The 2001 hit Korean film "My Sassy Girl" is getting a sequel. "My New Sassy Girl" will star f(x) singer Victoria and the film's original male lead Cha Tae Hyun. The film was a mega-hit in its day but it has been 13 years since its debut.
Why do you think that there is so much interest in a redo? Here are five reasons we think the film was due for a sequel and why we are looking forward to round 2.
1. Sequels are popular this year. "My Sassy Girl" was the second highest selling Korean film in 2001, behind the film "Friend" and that got a sequel this year. So did "Tazza."
2. It's supposedly based on a true story. The film told the story of a man who meets a drunk girl on a train and that was based on some blog posts by Kim Ho Sik, that were later adapted into a novel. In the story, everyone on the train assumes the man is the girl's boyfriend and chides him to take care of her. It's the beginning of their relationship, which turns out to be fated. Audiences will want to know where fate led them.
3. It was the breakout role for Jun Ji Hyun, last seen in "You Who Came From The Stars." Critics called her an undisputed star, perfect for the role and could not imagine the film without her. It will be interesting to see what happens to the story without her.
In the sequel Victoria will play Cha's wife. She comes from China and is teased about her broken Korean. The film's producers told Variety that the story focuses on the early days of their marriage.
4. The original "Sassy Girl" was such a big hit throughout Asia that it drew comparisons with "Titanic." I will be fun to see which film this sequel competes with.
5. The popularity of the film even inspired an American remake with Jesse Bradford and Elisha Cuthbert, then a Japanese remake with Tsuyoshi Kusanagi and Rena Tanaka. Perhaps the second "Sassy Girl" will do the same.
The sequel will be a co-production between the Korean production company Shincine and the Chinese company Beijing Sky Wheel Media.
"We've only had collaborations so far in Korean cinema with the Chinese, but this is the first co-production between the two countries in the genuine sense of the word," Shincine producer Kim Hyung Oak told Variety.
Jo Geun Sik, who directed "Conduct Zero" and "Once in a Summer," will direct the sequel. Production begins on Sept. 29. Shincine is aiming for a simultaneous release in Korea and China in May 2015.
