(Source: mydramalist)
여인의 향기- Scent of a Woman "Scent of a Woman" deals with Lee Yeon Jae, a hard-working but not appreciated 30 year old woman. Yeon Jae is a total push over so she always runs after her colleagues and gets humiliated by them. Her whole life turns upside down when she finds out she has cancer and only around six months left. Yeon Jae decides to enjoy her life and makes a to-do-list with things she wants to do before she dies. Hence she resigns from her job and travels to Okinawa where she falls in love with the director of her former company, Gang Ji Uk.
The main actor is none other than Lee Dong Uk (이동욱,30),well-known for his roles in "Heartbreak Library", "My Girl" and "Partner". His acting skills are good enough to combine complexity and colour in his character and to prove that his character is not only a rich man without worries, but a caring person that changes a lot due to some circumstances. Lee Donk Uk plays Gang Ji Uk, the director of the travel company Yeon Jae used to work for. His father Gang Cheol Man, played by Lee Jeong Gil (이정길,67), tries to pitch his son into the arranged marriage with Im Se Gyeong, played by Seo Hyo Rim (서효,27). She is the daughter of a rich company president as well, but unlike Ji Uk totally spoiled, arrogant and egoistic.
Kim Seon A (김선아,36) took over the main female part as Lee Yeon Jae. Her acting is good, I only know her in this role, so I can't compare it to her roles in the past. Yeon Jae is quite annoying in the beginning but soon after she finds out about her cancer she changes- slowly. Nevertheless Seon A displays the character and her thoughts very well, Yeon Jae is dying with realism and restraint instead of being full of absurd girl dreams. Kim Seon A and Lee Dong Uk have an amazing chemistry in this drama, my favourite scene is the one in the tango room, I never saw such an intense dancing scene. Another important character is Chae Eun Seok, played by Eom Gi Jun (엄기준,36), who is not only Yeon Jaes doctor but also a childhood friend. He is neurotic and a bit socially awkward but he is the first drama-doctor who doesn't ignore his medical confidentiality.
Attention spoiler!!--> After watching "49 days" I changed my mind in terms of terminal illness dramas, even though I still don't want to watch them die. In "Scent of a Woman" the main point isn't her illness but how she deals with it and how it does change her life. While watching you learn a lot about appreciating your life and simple as it is, living it to the fullest without regrets. Yeon Jae and Ji Uk fall in love with each other so the latter one finds himself in a weird love triangle. On the one hand Yeon Jae, who is fatally ill but he doesn't know about it, on the other hand the arranged marriage with Se Gyeong, who he doesn't like but he does not want to disappoint his father (again). While he tries to become aware of his feelings Yeon Jae knows she won't have a future with Ji Uk, so the woman doesn't dare to dream of it either. Apart from her old friend and Eun Seok nobody knows she is ill. Yeon Jae doesn't want to tell her mother because her father already died of cancer when she was a teenager so she tries to hide her pain and act as normal as possible.
Her former colleagues learn to appreciate her and her work when Yeon Jae helps them out, she finds new friends in both the tango class and the hospital. When Hui Ju, a young 20 year old woman and a friend Yeon Jae makes in hospital, dies of cancer I was full of sorrow. Hui Ju is probably the strongest female character I saw so far in a korean drama. Aware of the fact she only has some weeks left she is full of joy and happiness and encourages other patients to laugh, love and live.
The story goes on and with it every character changes. Yeon Jae enjoys her life and tries to make her mother happy by finding her a new husband, Ji Uk learns to see the world and his life with different eyes, Eun Seok turns from a cold-hearted doctor to a caring and understanding one and Se Gyeong has to find out that she can't buy everything with the help of money. Ji Uks father opposes the relationship with Yeon Jae and soon after Ji Uk finds out she has cancer she abandons him because she doesn't want him to watch her die. However, this development happens in the last three episodes where Yeon Jae also finally tells her mother about her illness. The plot is very basic so the characters are given a lot of depth. Nothing happens without a reason, Eun Seoks screen time is not a waste of time because he is a necessary part of the drama. Same goes for Se Gyeong, she only turned into a psychotic and bitchy woman because of her exboyfriend who broke her heart and left her humiliated.
The drama doesn't end with Yeon Jaes death or with her sudden recovery but with her living an unknown future. Perhaps she has only some days left, perhaps another few weeks or even months. Yeon Jae doesn't care. Instead she writes another to-do list and enjoys every day she has left with her friends, family and Ji Uk.
I love this drama. It is not filled with lovey-dovey happy little girls who fall in love with rich guys and end up marrying them. You learn a lot about the values of life, it is realistic, not one of those teenager dramas I find really awkward and nasty. After finishing it I thought a lot about the meaning of life and asked myself whether I would be able to tell my mam about having cancer or keep it to myself as long as possible.
Final result:
★★★★★
♥
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