I recently had the chance to watch the 2004 KBS drama, I’m Sorry, I Love You. If you haven’t watched this drama, I kindly ask that you stop reading this review as it contains spoilers.
This drama is about a Cha Moo Hyuk (So Ji Sub) and Song Eun Chae (Im Soo Jung). Cha Moo Hyuk was adopted by an Australian family and after he was abused, he ran away and lived on the streets. Song Eun Chae is the coordinator of a popular Korean singer, Yune (Jung Kyung Ho), and who she loved since they were children.
Eun Chae is in Australia for Yune’s commercial shoot and is robbed of all her belongings. She meets Moo Hyuk who finds her things and returns them to her.
After a terrible accident, Moo Hyuk was shot and because of the risk of killing him, doctors could not surgically remove a bullet from his head. He has only a few months to live. He returns to Korea in search for his mother who he believes abandoned him and his twin sister. He seeks revenge when he finds out his mother is a very wealthy woman and has a son that she loves so much. Moo Hyuk becomes Yune’s manager and starts to get to know Eun Chae day by day.
I’m Sorry, I Love You is a drama with a sad ending. In the final episode, Eun Chae finally confesses her love for Moo Hyuk. She tells him “I love you” seven times before she started crying and burst into tears. This is when Im Soo Jung’s acting shined for me.
In the final scene, Eun Chae visits all the places where she spent time with Moo Hyuk and lies down by the grave of Moo Hyuk. The news reports finding a dead body of a Korean girl in Australia.
“He was very lonely even when he was alive. I could not just let him be. In this lifetime, from this moment forward, I want to live for myself. I will receive the punishment.”
– Song Eun Chae
I have mixed feelings about this drama. The disappointing part is the late realization of the characters. It was only during the final episode where Moo Hyuk learns that his mother did not abandom him and that he always loved her. Eun Chae and Moo Hyuk tells each other that they love each other right before Moo Hyuk dies. Had they confessed their love earlier, they could have had more pleasant memories.
This drama was very fun to watch and it was great to see a face I have not seen before. Im Soo Jung is beautiful and I hope she returns to a Korean drama someday. It was sad seeing her character die beside her love’s grave but at the same time, I was touched and I ask myself, can you love someone that much?