My Sassy Girl (2008)
My Sassy Girl (2008) 4/10
The Original 2001 Korean hit rom-com My Sassy Girl remains one of my all time favorite movies, a film that transcends the boundaries of the rom-com genre. Now the inevitable Hollywood remake comes along, and it feels like a distant shadow of the original. The original was good because of the commanding, mesmerizing performance by lead actress Jeon Ji Hyun that gave many of the scenes energy and verve. Indeed, some of the quirky sequences of the original would have felt forced and artificial if done by a lesser actress. Alas, this is what happens for the 2008 remake and Elisha Cuthbert, while being a pretty face, has none of the sassy attitude and winsome charisma of Jeon. Although the remake follow many scenes from the original, many of the recreated scenes feel tired and bland rather than funny and exciting. The male and female leads of the 2008 version simply lack chemistry, with the result that the film drags rather than flies through its running time. Cuthberth’s range as an actress is simply limited and she never once displays the sassy attitude that the film takes its name for. As the result, the remake comes across as a bland, artificial retread lacking that lacks two vital ingredients which made the original such a success: chemistry, and a superlative female lead.
