One of the movies I had in my top 100 favorite movies was Frequency. The concept, in which two people living in different time periods have a connection and use that to communicate is fascinating. It’s not the only movie which does this, just think of the South Korean film Il Mare (or the American remake The Lake House), but also the romantic Somewhere in Time. Time Renegades (also from South Korea) is the latest addition to the genre and I loved it. The fact that this has also been directed by Kwak Jae-yong, who was also responsible for My Sassy Girl which also was in my top 100.
The movie opens during new year’s eve 2015, where detective Gun-Woo (Lee Jin-Wook), together with his team, is about to catch a very mysterious criminal. At the same time it shows the same place in 1983 where music teacher Ji-Hwan (Cho Jung-Seok) and his girlfriend Yoon-Jung (Lim Soo-Jung) celebrate new year’s eve in the same square. At those two moments something happens causing both men ending up in the hospital. From that moment on the two have a link. They can see each other’s lives during their dreams and through that they try to solve a police case set in 1983.
So this is a “high concept” movie which has been realised in a great way. Through beautiful transitions you see the same location change between time periods. Through use of color you see in which one of the two periods you are (a warm orange tint for 1983 and a colder blue for 2015). A movie which strongly reminded me of Frequency (as they are looking for a killer here as well), but adds its own twist. It is a successful mix of drama, tension and a slight dose of romance and has enough surprises in store to keep the viewer guessing. There is never a moment during which you get the sense there are illogical moments and it is cool to see how the past (and future) influence each other.
