Touches You

Load of rubbish!!

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

Imagine the story from Love Letters adapted to the world of speculative fiction, and you have a fair idea of what Il Mare is like. The concept is novel and refreshing (at least until other filmmakers started copying it) - a young man and woman share the same lake house, except at different times. They're separated by a wrinkle in time, and communicate through an antique mail box. The concept is contrived, of course, but the gimmick offers a novel viewpoint on the issues of time and fate. It makes little sense to view the film through the lens of logic. Rather, it offers a cunning "what if"- where characters travel through an alternate time, almost meet, but isolated from each other by each other's daily lives. This soft-hued focus bypasses the idea of using their situation to pick lottery winners, or bypassing the bumps in life's more difficult roads. But it does try to illustrate how people "unstuck in time" can support and love despite their separation. Love Letters may be more logically consistent, but Il Mare is subtler and sweeter.

'I hope you're ready to hear a long and magical tale.' This is what Il Mare or Siworae is about; a slow moving love story that will make your heart ache with pain, joy and inspiration.This little Korean gem of love and lost is underrated and almost unknown to most. It centers on a tale where two people are connected by a mail box although they live two years apart. With their letter exchange between each other they manage to forge a friendship which later develops into a love stronger than time and space could divide.Shot is a drab looking place this movie carries itself with the help of a credible cast, a powerful storyline and a wistful jazzy score that will tug on your heartstrings from all directions.Lovers of tearjerkers, romantic sagas and emotionally charged moments will have no trouble snuggling down with this. It is one of those movies that will make you wonder why your love life is nothing but a mere convenience without so much as a fanfare or a sparkle.An English version of this movie was remade by Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock call The Lake House. It's hard to compare the two since they are of different cultures, but they're both enchanting in their own right while sharing only similar plot.Other movies that share similar nostalgic and wistful sentiments are Serendipity, Cinema Paradiso, The Notebook and many many more. Get a shoulder, a hanky or a pet to sit beside you before you start.

In a nutshell, A girl falls in love with a guy who is two years in her past. Romance and Time Travel has been around for a long time. Back to the Future is a romance. So is Chris Marker's Le Jetee (and as a consequence, 12 Monkeys) and Somewhere in Time. There are many plot devices to separate lovers and one of the most cruel (hence most romantic) is using implacable Time. So the time travel device is no longer a De Lorean or playing mental tricks on oneself but rather it's now a mailbox. I think more interesting are some directing effects (when the camera swings around the mailbox and the lovers seem like they are in the same space), some good shots of the skies and the deliberate, anti-MTV pacing of the movie. Lake House, the remake, is actually decent. It's fairly restrained and the house in the remake is prettier. It is not, however, that revolutionary, and therefore suffers in comparison with this remake. Lake House works because of the story, which is virtually the same here. Also, putting in two big name stars is distracting from a simple, gossamer story. Therefore, I have fonder memories of this Korean original.

From reading the plot of this film, I didn't expect to like it. Two people who have never met exchange letters through time via a magical mailbox. However it is one of my favourite films.Il Mare is set in an idyllic location and is beautifully shot and beautifully acted creating an unforgettable romantic atmosphere. The characters convey loneliness more accurately than I have seen in any other film. The time-shift plot is also very engaging and the whole package lasts a perfect 90 minutes. Overall - So good I could leave it playing on loop