Hello Stranger

Gawd, how I love this movie. I love the leads. I love the plot. I love the humor. I love the drama. I love the twist. I love the ending. Aahhhh, there’s so much to love!

“Hello Stranger” will tickle your funny bone. It’ll touch your heart.  It’ll make you wonder.

The film is about two strangers who went to South Korea. I wasn’t joking when I said they were strangers! The writers didn’t even bother to give them character names! So yeah, I’m having a hard time recapping. Using my creativity and ingenuity, I shall call them Girl andGuy. Haha! 

Our story starts at the airport.

Girl (Nuengthida Sophon) says goodbye to her possessive boyfriend, Jim. Hmmm, she’s acting strangely stiff. Why? Becoz she lied that she’s travelling with her friend, Meow when in truth, she’s flying solo to attend a Korean friend’s wedding, Min-Ah.

Guy (Chunthawit Thanasewi) has just been dumped (a fact nobody can refute as it is clearly written on his forehead). And to mend his broken heart, he joins a 7-day guided tour to South Korea. Since he’s too tanked-up, his friends were kind enough to ditch him at the airport WITHOUT his baggage! Haha!

Girl, being the Korean drama fanatic that she is, enjoys every sweet minute of the trip. It’s quite the opposite for Guy. Being the prosaic guy that he is, finds the tour unbearably boring. That night, Guy decides to cure his boredom. Wearing the hotel bathrobe as his only coat, he drinks some soju and feasts over a local delicacy. Imagine his disgust when he learns that he IS actually eating a DOG! Mwahahaha! He drank too much that he gets lost and sleeps outside the lobby of a backpacking hotel where Girl lodges. And becoz she can’t bear to leave a homeless stranger freeze in the cold, she drags him inside and covers him with her jacket. Guy wakes up and crams! He needs to go to Grand Ambassador (his hotel) ASAP! And since, he’s bad with directions, Girl is forced to take him there. But then, she mistakenly leads him to Grand Embassy! Mwahaha! Thus, he misses his tour coach and is stranded in Seoul for two full days. Guy blames Girl for his misfortune and creepily follows her around. Thinking that he’s a gangster or something, she runs for her dear life! And amidst the running and eluding, Guy nearly gets arrested. Haha! And so, Girl grudgingly helps him out… again!

He begs that she tag him along, as this is his first time abroad, doesn’t know where to go, doesn’t speak English and most of all, doesn’t want to eat dogs anymore. Haha! Finding his reasons valid and logical, she agrees. And after a few minutes with him, Girl is convinced she’s with stupid! Haha! 

Guy is actually beginning to enjoy the trip… until he notices that she’s taking him to lamedrama scene locations. And then, he begins to complain and babble.

Guy: Watching movies that makes you cry as if someone just died, stories of babies switched at birth,or two people who just meet for a few days and fall crazy in love, plots where women pretend to be men but no one could ever see through their lame disguise. It’s so over the top!

Haha! Oh my, he just summarized every freakin’ Korean series.

Girl defends it’s not over the top, it’s called romantic. Still, he doesn’t get it. Women don’t know the difference between romantic and cheesy.

Night came and they decided to watch a show, but since there’s only one ticket left, Guy can’t watch it with her. After the show, Girl is evidently amused and amazed. She keeps on talking and talking about it. Guy, as usual, remains passive. They continue the witty argument until they agreed to make a bet. If ever Guy could eat a live octopus, she would drink a bottle of soju! Game on!