LEE JOON GI
AND
PARK MIN
YOUNG
PASSIONATELY RED
TVN
CANDY IN MY EAR
ROMANTIC COMEDY
REALITY DRAMA
LEE JOON GI
AND
PARK MIN YOUNG
PASSIONATELY RED
TVN CANDY IN MY EAR ROMANTIC COMEDY
REALITY DRAMA
An image comes unbidden into one’s mind while watching the much
talked about and much dissected segments of the Lee Joon Gi-Park Min Young
2017 Candy In My Ear reality drama.
RED is the predominant colour of the show. Passionately red. To be exact,
tints and shades of red. It is an open book that Red, with its tints and shades, spells not just passion
but also love and romance. (A tint is a mixture of a colour with white, which reduces darkness,
while a shade is a mixture with black, which increases
darkness.) Red is coincidentally one of Lee Joon Gi’s
favourite colours.
The viewers subconsciously fall hook, line and sinker for the lure
of love, romance and passion that is evoked by the colour. None
can deny that the show has been crafted and planned for the romantic feel and
all the footage of the show has been edited to achieve that effect.
RED captures one’s imagination. The show is splashed with REDs
all over Florence and its tint, PINK, the colour of Fantasy and Romance, is also liberally
sprinkled like stardust in the show. Red, in the east especially
China, is a celebratory colour. Happiness and Joy.
Lee Joon Gi
uses the moniker or sobriquet, RED GINSENG, to communicate with Park Min
Young. It is not any other type of ginseng - it is RED.
The handsome superstar is truly the embodiment of Red Ginseng. Lee Joon Gi is Red Ginseng. Red Ginseng is Lee Joon Gi. Energy. Strength. Vitality. But, that’s not all. When one thinks
of Lee Joon Gi, certain images are conjured up. Athleticism. Masculinity.
Dynamism. Sexiness. Fun. Cheerfulness. Positivity. Determination. Courage.
Humanity. Lee is also associated with Korean Red Ginseng because he favours red
ginseng drinks.
 
Lee Joon Gi is the perfect advertisement for Red Ginseng, a
very important South Korean product.
 
Red Ginseng
is fashionably groomed for his visit to the Duomo and
Piazza Santissima Annunziata in Florence. Florence is an important city for Italian fashion, ‘being ranked in
the top 15 fashion capitals of the world by Global Language Monitor’.
The stylish
superstar wears a TERRACOTTA – PINK Styleandstar jacket layered with a
white shirt and a pair of black trousers in Florence. Red Ginseng looks
RED-HOT in his outfit.
 
No trip to Florence is complete without the
climb up to the Dome. The
climb up the narrow dark stairs might seem like an eternity for some people but the steep flight of 463 steps poses no problem for Red Ginseng, the consummate athlete. Red
Ginseng is not swept by any wave of vertigo as he easily climbs the stairs of
the Duomo. No sweat. His athletic reputation ratchets up a few notches. If you have acrophobia,
a fear of heights, or claustrophobia, a fear of being boxed in dark, narrow
spaces, then the place is not for you.
  
Upon reaching Brunelleschi’s
magnificent dome, Red Ginseng is awed
by the extraordinary panoramic views of the city and the TERRACOTTA RED roofs
of the buildings all over Florence.
He exclaims with unbridled delight:
 
As Red Ginseng surveys the rooftops of the buildings from the
Duomo, he declares in awe that the red roofs ‘seem like blooming flowers’.
     
Florence, a
magical place for lovers, is definitely a city to go to because it is romantic
and it is the setting for the happy reunion of the lovers in the movie, Between Calm and Passion.
 
The other places in Florence that Red Ginseng visits, including Piazza
Santissima Annunziata, are also swathed in CRIMSON, TERRACOTTA RED or RED ORANGE.
    
Red Ginseng
goes marketing in the largest market in Florence and does not forget to buy a
bottle of RED WINE ‘to share’ with his Candy.
 
Red Ginseng and Bunny Bunny find
themselves competing in a friendly cooking competition.
What dish goes best with RED WINE? MEAT, RED meat of
course! Being in Italy, he has decided to cook beefsteak and sphagetti
(pasta). As they say, ‘When in Rome, Do
as the Romans Do.’
But, Red Ginseng’s beefsteak
is definitely not bistecca alla fiorentina - beefsteak Florentine
style.
Red Ginseng
seems cool and collected when cooking but soon his heartbeat picks up speed.
     
In Venice, Bunny Bunny takes a walk in the spring rain. She holds
a ROSE-PINK or DEEP PINK UMBRELLA (depending on the image) to shelter herself
from the drizzle.
Bunny Bunny is fashionably attired. Colourful wavy stripes in RED
tints and shades layered over her black clothing create a great contrast.
PALE PINK. FUCHSIA. MAROON. RED ORANGE. BLACK.
PALE PINK umbrella
Likewise, the bedcovers and rugs in Red Ginseng's apartment in Florence have colourful stripes in RED tints and shades. PALE PINK. FUCHSIA. CARDINAL RED. MAROON.
  
In another scene, Bunny Bunny is
seen pushing her CARDINAL RED suitcase along one of the streets of Venice.
And she is wearing an ankle-length LIGHT PINK skirt.
The Venetians are revelling in the Mask Carnival in Venice and Bunny Bunny has the time of her life in being a spectator as well as an active participant in the festivities. She wears a beautiful ROSE PINK and gold Venetian Carnival mask.
 
Red Ginseng travels north to Venice by high-speed train to give
Bunny Bunny a surprise. Italo, the luxurious ‘Ferrari train’ in which he
travels, is DARK RED.
 
Finally, the two friends, Red Ginseng and Bunny Bunny, are
reunited at the Dogana da Mar in Venice. The roofs of all the buildings in
the vicinity are TERRACOTTA RED.
 
Let's not forget other things in RED.
     
A red apple represents love, temptation and spiritual growth. To
eat the apple means acquiring knowledge.
 
The strawberry is a symbol for Venus, the Goddess of
Love because of its heart shape and red colour.
   
It has now become evident that the script writers and production crew have been single-minded in their pursuit of creating a romantic comedy-reality drama. Romance seems all pervasive in the show. Red is important in conveying the lovey-dovey mood. But, the perfectly chosen romantic settings and the injection of romantic music and songs set the tone for the show. Undeniably, the crew’s attention to detail and clever editing, and the two actors’ love of crafting dramas and their compelling performance have produced the ground-breaking 4-segment romantic comedy-reality drama.
The show, like a travelogue, takes us on a tour from Florence
to San Gimignano and finally, to Venice. It is a well-known fact that Florence and
Venice are two of the most romantic cities of the world.
The Italian poet, Dante Alighieri, wrote lovingly of Florence.
Woody Allen, an
American director, writer and actor, loves Venice.
Lee Joon Gi’s first caller requests that he sing a song and he
chooses his own song, ‘For A While’,
the very romantic theme song for his Chinese movie, ‘Never said Goodbye’.
FOR A
WHILE
BY LEE
JOON GI
 
He is also asked to quote a famous line from his latest drama,
which is his historical fiction drama, Moon
Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo. He chooses the romantic promise of Emperor
Gwangjong to his beloved Hae Soo:
‘If we have to be in different worlds, I’ll go and find you.’
On arrival
in Florence, the superstar takes in the sights and sounds of the city of
Florence. Red Ginseng listens to and is enchanted by the music of an Italian
street musician, a trumpeter who plays him different pieces of music
including a very romantic piece of French music. He declares to his Candy who is in Venice that
he has actually hired the musician to serenade her.
Picture Perfect: The Korean Superstar and
The Italian Street Musician
 
During his drive to San Gimignano, Red Ginseng sings ‘Ma Lady’, another one of
his songs.
MA LADY
By LEE
JOON GI
   
Both songs, For A While and Ma Lady,
are from Lee’s 2014 Exhale album.
  
Many viewers have been curious
about the final segment of the Lee Joon Gi-Park Min Young romantic comedy-reality
drama. The question is not, 'Will they ever get to see it?' but, 'When will they be allowed to watch it?'
 |