A Man Who Was Superman
A Man Who Was Superman
| 31 January 2008 (USA)
A Man Who Was Superman Trailers

A snobbish producer makes a documentary about the extraordinary behavior of her neighbor who believes himself to be Superman.

Reviews
mikejonas

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.

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sushant_v1

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.

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Sergio (sehyok510)

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.

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thebanquet

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.

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