Penny Pinchers 티끌모아 로맨스 (2011) Synopsis

Even though Ji-Woong (Song Joong-Ki) is a college graduate he still calls his mother for money. Ji-Woong doesn't have a job and it's not easy for him to find a job with his lackluster resume. He lives in a cheap rooftop apartment in a low income area and is five months behind on his rent. Yet, Ji-Woong isn't despondent over his life and, in fact, lives his life like a playboy. Ji-Woong likes women and he doesn't mind wooing women with lies if he thinks it will get their attention.

Hong-Sil (Han Ye-Seul) is a bit of an oddity. She doesn't have any friends and lives her life extremely frugally to save money. She'll rummage through abandoned homes, looking for items to resell for a profit. She also collects glass bottles for recycling and takes a handful of sugar packs from coffee shops whenever she buys coffee. Hong-Sil also lives in the same low income area as Ji-Woong and her rooftop apartment is directly adjacent to Ji-Woong's.

One day, Hong-Sil learns that her neighborhood will undergo redevelopment and the tenants will receive 7 million Won ($6,000 USD) to relocate. Hong-Sil then thinks of a new way to make money. She knows the guy across from her apartment is delinquent on his rent and his landlady is about to kick him out. Hong-Sil then offers to pay for the five months of late rent payments if the landlady will evict Ji-Woong and writes her father's name down as the tenant. The landlady happily agrees.

Now that Hong-Sil has gotten the relocation fee for both apartments she comes across another problem. Where to put her money? Her father is a chronic gambler who frequently comes by for money. Hong-Sil then sees Ji-Woong sleeping outside of the apartment he was recently evicted from. Realizing that he has nowhere to go, Hong-Sil invites Ji-Woong to sleep in a tent in front of her rooftop apartment if he'lll follow her for two months. Ji-Woong readily agrees to do so. He soon learns news to make money and also forms a bond with the quirky Hong-Sil.

Title: Penny Pinchers
Also Known As: 티끌모아 로맨스 / Tikkeulmoa Lomaenseu
Country: South Korea
Language: Korean
Subtitle: English
Year: 2011
Genre: Romance, Comedy, Drama

Cast:

Han Ye-Seul - Hong-Sil
Song Joong-Ki - Ji-Woong
Lee Sang-Yeob - Gwan-Woo
Shin So-Yul - Gyung-Joo

Production Credits:

Director: Kim Jung-Hwan
Writer(s): Kim Jung-Hwan
Producer(s): n/a