Overview of Soulmate

‘Soulmate’ is a romantic comedy entertainer starring Kim Da-mi, Jeon So-nee, and Byeon Woo-seok. Director Min Yong-geun and scriptwriter Kang Hyun-joo remade the Chinese movie ‘Soul Mate’ directed by the Chinese director Derek Tsang Kwok-cheung. In South Korea, the movie was released on 15 March 2023 and it made its international release in North America on 24 March 2023.

‘Soulmate’ tells the story of two female friends who became friends at the age of 13. The movie unfolds the changes that take place in their lives as they pursue their dreams.

Profile

• Name: Soulmate
• Genre: Friendship
• Starring: Kim Da-mi, Jeon So-nee, Byeon Woo-seok
• Directed by: Min Yong-geun
• Screenplay by: Kang Hyun-joo, Min Yong-geun
• Distributed by: Next Entertainment World
• Produced by: Byun Seung-min
• Production Companies: Climax Studio, Andmarq Studio, Studio&NEW, KeyEast
• Release dates: 15 March 2023 in South Korea, 24 March 2023 in North America
• Running time: 124 minutes
• Cinematography: Kang Gook-hyun
• Language: Korean
• Country: South Korea

Cast

Synopsis

Mi-so visits an art exhibition with her daughter. She stands in front of her portrait, drawn by her best friend, Ha-eun. The manager at the exhibition tells Mi-so that artist Ha-eun is on a solo trip.

Young Mi-so joins a new school in the countryside of South Korea. She comes from Seoul with her single mother. Rebellious young Mi-so runs out of the class when her teacher asks her to sit. Hence Mi-so leaves her bag in the classroom, Ha-eun takes her bag and gives it to Mi-so. Later, they become friends, and Ha-eun invites her to her house.

The friendship between Mi-So and Ha-eun strengthens when Mi-so’s mother leaves her at Ha-eun’s house to attend some important programmes in Seoul. Living with Ha-eun, Mi-so learns that Ha-eun is an artist. However, Ha-eun decides to pursue the job of a teacher, as her father wishes, and Mi-so decides to pursue the life of an artist impressed by Ha-eun’s talent.

After attending their classes, they return home together. One day, Mi-so takes Ha-eun to a jewellery shop and encourages her to pierce her ears. However, Mi-so breaks some of the items accidentally. Therefore, the shop owner sends them out with one ear pierced.

On Ha-eun’s birthday, Mi-so takes her to an empty house to celebrate. She gifts Ha-eun with a pair of earrings. Ha-eun shares her earrings with Mi-so since only one of her ears is pierced. Talking while sitting in the empty house, Ha-eun tells Mi-so about her crush, Jin-woo.

The next day, Mi-so meets Jin-woo and asks him to accept Ha-eun’s love if she proposes. Ha-eun’s friendship with Jin-woo grows after attending the party hosted by their friends. Later, Ha-eun takes Jin-woo to Mi-soo’s workplace and officially introduces him. Soon, Mi-so becomes a good friend of Jin-woo, and the trio goes on a trip into the woods.

The long walk exhausts Ha-eun. Therefore, she pauses to rest while Jin-woo and Mi-so continue their walk. At the end of the walk, Jin-woo and Mi-so reach their destination. The long walk and intimate chats draw Jin-woo and Mi-so closer, and they kiss. At the end of the day, an unsaid tension arises between Mi-so and Ha-eun.

Mi-so leaves for Seoul at the beginning of the academic year. At the time of departure, Ha-eun sees the chain that Jin-woo used to wear on his neck in Mi-so’s neck. Arriving in Seoul, she started working in the club where her boyfriend works. Her life in Seoul becomes hard when she breaks up with her boyfriend since she catches him with another girl.

Mi-so tries plenty of jobs, and she starts feeling desperately lonely. Nonetheless, she writes letters to Ha-eun, saying she lost her phone and is enjoying her wife in Seoul. Ha-eun writes back that she misses Mi-so.

One day, Jin-woo tells Ha-eun about his plan to leave for Seoul for his studies. His decision makes Ha-eun sad. On the other hand, Mi-so’s mother dies, and she decides to visit Ha-eun. Mi-so fakes that she is leading a happy life in Seoul. The friends go to a luxury restaurant. Since there is a shortage of money, Mi-so joins the chef and showcases some of her skills. It makes Ha-eun angry, and she leaves the hotel.

Years later, Mi-so becomes a successful secretary. Mi-so happens to meet Jin-woo and explains her success story. Also, she mentions her upcoming marriage with her boss. Unfortunately, her boyfriend commits suicide.

After a short span of time, Jin-woo proposes to Ha-eun, and they start dating. However, on the wedding day, she loses her courage to move forward with the marriage. She elopes from the wedding place and later moves to Seoul to pursue her dreams.

By coincidence, Ha-eun rents the apartment where Mi-so once lived. She cleaned the place and started focusing on her art. One day, Jin-woo meets Mi-so to ask her about Ha-eun. However, Mi-so disappoints him since she is unaware of Ha-eun’s arrival in Seoul. Mi-so tells Jin-woo that she is a single mother to her daughter.

But in reality, Ha-eun visited Mi-so after arriving in Seoul. At that time, Ha-eun was pregnant with Jin-woo’s baby. Ha-eun decided to raise the baby by herself, and Mi-so supported her. However, after giving birth to the child, Ha-eun dies of excessive bleeding. It was hard for Mi-so to accept the reality. Therefore, she revealed the death news of Ha-eun only to her mother and took on the responsibility of raising her child.

Mi-so started writing blogs in Ha-eun’s name. By the end of the movie, it is revealed that the art exhibition that Mi-so visits at the beginning of the movie was conducted by Mi-so herself. By faking herself as Ha-eun, Mi-so believes Ha-eun is still alive and is on her solo journey.

Theme

Friendship is the central theme of the movie ‘Soulmate’. Mi-so and Ha-eun became friends when they were 13 years old. As years pass, their friendship grows stronger. Their choice to pursue different careers created barriers to their daily communication. However, their true love gives them the strength to move forward and explore their destiny.

Awards

No information is available.

Interesting Facts about Soulmate

1. The record of 24 January 2024 says ‘Soulmate’ sold a total of 234, 775.
2. ‘Soulmate’ accumulated a sum of $1.7 million.
3. The filming of ‘Soulmate’ occurred from August to November of 2020.
4. ‘Soulmate’ was invited to premiere in the ‘Korean Cinema Today Panorama’ at the 28th Busan International Film Festival.

FAQs

1. Who is the director of ‘Soulmate’?
   Min Yong-geun.
2. When was the movie ‘Soulmates’ released in South Korea?
   15 March 2023 in South Korea.
3. What are the Instagram IDs of Kim Da-mi?
   @d_a___m_i.
4. What are the Instagram IDs of Jeon So-nee?
   @somewheregreeny.