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Watching Byun Woo-seok in ‘Strong Girl Nam-soon’ reminded me about this movie, so I went back to watch it the other night. ‘Soulmate’ stars Kim Da-mi as Ahn Mi-so (Our Beloved Summer, Itaewon Class) and Jeon So-nee as Go Ha-eun (Our Blooming Youth) – two best friends whose friendship is tested throughout defining moments and chapters in their lives. Byun Woo-seok rounds out the cast as Jin-woo, the boy who remained in both Mi-so and Ha-eun’s lives through it all.

I remember hearing about this movie a while back and actually started it but I didn’t finish the movie for some reason. So since I had some time, I decided to go back to finish the movie (it helps that I’m currently watching ‘Strong Girl Nam-soon’ which Byun Woo-seok is acting in). It didn’t take long for the movie to settle in, to grow on me, and for me to warm up to it. The movie weaves in and out of timelines, showing flashbacks of memories that Ha-eun documented online on her blog combined with moments from the present from Mi-so’s perspective. We travel back in time to watch how Mi-so and Ha-eun’s special friendship formed, how they separated, how things fell apart, and how things concluded. Though this movie’s focus was centered around Ha-eun and Mi-so’s friendship, we also witnessed how Jin-woo played a role in that relationship.

Admittedly, I was a much bigger fan of the movie in the first half than the second. I felt like the movie got more and more dramatic as it went on, which pulled away from the fresh, airy, and lighter tone that we saw in the first half. I remembered feeling impressed with what I had seen just 10 minutes into the movie. We watched as young Ha-eun and Mi-so went from being classmates to friends to living under the same roof and eventually becoming like sisters to each other. When Mi-so’s mother abandoned her, Mi-so lived with Ha-eun which only strengthened their friendship even further. They were always together, side by side, and that’s all they needed.

But life happened and things happened and their friendship was tested and threatened in several ways, including the appearance of Jin-woo. I was afraid the movie was going to be some odd love triangle where Ha-eun liked Jin-woo and Jin-woo liked Mi-so, and Mi-so also liked Jin-woo but the movie never fully went there and didn’t really want to tap into that territory which I appreciated and respected. Ha-eun had eyes for Jin-woo first and there was even a moment where Mi-so and Jin-woo shared a kiss and Mi-so wore Jin-woo’s good luck charm necklace. The movie made it seem as if the love triangle could have been a thing or was a thing but then pulled back from it. Mi-so didn’t have any feelings for Jin-woo out of respect for Ha-eun which Ha-eun was well aware of but was still insecure about. In the end, Jin-woo was one of the reasons that drove Ha-eun and Mi-so apart.

Mi-so and Ha-eun’s friendship was proof of the concept that friendships are difficult to maintain. When times change and situations change and you grow up, you find yourself in different chapters or phases of your life. Mi-so and Ha-eun were busy doing their own things. Mi-so wanted to be a painter and she wanted to travel the world and she spontaneously ran away with a boy to Seoul who she barely even knew. Ha-eun stayed behind in their hometown and became a teacher even though she had her own dreams and aspirations. She had this picture perfect image and lived this picture perfect life but wasn’t all that happy inside. And it was this jealousy that Ha-eun had towards Mi-so that also drove them apart. She was jealous of the freedom and independence that Mi-so had, jealous of how free and outspoken Mi-so was. Mi-so carried herself in a way that Ha-eun could never imagine doing herself. At one point, even their financial situations had changed. Mi-so was barely making ends meet while Ha-eun lived a pretty comfy life, making good enough money and also being in a relationship with Jin-woo who was an aspiring doctor. Then later on, Mi-so got herself back on track while Ha-eun ventured outside of her comfort zone. These differences between the two became much more jarring and obvious as they grew older to the point where it damaged their friendship and they just couldn’t overcome it. At one point in the movie, Ha-eun and Mi-so got into a huge argument and Mi-so couldn’t help but just question how they ended up like this. There’s that bit of innocence and naivety when you’re a little kid because you’re so young and you don’t know anything and there isn’t much you have to worry about just yet. But as the two friends grew older and there were all these external factors coming into play, they were hit with the reality that things weren’t so easy. They thought they would be best friends forever. How exactly did they end up in this situation?

Female friendships is a theme that I generally enjoy, so I was a big fan of the premise of this movie. It’s a nice change of pace and scenery from the typical romance and love stories that we often see which was why I liked that ‘Soulmate’ didn’t venture too deep into the love triangle. It kept its focus on Ha-eun and Mi-so’s friendship as well as their individual lives. It did a wonderful job in building their friendship and showing how it came about because it had to be successful in that category in order to sell the rest of the movie. The movie was a simple one that didn’t do too much to explain its story and message. Though I didn’t enjoy the second half as much as I did during the first, Ha-eun and Mi-so’s friendship was the primary focus in the movie until the very end.

Even if there were a few issues that I had with the movie such as the editing that made it a bit distracting and difficult to follow along sometimes, ‘Soulmate’ was still enjoyable. I was especially content with the childhood portion and the first half of the movie but it still did a wonderful job in highlighting Ha-eun and Mi-so’s friendship until the last minute. Mi-so and Ha-eun were soulmates even if they weren’t always on the same page or even if things weren’t always beautiful and positive in their friendships. Their friendship consisted of good, bad, and ugly times. They weren’t always happy with each other and at times exhibited traits of jealousy and frustration. But they also were there for each other when they needed it the most. There was this moment in the movie where Ha-eun wrote about how she realized she had never seen the back of Mi-so’s body because she and Mi-so were always by each other’s side, side-by-side. Mi-so and Ha-eun’s friendship had both its calm and chaotic moments but one thing was clear: they left a mark and impact in each other’s lives that could never be forgotten.