"Please don't poo at home"
One glance at the title, poster, and synopsis of My Perfect Roommate and you know what’s coming. While the film may have been short on surprises, it delivered on what it set out to do---cause you to smile, cry and feel your heart warm.
A new program that matches seniors with young tenants is meant to help out both generations. The older person is given company and financial help and the younger person is given an economical place to live along with the benefit of learning from a senior citizen. Cranky, socially isolated Geum Bun reluctantly takes in university student and part-time worker Han Ji Woong. The parentless student goes out of his way to help people, having only himself to rely on. Woong arrives to see a floor that bears a striking resemblance to a Frank Lloyd Wright painting with red, yellow, and blue tape delineating his, hers, and common areas. Woong discovers even the toilet is off limits to him. Not exactly a match made in heaven, but one that would teach both elder and youngster a few life lessons.
My Perfect Roommate highlighted the isolation some seniors face. Geum Bun never married and had no children, living her days alone. One of Woong’s jobs was cleaning apartments after a person died, the loss often unnoticed for days. Woong grew up in an orphanage and faced discrimination because he had no parents. He tried extra hard to be seen as a model student and obedient child in order to earn love and trust, which was never guaranteed. Both characters suffered from not fitting in, one eschewed friendships and the other never let any one in too close lest they discover his secret.
Na Moon Hee can always be counted on to shine in any halmeoni role whether handing out lollipops or verbal butt whippings and Geum Bun was no different. MPR may have been predictable yet still managed to tug at my heartstrings with this unconventional made family. If you are in need of a feel-good film, this roommate might not be perfect but it knows to put the toilet seat down and not eat your last yogurt in the frig.
21 February 2025
Trigger Warning! One scene has a gruesome display of insects if those bother you.
A new program that matches seniors with young tenants is meant to help out both generations. The older person is given company and financial help and the younger person is given an economical place to live along with the benefit of learning from a senior citizen. Cranky, socially isolated Geum Bun reluctantly takes in university student and part-time worker Han Ji Woong. The parentless student goes out of his way to help people, having only himself to rely on. Woong arrives to see a floor that bears a striking resemblance to a Frank Lloyd Wright painting with red, yellow, and blue tape delineating his, hers, and common areas. Woong discovers even the toilet is off limits to him. Not exactly a match made in heaven, but one that would teach both elder and youngster a few life lessons.
My Perfect Roommate highlighted the isolation some seniors face. Geum Bun never married and had no children, living her days alone. One of Woong’s jobs was cleaning apartments after a person died, the loss often unnoticed for days. Woong grew up in an orphanage and faced discrimination because he had no parents. He tried extra hard to be seen as a model student and obedient child in order to earn love and trust, which was never guaranteed. Both characters suffered from not fitting in, one eschewed friendships and the other never let any one in too close lest they discover his secret.
Na Moon Hee can always be counted on to shine in any halmeoni role whether handing out lollipops or verbal butt whippings and Geum Bun was no different. MPR may have been predictable yet still managed to tug at my heartstrings with this unconventional made family. If you are in need of a feel-good film, this roommate might not be perfect but it knows to put the toilet seat down and not eat your last yogurt in the frig.
21 February 2025
Trigger Warning! One scene has a gruesome display of insects if those bother you.
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