Lovers in Paris
Promotional poster
Also known asDes amoureux à Paris
Romance in Paris
GenreRomance
Drama
Written byKim Eun-sook
Kang Eun-jung
Directed byShin Woo-chul
StarringKim Jung-eun
Park Shin-yang
Lee Dong-gun
Music byPark Se-jun
Country of originSouth Korea
Original languageKorean
No. of episodes20
Production
Executive producerMoon Jung Soo (SBS)
ProducerKim Yang
Production locationsSouth Korea
Paris
Production companyThe Coup Media
Original release
NetworkSBS
Release12 June (2004-06-12) –
15 August 2004 (2004-08-15)
Related
Lovers in Prague
Lovers

Lovers in Paris (Korean: 파리의 연인; RR: Pari-ui yeon-in) is a 2004 South Korean television series starring Kim Jung-eun, Park Shin-yang and Lee Dong-gun. It aired on SBS from 12 June to 15 August 2004 on Saturdays and Sundays at 21:55 for 20 episodes.[1] The series is the first in the Lovers trilogy by writer Kim Eun-sook and director Shin Woo-chul. This was followed by Lovers in Prague (2005), and the third, simply titled Lovers (2006), was not set in Europe like the first two.

The series was very popular during its run. Kim Jung-eun and Park Shin-yang shared Grand Prize ("Daesang") honors at the 2004 SBS Drama Awards, and later at the 2005 Baeksang Arts Awards, Kim won Best TV Actress, Kim Eun-sook and Kang Eun-jung won Best TV Screenplay, and the drama won the Grand Prize for Television.

Plot

Kang Tae-young (Kim Jung-eun) is the daughter of a film director and carrying on her father's wishes, she studies film in Paris. To make ends meet, she works as a housekeeper for Han Ki-joo (Park Shin-yang), which she loves because she can watch his movies and drink his wine.

Unhappy with her services, he fires her. However, when he realizes that she is from the same hometown as the wife of a potential business partner, he hires her to act as his fiancée to warm up to his business partner. She agrees in exchange for getting her housekeeping job back. During the two dates that he takes her out, she is smitten by the fairy tale quality of the event. In turn he finds himself unexpectedly captivated by her. However, the fake girlfriend plan backfires, and they part ways on bad terms in Paris. Through a series of events she also meets Yoon Soo-hyuk (Lee Dong-gun), who is Ki-joo's nephew.

Recalled by his father, Ki-joo returns to Korea, and Tae-young also returns to attend her father's death anniversary. Both are reunited coincidentally in Seoul and have their misunderstandings resolved. She prepares to return to Paris, but discovers her uncle has squandered away her family house and run away, leaving her with her young cousin and the debts he has incurred.

While trying to sort out her family problems and retrieve her father's camera that was confiscated by the creditors, she meets Ki-joo again. Through multiple coincidental encounters, he finds himself attracted to her. Soo-hyuk also returns to Korea to track Tae-young down. He stays at her place and tries to win her heart. But he is devastated when he realizes that his uncle is also vying for her affections.

The situation is further complicated with the introduction of Moon Yoon-ah, the daughter of an influential politician whom Ki-joo's father has selected to become Ki-joo's wife. She also happens to be Tae-young's classmate in high school and is determined to win Ki-joo as her husband.

As Ki-joo and Tae-young open their hearts to each other, a scheming Yoon-ah and an emotionally wounded Soo-hyuk plot to split them up. Matters are further complicated when a long-held family secret is revealed: Soo-hyuk's mother Ki-hye is in fact Ki-joo's mother and not his older sister. Ki-hye had been in love with Ki-joo's father, but due to the difference in their wealth and status, the young couple was forced to separate by her father. She gave birth to Ki-joo out of wedlock, and to save face, the Han family raised Ki-joo as Ki-hye's younger brother. Then Ki-hye was married off to a rich man she didn't love, Soo-hyuk's father. Ki-joo reels from the revelation, and must deal with the lie at the center of his identity. Soo-hyuk also realizes that the closeness between his emotionally distant mother and Ki-joo was not that of siblings', but because Ki-joo was Ki-hye's more favored son. His bitterness grows that the two most important women in his life, his mother and Tae-young, have always chosen Ki-joo over him.

Meanwhile, Park Young-ji, an executive at GD Motors who wants to bring down Ki-joo, takes advantage of Soo-hyuk's feelings of envy and rivalry. He schemes with Soo-hyuk to leak the latest car design to the rival of GD Motors. The new car is announced and GD Motors is petrified because their latest design had been stolen. Later, Ki-joo figures out that Soo-hyuk was the culprit, but forgives him. The fact that Ki-joo forgave him so easily drives Soo-hyuk crazy. After getting into a car accident while blazing through the streets, he gets amnesia and loses his recent memories. (However, he was only pretending he had amnesia, as a final selfless act so that Tae-young and Ki-joo can be together guilt-free.) Yoon-ah also decides to let go of Ki-joo and throws her engagement ring into the Han River.

Ki-joo and Tae-young can finally be together. Unfortunately because of his family's disapproval of her, they decide to separate temporarily. She goes back to Paris and he stays in Korea. After two years, the new car is announced and is a success. Ki-joo immediately catches a flight to Paris. For some time, they do not know where the other is and keep missing each other.

Then one day, just like in the beginning of the story, Ki-joo throws a coin into a fountain and makes a wish to see Tae-young again. As he turns, he sees her standing there. The next scene shows them sitting by a river. Tae-young breaks the silence and asks, "If we had not met in Paris, do you think we would still have ended up together?" Ki-joo answers, "Most likely we would have."

Cast

Main

Supporting

  • Oh Joo-eun as Moon Yoon-ah
  • Kim Seo-hyung as Baek Seung-kyung
  • Jung Ae-ri as Han Ki-hye
  • Kim Sung-won as Han Sung-hoon
  • Park Young-ji as Choi Won-jae
  • Jo Eun-ji as Choi Yang-mi
  • Yoon Young-joon as Kim Seung-joon
  • Sung Dong-il as Kang Pil-bo
  • Kim Young-chan as Kang Gun
  • Lee Se-chang as Park Jung-hak
  • Kim Sang-soon as Moon Ji-hwan
  • Seo Kwon-sook as Mrs. Moon

Special appearance

Production

Many of the scenes were filmed on location in Paris, France, and Seoul, South Korea. The Korean filming locations are as follows:[3]

Reception

With an average viewership rating of 40+% and a peak of 56.3%,[5] Lovers in Paris became one of the most highly rated Korean dramas of all time. It also received several high-profile awards, making it one of the most successful series aired on SBS. The drama's quotes, fashion and music made their way to mainstream pop culture (sparking trends and parodies),[6][7][8][9] notably when Soo-hyuk put Tae-young's hand over his heart and said, "You are in here"; and Ki-joo's two lines "Let's go, baby"; and "Why can't you say it? Why can't you say that this is my man, that this is the man I love?"[10]

Ratings

In the table below, the blue numbers represent the lowest ratings and the red numbers represent the highest ratings.

Date Episode Nationwide Seoul
2020-04-01123.6%23.9%
2020-04-02225.9%27.6%
2020-04-08331.9%33.1%
2020-04-09432.5%34.0%
2020-04-15535.0%37.1%
2020-04-16637.1%37.9%
2020-04-22740.5%42.8%
2020-04-23843.6%44.4%
2020-04-29942.5%44.1%
2020-04-301046.1%48.4%
2020-05-061144.1%44.9%
2020-05-071249.5%51.9%
2020-05-131347.0%48.4%
2020-05-141450.0%51.1%
2020-05-201537.6%38.7%
2020-05-211639.2%38.7%
2020-05-271741.3%41.7%
2020-05-281851.5%52.2%
2020-06-031951.3%53.1%
2020-06-042056.3%57.6%
Average41.3%42.5%

Source: TNS Media Korea

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Recipient Result
20042nd Andre Kim Best Star Awards[11]Best StarLee Dong-gunWon
Best OST"By Your Side" by Jo Sung-mo[12]Won
17th Grimae Awards
Best ActressKim Jung-eunWon
SBS Drama AwardsGrand Prize (Daesang)Park Shin-yang and Kim Jung-eunWon
Top 10 StarsPark Shin-yangWon
Kim Jung-eunWon
Lee Dong-gunWon
2005Grand Prize (Daesang) for TelevisionLovers in ParisWon
Best DramaLovers in ParisNominated
Best Director (TV)Shin Woo-chulNominated
Best Actor (TV)Park Shin-yangNominated
Best Actress (TV)Kim Jung-eunWon
Best New Director (TV)Shin Woo-chulNominated
Best Screenplay (TV)Kim Eun-sook and Kang Eun-jungWon
Best ActressKim Jung-eunWon

Musical theatre adaptation

It was adapted into a stage musical that ran at the D-Cube Arts Center in 2012, starring Lee Ji-hoon and Jung Sang-yeon as Han Ki-joo, Bang Jin-wi and Oh So-yeon as Kang Tae-young, and Lee Hyun, Jung Woo-soo and Run as Yoon Soo-hyuk.[13]

Adaptation

In 2009, ABS-CBN produced a Philippine remake based on Lovers in Paris. The adaptation was short-lived due to negative feedbacks.

References

  1. ↑ "2004 good for movies, gloomy in performing arts". The Korea Herald via Hancinema. 29 December 2004. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  2. ↑ Sunwoo, Carla (28 December 2011). "Actor Park Shin-yang to hold a concert at the end of the month". Korea JoongAng Daily. Archived from the original on 17 January 2012. Retrieved 15 June 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  3. ↑ "Korean TV Drama: Lovers in Paris". Korea Tourism Organization. Archived from the original on 22 October 2018. Retrieved 12 June 2012.
  4. ↑ "Looking Down on the Whole of Seoul". The Chosun Ilbo. 27 April 2006. Archived from the original on 5 March 2015. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  5. ↑ "MBC Drama Sparks Kim Sam-soon Syndrome". The Chosun Ilbo. 4 July 2005. Archived from the original on 16 October 2012. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  6. ↑ "MS Korea to Hold Lovers in Paris Promotional Event". The Chosun Ilbo. 26 July 2004. Archived from the original on 5 March 2015. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  7. ↑ Choi, Hong-seop (15 December 2004). "Cyworld Named Hit Product of the Year". The Chosun Ilbo. Archived from the original on 5 March 2015. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  8. ↑ Lee, Hee-sung (8 April 2005). "When stars talk, consumers watch ― their mobile phones". Korea JoongAng Daily. Archived from the original on 12 June 2022. Retrieved 15 June 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  9. ↑ "Way Back Wednesday: K-dramas Part 2 (2001–2005)". Allkpop. 5 December 2012. Archived from the original on 26 June 2013. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  10. ↑ "B1A4 Sandeul-Baro, Comic Parody of Lovers in Paris". KpopStarz. 16 January 2013. Archived from the original on 18 January 2013. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  11. ↑ Park, Chung-a (16 November 2004). "Fashion Designer Andre Kim Gives Out Best Star Awards". The Korea Times via Hancinema. Archived from the original on 1 February 2014. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  12. ↑ "2004 M.net Korean Music Festival Winners list" Archived 29 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine. MAMA. Retrieved 2014-06-12.
  13. ↑ "Lee Hyun to play Lee Dong Gun's role in Lovers in Paris musical". Allkpop. 29 March 2012. Archived from the original on 14 February 2015. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
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