[MOVIE REVIEW] 'My Mighty Princess' overcomes 2-year delay

"My Mighty Princess," a new romantic comedy directed by Kwak Jae-yong, is finally hitting theaters this month after a delay of more than two years, raising hopes among fans who still remember the filmmaker's hit, "My Sassy Girl."

The delay illustrates the deepening problems plaguing Korean cinema, when even work by a widely recognized filmmaker such as Kwak has to overcome a slew of hurdles.

Director Kwak, however, seemed relieved about the prospect at a press conference held in Apgujeong-dong on Tuesday.

"All the cast members signed on to the project because they counted on me, but they have been deceived. When I showed my screenplay to them, I told them all the wire action scenes would be done by doubles or stunts, but in fact the actors had to do all the wire actions themselves," Kwak joked.

The new movie follows Kwak's trademark format: a romantic comedy where a powerful female character gets involved with a weaker male. In "My Sassy Girl," Jun Ji-hyun played the quirky, fist-swinging girl and Cha Tae-hyun brought to life a passive yet kind-hearted Korean man.

In "My Mighty Princess," Shin Min-a ("Volcano High," "Sad Movie") plays So-hui, a martial arts prodigy, and her male partner is Il-young, played by On Ju-wan. As the plot involves so many martial arts skills, plenty of wire action sequences have been included and, thanks to the far longer-than-expected post-production period, those unrealistic images have been sharpened and honed by the film's computer graphics team.

Kwak said his new flick, however, differs from his previous melodramatic comedies such as "Classic" and "My Sassy Girl." "The new film is concerned about bright aspects - action, conflict, rather than emotions. The entertainment aspect plays a central part, so please just enjoy the show," Kwak said.

Kwak's assurance came after a painful delay that lasted two and a half years. Up until now, rumors grew that the project would never be produced given the repeated decisions to put off the release schedule.

Shin Min-a, the heroine of the film, also expressed her relief about the finalized schedule. "Two years and six months have passed since we started post-production work, during which time I have completed three other films. I was a bit worried about my attitude toward this movie because of the delay, but I'm confident now that I love this movie and have great expectations," she said.

On Ju-wan, who plays a character opposite Shin's, said he was also very worried about the fate of the film project. "At one point, I talked to director Kwak and half-jokingly said I wanted a personal copy so that I could at least watch it at home by myself," he said.

"When the delay lasted for one year, my anxiety soared. But strangely enough, when the delay lasted for two years, I came to think of the project in a positive way, and it seemed like everything would work out after all," On said.

"My Mighty Princess" will be released nationwide on June 26.

By Yang Sung-jin