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Can an elementary school teacher and one of her students really fight over
the same man? That`s what director Jang Gyu-seong`s new film "Lovely
Rivals" (Yeoseongsang vs. Yeojeja) is all about.
He describes it as a comical story of competition between a childish teacher
and a mature student. The two competitors` beloved target is a handsome art
teacher who has come to the school for the new semester. The teacher and
the student struggle to get his attention, going through many funny
happenings in the process. At first glance it may appear to be a sequel to
Mr. Jang`s "My Teacher, Mr. Kim" (Seongsaeng Kim Bong-du), which was
also set in a small, rural school.
In "Rivals," however, Mr. Jang pushes the envelope further, not only making
people laugh but using social commentary as well. Mr. Jang says his first
film, "A Funny Movie" (Jaemineun Yeonghwa), inspired him to be more
conscious about the substance of his work.
"You know, `A Funny Movie` parodies many scenes from other movies, and
was just meant to be comical," Mr. Jang says. "But after the movie was
over, I heard the audience criticizing the movie because it didn`t have any
substance. I was shocked. I realized that no matter how hard the audience
laughs during the movie, they look down on films that do not have a
message."
Mr. Jang may refer to himself as "just a commercial movie maker," but it`s
not only a sense of what will score at the box office that made him tackle the
topic of public education.
When, as a child, he transferred from a small middle school in Gangwon
province to a bigger one in Seoul, he was shocked by the way his new
teacher treated the students. He said that watching the news these days
leaves him very worried about the plight of public education in Korea.
When Mr. Jang made "My Teacher, Mr. Kim," he wanted to portray the tragic
disappearance of small schools in the beautiful Korean countryside. But
with "Lovely Rivals" he wants to show just how unqualified some teachers
can be in Korea, which is attributable to the country`s unreasonable system
of certifying educators.
"Even though it is just a fun movie to watch, I hope it makes people think
about the problems Korean education is currently facing," Mr. Jang said. "I
use what makes me angry as material for my films, but the smarter way to
show my anger is through humor."
"Lovely Rivals" has many scenes in which characters laugh through tears.
Once such scene is when teacher Yeo Mi-ok makes two students re-enact
a fight so she can understand who did what wrong. It`s scenes like this that
give "Lovely Rivals" its satirical flavor.
Some critics charged that the film may appear stale, simply another "teacher-
student" movie, similar in substance to so many before it. Mr. Jang accepts
that view.
"Audiences tend to be tired of unoriginal movies," he said. "However, this
time, funny accents and dialects were not used get laughs." He said people
are bored with those methods.
"Some people even ask why I made a film about a school again," said Mr.
Jang. "So my next work is going to be a political comedy called `Gunsuwa
Ijang,` through which I want to satirize contemporary Korean politics."
Synopsis :
Mi-ok is an elementary teacher that notorious for her hysterical behavior
toward her students. One day, one of her student Mi-nam challenges Mi-ok
over a new handsome looking teacher Sang-min. They both try to get
attention from Sang-min and the fighting goes into hilarious situations
