Overview of New Year Blues
‘New Year Blues’ is a South Korean movie released on 10 February 2021. The movie features Kim Kang-woo, Yoo In-na, Lee Yeon-hee and Yoo Yeon-seok. It is directed by Hong Ji-Young and penned by Ko Myung-joo and Ham Hyung-kyung.
‘New Year Blues’ shows the mixed stories of four couples. Their story begins a week ahead of New Year’s Eve and it happily ends by showing the gathering of the four couples to celebrate the New Year. It makes many of the cliches still enjoyable by mixing the lives of the four couples. The roles of the four couples are played by Kim Kang-woo and Yoo In-an (as Kang Ji-hoo and Hyo-young), Yoo Yeon-seok and Lee Yeon-hee (as Jae-heon and Jin-ah), Yeom Hye-ran and Chen Duling (as Yong-mi and Yao Lin), and Teo Yoo and Choi Soo-young (as Rae-hwan and Oh-wol).
Profile
- Name: ‘New Year Blue’
- Starring: Kim Kang-woo, Yoo In-na, Lee Yeon-hee, Yoo Yeon-seok
- Genre: Drama, Comedy, Romance
- Director: Hong Ji-Young
- Screenplay by: Ko Myung-joo, Ham Hyung-kyung
- Produced by: Min Jin-soo
- Production Companies: Soofilm
- Distributed by: Acemaker Movieworks
- Edited by: Sin Min-gyeong
- Running time: 114 minutes
- Language: Korean
- Release date: 10 February 2021
- Country: South Korea

Cast
- Yoo In-an as Hyo-young
- Kim Kang-woo as Kang Ji-hoo
- Lee Yeon-hee as Jin-ah
- Yoo Yeon-seok as Jae-heon
- Chen Duling as Yao Lin
- Lee Dong-hwi as Yong-chan
- Choi Soo-young as Oh-wol
- Yeom Hye-ran as Yong-mi
- Ye Soo-jung as Oh Hye-sim
- Teo Yoo as Rae-hwan
- Lee Jin-ah as manager
Synopsis
Story of Kang Ji-hoo and Hyo-young
Ji-hoo (Kim Kang-woo) was an ex-detective who used to attend exclusive crime squads. However, due to some derelictions, he gets demoted to the post of a general civil servant. One day, he meets Hyo-young (Yoo In-na) when she visits the general civil service office to request a restraining order.
Hyo-young is a married woman who works as a rehabilitation trainer. She has filed a divorce case in court. She approaches the general civil service office to seek protection from her annoying husband.
Ji-hoo takes up the responsibility of guarding her. He is a divorcee who lives alone in his apartment. When a friendship blooms between Ji-hoo and Hyo-young, they become each other’s comfort zones.
Story of Jae-heon and Jin-ah
Jae-heon (Yoo Yeon-seok) is a South Korean native who works in Argentina as a wine delivery man. On the contrary, Jin-ah (Lee Yeon-hee) is a newbie in Argentina who reached there to find the boy who dumped her. She is not familiar with the local language and feels comfortable around Jae-heon, who is always ready to help her.
Every time Jae-heon and Jin-ah spend time together, they learn more about each other. Since Jin-ah is trying to reset her life, she feels Jae-heon deserves appreciation for building a life far away from his native land. For that reason, she respects him. Nonetheless, Jae-heon misses his homeland, and he longs to visit South Korea again.

Story of Yong-chan and Yao Lin
Yong-chan is the owner of a travel agency. He is in love with a young lady called Yao Lin, who is Chinese. Yong-chan’s sister, Yong-mi, is not satisfied with her brother’s romantic relationship with a foreign lady.
The three of them live under the same roof, and the language barrier becomes a major problem in their family. Yao Lin does not know Korean. Therefore, it becomes hard for Yong-mi to communicate with Yao Lin. Due to this reason, Yao Lin feels a little distanced from the family.
Adding to the family’s squabbles, Yong-chan hides the financial crises that he faces in his business. When Yao Lin finds it out all by herself, she feels distanced from her relationship.
Story of Rae-hwan and Oh-wol
Rae-hwan (Teo Yoo) is a physically challenged athlete. In an accident at the age of four, he lost one of his legs below the knee. He spent his younger days in Germany and returns to South Korea as an adult snowboard trainee who prepares for the Paralympics. In Korea, he faces discrimination due to his physical challenges and being raised in a foreign country. Also, he appears in the competition without the support of any sponsors. For that reason, he becomes insecure about his worth, and it reflects in his love life.
Rae-hwan is in love with a girl called Oh-wol. After winning a snowboard match, he heads towards Oh-wol and proposes. As expected, she says ‘yes’. However, the young couple starts to face difficulties when Rae-hwan becomes dissatisfied with the efforts that he puts into their relationship. On the contrary, Oh-wol, who has already accepted Rea-hwan with all his flaws, becomes upset.
The movie progresses by showing the couples resolving the problems in their lives and finally it gives the audience a happily-ever-after ending.

Theme
‘New Year Blues’ discusses the different stages of love by telling four different stories from the lives of four different couples. By clubbing different stories from the lives of different people, the movie highlights the significance of human connections and the support that one gets by staying connected.
Also, the movie portrays various stages and types of love, like the budding stage, the romantic stage, platonic love, and familial love. It shows the sweetness and complexity that love can bring to a relationship.
Awards
No information is available.
Interesting Facts about New Year Blues
- ‘New Year Blues’ tells the story of four couples.
- Hong Ji-young, the director of ‘New Year Blues’, is famous for his works, ‘Marriage Blue’ (2013) and ‘Nacked Kitchen’ (2009).
- ‘New Year Blues’ was filmed in various shooting locations in different countries like South Korea, Vietnam, and the United States.
FAQs
- Who is the director of ‘New Year Blues’?
Hong Ji-Young. - When was the movie ‘New Year Blues’ released?
10 February 2021. - What is the Instagram ID of Yoo In-an?
@yooinna065. - Where can I watch ‘New Year Blues’?
You can watch ‘New Year Blues’ on Amazon Prime. - What is the Instagram ID of Kim Kang-woo?
@kangwoo_king. - What is the Instagram ID of Lee Yeon-hee?
@yeonhee.luv.
- What is the Instagram ID of Yoo Yeon-seok?
@yoo_yeonseok. - What is the Instagram ID of Lee Dong-hwi?
@dlehdgnl.