A Man Who Was Superman (2008) User Reviews

Mankind in a Perspective View

[sehyok510 · 8/10 · 10 November 2008]

I saw this movie as a Social-Cultural movie. And i liked it. Other users hated it because he expected another kind of movie... more comedy than drama. It's a drama movie, showing a different (covered) perspective view of the society. We have changed: in spite of economic progress, we are more selfish, we (still) have a short-term view of global warming/contamination, etc. And it shows while Song Soo-Jung (Ji-Hyun Jun) captures her neighbor behavior (Jeong-Min Hwang) for her documentary.

It's a simple good movie (if your expectation is to watch a Drama movie), great performance (as usual) of both leading actors, with average photography and direction.

A refreshing break from other Korean films.

[exnihilo77 · 8/10 · 16 March 2009]

Most Korean movies seem to fall into three genres; romantic comedy, mob fighting action movie, or family conflict drama. Thankfully, this movie is none of the above. There were only a couple scenes where there was the typical-Korean-movie-over-emotional-melodrama. Also, many Korean movies are obvious knock-offs of more popular Hollywood productions. While this movie is similar to K-Pax, is different enough to only bear a slight resemblance.

The movie provides some good social commentary about the selfish nature of Korean society. The main character goes into a dissociative fugue after he experiences a great tragedy that might have been prevented if only bystanders had helped.

The movie was also helped by it's bittersweet ending. Overall, I'd say this is most definitely one of the better Korean movies I've seen, a refreshing break from the usual stayed Korean formulas.

Forget Avengers and Dark knight, this is a real super hero movie.

[www-sri · 8/10 · 12 November 2016]

Like others, only reason i watched this movie is because of the lead actress and i wasn't expecting anything from the movie. But boy it surprised me. The movie revolves around a documentary film maker Song-soo jung( gianna jun), who films a man who believes that he is a superman. The plot itself seems ridiculous and one would imagine it will be the same old Korean rom-com. But when the movie was finished , tears were flowing through my eyes, i was so sad. I didn't get what i expected but something more than that. It tells us the tragic condition of the modern world where human beings lost their will to help others, we see the selfishness that resides in human beings made them incompetent to see goodness in other human being. Though the movie seems convoluted at first but after an hour it becomes interesting. we see a lead character who believes himself to be superman but now he lost his power and he is a normal human being. But still he tries to help others with his limited capacity. Though the entire movie is predictable and after watching for an hour or so you will be able to predict what will happen in the next 45 minutes and even the climax is not that hard to predict but the director skillfully turns a boring drama to a heart warming and tragic tale of a man who believes he can save the world.

Performance wise, Gianna jun was OK. It was a slightly different from her previous roles but she did a good job but it was Jung-min Hwang who steals the show. His depiction as a self proclaimed superhero is flawless. I haven't seen him in any other movie but after this i would definitely check out all his movies.

It's not like the movie is perfect and it's certainly not the best movie i have seen but it's damn good. In the first half the pacing of the movie is really slow, but the main problem with the movie is character of Gianna jun, her acting is good but her role isn't flushed out. We don't see any relation between her and the superman. May be it's because director didn't pay much attention to her role or it could happen that the role of Jung-min Hwang was so perfect that we don't care about the lousy and snobbish film maker. But even with the flaws "The man who was a Superman" is not the best but still its one of the best movie I've ever seen. And it's really sad that this movie has such a low rating. Where we see crappy superhero movie like avengers in top 250 list, this real superhero movie is crawling at the bottom with only 7.4. It's even more tragic than the ending of the movie.

watched in 2019

[mungunbayarbatbayar · 6/10 · 13 September 2019]

Love both actor/actress. But watched in 2019 not in childhood, that's why i might gave 6/10.

More than an ordinary comedy........

[sushant_v1 · 9/10 · 12 June 2009]

i m now a big fan of Korean movies , its only been an year since i started watching them . initially i was only aware of serious Korean movies like OLDBOY , THE HOST ,MEMORIES OF MURDER. then i came across some beautiful romantic movies like THE CLASSIC , MY LITTLE BRIDE and of course MY SASSY GIRL.

Ever since i saw MY SASSY GIRL i have become a big fan of Ji-Hyun Jun, so soon i saw WINDSTRUCK , IL MARE(SIWOREA) and i then came across this movie A MAN WHO WAS SUPERMAN .

i was going to watch this movie solely for the actress ,and i thought this will be just like one of those simple light hearted Korean comedy movies. But soon i found that i was really involved with the story ,the concept is good , the performance by the lead actor Jeong-min Hwang is also very touching . You really try and relate to his character.

The movie though starts of as a light comedy soon turns into something more intense . The movie has a beautiful message that deals with people and what they are doing to their environment ,and also about how people are so afraid to do the right thing. And most importantly it has been presented in a very realistic manner , by not being overly preachy.

The movie reminded me of K PAX and the more recent SEVEN POUNDS because of the human element.if u liked those movies u ll love this too.

This movie is a must watch.

A Great Realistic Movie

[Rifat_Sharna · 9/10 · 16 April 2014]

Watching first half of this movie I made myself to write- Being accustomed to enjoy super power of superman, I did not like his crazy behavior in this movie. And in the getup of a documentary producer Jun (popular heroine of "My Sassy Girl", "Daisy" etc) seemed to be a bit rough also. But at the end of the movie the total concept simply wowed me. Really in this self-centered society any individual can turn out to be a superman just by exercising his humane qualities. Although their presence seems to be rare, they can help and inspire countless people effectively. And their motto is simple- "Strength doesn't open big iron doors but a small key will and we all have the key inside us to open the door to a new future." Both the main actor and actress did their best and really such a great realistic movie's worth watching.

Best Ever Story with a Great Message

[murali-82761 · 10/10 · 14 June 2021]

Best movie of humanity and very inspiring movie that everyone should watch.

Best Movie ever.

"Don Juan DeMarco" redux.

[mikejonas · 5/10 · 30 July 2009]

Basically, that's what it is. Swap out "bizarre teen who thinks he's Don Juan" with "bizarre transient who thinks he's Superman," and replace Marlon Brando as the psychiatrist with Jeon Ji-Hyun as the human interest documentarian, and you've got the pitch nailed down.

It's not particularly original, and plays more like a Hallmark Hall of Fame TV movie than a theatrical feature, but still, it's a pretty effective tearjerker with very good performances from both its leads. A movie you can skip, but you won't feel like you wasted your time if you did sit through it. Perhaps its greatest achievement is managing to turn the normally breathtaking Jeon Ji-Hyun/Gianna Jun into a convincingly unappealing, frumpy, chain-smoking TV producer.

Wasted on me

[evetan00000 · 5/10 · 12 October 2008]

'If I Were Superman' is a fantasy comedy about this lady journalist who followed a man who claimed that he's Superman who has to help save the world. At first glance, he seemed to be mental but as the story goes, the journalist slowly found out why he became this way.

The story is supposed to be engaging and the characters interesting. But unfortunately I just didn't identify w any element in it at all. The lines were not funny if they are meant to be, the characters I can't connect with, the plot is messy and the tear jerking parts I didn't even bat an eyelid. Which means a big deal cos I really do cry easily in wherever the director wants the audience to. So overall, I dun feel a thing regarding this Korean movie so it's pretty much wasted on me.

Too much emotion, not enough entertainment..and it sucks..

[thebanquet · 1/10 · 29 February 2008]

I went to the theaters expecting a lot because 'Superman ieotdeon sanai'(The Man who was Superman)was Gianna Jun's latest film, her first Korean film that she filmed after her Hollywood debut 'Blood: The Last Vampire'. Her co star Hwang Jung Min, while unfamiliar to international movie fans, is known as a serious actor here in South Korea. I also liked the director Jung Yoon Chul, seeing both his previous films 'Marathon' and 'Shim's Family'. When I walked out of the theater, I was totally shattered with disappointment.

'Superman ieotdeon sanai' tells the story of third rate television producer Song Mi Na(Gianna Jun),who, in a last attempt to achieve fame and fortune, makes a documentary about a local townsman(Hwang Jung Min)who thinks that he is Superman. This 'Superman' claims that he is Kal El of Krypton, son of Jor El, and that he can't use his superpowers because the evil Lex Luthor implanted a bit of Kyrptonite inside his head. So he helps people in ways like carrying heavy luggage for the elderly, getting rid of perverts in front of local high schools and standing upside down in an attempt to push Earth away from the Sun to avoid a collision. At first, Mi Na just wants to use this man in order to make a smash hit documentary, but as time goes by, she starts to feel sympathy towards him and learns the real truth about his real life story........

The synopsis may sound interesting enough, but the movie itself was crap. Gianna Jun and Hwang Jung Min give great performances, but the movie feels like a skyscraper that looks magnificent from the outside but if you go inside it, there is so much work to be done. The story lines don't connect. One moment, this guy thinks he's Superman, next thing you know, he gets his memory back, and before you have time to figure out what happened, he dies. I have never felt time go by slower while watching a film at a theater. I can't connect with the characters like the director intended, I don't feel sympathy toward the characters and I ABSOLUTELY disliked the cinematography. They should have put more time and effort in making a major motion picture. It was released in theaters nationwide in less than three months after it first started filming.

I'm sure that when this movie gets released overseas, it will be promoted as a sad tearjerker starring 'Hallyu'star Gianna Jun, but don't let it fool you. This movie was a waste of my time and energy.