BUNGEE JUMPING OF THEIR OWN

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BUNGEE JUMPING OF THEIR OWN

Dec 01, 2020

Writer by Pierce Conran
View2496

2001 | 101 MIN | Drama, Fantasy

DIRECTOR KIM Dai-seung

CAST LEE Byung-hun, LEE Eun-ju, KIM Jun-ho, JEON Mi-sun

RELEASE DATE February 2, 2001

CONTACT Cineclick Asia(Fantom co.,Ltd)

Tel +82 2 538 0211

Fax +82 2 538 0479

The recent release of the twisty thriller CALL on Netflix is reminding viewers of the popularity of time-shifting romantic dramas such as Ditto (2000) and Il Mare (2000), but phones and letterboxes that could bridge different timelines were far from the only plot devices that defined fantasy romance, a popular genre at the start of the millennium. One of the most notable additions to the genre, particularly because of the way its fantasy elements involved queer themes, was KIM Dai-seung’s debut film Bungee Jumping Of Their Own with LEE Byung-hun and the late LEE Eun-ju.

On a rainy day, college student In-woo (LEE Byung-hun) unexpectedly falls in love when Tae-hee (LEE Eun-ju) bursts into his life, asking to share his umbrella and then abruptly disappearing onto a bus. Unable to shake her from his mind, he tries to get to know her and once Tae-hee lets her guard down, the two fall in love. Suddenly, In-woo is called up to do his military service, but as he waits for her on the train station platform before he has to leave, she never appears.

Many years later, In-woo has become a high school homeroom teacher. He is married with a child, and yet he still pines for Tae-hee. Starting at a new school, In-woo is thrown by Hyun-bin (KIM Jun-ho), a handsome student in his class who strangely reminds him of Tae-hee. An odd connection forms between them as Hyun-bin’s words and behavior become increasingly similar to Iin-woo’s memory of Tae-hee. Yet with rumors beginning to swirl around school about them and strong homosexual stigmas in society, things become difficult for both of them.

Romantic leads LEE Byung-hun and LEE Eun-ju make a memorable pair in the first segment of Bungee Jumping Of Their Own, ably convincing viewers of the depth of their love, which is crucial for the rest of the story to work. The film is an early example of a commercial Korean work with homosexual themes, though the fantastical way they are introduced likely made them more palatable for audiences at the time, as they did not hurt the film’s box office prospects.

Given the film’s brush with suicidal themes, watching the film now brings up an unfortunate coincidence as LEE Eun-ju famously died by her own hand in 2005, while JEON Mi-sun, who plays the wife of LEE’s character, also committed suicide in 2019.

Bungee Jumping Of Their Own was the debut of KIM Dai-seung, who learned his craft from none other than Korean cinema legend IM Kwon-taek, having served as an assistant director for him from Seopyeonje (1993) until Chunhyang (2000). To date, KIM has directed five films, with a special focus on period dramas, including Blood Rain (2005), The Concubine (2012) and The Magician (2015). He tackled melodrama again with 2006’s Traces of Love.

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