Time (Shi gan) Synopsis & Summary

A woman obsessed with her appearance takes drastic measures to hold onto the man she loves, with startling results in this offbeat drama from South Korean filmmaker Kim Ki-duk. Se-heui (Park Ji-yeon) is a beautiful woman who has become convinced she isn't beautiful enough. Se-heui is certain her boyfriend Ji-woo (Ha Jeong-woo) is attracted to other women, and has so resigned herself to second-class status with him that she urges him to imagine other women when they make love. Se-heui decides that plastic surgery is the only solution for her problems, and without telling Ji-woo she checks herself into a clinic, where a doctor promises her a new and different face in six months. Ji-woo is crestfallen by Se-heui's disappearance, and while he begins dating again, he can't get her out of his mind. A few months later, a new waitress named Sae-heui (Seong Hyeon-aah) begins working at a diner Ji-woo frequents, and he becomes deeply infatuated with her. When she drops him a note, Ji-woo realizes Sae-heui is actually Se-heui with a new face, but with her new appearance their relationship takes on a troubling new dynamic. Time (aka Shigan) received its North American premiere at the 2006 Toronto Film Festival. - Mark Deming, All Movie Guide