Though Marrying High School Girl seems interesting and is sporadically funny at the start, do not be fooled. Thanks to the stupidity of the plot, the film nosedives into a terrible resolution.
The story begins with the tale of a classic Korean story of tragic romance regarding a princess named Pyun-gang, whose husband, On-dal, dies. Flash forward to the present day, when a mother brings her haunted daughter (also named Pyun-gang) to a psychic. The psychic informs Pyun-gang that the ghost of the princess is haunting her and she must marry “her On-dal” by her 16th birthday and produce a child within a year, otherwise she will die.
The family treats it skeptically until years later, Pyun-gang has several near-death experiences, reminding her of the curse. As luck would have it, soon thereafter, a new transfer student joins Pyun-gang’s class. His name is On-dal and he’s intelligent, handsome and rich…which really doesn’t make the prospect of high school marriage such a tough deal for Pyun-gang, what with her impending death and all.
Now the film’s main hook appears to be its humor, which happens to fall into the raunchier side of teen comedy—consisting of a steady diet of uninspired excrement, fart and sex jokes. While it’s not the film’s major focus, it still helps paint a picture of its lackluster sense of humor. However, when the humor fails, nothing is there to fall back on. Neither the characters, nor the poor incoherent plot are interesting enough to remember more than a day after watching, thankfully. Only actress Lim Eun-kyung, gives a commendable effort as Pyun-gang with the perfect blend of aggressiveness, vulnerability, and comedic range without overdoing it in the slightest. She’s one of the few reasons this film is worth watching through to the end.
But really, your enjoyment of the film hinges on taste— poor taste specifically. If Sex is Zero was a masterpiece of teen comedy, Marrying High School Girl would be a solid, enjoyable film in the same vein, sure to satisfy comedy lovers everywhere. Sadly, that isn’t true in the slightest.
Reviewed by Tarun
