Unikorea and Dream Venture Capital Presents
a SIDUS Film
in association with Blue Cinema
Lee Jung-Jae
Jeon Ji-Hyun
Written by Yeoh Jina
Director of Photography Hong Kyung-Pyo
Original Music by Kim Hyun-Cheol
Associate Producers Yoon Sang-Oh, Cho Min-Hwan
Executive Producer Choi In-Ki
Produced by Cha Seung-Jae
Directed by Lee Hyun-Seung
- Is this everything? - Yes.
Let's get going!
Il Mare
Hello? Yes, it's me.
I really love this place. I even named it.
Who designed it? It's quite extraordinary.
I see.
Thanks again for the furniture and the stereo.
I'll call again soon. Bye.
Hi, I just moved into...
Hi.
Hello.
How are you?
Is the water hot enough?
Wow, these fellas sure look good!
I put in sliced carrots and onions!
Get ready!
1, 2, 3... pull!!
- Help! - We won! We won!
One more time.
Let's begin at "Merry Christmas".
- Get with it! - Let's get it right.
Okay, here we go.
Merry Christmas.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
Hi, I'm the previous tenant of your place.
I must ask you for a favor. I'm waiting for a letter.
If a letter arrives for me, please forward it to the address below, okay?
Thanks.
Wishing you good fortune at Il Mare, Kim Eun-Joo, Dec. 21, 1999.
P.S. The paw prints by the door were there when I moved in.
I never got around to removing them.
You'll get used to them.
Hello?
No, I was waiting for a call.
He's a jerk.
Merry Christmas...
Hi. Cigarettes, please.
Help yourself, they're over there.
What's that you wrote by your place?
"Il Mare". It means "the sea".
Sea? What do you know about the ocean?
I thought I'd start learning.
Did anyone live there before?
Nope. Your aunt finished building it last month.
It's a brand new place.
- Time for dinner! - Okay.
Talk about a lousy disappearing act!
We brought your designs from school.
- Design, my ass. - Want some tea?
I'm leaving today to study abroad.
I just dropped by to say goodbye.
I guess... you have to get going then.
Thanks... for everything.
Learn as much as you can out there.
I think I should learn how to mend hearts first.
Hye-Won, it's time to go. Let's get going.
Nice place. I'll come by again sometime.
Come on.
Hey!
Hey, you!
P.S. The paw prints by the door were there when I moved in.
I never got around to removing them.
You'll get used to them.
- Hello. - Hey, the girl from "almighty".
It's "Il Mare".
"Almighty", "Il Mare", same difference.
Has the place been sold?
Nope.
May I go see it?
The keys are over there.
- Hi. - Oh, hello.
- Honey, want some noodles? - Add rice cakes too.
I thought I should write you.
I'm the first occupant of Il Mare,
and I think your letter came to me by mistake.
I know you're waiting for important mail,
so you may want to check the address again.
Sincerely, Han Sung-Hyun, Dec. 28, 1997
P.S. How did you know this place was called "Il Mare"?
I don't know how my letter got there,
but I hope you're not playing some game.
Please don't tamper with my mail.
Sincerely, Kim Eun-Joo, Dec. 29, 1999
P.S. I hope you're not really from 1997.
I know it's the last day of the millennium.
Of course I want to go, but I have to work...
I'll watch the shop for you.
Where should I meet you?
- I read 7 volumes. - 2100 won, please. Thank you.
Let's countdown to the new millennium together.
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5...
4... 3... 2... 1 !
Happy New Millennium!
"Listen, your letters keep ending up in my mailbox."
"You should look for other ways to retrieve your mail."
"Sincerely, Han Sung-Hyun, Jan. 7, 1998."
"P.S. It is definitely 1998 right now."
Eun-Joo, you're the voice actor. I'm the comic book store owner.
I should be the one with the crazy stories.
I know, but it's so weird.
I read more comic books anyways!
1998?
- Hello? - Eun-Joo, it's snowing!
You're right.
Remember 2 years ago? We caught the killer flu.
Yeah, but I'm from an island. I just can't resist the snow.
You'll watch the store for me tomorrow, right?
- Sure. - Oh, thank you!
Let's call it a day, guys!
- Sung-Hyun, what are you waiting for? - Coming!
Is the sky falling?
I thought I'd cover up the control box.
- No snow forecasts for tonight. - Let's get a couple of drinks.
Sounds good to me.
It's going to snow a lot from Jan. 9 in 1998.
If you're still in 1998, watch out for the flu.
There was a nasty virus going around.
Dear Eun-Joo, you were right, it snowed heavily on Jan. 9.
And despite your warning, I managed to catch the flu.
You must be psychic, because...
I can't believe you're living in the future.
Psychic? I told you to...
I still can't believe that you're living in 1998.
But I don't think you're joking either.
I wish I was psychic, because then I could tell the future.
But please keep forwarding me my mail, okay?
- Let's go. - I need to go somewhere.
- But tomorrow's the deadline. - I'll do an all-nighter.
Why a construction site?
- She was telling the truth. - What?
- I wonder what she looks like? - Who?
The girl who lives there.
Fool, who the hell lives on a construction site?
Sung-Hyun! Hey, man!
Hey, Cola. Look at the little fish eat.
- I have one more question... - Dog? You mean Cola.
You're the one who had him first, so why did you leave him there?
He was wandering around Il Mare when I found him.
He sleeps like a person, doesn't he?
Hey, you're Cola?
Hey, Cola!
There must be a wrinkle in time,
because he can't be in two places at one time.
He should only be with one of us,
but I swear that he's with me now.
It's the mailbox, the mailbox!
I think you're right.
But I'm not a big on hair bands. My hair's a little too short.
Well, maybe you should grow it. It's a gift, after all.
- Oh, we're going on a picnic! - Whoopee!
I'm so excited!
Let's go!
Wait, I forgot our picnic basket!
Do you have the key?
No!
No one has the key!
Oh no! Don't leave your keys behind!
Yeah!
Whoopee...
Hello?
"Hello?"
- Who is it? - I don't know.
Hello.
- Hello? Who are you? - I'm Mr. Worm.
Do you live here?
Sure. This is my home.
I thought love meant... eternal bliss.
Cooking sometimes helps.
If you want to cook spaghetti the right way,
throw the cooked noodles at the wall.
If they stick, it's just right.
Do you feel better?
We're tormented because love goes on,
not because it goes away.
It's better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all.
I hope you feel better, Eun-Joo.
Request for Academic Leave
You're an architect, not a construction worker.
Why leave with only one semester left?
I hate all the hypocrites who preach family values.
Well, you should talk.
That's why I'm leaving.
Geez, you've been acting weird lately.
I feel like I'm being ambushed by memories I'd rather forget.
Do you have any memories you'd prefer to abandon?
Hey, Cola. Doing laundry can be therapeutic.
Thanks for helping me move in. I've tried to be a nice neighbor,
but please stop leaving chocolate almonds in my mailbox.
The chocolate melts all over my mail.
Chocolate, cho-co-late...
The chocolate melts all over my mail and I can't read it.
What would I want back from 1998?
My friend gave me a tape recorder to practice voice acting and I lost it.
I looked in my diary and it was on Feb. 11.
I was at the station on my way home.
I always sat on the last bench on the south side.
I lost it that night.
Go there, and you'll see me in the year 1998.
"I love you... I LOVE you... I love YOU..."
Hey, wait! Eun-Joo!
What are you doing?
Didn't you lose this?
Listen to this... "I love you..."
"Hi, Eun-Joo. It's me, Sung-Hyun."
- "I hope you received the recorder." - Hey, who's this?
Thank you for the recorder.
I'm sending you two gifts,
but one of them may not get there because it's alive.
The earmuffs are to keep you warm.
If you need a favor from me, let me know.
Your aunt called me.
I know it's not easy for you, but she's like your mother,
and she really wants you to do this.
Please go visit Professor Han at the hospital, in room 703.
In the year 2000, is there anything on Professor Han?
l can't accept...
...neither my father's death nor my love for him.
Yeah, l'm back from the hospital.
l'm ok.
Did you put the book in the mailbox?
Ok. l'll go get it.
There are 3 things a person can't hide...
...coughing, poverty and love.
The harder one tries to hide them, the more they rise to the surface.
But there are times when you still want to hide them.
l just sit and cry...
...and cry until l can't anymore.
Love is a self-inflicted pain.
l hope you'll find peace within you.
Il Mare's warmth and comfort came from the love within.
Love comes to us in different ways, but I believe there is only one love.
I hope your father's book helped you to understand him better.
Hye-gi!
Auntie!
-Have you been good, kiddo? -Yes.
-Are you ok? -Yes, how's dad?
He's at a seminar in Seoul.
Eun-joo, Everyone l loved were always out of my reach...
...and l think l ached for them.
l was 7 when my father left me.
lt's dinner time, Cola.
You like Mr. Fish?
l'll be right back. Be good now.
Gosh, it's freezing...
Excuse me...
l saw you at the station tonight.
White sweater, black muffler, pretty hair...
Haven't heard from you in a while...
ll Mare can make you feel so alone.
l felt like that when l was there.
Sung-hyun, wanna have some fun?
Go inside a convenience store and grab a beer.
Drink it down...
Now start running!
Go for a ride on the Viking.
The adrenaline rush is amazing.
This is the moment when...
lt's my turn, take a bus to Bomunri.
Get off at Mulmok near the tree-lined boulevard
Do you like to take walks?
lt's a beautiful place to just walk alone and think things through.
Just when you start to get tired, you'll see a little cafe.
l go there to drink wine sometimes.
Do you like wine? I heard that wine drinkers are lonely,
...but it doesn't matter to me.
l reserved a bottle of wine to be opened in the year 2000. How is it?
Wine is supposed to get better with age.
l had a great time.
How about you?
I did too, but I felt a little sad coming back alone
l'd really like to meet you, if it's ok with you.
Hey, Cola.
You really think we'll meet?
Can you come down to Cheju lsland?
l'm going home next week.
Cola, Cola!
Cola, l'm going to meet Eun-joo.
What'll we do in the meantime?
Are you looking at the photo?
The coral beach is where l want to live.
Once you see it you'll want to build a house on it
Oh, our rendezvous date is March 11, 2000,
...at 3 pm at the coral beach.
lt's a Saturday.
Don't forget. l only have a week,
...but you still have over 2 years to go.
Eun-joo...
-Aren't you going to bed? -l'll be right down. Good night
Go to bed, dear.
-Can l help you? -No, l was just...
-Are you building a house here? -Yes, we are
-Will you be living in it? -No, l'm here for the construction.
-Why do you ask? -just curious...
A friend of mine designed it.
lsn't it perfect for this beach?
He dedicated it to his true love.
l see.
l gotta run. Good luck.
l waited for you a long time.
I know two years is a long time, but I still hoped you would come.
l guess l expected too much again.
I know I shouldn't, because it always leads to disappointment.
But everyone l care about is so far away.
What happened to you in those 2 years?
l hope it was just a slip of memory.
Why didn't l show up?
l wouldn't forget a promise like that.
This is breathtaking.
Sung-Hyun's letters were little pieces of happiness
But there still is this sense of emptiness.
ls it because of losing ji-hoon?
Or not being able to meet Sung-hyun?
There's a technical problem, so let's take a 30 minute break.
Let's get some coffee, my treat.
The more animation, the better. It means more work for us.
And it's great that there are many big projects in the works.
That's true.
-Sorry, l'm late. -l just got here too.
-ji-hoon, about our engagement... -Yeah, let's do it this month.
Really?
How about 2 Wednesdays from now?
Ok.
-But why do you want to rush this? -l'm not rushing.
You're the one who's stalling.
Just be patient until my animation project's finished.
l thought l could forget him...
but when I heard his voice again, everything felt the same as before.
l know he loves someone else...
...but l can't help it.
Please help me stop him from leaving. l'm sorry..
l'm really sorry.
-Hi. -Sorry, l'm late.
-lt's ok. Are you hungry? -No but dinner is
-What should we eat? -Whatever you want.
Was l just a stranger to you?
What do you want?
Let's go
Am l only a meaningless faceless stranger to you?
Do you think it was a good idea to let him go?
Of course. True love comes from true independence.
l want to believe it too. l want a career and love
My happiest moments were opening my mail under your Christmas lights.
Eun-joo.
lt was really hard out there alone.
l just got too tired and lonely...
...and l wanted someone there.
l'm sorry... We should have went together.
Please help me stop him from leaving me.
l'm sorry..
l'm really sorry.
l'll help you.
Why didn't you tell me how you felt before?
Do you remember your first letter?
You wished me good fortune at ll Mare.
Knowing you has been a blessing.
This time, I want to return this good fortune to you.
Best wishes to you.
Thank you for everything. Good bye...
Excuse me. Where's the department of architecture
-Over there. -Thank you.
My Lord, you're the biggest whiner these days...
Well, life isn't fair.
He dedicated it to his true love.
May l help you?
Sung-hyun dedicated it to you. Eun-joo.
lt was a car accident.
Help me stop him from leaving me...
He was on his way to Youido to meet someone.
The driver didn't see him.
lt's that house over there.
Please...
Please... hurry.
The letter has to reach him.
It's all my fault. Sung-Hyun, please don't go there.
Please...
Our last date was at a cafe called morning.
in Youido on March 25, 1998.
Cheer up. l'm not going away forever.
l know, l just feel weird.
l asked you to come with me. lt's not easy becoming a voice actor.
Not many people pass the exam.
lt's only 3 years... right?
l just feel so uneasy.
Please don't go.
Don't die.
l'm so sorry.
The fact that l don't show up 2 years from now...
...must mean that we weren't meant to be.
And you are...?
l hope you're ready to hear a long and magical tale.
Are you ready to trust me?