My Sassy Girl (2008 film)
Encyclopedia
My Sassy Girl is a 2008 American remake of the 2001 Korean
romantic-comedy
film of the same name
. It stars Elisha Cuthbert
and Jesse Bradford
and was directed by Yann Samuell
. Both movies are based on a true story told in a series of blog
posts written by Kim Ho-sik, who later adapted them into a fictional novel
.
The film was released direct-to-DVD
in the United States
on August 26, 2008, and on Region 2 DVD
in the United Kingdom
on August 25, 2008. It was distributed by Entertainment in Video
.
, and the hellion is Jordan Roark, a beautiful, fun-loving, emotionally volatile young woman who drinks too much and lives in New York City
with her father, who is a wealthy physician. Charlie narrates the story.
Charlie's parents hope Charlie will one day secure a managerial position with the Tiller King agricultural company, where his father works as a maintenance mechanic
. When Charlie starts business school
in New York City, he sees Jordan drunkenly leaning over the guard rail in a subway station, saves her from an oncoming train, and carries her to his apartment. During the following weeks, Charlie and Jordan have several fun, creative dates. Worried about Jordan's volatility, Charlie usually declines when she invites him somewhere, but she cheerfully ignores his refusal and he always gives in to her. Among other things, Jordan tells Charlie that her fiancé recently left her, tells a Tiller King representative she is pregnant with Charlie's child, sabotages Charlie's job interview with another Tiller King representative, and gives a piano recital. Charlie and Jordan have no sex during this time, but he falls deeply in love with her and she obviously enjoys being with him. Their dating is occasionally interrupted by Jordan's father, who believes Charlie is responsible for her drunkenness.
After two or three months, Jordan asks Charlie to meet her in Central Park
to exchange love letters. At the park, she says she needs more time to heal from the loss of her fiancé. She insists that they bury their letters under a bonsai
tree, stop seeing each other, and meet at the same place on the same day of the following year. When the day arrives, Charlie returns to the tree, but Jordan is not there. In her letter, she explains that her fiancé actually died, that Charlie reminds her of him, and that many of her dates with Charlie were reenactments of previous dates with her fiancé. She says that her absence at the bonsai tree means she has not healed yet and that this means destiny
has dictated that she and Charlie were not meant to be together. The next day, Jordan goes to the tree, where an old man tells her Charlie has visited the tree periodically, even going so far as to replace it a few months ago after it was struck by lightning. In his letter, Charlie tells Jordan she is the only woman he will ever love and says he believes he is destined to be with her.
Some time later, Jordan meets at a restaurant with her ex-fiancé's mother. The two women got along well while he was alive, and they have stayed in touch since his death. The mother has been trying to set Jordan up with another young man, and she has arranged for the two to meet today. As she begins to describe the man, Charlie walks into the restaurant. The mother is Charlie's aunt, Jordan's fiancé was Charlie's recently deceased cousin, and Charlie is the young man himself. The film ends after Charlie and Jordan share their first kiss and Charlie explains to the audience that we all need to help destiny in shaping our lives. Repeating the old man's words, he says "You need to build a bridge to the one you love."
. Samuell, the director, states "It's a fable about destiny, in the end." whilst Bradford, who plays the protagonist
, described the movie as "a romantic comedy about how they pull each other to a more healthy place by virtue of their relationship."
Korean language
Korean is the official language of the country Korea, in both South and North. It is also one of the two official languages in the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in People's Republic of China. There are about 78 million Korean speakers worldwide. In the 15th century, a national writing...
romantic-comedy
Romantic comedy film
Romantic comedy films are films with light-hearted, humorous plotlines, centered on romantic ideals such as that true love is able to surmount most obstacles. One dictionary definition is "a funny movie, play, or television program about a love story that ends happily"...
film of the same name
My Sassy Girl
My Sassy Girl is a 2001 South Korean romantic comedy film directed by Kwak Jae-yong. It tells the story of a man's chance meeting with a drunk girl on the train which changes his life...
. It stars Elisha Cuthbert
Elisha Cuthbert
Elisha Ann Cuthbert is a Canadian film and television actress. Cuthbert is known as the former co-host of the Canadian children's television series Popular Mechanics for Kids. In 1998, she had her first film role in Airspeed. She followed this in 2003 with a role in Old School...
and Jesse Bradford
Jesse Bradford
- Early life :Bradford was born Jesse Bradford Watrouse in Norwalk, Connecticut, the only child of actors Terry Porter and Curtis Watrouse, who appeared in commercials, soap operas, and industrial films. His mother also played his character's mother in Hackers...
and was directed by Yann Samuell
Yann Samuell
Yann Samuell , is a French film director, and screenwriter.-Biography:Samuell went to film school and was a storyboard artist before becoming a director. He gave his directing debut in 2003 with Love Me If You Dare and his second film was the romantic comedy film My Sassy Girl...
. Both movies are based on a true story told in a series of blog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
posts written by Kim Ho-sik, who later adapted them into a fictional novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
.
The film was released direct-to-DVD
Direct-to-video
Direct-to-video is a term used to describe a film that has been released to the public on home video formats without being released in film theaters or broadcast on television...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
on August 26, 2008, and on Region 2 DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
on August 25, 2008. It was distributed by Entertainment in Video
Entertainment Film Distributors
Entertainment Film Distributors is a British distributor of independent films in the UK and Ireland for various production companies; it is owned by Nigel Green who started the company in 1978. Their first big success was the successful horror Terror made by cult filmmaker Norman J...
.
Plot
Like the original film, this is a story of how a nice guy falls in love with a hellion. The guy is Charlie Bellow, a polite, kind-hearted young man from the Midwestern state of IndianaIndiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
, and the hellion is Jordan Roark, a beautiful, fun-loving, emotionally volatile young woman who drinks too much and lives in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
with her father, who is a wealthy physician. Charlie narrates the story.
Charlie's parents hope Charlie will one day secure a managerial position with the Tiller King agricultural company, where his father works as a maintenance mechanic
Mechanic
A mechanic is a craftsman or technician who uses tools to build or repair machinery.Many mechanics are specialized in a particular field such as auto mechanics, bicycle mechanics, motorcycle mechanics, boiler mechanics, general mechanics, industrial maintenance mechanics , air conditioning and...
. When Charlie starts business school
Business school
A business school is a university-level institution that confers degrees in Business Administration. It teaches topics such as accounting, administration, economics, entrepreneurship, finance, information systems, marketing, organizational behavior, public relations, strategy, human resource...
in New York City, he sees Jordan drunkenly leaning over the guard rail in a subway station, saves her from an oncoming train, and carries her to his apartment. During the following weeks, Charlie and Jordan have several fun, creative dates. Worried about Jordan's volatility, Charlie usually declines when she invites him somewhere, but she cheerfully ignores his refusal and he always gives in to her. Among other things, Jordan tells Charlie that her fiancé recently left her, tells a Tiller King representative she is pregnant with Charlie's child, sabotages Charlie's job interview with another Tiller King representative, and gives a piano recital. Charlie and Jordan have no sex during this time, but he falls deeply in love with her and she obviously enjoys being with him. Their dating is occasionally interrupted by Jordan's father, who believes Charlie is responsible for her drunkenness.
After two or three months, Jordan asks Charlie to meet her in Central Park
Central Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
to exchange love letters. At the park, she says she needs more time to heal from the loss of her fiancé. She insists that they bury their letters under a bonsai
Bonsai
is a Japanese art form using miniature trees grown in containers. Similar practices exist in other cultures, including the Chinese tradition of penjing from which the art originated, and the miniature living landscapes of Vietnamese hòn non bộ...
tree, stop seeing each other, and meet at the same place on the same day of the following year. When the day arrives, Charlie returns to the tree, but Jordan is not there. In her letter, she explains that her fiancé actually died, that Charlie reminds her of him, and that many of her dates with Charlie were reenactments of previous dates with her fiancé. She says that her absence at the bonsai tree means she has not healed yet and that this means destiny
Destiny
Destiny or fate refers to a predetermined course of events. It may be conceived as a predetermined future, whether in general or of an individual...
has dictated that she and Charlie were not meant to be together. The next day, Jordan goes to the tree, where an old man tells her Charlie has visited the tree periodically, even going so far as to replace it a few months ago after it was struck by lightning. In his letter, Charlie tells Jordan she is the only woman he will ever love and says he believes he is destined to be with her.
Some time later, Jordan meets at a restaurant with her ex-fiancé's mother. The two women got along well while he was alive, and they have stayed in touch since his death. The mother has been trying to set Jordan up with another young man, and she has arranged for the two to meet today. As she begins to describe the man, Charlie walks into the restaurant. The mother is Charlie's aunt, Jordan's fiancé was Charlie's recently deceased cousin, and Charlie is the young man himself. The film ends after Charlie and Jordan share their first kiss and Charlie explains to the audience that we all need to help destiny in shaping our lives. Repeating the old man's words, he says "You need to build a bridge to the one you love."
Synopsis
The film is set in New York City's Central Park and Upper East SideUpper East Side
The Upper East Side is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, between Central Park and the East River. The Upper East Side lies within an area bounded by 59th Street to 96th Street, and the East River to Fifth Avenue-Central Park...
. Samuell, the director, states "It's a fable about destiny, in the end." whilst Bradford, who plays the protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
, described the movie as "a romantic comedy about how they pull each other to a more healthy place by virtue of their relationship."
Cast
- Elisha CuthbertElisha CuthbertElisha Ann Cuthbert is a Canadian film and television actress. Cuthbert is known as the former co-host of the Canadian children's television series Popular Mechanics for Kids. In 1998, she had her first film role in Airspeed. She followed this in 2003 with a role in Old School...
as Jordan Roark, a wealthy, fun-loving girl who lives in New York City - Jesse BradfordJesse Bradford- Early life :Bradford was born Jesse Bradford Watrouse in Norwalk, Connecticut, the only child of actors Terry Porter and Curtis Watrouse, who appeared in commercials, soap operas, and industrial films. His mother also played his character's mother in Hackers...
as Charlie Bellow, a business-school student from Indiana - Austin Basis as Leo, Charlie's friend
- Chris SarandonChris SarandonChris Sarandon is an American actor who was married to actress Susan Sarandon between 1968 and 1979. He is best known for playing Prince Humperdinck in the film The Princess Bride, the vampire Jerry Dandridge in Fright Night and Detective Mike Norris in the first entry of the Child's Play series,...
as Dr. Roark, Jordan's father. Dr. Roark disapproves of Jordan's relationship with Charlie. - Jay Patterson as Roger Bellow
- Tom AldredgeTom AldredgeThomas Ernest "Tom" Aldredge was an American television, film and stage actor.-Life and career:Aldredge was born in Dayton, Ohio, the son of Lucienne Juliet and W. J. Aldredge, a colonel in the United States Army Air Corps...
as the old man in the park. He helps Jordan sort out her feelings toward Charlie. - Louis MustilloLouis MustilloLouis Mustillo was born May 28, 1958 in Buffalo, New York; he is an American actor.-Biography:Mustillo has guest starred in more than 50 episodes of television and appeared in over 20 films. He was a series regular on Man of the People with James Garner...
as Jordan's doorman. He carries Jordan into her apartment when Charlie brings her home drunk. - Brian Reddy as Mr. Phipps
- Stark SandsStark SandsStark Bunker Sands is an American actor of film, television and theatre.-Biography:Sands was born and raised in Dallas, Texas, where he began acting on the stage at age 13 at Highland Park High School. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in acting from the University of Southern California...
as Soldier - Joanna GleasonJoanna GleasonJoanna Gleason is a Canadian actress and singer. She is a Tony Award-winning musical theatre actress and has also had a number of notable film and TV roles.-Early life:...
as Kitty / Aunt Sally
Soundtrack listing
- "I'm in Love" by Ella LeyaElla LeyaElla Leya is an Azerbaijani-American composer, singer, and writer born in Baku, Azerbaijan. Her American CD releases include "Queen of Night," "Russian Romance" and "Secret Lives of Women."...
- "Yadnus" by !!!!!!!!! is a dance-punk band that formed in Sacramento, California, in 1996. Members of !!! came from other local bands such as The Yah Mos, Black Liquorice and Popesmashers...
- "Incident At Bleeker Street" by PhobosPhobosPhobos may refer to:* an Ancient Greek word for fear* Phobos , the Greek god of fear* Phobos , a moon of Mars* Phobos , a 1997 album by Canadian heavy metal band Voivod...
- "Thought About You" by The Beautiful GirlsThe Beautiful GirlsThe Beautiful Girls are an Australian band, predominantly playing roots music. They have released three EPs, Morning Sun, Goodtimes and Weight Of The World. Plus four full length albums, Learn Yourself, We're Already Gone, Ziggurats and Spooks. They played at Dusty Days on 15 March 2008 in Wagga...
- "Hip Joint Vs. Pachelbel's Canon" by Hipjoint
- "I Can Always Dream" by Beverly Valera
- "Shaken Not Stirred" by John Gintz
- "Contradictions" by Nick HowardNick HowardNick Howard is a British Pop/Rock singer-songwriter from Brighton, England. Howard achieved mainstream success with his critically acclaimed debut album, Something To Talk About, which was released in 2008...
- "Dream Girl" by Daniel May
- "Put A Record On" by Unkle BobUnkle BobUnkle Bob is a band based in the UK, formed in and around Glasgow University. Led by singer/songwriter Rick Webster, Unkle Bob have variously been compared to acts as diverse as R.E.M., Prefab Sprout and Radiohead....
- "Feel Good About It" by Marching BandMarching bandMarching band is a physical activity in which a group of instrumental musicians generally perform outdoors and incorporate some type of marching with their musical performance. Instrumentation typically includes brass, woodwinds, and percussion instruments...
- "Occam's RazorOccam's razorOccam's razor, also known as Ockham's razor, and sometimes expressed in Latin as lex parsimoniae , is a principle that generally recommends from among competing hypotheses selecting the one that makes the fewest new assumptions.-Overview:The principle is often summarized as "simpler explanations...
" by Ocha la RochaOcha la RochaOcha la Rocha is an Alternative rock band based in Atlanta, Georgia. In 2005, their first full-length album, Ocha Lives was recorded and highlights the bands original rock-country sound. Johnny la Rocha's voice and song-writing has become a staple in the south.-History:Ocha la Rocha was founded by...