The Art of Seduction (DVD) (Japan Version) DVD Region 2

The Art of Seduction has all the ingredients of a Hollywood romantic comedy. The lead actress is hot. The lead actor is hot (I guess). The circumstances they find themselves in lend heavily towards comedy and laughs. Director and screenwriter Oh Ki Hwan follows the path of typical Hollywood romance for a while but then his story stays the course and does not get muddled in the latter's usual formula. Let me explain. Hollywood romances mostly follow like this. Player meets player. Players play off each other until one or both of them get hurt. Players realize they love each other and the games stop. Players fall in love and you've finished writhing in the cinema aisles come the end of the credits.

Oh avoids falling into the trap of this romantic movie cliché. Don't be mislead, The Art of Seduction is stock romantic comedy from start to finish. But what I found refreshing about the movie was that Oh stayed away from including a turn of drama in his movie to bring any sort of change into his characters. The reason is, his characters know who they are and they're comfortable with this. There is no guilt or second thought about what they are doing to their, for lack of a better term, conquests. And while the end result is a quick romp in the sack, there is no hint that they are sexual predators either. To them it is a game, pure and simple. Well, I don't know about pure, as I have my own zealous ideals about being loved and in love and couldn't see myself in this position. But to Min Joon and Ji Won, it is about the seduction more so than the end result or rewards. It doesn't mean that it is okay then, since their intentions are neither malicious nor cruel. But it makes it easier to swallow when the air of menace is not present.

There is plenty to like in The Art of Seduction. Both Song Il Guk and Son Yae Jin bring a level of charm to the screen and their performances are suited to the subtlety of the comedy of circumstance. And comedy that is well done is simply presented to the viewer and not crammed in their ear. And that is why The Art of Seduction works as well as it does, despite being a piece of romantic fluff. There are some genuinely funny moments in this movie.

What I love about Asian Cinema is that it is not afraid to be ambiguous and open-ended. Oh doesn't fall into the trap of having to wrap everything up all nice and pretty or bring about change. May I use a hockey metaphor here? The game was played. It was all tied up after overtime and the shootout. Both teams went home with one point. And while it may be certainly troubling for novice Western viewers who have to have characters go through some sort of metamorphosis or change, or, have a tidy conclusion to the movie, you are reminded of a simple truth at the end of this movie. Not everything has to change, and folks live their lives the way they see fit, regardless if you agree with it or not, or if it abides to a great moral rule of some sorts. And, in that sense, it probably has more to say about the reality of worldly love than any romantic movie with a tidied up storyline ever could.

Review By Mack - Twitchfilm.net