Hanguk Ro Gajuseyo

If you think my Korean has progressed and finally gone beyond "Annyeong," think again. The Korean phrase in the title (which I believe means "To South Korea, please") is courtesy of a quick guide to Korean talk which I found in a useful Korean website written in English. And I need to memorize that line (along with about 10 other basic Korean phrases)...FAST!

I really need to get this off my chest and I have to do so now...I AM GOING TO KOREA ON SATURDAY! ^_^

Three months of suppression made me burst out like an atomic bomb. A wanderlust, my mom calls me and I do not deny my feet always itch to visit a new place. In my room, there is this a shelf located above the dresser. Whenever I get home, I never fail to wipe it clean since it becomes a favorite place for spiders to spin their webs. That shelf contains little souvenirs of the places I have been to, whether outside or within the Philippines. For example, I have a charm bracelet from Universal Studios, a small silver spoon from a souvenir shop in Niagara, an embossed keychain I bought the first time I went to Enchanted Kingdom, a glass bottle from Boracay and even a wooden keychain with dangling miniature cutlery I purchased when I took a sidetrip to Cebu back in high school. And just so you know, I don't have the infamous "man-in-a-barrel" which populates souvenir stalls in Baguio. Cleaning this shelf takes hours not really because the entire activity is difficult. It's just that before I go back to arranging the items once more on the now pristine shelf, I carefully examine each one and like a portkey/time machine, I am once more drawn back to the places I once visited.

To say that I am excited about my impending Korea trip is an understatement in its most horrible sense. In fact, it could be the understatement of understatements! The Korea trip is the first thing which enters my head in the morning and the last thought to leave before I fall asleep every night. Sometimes, I would spontaneously combust into uncontrollable giggling, usually in front of my sister, who would then dart her eyes around their sockets like a pinball machine. One time I woke up in the middle of the night to relieve my bursting bladder and saw that I forgot to turn my phone off. Before pushing the power button, the Korea trip once more popped into my head out of nowhere so I texted Sue that I really couldn't believe I was getting the chance to go to Korea, even if it was just for a couple of days. She later texted me when there was daylight, with a hint of hypnotism, "Yes, you are going to Korea and you are going to bring back Won Bin for your dearest friend, MOI!" I have yet to delete that message, if only to remind me of some of the "missions" my friends have forced me into upon learning of my trip.

The reasons for my overexcitement are both varied and, I believe, valid. After all, it has been roughly eight years since I had ever been to a place outside Philippine territory. For a labelled wanderlust like me, it's almost similar to a bird getting freed from a cage after years of imprisonment! Add that to the fact that this would be my first time to visit a country located in Asia. My appreciation and interest in Asia was a late bloomer, to be blamed perhaps on the fact that I grew up bombarded with Disney. It began with my Asian history classes in mid-high school and have risen steadily ever since I took classes on Asia-Pacific countries and their respective histories in college. Despite the severe memory work, those classes so roused my interest in the rich and exotic cultural heritage of countries in Asia, it was almost like smelling a whiff of steaming rice doused in enormous amounts of curry powder.

Of course, the anticipation of my Korea trip is to be heavily blamed on the shift of my Hollywood from California to Seoul. My 3-year old fascination with Korean music, movies and TV series could be considered a manifestation of the hanryu (Korean Wave) currently invading the entirety of Asia (take for instance My Sassy Girl, Tagalog version).

Sue, Em and Kate (the frequent spammer in my shoutbox in the sidebar of this blog) told me I could finally get to wear my shirts in layers. I have always liked doing that but it gets too warm here that it becomes uncomfortable. And I have always had a penchant for turtlenecks...I can wear them there without feeling sweat rolling down my nape and back,

An indication of my lunacy would be the fact that my dad (my travel partner this time) was surprised that I knew so much about the place more than he did, especially since I was just tagging along for the ride. I was telling him about the places and parks around the area and he was even more dumbfounded to know that I had already pored through a map of the place days before our visa was approved.

Less than a week before my trip, I am still adding a list of things I have to do in Korea. My list so far includes the following:

* Have a picture taken wearing a hanbok.
It was interesting watching Han Ji Hye in Sweet 18 walk around doing house chores while donning the traditional Korean attire.

Getting to wear a hanbok was what my sister was particularly insistent about. What I like most about the hanbok is the material (silk, I think) which makes the dress look soft and flowing. I was wondering why some women wear a hat to match the hanbok while others don't. I would certainly want to try the hanbok with the hat.

* Eat kimchi.
The first time I ate kimchi was in Market! Market! when it was served as a side dish to a chicken barbecue meal my aunt bought me for lunch. With my fork, I picked up a piece of the pickled cabbage and tossed it into my mouth. I did not like what I tasted so I pushed a huge mound of rice into my mouth.

I realized then that kimchi tasted great with rice and the more helpings I had of kimchi, it tasted better. I may be weird but I think I would like it even more if it were served warm, not cold. But then again I cringe at the idea of eating champorado with tuyo so my taste could be ridiculous.

* Watch a movie in a cineplex...WITHOUT SUBTITLES!
The key to understanding Korean movies would be the English subtitles, some of which are made by fans. To complete my cinematic experience, I intend to watch April Snow (if it is still showing there) when I get to Seoul...despite all the negative writeup I have been reading. If not, other choices would be Sympathy for Lady Vengeance and Duelist. Best of luck to me! Need to know if I can have a career in linguistics.

* Go to places where some movies or series have been shot....and keep my eyes peeled for movie stars.
I don't know how big my chances are of getting to see movie stars or singers when I'm there. But then my friend Mich recently saw Freddie Prinze Jr. so I'm keeping my fingers crossed. But I'm hoping I get to go to Lotte World. Mich said that the skating scene in Stairway to Heaven (bottom left) was shot there as well as stills of Kwon Sang Woo and Choi Ji Woo in the carousel...I would want to see that even if I am not a fan of the drama. What has really got me excited though is that I recently learned that two of the places where my ultimate favorite K-serial MISA (bottom right) was shot are conveniently located near the place where I will be staying! ^_^

If only people were still allowed to visit So Ji Sup in the Mapo district office...but that's all right! ^_^

* Visit a Buddhist temple or shrine as well as houses of nobility.
There is always a story behind every temple and shrine...and I would certainly want to know what those stories are. Add that to the fact that art in temples have always been awesome and intricate.

* Get the 411 on tea drinking.
What I understand about tea drinking is that it is not simply concerned with holding a cup of tea and downing it. The entire exercise itself is interesting and relaxing, as if the tea drinkers have all the time in the world to indulge in this activity when the rest of the world seems to be always in a hurry.

* Drink soju in a tent bar.
It is not uncommon to see actors in Korean dramas trying to intoxicate themselves with this alcoholic drink served in transluscent green bottles. For a time we did not know what it was called so Em decided to refer to it as Sprite. And usually they would drink these in tent bars or restaurants with monobloc tables and chairs. I plan to momentarily suspend my self-imposed mortification and have a bottle of soju inside a tent bar. I just need to be sure I'm with someone who can give me a piggyback ride home, given my rather low alcohol tolerance level.

Lee Dong Gun and Kim Jung Eun having a drink of soju in "Lovers in Paris." Kim
has a little too much to drink and is brought home by Lee...piggy-back style.

As I go to Korea, I carry with me a mission from my friends which I fear I could not do. I have been tasked to bring back Lee Dong Gun, So Ji Sup, Won Bin, Kwon Sang Woo, Kim Rae Won, Go Soo and Jo In Sung...I cannot seem to figure out how I could make them fit inside my luggage without their limbs dangling out of my bag. Any ideas?

Farewell to a Champion

One of the things I hate about sleeping over in my sister's dormitory room is that I miss the news. I developed a habit of watching the news when as a high school sophomore, my high school Asian history teacher would give a pop quiz on current events in almost a weekly basis. Since the latest single at the top of the MTV Charts was not considered current events, I would almost always be assured of landing a zero (or a 1 or 2 if I'm lucky) during such pop quizzes that I finally decided it was time to read the other parts of the newspaper aside from the Entertainment and Comics sections as well as regularly tune in to "The World Tonight" before I go to sleep.

Two days ago, I was helping my sister with her homework while trying to tabulate the results of a survey I was doing for my thesis. I forgot to turn on the radio and listen to the simulcast of the 6 o'clock news. I ended up missing something very important.

When I called my mom in the morning, she said to me "Haydee Yorac is dead." My still half-asleep brain suddenly came alive, the zombie-like neurons sparking with life at the mention of the name. All I managed to muster was an "Ahay," complete with my trademark Ilonggo cadence, perhaps one of my few commonalities with the late government icon.

Losing someone like Haydee Yorac would definitely elicit some sort of reaction similar to mine - a drooping head, downcast eyes, a grim mouth, all punctuated with a heavy sigh, as if losing someone or something of dire importance. Yes, losing Haydee Yorac was like dropping a prized samurai to a precipice of infinity, saying goodbye to the sword whose razor sharpness could easily cut through the diaphonous fabric of lies which deceptively strangle the government and the bureaucracy into absolute paralysis.

I was 11 when I first knew about Haydee Yorac. I remember I was in the airport to fetch two cousins who came for a visit. One of them went up to my mom and breathlessly told her that they were in the same flight as Haydee Yorac. My mother excitedly reacted to the news while I sat in the backseat of the car, trying to shake my head like a glass paperweight, the type with the white flaky things swirling in the middle. Finally I got the courage to interrupt their conversation and asked "Who's Haydee Yorac?" The three of them turned to me as if I had committed the gravest sin in the world, enough to land me in the pits of hell with Judas, Cassius and Brutus (if Dante were to be believed). My cousin said "You don't know Haydee Yorac?" That's what happens when you're 11 years old and all you watch is MTV and Cartoon Network. I shook my head and my mother was about to launch into her whole narration of Yorac's past and achievements when my cousin said "There she is!" I poked my head out of the car and shifted my glance to the mass of heads swirling about near the airport entrance. I saw a woman dressed in purple with big, curly hair in the middle of the crowd with sunglasses over her eyes. That was the only time I had seen her in person and I will never ever forget her face - hard and worn, strong, fearless with an air of confidence, but not haughtiness, about her.

In the midst of the chaos and political instability surrounding PGMA's tenure as President of the Philippines, she said that our government has been so besmirched in a swamp of corruption that once you decide to join its ranks, it is fairly difficult to keep yourself clean. I will never forget that since I was eating dinner in Em's house in Laguna and I abandoned my half-eaten plate to hear PGMA quote those overused words from the Bible "Let him who has no sin cast the first stone."

At that time I was consumed by my anger at the audacity of PGMA to attempt to pull the entire bureaucracy with her under the spotlight of allegations that she rigged the 2001 presidential elections that I forgot to mention that someone was actually worthy of casting the first stone smack in GMA's mole. Haydee Yorac's life is proof that there is indeed such a thing as principle, that it is still very much possible to stand up for what you believe in, that right can still prevail in a society which seemingly favors the wrong. She chose to work directly in government of all places, the seat of bedlam and the hive of thieves in the guise of serving society. She was driven by her search for truth and justice and she truly lived up to the name of her title as head of Presidential Commission of Good Government. She was not concerned with minor projects. In fact she dealt with controversial issues such as the Marcos ill-gotten welath and the coconut levy funds and she scored victories with them, never mind the scale. But the point is, she was a true definition of a public servant, one who worked for the good of the people and one who tried to deliver what the government owed the Filipino people. And most of all she refuted the cliched claim "If you cannot lick them, join them." If a government official like her could live up to such rigorous standards of truth and morality, there should be no reason that the President herself cannot do so, especially if she takes to heart her mandate to serve the needs of the Filipino people before anything - and anybody - else.

I told my mom that we are slowly losing good people to the sickle-bearing goth dude. People like Haydee Yorac cannot fight our battles for us for all eternity. In fact, the reason that people like them only seem to go as far as making a small dent or two in the thick metal encasing the enemy is that we ourselves have consented to thinking that the enemy, no matter how evil it is, is the norm and we just have to go ahead and accept that. That is a dangerous precondition which could twist the societal values which govern our daily lives. Evil is never to be accepted; it is always to be shunned and rejected. It is people like Haydee Yorac who have raised the bar and have tried to present us with a new standard to pursue and live by. Skeptics may ridicule this and say this is a dream, not a sense of reality, rather, an illusion.. But Haydee Yorac was a real person and hers was a real life. Is this then not reality?

Two Deaths and a Resurrection

After more than a week of computer abstinence, the weekend news that my power adapter was finally available for pickup left me, to stick to understatements, extremely delirious. But the excitement of seeing my computer light up with life was dampened by the news that two people I had known at some point had breathed their last: former Senator and presidentiable Raul Roco and my grandfather's best friend.

The computer death story is interesting enough on its own so it should warrant a separate entry. Besides the life and death of machines and people may be disparate but not in all aspects. Machines, for one thing, run on electrical power and as long as there is the presence of such a power source, generally speaking, there should be no problem. The same is true with the human being although the power source in this case is almost equivalent to the human soul. As long as the soul and the body are one, there also should be no problem...generally speaking. Once the soul departs, the body becomes useless except as detritus feeders' fodder. When my laptop adapter died on me, I had to rely on batteries for the next two hours or so but soon when the batteries ran out, pressing the "Power" button did nothing but make the indicator lights blink for about quarter of a second then go out. It was like watching doctors trying to revive a patient using a defibrillator. The jolt given the body is so strong that the entire exercise almost seems violent. Defibrillators are meant to save people from the brink of death and sometimes people get a flicker of hope when they see tiny wave patterns in the heart monitor but when the tiny wave patterns appear for a fraction of a second and disappear into a thin flat line again, nothing more can be done.

I addressed my grandfather's best friend with the same degree of respect I gave my grandfather. Several times, my Lolo recounted to me how Lolo Etic saved him from death, even putting his own life on the line in the process. When Lolo Etic was debilitated by a particularly nasty stroke about five years ago, my grandfather was greatly affected by it. There was always the grim possibility that he would die at any moment. My grandfather's love for his friend was unquestionable and they had gone through so many things in their lives that my entire lifetime could never make me fully comprehend what Lolo Etic meant to my grandfather. During the weekend, he was carried off to Heaven in the hands of Jesus. He died quietly while receiving Holy Communion.

My sister was particularly saddened by Lolo Etic's death because she felt that our grandfather had lost one of the last links to his time. Among his brothers, he is the only one alive. He was also particularly close to his brothers-in-law but only two are living. Most of his contemporaries in the law practice have already passed away. He has a very few bosom friends left. To put it cinematically, my Lolo is the Last of the Mohicans (Daniel Day-Lewis) or The Last Man Standing (Michael Douglas, I think!). My sister thinks that this was a moment in his life that Lolo must have felt alone. Aside from that, it made the reality that Lolo's turn was coming very soon all the more evident.

I do not have a granite heart beating within my rib cage so I naturally understand her sentiments. If my sister chose to look at it from the point of view of solitude, I would rather see it from the perspective of legacy. I am not saying that death is the ultimate bad guy who snatches people's souls like a thief in the night and stuffs them in a roughly-spun, grimy sack, not to mention bearing a heavy-looking sickle at that. But I am absolutely sure that people would want to spend more time on this Earth with family and friends before actually moving on to a higher place. I said to my mother "I'm sure heaven is a great place but people there would not be hypocritical enough to say they would have wanted to spend more time here on Earth despite the fact that we're practically wallowing in misery."

This brings me to Raul Roco. My cousin Barbie texted me last Friday, informing me that Roco, touted as the greatest president the Philippines NEVER had, had succumbed to cancer. I was stunned when I heard the news primarily because I had never heard that his condition had gotten worse after his cancer remission went public during the 2004 election frenzy. He was even one of those who called for PGMA to resign following the "Hello Garci" controversy.

But then Roco was not one who usually tried to draw attention to himself. Perhaps the only thigs conspicuous about Roco would be his brightly-colored flowery shirts. His lineup during the elections consisted of the least popular candidates. He sincerely believed in change and I have always been amazed by his brilliance. I admire his usually calm and composed exterior. Unlike other politicians who resort to shouting, screaming and basking in the brilliance of their bald heads, Roco's speeches were like fire racing across water, clear and mild but equally fiery. The first time he ran for president in 1998, I wanted to vote for him but then I was not yet of the the required age. In 2004, he ran again and when he announced his bid for the highest seat in the land, I made up my mind to vote for him without batting an eyelash.

Meeting Raul Roco in person is a memory I would forever hold dear in my heart. As I read the newspaper articles which announced his death, I could not help but cry as I remembered seeing him in person when he was hot on the campaign trail. I had seen his campaign ads several times but everytime it came out on TV, I'd drop whatever I was holding, watch it and start getting tears in my eyes. I was in the province for vacation with my parents. We were eating an all-seafood lunch in my favorite restaurant when my mom and my dad met a doctor-friend of theirs who turned out to be Roco's campaign manager in our area. He excused himself but came back after a while with Roco himself. He greeted us with a warm smile and there I was staring at him, as if I were a kid seeing Santa Claus, never mind that at that moment he looked jolly, had a rather rounded tummy and wore red. My parents were introduced and he shook my dad's hand and then my mom's. I do not really recall who introduced me to him because my mind and my tongue seemed frozen. It's like meeting someone you've idolized for so long but the major difference in this scenario was that it was totally unexpected. All of my normal body functioning seemed to be focused on only one thing: to gawk at Roco as if I were brain-dead. Even breathing seemed to be forgotten, thank God it's an involuntary action. The next thing I know he turned to me and held out his hand. At that moment, all of my sense came back and I froze for a moment of indecision. Minutes before he sauntered into our table, I was literally diving into my food, having abandoned my eating utensils for a severely sloppy rendition of hand-to-mouth existence. Everything on my plate was practically greasy it could have violated Newton's laws of motion - crabmeat, fish, fried rice, buttered shellfish. So my hand was a sticky mess of the combinations of the food mentioned above. Oh crap, I get a once-in-a-lifetime chance to meet someone I've idolized for so long and all I can offer him is a slimy handshake! I let out the most stupid smile ever and apologized, saying my hand was dirty. But he said something like it was all right and it would be unwise and impolite to refuse so I shook his hand. I was so happy I immediately texted my aunt and my friends. I was just so sad later on that, first, I did not have a picture taken with him and, second, I had to wash my hands a little while later. It is even sadder and more regretful to note that at the last minute I did not write his name in the "President" blank in my ballot because of the news about his ill health.

Roco's death has left another gaping hole in the very small throng of people who compose the guardians of Philippine morality. I have always believed in his integrity and dedication as a public servant, especially in his adherence to the truth. He was an idealistic man and, at times, even ambitious in his efforts to carry out authentic reforms in a society which pessimists proclaim is going to the dogs. I laud his courage for choosing to work for the good of the country even when he is very much aware that in doing so, what he would meet would be disappointment and discouragement in their purest forms. Conrado de Quiros wrote in his column that Roco believed in the Filipino, that there is a lot of good in our race despite all the negative comments slammed into our already mangled faces. He believed in the Filipino's ability to make the right choices, even if money runs our present society like a power generator. All in all, Roco believed in hope for a supposedly doomed country but emphasized what all of us already know but refuse to hear: that true change for society can only be effected when the person himself initiates a change within himself.

Roco deplored about the state of our country but he singled out the fact that young people today lack the proper figures to look up to. Of course, a mango tree cannot bear apples inasmuch as demons cannot bring forth angels. But young people need someone to follow and emulate and since they cannot have the taste of the best, they settle for what's better or good. Bette r and good are all right but they are not the best. In our current circumstances, it is not a remote possibility that we are emulating what's bad (ranting madwomen), worse (organized crime masterminds) or even the worst (plunderers and sons of plunderers with superiority complex and really long nails for more effective tenacious clinging to power). His death leaves a void which would take a long time to be filled and his legacy as a good leader would never be enough to heal society but, to quote Roco's son, the seeds have been spread and, I believe, have taken root. You don't have to be president to do that.

An Innocent (and Not-So Innocent) Venture

Her huge, doe eyes downcast, Chae-Ryn bites her lip and feels her knees tremble both with apprehension and excitement. Paralyzed by fear, she could barely lift her head. As she eyes her feet nervously, she sees another pair of feet slowly come towards her. Young-Sae's. She makes a noiseless groan. Everything is about to start. She practically forces herself to look up just in time to see Young-Sae extend his hand towards her direction. Chae-Ryn swallows hard and everything lands in her stomach like a cannonball - her feelings of panic and dread, memories of her mother and sister, her hope that perhaps tomorrow could be so much better. Furtively, she drags her right foot and makes her first innocent step.

My sister and I got home from church earlier than usual today. She had the beginnings of PMS cramps and could no longer stand to meet with friends for GG meeting. The moment we got home, she threw herself into the bed and curled up into a huge ball of arms, feet and a rather squishy derriere (which she likens to J. Lo's insured rear end). As I was throwing my shirt into the hamper, I remembered that I had just gotten a new Korean movie. I grabbed the black plastic DVD case, stood in front of her with the DVD clutched in my hands like a prized war booty and shouted in my loudest voice ever: "Look!" She sneaked a glance at me and the ball she had rolled herself into almost came untangled in an instant. "Play it now, please!" she begged, her voice throaty perhaps due to the pain from her stomach...or the anticipation from waiting for me to pluck the DVD out of its case and load it into the player. I lay on the bed beside her in a pile of fluffy pillows and watched as the movie credits began to roll: Innocent Steps.

The moment I saw the Innocent Steps DVD on sale, I made a mad dash for it. My sister and I have been itching to see this movie ever since the early part of this year, being extremely fascinated with Korean teen box-office queen Moon Geun-Young. Moon was the one of the reasons I did not completely fast-forward the 2000 drama series Endless Love 1: Autumn in My Heart, the other being heart-slayer Won Bin. I had never seen anyone cry so naturally and effortlessly at that. She became more endearing thanks to the 2003 hit comedy flick My Little Bride with funnyman Kim Rae-Won. Her flair for drama has not dampened her feisty and spirited side, which she showcased with Kim. She has the innate ability to act cute without being extra irritating, it's almost synonymous to eating honey without getting stung by bees. She looks younger than her 19 years but when she steps into her acting shoes, I believe she can be at any age at any time.


Moon with Choi Woo-Hyuk in Endless Love 1: Autumn in My Heart (above)
and Kim Rae-Won in My Little Bride (below)

In Innocent Steps, Moon plays the role of Chinese immigrant Jang Chae-Ryn who was brought to Korea as the new dance partner for leading DanceSports instructor and competitor Na Young-Sae (Park Geun-Hyung). With the competition a few months away, Chae-Ryn undergoes intense training under the careful scrutiny of the perfectionist Young-Sae, especially since Chae-Ryn apparently has an almost zero dance background. Under the tutelage of Young-Sae, she slowly learns every possible technique in ballroom dancing and discovers a huge potential for raising a thunderstorm in the dancefloor which she never thought existed. Though this is predominantly a dance flick, there is the unavoidable presence of certain cliches which are necessary to spice things up a bit - a jealous and scheming rival, some form of comedic sidekick and of course, the two main protagonists falling for each other. Nothing you can avoid especially when Young-sae, in an effort to make Chae-Ryn internalize the intensity of the dance, tells her "You must love me when we are dancing." Just typing that got my eyeballs rolling.


Baby-faced Moon as Jang Chae-Ryn

My sister and I were particularly excited about the dance scenes. Looking at Moon Geun-Young's seemingly innocent face, charming smile and hunched posture, it was very difficult to conjure images of her executing the flashy and swift movements that are characteristic of ballroom dances such as the rhumba, samba and the cha cha, let alone looking like one. From the movie stills, Park Geun-Hyung's almost 10-year seniority was also evident. In fact in the movie, he was accused by a friend of "robbing the cradle big-time." But what is amazing about Moon is that she can become a totally different person once she slips into dancer mode. The cute 19-year old flutters to the ground like a silk robe being shed off. A grown up woman emerges, chin lifted, eyes sparkling with newfound confidence. It's not just the smoky eye make-up or the sequined short costume which suits her perfectly. Even in sweats, a t-shirt and ballet flats, Moon could slip in and out of her dancer mode way faster than my computer could switch users. Moon was exactly like Chae-Ryn, it all just lay inside her quietly but ready to burst out at the intended moment in time and slip back into hibernation when the need was no longer present.


Whipping up a frenzy with Park Geun-Hyung who plays
her mentor and eventual paramour Young-Sae

The movie was not just about the looking the part well. It was also about playing the part and it did so brilliantly. The dancing itself did not disappoint. The first dance scene was devoted to Park and another partner. I remember gawking at Park as he swayed to the music, movements swift and sharp yet tinged with hints of gracefulness, knives cutting through an air of clouds and feathers. Moon herself was a sight to behold as she moved her arms, snapped her neck, flicked her hips, kicked her legs and pirouetted across the floor, all to the precise beat of the music. When she was doing the rhumba with Park, it was torture to take my eyes off the sight of them both in such an atmosphere of magic. In an objective note, Moon's rendition of the samba was not as fetching especially since her hip jerks were barely perceptible, perhaps drowned in the rapid execution of movements in the dance. But nevertheless her samba rendition was, in totality, a very entertaining watch.


Young-Sae initially deplores Chae-Ryn's horrible posture (left) which she eventually corrects (right).

The rest of the movie, like I said, could be pretty much likened to lampreys attached to a shark. There is really nothing new about the love story or the slick acts of envy-driven people, although there were times I felt the plot was careening dangerously into a crevice of cheesiness. However I could pretty much let the rest of it go with their heads intact, except for one: the fireflies. When Chae-Ryn arrives from China, one of the first things she removes from her suitcase would be a bottle containing firefly larvae. She likens the metamorphosis of the firely, and the entire process of lying in wait for the perfect time to emerge from its cocoon, to her own awakening and realizations. As early as that, I was not buying the entire firefly story but towards the end realized their rather awkward purpose as homing beacons. I am sorry but the fireflies worked really well for The Classic, my ultimate favorite Korean film. But for Innocent Steps, I wish they were given a more significant job perhaps as guest performers in a flea circus.

But in the end, the story is not about fireflies, eyebrow-crossing dancesports costumes, extremely conventional villains or the nearing overusage of Ajuhssi (Korean for "Mister") committing serious cradle thieving. It is not labelled a dance film for nothing and in that aspect, the DVD player really should be prepared for more meetings with Innocent Steps.