The Korean Film Archive Releases Blu-ray of Lee Myung-se's Early Work, the 'Unique Cineaste'

Korean Film Archive 'Lee Myung-se Collection'
Includes 'My Love, My Bride' and 'First Love'
Actors Park Joong-hoon and Kim Hye-soo Provide Commentary

The Korean Film Archive (Director Kim Hong-jun) announced on the 13th that it will release the "Lee Myung-se Collection" on the 19th, featuring director Lee Myung-se's early representative works "My Love, My Bride" (1990) and "First Love" (1993) on Blu-ray.

The Korean Film Archive (Director Kim Hong-jun) announced on the 13th that it will release the 'Lee Myung-se Collection' on the 19th, featuring early representative works of director Lee Myung-se, 'My Love, My Bride' (1990) and 'First Love' (1993) on Blu-ray.
[Photo by Korean Film Archive]

The "Lee Myung-se Collection" is the 36th Blu-ray title planned by the Film Archive and produced by Bluekino. The Blu-ray master video uses the version that the Film Archive deeply restored in 4K digital last year.

"My Love, My Bride" is Lee Myung-se’s second film, released after his debut work "Gagman" (1988) made a significant impact. When it premiered in December 1990, it attracted 210,000 viewers in Seoul theaters alone, ranking second in Korean film box office in 1991. It overturned the poor performance of "Gagman" and solidified Lee Myung-se’s position. This film is regarded as a pioneering work that demonstrated the commercial potential of the Korean romantic comedy genre before the Korean romantic comedy boom sparked by "Marriage Story" (Kim Ui-seok, 1992).

However, the value of this work does not stem solely from being a pioneering film in one genre. It was a film where Lee Myung-se’s unique style?artificial sets and colors, animation techniques, episodic narrative structure?fully emerged. Above all, it introduced new expressive forms rarely seen in Korean cinema at the time. This was a valuable attempt that breathed new aesthetic vitality into the Korean film industry, which was then focused on realism and emphasizing social messages.

This film, which centers on the fresh first love of a freshman at a provincial university who directs a theater club, is the director’s third work. Although it left some regrets at the box office, it received critical acclaim and was later recognized by audiences, ranking alongside "No Mercy for the Rude" (1999) as one of Lee Myung-se’s representative works. "First Love" showcases the pinnacle of Lee Myung-se’s style and film philosophy. Artificial and fantastical, this film casually blurs the boundary between reality and fantasy, showing that for someone in first love, memory is not a reproduction of reality or a continuous accumulation of time, but an illogical, unrealistic chain of the most thrilling and impressive moments and emotions.

Through this film, Lee Myung-se argues that cinema is not a reproduction of reality but can exist fully through its own logic and modes of expression. In this sense, "First Love" is one of the most groundbreaking and innovative works that expanded the language boundaries of contemporary Korean cinema.

Born in 1957, Lee Myung-se graduated from the Seoul Institute of the Arts’ Department of Film and worked as an assistant director under Kim Soo-yong. From 1983, he studied directing as an assistant director to Hong Pa and Bae Chang-ho. He also collaborated on the screenplay for Bae Chang-ho’s "Our Happy Young Days." He debuted with "Gagman" in 1988 and directed a total of eight feature films, including "My Love, My Bride" (1990), "First Love" (1993), "Man is in Pain" (1995), "An Affair" (1996), "No Mercy for the Rude" (1999), "Duelist" (2005), and "M" (2007).

A scene from director Lee Myung-se's film 'First Love'.
[Photo by Korean Film Archive]

Although not prolific, all of his works deeply reflect Lee Myung-se’s perfectionist directorial efforts and achievements. His films exhibit a unique style rarely found in any previous or subsequent Korean films. For this reason, he is sometimes called a "stylist" rather than an "auteur." However, he did not pursue novelty for its own sake, nor did he showcase style for style’s sake. His style reflects the film philosophy he pursues. In this regard, Lee Myung-se is a director worthy of the title "auteur."

The Blu-ray commentary for "My Love, My Bride" features lead actor Park Joong-hoon, director Lee Myung-se, and film critic Kim Hyung-seok. The "First Love" commentary has two versions: one with lead actress Kim Hye-soo and director Lee Myung-se, and another with film critic Lee Dong-jin and director Lee Myung-se. These commentaries combine detailed episodes from the filming, the director’s directing perspective, and critical analysis, providing comprehensive insight not only into the two films but also into Lee Myung-se’s entire cinematic world.

A booklet written by film critic Jang Byung-won includes essays that reexamine the value of these two works and director Lee Myung-se in Korean film history. This Blu-ray set also contains special supplements such as trailers for both films, before-and-after restoration footage, and storyboard images for "First Love" (included in the booklet), enhancing its value. Notably, the 4K footage restored by the Film Archive in 2023 is used, offering an opportunity to experience Lee Myung-se’s distinctive style in high definition.

The collection is available for purchase at online bookstores such as Kyobo Bookstore, Yes24, and Aladin. A limited number of postcards signed by one of director Lee Myung-se, actress Kim Hye-soo, or actor Park Joong-hoon will be randomly given on a first-come, first-served basis.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.