Choi Bona is overworked and underpaid in one of Korea’s most selfless jobs: she is an assistant director. Casually disregarded by her work colleagues, she knows that her career is going nowhere, but there’s nothing she can do about it. One night she hits bottom. Stranded on a beach in the middle of nowhere, she comes across an eccentric middle-aged man selling inspirational videos. He urges her to buy his masterwork, “Instructions on How to Use Men,” telling her that it will change her life, and give her the skills she needs to find success and happiness. She doesn’t believe him for a second. But she buys the video.
How to Use Guys with Secret Tips is in some ways a fairly standard Korean romantic comedy, except that it’s funnier and more engaging, and ultimately much better than you would expect. Director Lee Won-suk, a graduate of the American Film Institute, maintains great comic timing and even manages to keep the audience’s interest in the final reels, which are a weak point of many Korean romantic comedies. Boosted by great performances and a multitude of gags that are genuinely funny, the film produced strong word-of-mouth among viewers, though not soon enough to save it in a month when it was sharing screens with box office behemoths The Berlin File, New World and Miracle in Cell No. 7. Much of the buzz surrounding this film centers on the two charismatic leads. Lee Si-young has an unusual star image: she is unique in simultaneously pursuing a career as an actress, while also competing as an amateur boxer. Lee originally learned boxing as part of her preparation to act in a TV drama, but then she continued training and eventually won several amateur boxing championships in the 48kg weight category. Although this doesn’t bear directly on her role in How to Use Guys with Secret Tips, her slightly “tough” image remains in the back of viewers’ minds, and is toyed with in certain scenes. The actor playing opposite her, Oh Jung-se, portrays a massively popular star who initially treats Bona with disdain, but later falls for her charm. Oh is a theater actor who has appeared in many supporting roles over the years, but his performance in this film has earned him special attention. Despite being the object of ridicule in numerous scenes, his underlying, offbeat charm runs constant throughout the film. Praise is also due to the veteran Park Young-gyu (Attack the Gas Station), who plays the video salesman and appears as the presenter in the video segments themselves. These short instructional clips, which run intermittently throughout the narrative, are deadpan and hilariously amateur in style, thanks in part to his gift for comedy. Korean romantic comedies seem to be maturing in some ways, or at least adapting themselves to new circumstances. Whereas five or ten years ago, female protagonists tended to fluctuate between naïve innocence and manic/cute aggression a la My Sassy Girl, the women of today’s romantic comedies are more levelheaded and practical. The movie couples of the past used to do barely much more than hold hands, but contemporary romantic comedies have become more comfortable with the idea that young couples actually have sex. There remains plenty of cuteness and coy posturing in the genre, but the male leads have become a little more relaxed and self-effacing, while the female leads now retain a bit more of their dignity.
These qualities are one reason that How to Use Guys with Secret Tips feels fresh and new, but it is also simply a very well executed film. In a genre that looks easy, but is actually quite challenging, this is a significant accomplishment.