Not a spoiler-free zone, I assure you.
No, seriously, it isn’t. I don’t think anything related to the series was ever meant to be spoiler-free. In fact, the Korean title of the movie had partly been a spoiler all along.
However, Kang Woo’s Secret Roommate was a lot more fun than I’d expected. Released on June 5th, 2020, the story follows Yeonghoon (Park Jonghoon) and his partner Taeho (Kim Jaeheung), whose peaceful love life is turned upside down by the arrival of Yeongmin (Kim Hyeonjun), Yeonghoon’s brother. Yeongmin visits Yeonghoon in Seoul to see how his brother is living and decides to stay at his place for a while.
The lovers are forced to pretend that they’re roommates as long as Yeongmin lives with them. It’s hilarious to see them trying to erase all traces of their relationship from the apartment in a fit of panic. I love Taeho for putting up with Yeongmin’s antics. Not only is Yeongmin a whirlwind of disruption, but he is also extremely messy. He leaves the place dirty, eats up all their ramyeon, makes fun of the way Taeho speaks to him, to name a few things. Despite all this, Taeho seems more patient with Yeongmin than Yeonghoon, even when he feels wronged in some way or the other.
I’m not too interested in already-established couples; I prefer the journey partners take to get there (with a few exceptions, of course). Yeonghoon and Taeho are so precious that I can’t help but be invested in them. Their chemistry is absolutely wonderful to watch—there’s no awkwardness, plus the production is amazing so I have nothing to complain about. They’re great together, and even the tiniest moments between them (especially the ones in the bathroom) are adorable.
Kim Hyeonjun, on the other hand, perfectly plays the part of the slovenly brother who randomly gatecrashes his way into people’s lives. Whether he is Yeongmin in this film, or Hanbit in My Pistachio (you may look forward to more on that later!) he is consistently a clown, even though the roles seem to be different. What’s more, his antics suit everything, no matter what role he plays.
As mentioned earlier, the Korean title for this movie—Susanghan Donggeo (or “Suspicious Cohabitation”)—is a dead giveaway to the ending, but I’m sure most of us don’t mind at all. It’s a short, fun watch, with cute moments of Yeonghoon and Taeho’s life together, and Yeongmin’s nonsense that gets in their way—in the most adorkable way possible. Okay, maybe more frustrating than adorable most of the time, but the ending surely makes him more likeable.
Rating: 4 out of 5
The BL Xpress 