Bride of the Century: a cursed love story

The official poster for the korean drama “Bride of the Century”

In South Korea, where tributes are made to ancestral relatives and old houses are feared, curses and doppelgängers make their way to Korean dramas more often.

“Bride of the Century” or “Hundred Year Bride” is a 2014 romance and fantasy drama, starring the singer/actor Lee Hong Ki and the new rising star Yang Jin Sung. This drama revolves around a family which has been cursed for a decade that the first bride of the eldest son dies on the wedding’s night.

The drama seems like an older drama, with some of the typical Korean elements present, such as an evil parent and a rich chaebol with bad manners falling in love with the quirky poor girl. But despite that, the drama adds its own flavor when it introduces the whole doppelgänger concept to the drama making it more interesting.

Before delving into that, we should first know more about the background story, throughout the 16 episodes of the drama we’re taken to an older era of Korea, which happens to be the same era when that curse first surfaced, and we meet a mysterious woman whom we later identify as the ‘ghost’ which tries to bring our protagonists together, playing the role of a matchmaker.

The entire cast of the drama, with the exception of the ‘ghost’

The ghost is heavily involved in the flow of the story, and the origin of the curse is revealed as both her revenge on this family and also as a way to ensure that the first son of this family is happy, as her ‘curse’ is just a test to find true love.

Another fantasy element in this drama is the doppelgängers whom are represented perfectly by Yang Jin Sung, as she plays the roles of both cheerful Na Do Rim and the scheming Jang Yi Kyung. Doppelgängers weren’t used much in Korean dramas, and it’s always assumed as in this drama that they should act the complete opposite of each other, while it would be interesting to find an identical doppelgänger, who doesn’t only look the same but also acts the same way.

Of course the drama leaves you suspecting the whole time, why did Do Rim and Yi Kyung ended looking alike? And how? First of all, we know they’re no sisters, and it’s later revealed to be another part of the grand scheme the ghost had, as she had already had her eyes on these two girls since they were in the crib.

A loving grandmother and a love triangle are some of the recurring themes in Korean dramas, and this drama is no stranger to them. But it delves more into the psychological aspect of its characters as it’s apparent in Yi Kyung’s mother breakdown towards the end.

And whether was it Jin Sung playing two characters, or Lee Hong Ki putting on his serious suit for a role that’s quite different than his previous roles. Kdrama lovers would remember him in one of his most memorable roles in “You’re Beautiful” as the cheerful Jeremy, and marvel at the difference.

Implementing elements from the distant history has prevailed Korean dramas, with more historical adaptations of numerous stories coming out. Even in modern-day dramas like this, you can’t escape the feeling of belonging to an era of offerings.