K-drama Review: The Trunk

The Trunk is a dark, slow-burn psychological drama with an art house feel. It's sophisticated, stylised, and very character-driven.

English Title: The Trunk (2024)

Writer: Park Eun-young

Director: Kim Kyu-tae

Length: 8 Episodes

Tropes: Contract marriage, fake relationship, slow burn romance, psychological manipulation, stalker.

My Score: 4/5

Description: Desperate to win back his ex-wife, Lee Seo-yeon (Jung Yun-ha), troubled music producer Han Jeong-won (Gong Yoo) agrees to a one-year contract marriage with the mysterious Noh In-ji (Seo Hyun-jin.) This complex new relationship forces both Han Jeong-won and Noh In-ji to face their past emotional traumas and broken relationships.

If you enjoyed this show, then watch: My Mister, The Glory, Our Unwritten Seoul, Hotel del Luna, Our Blues and It's Okay, That's Love (the last three are all by the same director)

There's a magical quality to the first time you watch a show - the feelings of surprise and joy as you experience the plot twists and characters for the very first time. When I re-watch my favourite shows, I try to recapture those feelings that made me first fall in love with it, but it's never quite the same when (as my business partner Julie would say) you know where the metaphorical bodies are buried. I wish I could watch When The Phone Rings or Crash Landing on You again for the first time, without knowing what lies ahead. The Trunk, however, is entirely different. 

This is a show that, while I enjoyed it the first time, I had to re-watch it to really appreciate its nuances. The first watch was necessary to find out "where the bodies were buried," so that on the second watch I was freed up to focus on the subtle undertones and dynamics between the characters.

The Trunk's genre is hard to categorise. I've seen some reviewers call it a mystery or a psychologic thriller, but the mystery elements are secondary to the unfolding personal drama between the characters, and the show lacks the edge-of-seat tension and action I'd expect from a thriller. In my opinion, The Trunk is best described as a slow-paced, atmospheric drama about the psychology of fragile, broken people suffering from tortured pasts and repressed emotions. It explores themes of psychological manipulation, revenge, control, grief, trauma, the nature of marriage, and the intricate nature of human relationships.

It's a visually stunning show, with the pacing, lighting, framing, and dark colour palette contributing to the discordant, uneasy feeling that permeates the entire story, creating a sense of the claustrophobia that the characters feel, trapped in their damaged lives. The stark, cold house that forms the backdrop to most of the story increases the tension and atmosphere, echoing the characters' loneliness and isolation. The house is almost a character in itself. Every element is intentional - even the designer Louis Vuitton trunk that gives its name to the story is an obvious metaphor for the characters' emotional baggage. 

The show also has a powerful soundtrack, discordant at first then growing more melodic as the characters slowly grow and heal. (I also adore both versions of the song Savior, performed by Kyuri and Isaac Hong, and would love to see the song used for a competition figure skating routine!) 

While The Trunk meets all my criteria for a 4-star rating (namely, I've re-watched it a few times and enjoyed it each time) it won't appeal to everyone. For those who prefer faster-paced romantic K-dramas, and stories with action, banter, or intricate plots, then this is not the show for you. Aside from the slower pacing, the mystery is told in a non-linear style that can make it a little hard to follow, with the mystery plot line thing place on a different timeline to the bulk of the story. Finally, don't expect the classic romantic K-drama happy ending where everyone is healed and happy. Yes, the story has a sufficiently positive and optimistic ending to meet the the official criteria for a romance, but there's almost an existential feeling (or perhaps it's just realistic?) which mirrors real life where not every wound is healed and not every relationship or plot point is tied up with a neat bow.

It may seem like I've listed more cons than pros for The Trunk, but there is one pro that outweighs any con, makes this show incredible and worth watching, and which earns an entire star on its own: the stellar performances. 

Every single actor brings their A-game, bringing depth and complexity to their characters. Every character is complex, with layers that slowly peel back as the drama unfolds. And, for me, this show really confirmed Gong Yoo's exceptional talent. I love that every role I've seen him in is different, that he has the emotional range to play everything from comedy to horror to action to drama. If you watch The Trunk wanting to see Kim Shin from Goblin or The Coffee Prince, you'll be disappointed. But if you watch this to enjoy the incredible emotional nuances Gong Yoo brings to every role, then you'll walk away satisfied.

I'll end this review with a quote from NDTV Movies' review: "Gong Yoo's performance as Han Jeong-won is nothing short of mesmerising. He brings a raw vulnerability to the role of a man tormented by both the guilt of his past and his current, unsatisfactory life. His character's emotional arc is filled with nuance, as Jeong-won vacillates between desperation for love and the cold detachment that his circumstances demand. Gong's mastery over his character's internal struggles allows him to portray a man at war with himself, caught in a cycle of seeking comfort in the wrong places."

Have you watched The Trunk, and if so, did you enjoy it? If you haven't yet watched it, check out this trailer, and let me know whether it entices you to give The Trunk a chance.