Billed as the first official Singapore-Korean co-production, “Ajoomma” is produced by Giraffe Pictures founder Anthony Chen (Wet Season, Ilo Ilo) and co-produced by Korea's Lee Joonhan. It was mostly shot in Korea and had support from the Singapore Film Commission, the Korean Film Council and Seoul Film Commission. Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival announced that the film has four nominations for this year's Awards: Best Original Screenplay (He Shuming, Kris Ong), Best New Director (He Shuming), Best Supporting Actor (Jung Dong-hwan) and Best Leading Actress (Hong Huifang)
Ajooma is screening at Busan International Film Festival
A Singaporean auntie (“ajoomma” in Korean language) has spent the majority of her life providing for her family, but now finds herself essentially alone, as she lives with her estranged son, who does not seem particularly eager to spend time with her. Her only pleasure in life is watching K-dramas on TV, clumsily imitating the dialogues and imagining a Korea that is exactly as the one shown on the screen. It is this notion that leads her to book a tour for her and her son in Korea for holidays, but at the last minute, the young man bails on her, due to a job interview abroad. In a decision that surprises even her, the Auntie, also because she cannot get a refund for the trip, decides to go alone, leaving Singapore for the first time in her life, even imagining that her son will eventually join her.
Her trip, however, as much as Korea, is nothing like she thought it was, and the problems start from the beginning. She is late arriving at the airport, Kwon-woo, her tour guide, proves a rather problematic individual whose life is in shambles, she gets drunk on the first night, and soon after she gets lost and even involved in a violent incident. Jung-su, an elderly security officer, provides some comfort as much as company in the roller coaster of events that follow.
Movies that focus on “aunties” are not exactly the rule in the industry, but He Shuming and his co-writer, Kris Ong have created a rather appealing story, which uses the life of a 50+ old woman in order to make a number of interesting comments. The first one involves the concept of people getting out of their comfort zone, and the benefits such endeavors can present. The optimistic side, however, is only revealed towards the end, with He showing how difficult, practically, such decisions can be, particularly for people of the protagonist's age, who have spent their lives essentially indoors. This realism actually permeates a large part of the movie, with He pulling no punches in presenting Ajoomma getting drunk for example, or being completely unrealistic in her expectations of Korea.
The second comment, which derives from the way the story unfolds and from the first comment, is that friendship and companionship can be found in the most unexpected places, which is essentially what makes getting out of one's comfort zone worthwhile. The way the three protagonists, Ajoomma, Jung-su and Kwon-woo come together and change through their interactions, highlight this aspect, in a somewhat romanticized but also quite appealing concept. This element also benefits the most by the acting, with Hong Huifang stealing the show as Auntie, but also sharing great chemistry with Jung Dong-hwan as Jung Su and Kang Hyung-seok as Kwon-woo, with the latter also being the main source of drama in the movie.
Apart from drama, though, He also has included a combination of humor and action, even adding a rather unexpected car chase scene, that definitely adds to the entertainment the movie offers. The scene close to the end, where Yeo Jin-goo and Auntie finally come together is the apogee of this aspect, in one of the most memorable scenes in the film. The action scenes are also where Hwang Gyeong-hyeon's cinematography is at its best, in an otherwise focused-on-realism, without any exaltations, work. The job done in the editing is also quite good, with the changes in pace, from slow to fast, also adding the entertainment offered here. One could also say that there is a slight promotional aspect regarding S. Korea and its people, but Kwon-woo's arc tones it down, essentially by moving into a totally opposite direction.
“Ajoomma” is a very heart-warming film, quite easy to watch, and one that manages to remain entertaining throughout, even achieving that through a protagonist whose age deemed such a feat quite difficult.
