This review may contain spoilers
Powerful in its authentic acting & realism combined with dramaturgical abstinence
Does love have an expiry date? Or is it we humans who persistently fail to create a living co-creation from the promising 'WE' for which Cupid's arrow once set the course? "Maybe we Broke Up" doesn't have an answer to that. But! In impressive dramaturgical abstinence, the KMovie encourages us to think about it."Maybe we Broke Up" is also known as "Someone you loved". It documents in fantastic realism the unspectacular 'ending' of a relationship – like so many others. Almost as if couples in crisis could have applied to a reality show, whereas the camera team followed one of them through this difficult time and also for several months beyond. Everything seems real and lifelike and familiar. At the same time dramaturgically abstinent with neither comedy nor jokes through embarrassment, nor suspense, nor eroticism, nor violence, nor action being staged to get tempers boiling.
The couple's relationship story takes its inexorable course. And the problem with this relationship is that it has lost all its appeal. Habit, everyday familiarity, and being taken for granted have taken the place of tingling love. Concepts, expectations and relationship dynamics, which are now well trained from behavioural patterns, keep the radius of emotional highs and lows in check. The KMovie is consistent in this respect and doesn't try to sugarcoat anything. The camera just stays on and the viewers stay tuned to the action. We don't get emotionally involved, we just watch. Maybe we take a stand for one or the other. But that's our business.
The film doesn't want to push us into any corner. It just wants to take us along. Documenting. And it doesn't actually tell us anything new: A relationship gets more and more out of balance. Actually speaking out about the situation eventually brings it all down. There is no turning back. The 'WE' has become two individuals again, who now have to sweep up their emotional shards themselves and thus get the chance to learn the best from their mistakes.
The power of "Maybe we Broke Up" lies in the authentic acting combined with dramaturgical abstinence. The author is also the director. He stays true to his idea. There is no evaluation. And it is precisely through this simple authenticity that the realistic story spirals so poignantly into the mind, leaving the audience with their own record - their thoughts, emotions, questions and well-known stories, be it their own and/or those of friends and/or relatives.
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Side note: ---- Gosi Civil Service Exam in South Korea ----
The civil service career has been a priority in Korea for centuries. It stands for social recognition, but even more for financial security, up to retirement. Since the 14th century, candidates for civil service have had to pass a state examination. There are nine levels of officials. For the lowest ninth level, all you need today is a high school diploma. The competition is massive. The ninth "Geup" is for those, who get accepted, the start. With years of service and performance, or a degree, the civil servants can then advance to the middle civil service career. But for a higher career up from the fifth "Geup" you have to take the "Gosi" admission test, which only takes place once a year. It is quite demanding, but can be repeated indefinitely. Needing several attempts is not uncommon (and the high demands of the exam are always a popular topic, even in KDramas).
The Gosi exam is only the door opener. After that, the training takes place. A degree is also mandatory for the upper Geups, especially law, economics or political science. Since civil servants are/should be the pillars of society, only the most talented citizens are traditionally selected for this. In fact, most of the top five Geup officials hail from one of the three elite SKY universities (Seoul National University, Koryo University, and Yonsei University). An enormous market for tutoring institutes has now grown, not only for the university entrance exams, but also for the Gosi exam. In these, the candidates are intensively prepared. For many, this means nothing other than: study and study even harder, period. For one year. The better the preparation, the better the chances. However, you can get a lot of support for a lot of money.
The Gosi exam wants to separate the wheat from the chaff. For some, money may help, for others, iron will power, diligence and a certain amount of talent/intelligence must suffice. This combined with a supportive social environment, because in that preparatory year (and possibly subsequent preparatory years) there is hardly time for part-time jobs and everyday obligations...
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