In this blog post, I’ll analyze the narrative and mise-en-scène of “Oh! Soo-jin” to reveal how the film subverts audience expectations through its everyday storytelling, and I’ll compare the differences between realist and fantasy films.

Introduction

A few days ago, I had a conversation with my boyfriend. When he said, “There’s an indie documentary festival,” I replied, “What? Indie, and a documentary, too? That sounds really boring.” Many people find documentary-style works—which merely depict the facts of everyday life—boring. However, I’ve actually found fictional, spectacular fantasies to be boring, and I’ve been more deeply moved by films that depict the small details of everyday life.
Thanks to these tastes, I’ve always preferred works like ‘Christmas in August’ and ‘Peppermint Candy’, which make me reflect on my own life through stories of ordinary people. Director Hong Sang-soo’s films also fall into this category. After being deeply moved by ‘The Day a Pig Fell into the Well’, I began seeking out his other works, and among them, ‘Oh! Soojung’ left a particularly strong impression on me—someone accustomed to causal and conventional romantic structures.
If I were to summarize the plot simply, ‘Oh! Soojung’ is close to an ordinary, predictable slice of everyday life. Yet why does this film evoke such a special feeling? Why do I dislike fantasy films and find myself more captivated by this kind of realistic narrative? The purpose of this essay is A) to examine the narrative and form of ‘Oh! Soo-jung’ and reveal how everyday material creates a unique kind of enjoyment, and B) to compare the differences and effects of realist and fantasy approaches.

Main Body

Plot Summary

Soo-jung (played by Lee Eun-ju), who comes from a poor family, is close friends with independent film director Young-soo (played by Moon Sung-keun). Young-soo visits the art gallery of his college junior, Jae-hoon (played by Jung Bo-seok), to secure funding, and there, Jae-hoon takes a liking to Soo-jung. Drawing on his wealth, Jae-hoon continues to meet with Soo-jung, showering her with kindness, and eventually confesses his desire for a serious relationship.
Although Su-jeong initially had feelings for Young-soo, she becomes disillusioned by his lack of initiative and turns her affections toward Jae-hoon. As their relationship grows rapidly closer, Jae-hoon attempts to initiate physical intimacy, but Su-jeong does not readily comply, creating tension. During this process, the dynamic between Young-soo and Jae-hoon becomes strained, and eventually, Su-jeong has her first sexual encounter with Jae-hoon and promises to marry him.
This story can be read as a love triangle centered on one woman, or interpreted as the journey of a woman from a lower socioeconomic class entering high society. It can also be viewed as the process of a woman seducing a man. While the surface-level plot is simple, its approach and expression deliver a different kind of shock to the audience.

Public Reception

Some viewers summarize the story of ‘Oh! Soo-jung’ in a single sentence: “The story of a woman who refuses to give in easily to men who ask her for sex.” Those who hear such a summary sometimes retort, “Is that all there is to it?” Some people, after watching a Hong Sang-soo film, say, “I could make that too.” In other words, their reaction is that the film appears to lack anything special, either in form or content.
However, other critics do not view this film as a mere “replica of reality.” One critic argues that Hong Sang-soo’s films are closer to modernist experiments than realism. The argument is that they subvert established cinematic conventions, audience expectations, and the mechanics of conventional narratives to shake up the audience’s perceptual horizons.
For example, while watching a film that idealizes romance might make an audience member feel, “Okay, let’s do this right,” ‘Oh! Soojung’ does the opposite: it makes them doubt, “Did we really love each other?” In other words, it is assessed as mocking the audience’s very notion of love—and the very premises underlying cinematic love scenes—and cynically reconstructing them.
The crux of this critique is that ‘Oh! Soo-jung’ is not a faithful realism that seeks to reproduce moments of life as they are. Rather, by sidestepping the way conventional films handle love, the film appears to disrupt audience expectations and, in doing so, demand an awakening to the nature of everyday life.

Analysis: Narrative, Cinematography, and Shot Composition

On the surface, the plot is simple and conventional. However, the key lies in “how” the story is told. While Hong Sang-soo follows the conventional plot, he disrupts the audience’s expectations through the narrative’s rhythm, scene sequencing, the actors’ subtle expressions and intonations, and the arrangement of spaces. In this process, cinematography plays a crucial role.
His visuals do not rely on flashy editing or grand camera movements. Instead, he reveals moments of everyday life through static shots, extended long takes, natural performances, and subtle silences. As a result, the audience focuses more on the perspective and context through which the events are viewed than on the events themselves.
When viewed shot by shot, the director frequently employs a technique that imbues repetitive, everyday scenes with special meaning. As minor actions, lines of dialogue, and off-beat timing accumulate, the audience’s emotions shift in a direction different from that of a typical romantic drama. Thus, despite the plot’s predictable conclusion, the audience continues to be surprised.
In short, the formal strategy of this film does not lie in “simply reproducing reality,” but in subverting cinematic conventions with which the audience is already familiar, forcing them to view things from a different angle. That is the unique appeal and impact of this film.

The Difference Between Realist Films and Fantasy Films

The reason fantasy films are popular with many audiences, especially younger viewers, is clear. Fantasy offers visual spectacle, escapism, and an expansion of the imagination. It easily provides a sense of exhilaration or catharsis by breaking free from the constraints of reality. In contrast, a realist approach, rather than allowing the audience to escape, brings them back to everyday life and demands reflection.
In my case, fantasy films felt like a waste of time, whereas films that depict the subtleties of daily life made me reflect on my own life. “Oh! Soojin” stimulates the audience’s perception not through fantasy-driven escapism, but by shifting the perspective on trivial events. This offers a pleasure that is different from that of fantasy—one that is more subtle and uncomfortable, yet more enduring.
Furthermore, as noted in the critique cited earlier, Hong Sang-soo’s approach differs from a simple depiction of reality. He targets the grammar of cinema itself to expose the fictional nature of “love in film,” and as a result, in some ways, he displays greater cynicism toward love on screen than toward love in real life.

A Film That Subverts the Familiar

The appeal of ‘Oh! Soojung’ does not stem from an ingenious plot or visual splendor. By reconstructing an ordinary story—the archetypal love triangle—through the director’s unique perspective and style, it disrupts audience expectations and fosters a new awareness of everyday life.
Rather than “showing reality as it is” in the name of realism, this film functions as a device that rearranges cinematic conventions and audience perceptions. It pursues a different kind of enjoyment from the immediate gratification and escapism offered by fantasy films, and this difference depends on what the audience seeks to gain from the work.
Ultimately, “Oh! Soojung” confirms two things. One is the potential inherent in how an ordinary narrative is handled, and the other is that film can shake the audience’s perspective itself rather than merely replicating reality.

These two aspects prompt us to rethink the broad categories of realism and fantasy.

Establishing Reality

Everyday Characters

In ‘Oh! Soojung’, Hong Sang-soo generally establishes realism by appropriately employing objective cinematic devices. The characters are not heroes or extraordinary figures, but ordinary people commonly found in our daily lives. The story centers primarily on intellectuals with a pretentious sense of self-importance; both Jae-hoon and Young-soo are college-educated intellectuals, yet they reveal their pretentious and duplicitous sides throughout the film. Unlike in traditional films, it is difficult to easily distinguish between good and evil, and the characters consistently display complex and contradictory personalities.
Young-soo is an aspiring director who wants to make his own film, but he displays a hypocritical side: while he acts stern toward Soo-jung, he is insulted behind her back as a “crony.” He also exhibits petty greed, such as borrowing a junior’s camera and then claiming it as his own by making up an excuse that he “forgot” it.
Jae-hoon is a wealthy man who graduated from art school and runs an art gallery; on the surface, he appears to be a lover with traditional values. However, his duplicitous nature is revealed when he has uninhibited sex with Soo-jung in a separate room while she is present at a drinking party. He flies into a rage when Soo-jung holds hands with another man, yet he also seems ashamed to let others know they are dating. At the same time, he displays an authoritarian side, evident in scenes such as when he makes an issue of her mispronouncing his name during their intimate moments. On the other hand, he also possesses ambiguous human qualities, such as readily handing the driver 10,000 won for lunch.
While Soo-jung boldly confides in Young-soo about her sexual adventures in a motel room and has no qualms about helping her biological older brother masturbate, she acts coy toward Jae-hoon, pretending that everything—except her unrequited love—is a first for her, highlighting a distinct difference in her attitudes toward different characters.

Dialogue Resembling Everyday Speech

The film features many scenes where the protagonists mutter meaningless words, and conversations often consist of each character rambling about their own thoughts rather than dialogue meant to explain the situation. This demonstrates that the language we actually use does not always communicate precisely according to grammar. In real-life conversations, words and meaning do not always align perfectly, and the flow of the conversation can be rambling. Rather than strictly following a finished screenplay, the director captures this natural flow of conversation by embracing and incorporating improvised events and dialogue that occur on set, recording them as they happen.

Non-narrative Shots

The film is interspersed with scenes that are not directly linked to the overall causal logic of the narrative. These non-narrative shots reveal “a new form of reality that is fragmented, sketchy, and superficial.” As Godard argued, non-narrative shots play a crucial role in the combination of montage and mise-en-scène.
The following are representative examples of non-narrative insert scenes in the film.
1) Between the shot of Jae-hoon going into the shower and the shot of Su-jeong waiting, a scene is inserted showing an elderly woman opening the gate in the garden, allowing a dog to enter. This is followed by a scene in which Jae-hoon and Su-jeong kiss and have sex.
2) Between the scene where Su-jeong meets Jae-hoon for the second time and helps him find his gloves, and the scene where Young-soo and Jae-hoon are drinking, a long conversation between the women at the galbi restaurant is inserted. This conversation feels particularly drawn out.
3) Between the scene where Jae-hoon asks Su-jeong to come to a hotel and have sex with him, causing her to struggle with her decision, a scene is inserted where Su-jeong is stopped by Japanese tourists and takes photos for them.
For example, the dialogue in the galbi restaurant scene goes as follows.
Customer 1: Ma’am, how much is our bill? Lady 1: Yes, 10,000 won. Customer 1: We had one order of galbi and one bottle of makgeolli. Lady 1: 10,000 won, 10,000 won. Customer 2: I came later. I wasn’t here from the beginning… Lady 1: Then 8,000 won.

Lady 2: How many of you are there? Sori: Four of us. Lady 2: Are there any minors? None? Sori: No. Lady 2: If there are no minors, please come inside. Customers: Thank you. Have a good day.
The insertion of such everyday episodes, which have no direct causal relationship to the main plot, serves as a device to enhance realism. If an event is presented solely through narrative, it inevitably gets reduced to a fictional story; however, the film revives the landscape of everyday life by restoring these minor episodes that are easily overlooked. The galbi restaurant serves as both a stage for the protagonists’ conversations and an everyday space where other customers come and go, creating a sense of reality.

On-Location Sound

In most shots, on-location sound is used as-is without manipulation to ensure a documentary-like realism. Similar to the “on-location sound technique” attempted by Godard, there are scenes where ambient noise overwhelms the actors’ voices. The scene where Su-jeong and Young-soo converse inside an indoor food cart—where background noise is loud enough to drown out their voices—creates the illusion for the audience that the space is an actual location.

Direct Editing

The director employs direct editing, a technique commonly used in documentary and realist cinema. Fade-ins and fade-outs are used only at the beginning and end of the film, as well as to connect individual sections; otherwise, shots are spliced directly together to create a realistic feel.

Defamiliarization and Narrative Structure

Defamiliarization (ostraneniye)

“Oh! Soo-jung” does not stop at simply recreating everyday life as it is. It focuses on enabling the audience to perceive everyday scenes in a new light and derive pleasure from them. The concept of “defamiliarization” (ostraneniye), as described by Shklovsky of the Russian Formalist school, serves as a useful framework for interpreting this film. By preventing the audience from immediately accepting the plot, the film creates a delay in perception, and it is within that delay that the audience experiences a sense of novelty and freshness.

Overall Structure

The film is composed of five parts in total.
Part 1: Waiting All Day
Part 2: Perhaps a Coincidence
Part 3: The Suspended Cable Car
Part 4: Perhaps Intentional
Part 5: Everything Will Be Fine Once You Find the Right Partner
Parts 1 and 3 are relatively short, while Parts 2 and 4 make up the bulk of the film’s content. Parts 1 and 2 unfold through Jae-hoon’s memories, Parts 3 and 4 center on Su-jeong’s memories, and the final Part 5 is structured from a more objective perspective. By dividing the narrative into these distinct parts, the film offers audiences a new experience of piecing together and interpreting the events.

Different Memories of the Same Event

Due to the film’s structural characteristics, the episodes are presented repeatedly or differently depending on the characters’ memories. Audiences find enjoyment in the process of reconstructing the events and discovering their meaning by identifying these repetitions and differences.
The following is a comparison of dialogue from scenes depicting the same situation through the memories of the two characters.
“Jae-hoon’s Memory” — Su-jeong and Young-soo exiting the art gallery (street sounds) Young-soo: Was it fun? It wasn’t, was it? Su-jeong: I liked it. Young-soo: It wasn’t fun, really. Su-jeong: I thought it was fun. Look, it’s right in front of Gyeongbokgung Palace. Young-soo: It’s really small, isn’t it? Our palace. At this moment, Jae-hoon comes out of the art gallery. Young-soo: Oh, Jae-hoon. Jae-hoon: Shall we go? Young-soo: Where should we go? Jae-hoon: Shall we have lunch? Young-soo: Did we already have lunch? Soo-jung: Didn’t you guys just eat? Jae-hoon: You don’t even remember having lunch? Young-soo: Anyway, let’s just do something. Jae-hoon: Okay, let’s go this way. The three of them leave the Hwarang and walk toward the Blue House.
“Soo-jung’s Memory” — Soo-jung and Young-soo step out of Hwarang Soo-jung: “Look, Gyeongbokgung Palace is right in front of us.” Young-soo: “Yeah. It’s small. Our palace, right?” Soo-jung: “What good would it do if it were bigger?” Jae-hoon opens the door and steps out. Jae-hoon: “You’ve been waiting, haven’t you?” Young-soo: “Yeah.” Jae-hoon’s driver is waiting behind them. Jae-hoon approaches the driver and says: Jae-hoon: “Driver Kim!
Please go ahead. We’re going to grab a bite to eat around here first. Driver: Oh, it’s fine. Go ahead. I’ll wait here. Jae-hoon: Will you? (Pulling out 10,000 won from his wallet and handing it to him) Have a meal while you wait. Driver: Oh, sure. Jae-hoon: Shall we go? Young-soo: Yeah. Jae-hoon: Let’s go this way. Young-soo and Su-jeong follow Jae-hoon.
The difference in their memories shows how each person perceives and reconstructs the same event. These repetitions and variations prevent the audience from immediately judging the truth of the event, instead prompting them to reconstruct it through different perspectives and details.

Differences in Memory by Scene: Same Event, Different Impressions

First, let’s examine the two characters’ differing memories of the same scene. The scene that takes place in front of the Hwarang Gallery is, on the surface, the same event. The three people (Soo-jung, Young-soo, and Jae-hoon) leave the art gallery and walk toward the Blue House, discussing going out for lunch.
In Jae-hoon’s memory, the conversation unfolds as follows: Young-soo asks in a tone that downplays the scene, “Was it fun? It wasn’t, was it?” and Soo-jung replies, “I liked it.” Then, while Young-soo and Soo-jung are looking at Gyeongbokgung Palace and chatting, Jae-hoon appears and suggests, “Shall we go?” and “Let’s grab lunch.” Sensing Young-soo’s indifference, Jae-hoon joins them, and the three walk in that direction together.
In contrast, the same scene is stored slightly differently in Soo-jung’s memory. Soo-jeong remembers the location and scenery of Gyeongbokgung Palace more vividly, and the details are emphasized: Jae-hoon approaches the driver, tells him to get in the car first, hands him 10,000 won, and says, “Have a meal.” In other words, in Soo-jeong’s memory, Jae-hoon’s wealth, thoughtfulness, and social status are more prominently featured.
The difference between these two memories goes beyond mere details; it reflects the characters’ perceptions and emotional states. In Jae-hoon’s memory, Young-soo appears listless, whereas in Soo-jeong’s memory, Jae-hoon comes across as financially well-off and considerate of others. Selective memory creates different images even when based on the same event.
By dividing the film into first and second halves and repeating the same event from different perspectives, the film presents “subjective” psychology as if it were an objective fact. The audience traces the characters’ inner worlds and relationships through the subtle differences in the repeated scenes.

Shot Analysis: The Café Kiss Scene and Cinematic Devices

Second, a shot-by-shot analysis of the kiss scene in the café makes it clearer how the film conveys certain psychological states through audiovisual elements.
1. The kiss scene between Soo-jung and Jae-hoon is shot as a waist shot, with the camera positioned slightly above them, looking down. As a result, the couple’s actions are somewhat placed under the observer’s gaze, creating a coexistence of intimacy and distance.
2. The café owner appears shortly afterward, but the camera continues to focus on Soo-jung and Jae-hoon for an extended period. The café owner’s voice and dialogue (a compliment about the coffee) are heard first through the soundtrack, while his figure briefly appears only in one corner of the frame.
The entire scene takes the form of a long shot and employs a natural sound design that includes ambient sound (such as birds chirping outside or surrounding noise). The fact that Soo-jung and Jae-hoon are positioned slightly off-center rather than right in the middle of the frame reveals a psychological attitude aimed at concealing their relationship within Jae-hoon’s memory. In other words, the camera reflects a gaze that seeks to “hide” them.
Furthermore, when the café owner appears only as a voice and visual information is provided later, the audience becomes curious about who the voice belongs to. However, if the shot changes too slowly, viewers may feel a momentary sense of boredom; yet this delay actually creates tension, drawing the audience into the scene in a different way.

A Comparison Between Realist and Fantasy Films

Now, let’s compare ‘Oh! Soojung’ with the iconic fantasy film ‘Spirited Away’ from a genre perspective. The two films adopt different strategies in nearly every cinematic element, including setting, visuals, character types, ending, problem-solving methods, sound design, and subject matter.
In terms of setting, “Oh! Soojin” is set in realistic locations such as Seoul (Gyeongbokgung Palace, Insa-dong, alleyways, etc.). In contrast, “Spirited Away” uses a fantasy world—such as a surreal hot spring resort that a girl moving to the countryside accidentally stumbles upon—as its primary setting.
The visuals and mise-en-scène create distinct atmospheres. Realist films often depict everyday life through black-and-white imagery or subdued color palettes, while fantasy films transport audiences to other worlds with vibrant colors and fantastical imagery.
The differences are also pronounced in terms of characters. The protagonist in a realist work is an ordinary character with ambiguous flaws, and the audience is forced to confront problems directly through the character’s specific actions. Protagonists in fantasy films often follow a classic heroic narrative, presenting a clear coming-of-age story through adventure and overcoming obstacles.
The approaches to endings and problem-solving also differ. Realist films often opt for open endings or leave problems unresolved, leaving the judgment to the audience. The director’s role is to faithfully depict the situation and present the facts so that the audience can make their own judgments. In contrast, fantasy tends to resolve conflicts in fantastical ways and provide catharsis through a closed ending.
There are also differences in the use of sound and music. Realist films prioritize on-location sound and restrained music to maintain a sense of reality, while fantasy films help immerse the audience in their world through an active soundtrack and fantastical music.
As Bruno Bettelheim argued, folktales and fantasy offer comfort to readers. By witnessing problems being symbolically resolved within a fantastical framework, audiences—especially children—gain a sense of relief. In contrast, films that mirror reality prompt viewers to reexamine the specifics of their daily lives and encourage them to recognize and judge issues for themselves.
What’s interesting is that the contradictions of reality are also projected into fantasy. The filth god and the faceless monster in ‘Spirited Away’ symbolize social deprivation and human nature, and within that framework, the archetypal resolution—where the virtuous protagonist defeats evil—is enacted. On the other hand, ‘Oh! Soojin’ exposes uncomfortable truths (such as shocking episodes involving incestuous desires) directly within everyday scenes, demanding both discomfort and self-reflection from the audience.

Conclusion: The Pleasures Offered by Both Genres and Audience Choice

In summary, ‘Oh! Soojin’ establishes a sense of reality through everyday characters, dialogue, non-narrative shots, and on-location sound, and by presenting the same event through different memories, it offers the audience the pleasure of unfamiliar and fresh observations. Furthermore, elements such as black-and-white mise-en-scène and verbal humor capture the audience’s attention, while the film’s genre characteristics reveal the director’s unique style.
In contrast, fantasy films transport audiences to fantastical worlds, offering a temporary sense of liberation and emotional comfort. These two approaches provide different kinds of pleasure and value, and it is impossible to say which is superior. Ultimately, choosing a movie is a matter of personal taste, but through the process of asking oneself why one likes or dislikes a particular film, one comes to understand the value of both genres.
Therefore, viewers can enjoy the benefits of both approaches: sometimes experiencing thought-provoking questions in films that portray reality as it is, and other times finding resolution and comfort in fantasy. Recognizing the difference between these two approaches will serve as the starting point for enjoying movies on a deeper level.