Love story loses steam

An overly sweet teen romance about first love, Virgin Snow (titled First Love in Japan) is so contrived that it is neither endearing nor believable.

The story, a dumbed-down version of Lost in Translation, stars Lee Jun-gi as a Korean high school student who moves to Japan while his dad works there as a potter/artist. He meets Naname (Aoi Miyazaki), a talented painter who has an alcoholic mum and a violent stepfather. Although the pair speak different languages, they fall in love and share some happy moments.

The movie - directed by Han Sang-hee - is full of cliches. Naname suddenly leaves Min for no apparent reason and the boy - devastated by her disappearance - returns to Korea dazed and confused.

Predictably, they meet again a few years later. After some desperate moments - such as an angry Min smashing his pottery to pieces and the heartbroken Naname walking alone in the rain - the couple clear up their misunderstandings and the movie ends with a passionate embrace amid the snow.

Lee, with his feminine looks, is not convincing as a high school student, while Miyazaki - who excelled in Nana - is surprisingly mediocre in a girl-next-door role that is supposed to be tailor-made for her.

Despite its romantic theme, Virgin Snow will only charm those who have never been truly in love.