Romantic Korean movies
Being in love is a wonderful feeling, so much so that it’s almost impossible to explain it in words. But love is also synonymous with perseverance and patience, and it’s quite a feat to love someone wholeheartedly. For those who tingle with anticipation at the thought of romance, here’s an opportunity for you to live vicariously through these romantic Korean movies.
1. The Classic (2003)
Image credit: Namu Wiki
Main Cast:
- Son Ye-jin as Ji-hye and Joo-hee
- Cho Seung-woo as Oh Joon-ha
- Jo In-sung as Sang-min
- Lee Ki-woo as Tae-soo
The Classic is a classic romantic Korean movie starring Son Ye-jin, Cho Seung-woo, and Jo In-sung.
You may recognise this movie thanks to the famous “running-under-the-rain” scene.
The movie follows an interesting premise of parallel love stories between a daughter and her mother.
Ji-hye, the daughter of Joo-hee, catches feelings for a guy named Sang-min. They meet at a drama club in university.
But Ji-hye’s friend, Soo-kyung, also shows interest in Sang-min. To make matters worse, Soo-kyung asks Ji-hye to write and deliver a love letter to him on her behalf.
Unfortunately, Sang-min is moved by Soo-kyung’s sincerity – or so he thinks.
Due to Sang-min and Soo-kyung’s blossoming relationship, Ji-hye decides to avoid Sang-min at all costs to save herself from heartbreak.
One day, Ji-hye returns to an empty house as her mother is overseas. As she begins to clean the attic, she chances upon a mysterious box filled with her mother’s personal belongings from the first time she fell in love.
Don’t miss out on the trailer:
Video credit: CJ ENM
2. A Moment To Remember (2004)
Image credit: Namu Wiki
Main Cast:
- Son Ye-jin as Kim Soo-jin
- Jung Woo-sung as Choi Chul-soo
Prep yourself for A Moment To Remember as it’s one of the saddest and moving romantic Korean movies ever. You’ve been warned.
Kim Soo-jin bumps into Choi Chul-soo for the first time at a convenience store.
Their relationship begins with a misunderstanding as Soo-jin mistakes Chul-soo for the guy who stole her drink, which she had accidentally left on the counter.
But when they meet again at a construction site, Soo-jin sees how passionate and hardworking Chul-soo is. Gradually, she falls head over heels for him, and they get married.
What seemed like a happily ever after gets interrupted when Soo-jin is diagnosed with a rare type of Alzheimer’s Disease.
Will she remember Chul-soo, and the memories they’ve made over the years?
Catch the trailer here:
Video credit: CJ ENM
3. Finding Mr. Destiny (2010)
Image credit: Namu Wiki
Main Cast:
- Gong Yoo as Han Gi-joon
- Im Soo-jung as Seo Ji-woo
As the title suggests, Finding Mr. Destiny is all about looking for the destined one.
Seo Ji-woo travels to India, and the most unexpected thing happens to her: she believes she has finally met her soul mate.
After she returns to Korea, she pays a visit to a company that helps people track down their first love. The company is run by a man named Han Gi-joon.
Since Ji-woo is the company’s first client, Gi-joon works to the best of his abilities to track down Kim Jong-ok, a.k.a. Ji-woo’s first love.
But he gradually falls in love with his first client, and finds himself torn between the need to be professional, and his desire to express his personal feelings.
Watch the trailer here:
Video credit: CJEntertainmentUSA
4. Architecture 101 (2012)
Image credit: Namu Wiki
Main Cast:
- Han Ga-in as Yang Seo-yeon (in the present)
- Suzy as Yang Seo-yeon (in the past)
- Uhm Tae-woong as Lee Seung-min (in the present)
- Lee Je-hoon as Lee Seung-min (in the past)
Packed with heartbreaking scenes and heartwarming moments, Architecture 101 interweaves the beauty of love and architecture.
In the present, Lee Seung-min is in his mid-30s, and he works as an architect. Out of the blue, a familiar woman visits him at the office, and he realises that it’s Yang Seo-yeon – his first love.
Seung-min and Seo-yeon met for the first time when they were at university. They took an Architecture 101 module together, and as they spent more time together, they began to grow on each other.
As they have lost contact for more than a decade, Seung-min is naturally taken aback by her sudden visit. She pleads with Seung-min to rebuild her house located in Jeju.
Seung-min initially rejects her request. But after seeing how desperate she is, he agrees to build her a new place she can call home.
How has their relationship changed, and what will remain from the memories of falling in love 15 years ago?
You can watch the trailer here:
![[Movie Trailer] 건축학개론(ARCHITECTURE 101) 본예고](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/mUpJ18MRe8s/sddefault.jpg)
Video credit: missA
5. A Werewolf Boy (2012)
Image credit: Namu Wiki
Main Cast:
- Song Joong-ki as Chul-soo
- Park Bo-young as Soon-yi
When A Werewolf Boy was released in 2012, it made fans of Song Joong-ki squeal and weep like babies in movie theatres.
The actor has almost no dialogue in the movie, but he proved his acting chops nonetheless – you’ll have to watch the movie to find out why.
Soon-yi has weak lungs, which causes her immune system to fail easily. Hence, her family decides to move to the countryside in the hopes that the clean air will help to improve her health.
When Soon-yi explores the new area, she finds an abandoned barn with a locked room. There, she meets Chul-soo, who is neither capable of communicating nor socialising.
Dressed in ragged clothes with no family by his side, Chul-soo piques the interest of Soon-yi.
Check out the trailer:
Video credit: Movieclips Trailers
6. The Beauty Inside (2015)
Image credit: Namu Wiki
Main Cast:
- Han Hyo-joo as Yi-soo
- Yoo Yeon-seok as Woo-jin
- Kim Dae-myung as Woo-jin
- Do Ji-han as Woo-jin
Imagine waking up in a different body every day. Some days you’re a successful designer, and other days you’re on the brink of death.
The Beauty Inside follows Woo-jin’s rollercoaster journey, which begins on his 18th birthday.
When he turns 18, an inexplicable occurrence takes place: he wakes up in a different body.
This strange occurrence happens daily, and Woo-jin finds himself in a new body that could be any age, nationality, and gender.
While gaining new experiences in a completely different body seems fun at first, Woo-jin begins to get exhausted as the days go by.
His emotional turmoil worsens when he falls in love with Yi-soo as he’s unsure how she will react.
Get a glimpse of the movie here:
Video credit: Movieclips Trailers
7. Be With You (2018)
Image credit: Lotte Entertainment
Main Cast:
- So Ji-sub as Jung Woo-jin
- Son Ye-jin as Im Soo-ah
Be With You is another sad yet romantic Korean movie that will make you feel all kinds of emotions.
Following the death of his wife, Jung Woo-jin raises his son alone. Times get tough, but he holds on to his wife’s promise to return a year later when the rainy season begins.
Surprisingly, she keeps her promise and returns on the first day of the rainy season.
However, she is no longer the same person as her memories have been wiped out.
Perhaps the reunion isn’t for the best as her time with them is limited. When the rainy season comes to an end, she has no choice but to leave.
Don’t sleep on the trailer:
Video credit: Korean Cultural Centre UK
8. Crazy Romance (2019)
Image credit: Namu Wiki
Main Cast:
- Gong Hyo-jin as Seon-young
- Kim Rae-won as Jae-hoon
Crazy Romance lives up to its title as it tells a crazy tale of romance between Seon-young and Jae-hoon.
Seon-young and Jae-hoon have one thing in common: they recently broke up with their partners on a bad note, and they’re now heartbroken souls.
Jae-hoon split with his fiancé, whereas Seon-young got cheated on.
When the two meet, their relationship is engulfed in burning passion and fiery love. Are they meant for each other, or is this just an unusually intense summer fling?
You can watch the trailer here:
Video credit: SGCloverFilms
9. Tune In For Love (2019)
Image credit: Namu Wiki
Main Cast:
- Kim Go-eun as Kim Mi-soo
- Jung Hae-in as Cha Hyun-woo
Interweaving music and love, Tune In For Love features the unmatched chemistry between Kim Go-eun and Jung Hae-in.
Kim Mi-soo encounters Cha Hyun-woo for the first time on the same day Yoo Yeol, a famous singer, is appointed the DJ for a radio program in 1994.
Mi-soo and her sister run a bakery in the neighbourhood to make ends meet, and Hyun-woo decides to work part-time there.
Although they work together, Mi-soo keeps her distance from Hyun-woo as he was recently released from a juvenile detention centre.
But over time, Mi-soo sees a different side to Hyun-woo. She knows that Hyun-woo has been through a difficult time, but he’s reluctant to open up about his past.
Eventually, Hyun-woo leaves the bakery, and Mi-soo loses hope that there could be something between them.
Is this really the end of their relationship, or could there be more?
Here’s the trailer for all curious folks:
![Tune in for Love | Official Trailer | Netflix [ENG SUB]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/O2x8gaL5Omw/sddefault.jpg)
Video credit: The Swoon
10. Sweet & Sour (2021)
Image credit: Netflix
Main Cast:
- Jang Ki-yong as Jang-hyuk
- Chae Soo-bin as Da-eun
- Krystal Jung as Han Bo-yeong
If you were given a choice between a comfortable and familiar relationship, and a new yet passionate relationship, which would you choose?
Jang-hyuk has been together with Da-eun for some time now, and their relationship no longer gives them butterflies in their stomachs.
What’s more, Jang-hyuk’s current priority in life is not his girlfriend, but his career.
As he works towards securing a permanent position at his company, he works closely with Han Bo-yeong.
In the beginning, he finds Bo-yeong distasteful as she’s unkempt and messy. But as time goes, he realises that she might mean more than just a colleague to him.
You can catch the trailer here:
![Sweet & Sour | Official Trailer | Netflix [ENG SUB]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/2CFeVRhzi_g/sddefault.jpg)
Video credit: The Swoon
11. Love And Leashes (2022)
Image credit: Netflix
Main Cast:
- Seohyun as Jung Ji-woo
- Lee Jun-young as Jung Ji-hoo
Love And Leashes is a romantic movie like no other, and you’ll have to watch to find out why.
Ji-woo and Ji-hoo work for the same company. From afar, Ji-woo sees that Ji-hoo is an attractive and diligent co-worker, but she keeps these feelings to herself – until she receives a package that was meant for Ji-hoo instead of her.
To her surprise, Ji-hoo bought a dog leash. At first, she wonders if he’s a pet owner, but soon realises that the leash has nothing to do with actual dogs.
It turns out that Ji-hoo has a keen interest in a dom-and-sub relationship – “dom” refers to dominant, while “sub” means submissive.
When Ji-hoo asks Ji-woo to be his master, she agrees. This marks the beginning of their wild and interesting relationship.
Don’t miss out on the trailer:
Video credit: Netflix Asia
Romantic Korean movies that make you feel like a single pringle
Some of these movies will make you shed a tear or two, while others will give you all the feels and remind you of what it’s like to be in love. Whatever your relationship status may be, we know for a fact that there’s that one romantic Korean movie that will tug at your heartstrings.
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- 11 Korean movies released in 2021
Cover image adapted from: Netflix, Lotte Entertainment and Netflix
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