"Love Next Door" stars Jung Hae In and Jung So Min, revolving around the journey from friendship to love of a childhood friend couple with many ups and downs in life.
Contrary to initial expectations, the film's rating continued to drop, despite many twists and turns and climaxes.
Episode 9 of Tating, which aired on September 14, dropped to 4.54% nationwide, lower than the first episode's rating. By episode 10, despite the main couple's conflict, the drama's rating had increased slightly to 5.54%, which is not a good number for a drama airing on tvN and more than halfway through its run.
There are many reasons for the modest performance of "Love Next Door", including its old and safe script.
Originally a rom-com genre that is easy to watch and accessible to the public, Jung Hae In's films are considered not new, with many details somewhat similar to other famous TV series.
For example, the male lead being a childhood friend, having a one-sided love for many years is reminiscent of "Lovely Runner", "Welcome to Samdalri"; the female lead having a serious illness is similar to "Queen of Tears" or "Big Mouth"; or the detail of favoritism towards children has also been thoroughly exploited by Korean screenwriters in the films "Reply 1988", "Queen of Tears",...
Not to mention, the discussion level of Love Next Door is "less enthusiastic" when on community film groups, the frequency of the film's appearance is quite limited, only 2-3 posts per week.
SCMP assessed that Jung Hae In's new work has content that overlaps with previous films about healing and psychological emotions.
In addition, Jung Hae In's acting has not left an impression. Some people say that he and his co-star Jung So Min do not have the "chemistry" of a couple in love.
"Love Next Door" attracted media attention because it marked Jung Hae In's return to the romantic drama genre after 3 years, since "Snowdrop".
But if "Snowdrop" created a media fever, helping Jung Hae In's name shine, "Love Next Door" was a step back.
"Love Next Door" is lackluster and does not fully exploit Jung Hae In's potential. Choosing an underwhelming script makes the actor bland and struggles to raise ratings.
3 years ago, when paired with Jisoo, Jung Hae In continuously topped global trends on platform X, surpassing the famous "Age 25, Age 21" which aired at the same time.
The kiss scene between the actor and Jisoo in episode 11 was widely shared. The number of views of "Snowdrop" on TikTok reached 4 billion.
The film's content is controversial but still has its own color when following the melodrama direction with a nostalgic historical setting.
Hae In's performance in "Snowdrop" helped him "take off the label" of a good boy, showing the image of a guy with a more rugged and masculine appearance.
Jung Hae In was born in 1988. He continuously appeared in the films "While You Were Sleeping", "The Three Musketeers", "Bride of the Century", "Goblin", "Reply 1988"... and was nicknamed "national supporting actor".
With "Pretty Noona Who Buys Me Food", "D.P" and "Snowdrop", Jung Hae In's name is widely known.
