“The light in your eyes” (Korean Drama)

Starring:

• Han Ji-Min as Kim Hye-Ja (25-year-old)
• Kim Hye-Ja as Kim Hye-Ja (70-year-old)
• Nam Joo-Hyuk as Reporter Lee Joon-Ha

“The light in your eyes” – also known as “Radiant” or “Dazzling Eyes” – tells the story of Kim Hye-Ja. When Hye-Ja is a little girl, she picks up a watch at the beach. She discovers, it has the magic power to turn back time.

Because of her frustration over the constant teasing from her older brother, Hye-Ja decides to make use of this.

She starts to revert unfortunate events in her life. Most of these events are on a insignificant scale, since her life is rather ordinary.

Hye-Ja lives with her parents and her brother in a middle class neighbourhood. Her Dad works as a cabdriver and her Mother runs a Beauty Salon. The Beauty Salon is attached to the family home.

However, during her teen years she discovers, that every time she turns back time, it ages her looks. After that, she decides to stop using it.

As a result it remains inside a box in her room for the next decade, and she barely remembers it’s existence.

The price of time

A tragedy within her family prompts her to dig out the old watch. Hye-Ja is determined to revert a terrible loss suffered. Despite failing multiple times to change the outcome of the tragedy, Hye-Ja persists until she succeeds.

Waking up the next morning she is overjoyed to find that she was able to change her family’s destiny. However, Hye-Ja had forgotten that using the watch’s magic was not free. It came at a heavy price.

Every time she returned to an earlier date, this time was added to her age. And so, despite only being 25 years old, Hye-Ja has the looks of a 70-year-old.

She realizes she has sacrificed her youth to guarantee someone else’s well-being.

Although she is not regretting her sacrifice, accepting the consequences will require time and endurance. Especially giving up any hopes of a future with a young aspiring reporter she recently met and fell in love with.

Author’s note

“The light in your eyes” is a fantasy drama with unique plot twists and a story line all it’s own.

Through the eyes of the protagonist we get a glimpse into some of the daily struggles of the elderly. Many have difficulty finding their place within the community, wishing to remain a productive member of the same.

Have we as society perhaps created a mold to fit the older generations into, with complete disregard for their individual personalities?

Until we drama again,

-Cee