Secret Love Affair (2014)
Oh Hye Won (Kim Hee Ae), in her 40s, is the director of Seohan Arts Foundation. She has the capabilities in managing major music programs and concerts. She also has the charisma in dealing with people including those who have high social status. One day, her husband selected the talented pianist, Lee Sun Jae (Yoo Ah In) in his 20s, as his student. Both Hye Won and Sun Jae became teacher-and-student as she guides him to excel in playing piano. However, both of them starts to fall in love till they start their secret love affair.
“Secret Love Affair” has a lot of build-up on both storyline and characters that puts the viewers with mixed emotions, from anxiety to sadness. It starts off with presenting Hye Won’s and Sun Jae’s personal story until they meet each other. Then, the love sparks as they admire each other’s looks and personalities. The background music and piano tracks are selected appropriately to develop the intensity and emotion for each scene. Each episode ends nicely with either anticipation of what’s going to happen next or on a bright note that a chapter of the story has ended. For example, Sun Jae has successfully perform a piano recital while Hye Won looks afar at the control room. These endings hook you up into continuing to watch this couple till the very end.
Oh Hye Won (Kim Hee Ae) and Lee Sun Jae (Yoo Ah In)
There is a lot of focus on Hye Won’s and Sun Jae’s character development. It has a balance between “teacher and student” and “noona and dongsaeng” relationship. As Hye Won teaches Sun Jae how to play piano with skills and emotions, they share their thoughts and feelings about personal experiences in their daily lives. Furthermore, the harsh realities which Hye Won is dealing with are slowly revealed by Sun Jae. Those realities make her suffer so much yet she said to Sun Jae not to get involved in her matters. Sun Jae is frustrated with Hye Won being in pain. He wants to help her and telling her to leave but she couldn’t due to power and status. She has so much doubts about what and where she can be happy. Thus, Sun Jae is the person whom she can rely on as a form of escapism to youth and happiness. It’s not only about loving each other but giving each other happiness and support.
Their secret love affair builds their love and support for each other as problems arise
Kim Hee Ae pulls off the cool charisma which makes Hye Won being the strong career woman and mentor. Later on, she portrays her emotional side when the dramatical flames with dealing with people who has the power to get away from money issues. Although her character seems mild, she starts to get sensitive with tears and angers that shake the viewers’ heart with pity and sadness towards Hye Won. Yoo Ah In has done amazingly in portraying a serious role with strong emotions and facial gestures. He has blew my mind away with not only words but words with powerful impact such as acting out in frustration and caring about Hye Won. His actions and emotions, such as playing the piano, are not stagnant that as he fully understood how Sun Jae is going through. Hee Ae and Ah In are the strong melodrama couple which evoke subtle meaning behind their own drama characters.
“Secret Love Affair” starts with mild and then strong anxiety of the main characters who are chasing their own dreams and happiness. Hye Won and Sun Jae are relying each other as pillars of support as they struggle with their own personal problems. Even though there is so much focus of Hye Won who is struggling in working for the high social class people, viewers will also see Sun Jae’s pain but bright personality in helping people out. The classic music adds another element in evoking the characters’ emotions. A strong melodramatic connection between two characters which is based on love and happiness.
Rating: 8/10
