ‘the men in white’ that she views as evil.
I enjoy this film now as much as I did the first time I watched it, and I would love to see more Korean films that tackle issues about mental health as I feel that Korean society hold very antiquated views about this topic. This film deals with some very extreme mental illnesses, and I think it would be interesting to see more films centred around more common issues such as depression and anxiety, and to show these issues in an honest and well-informed manner. But I digress! I think if mental illnesses and their portrayal in films, or controversial treatments, is upsetting for you in anyway, then this film is 100% not for you, but apart from that, I recommend this oddly sweet, quirky film!
If you watch it, I’m pretty sure it’ll melt your heart!
Until next time, film fans!
