Ardour is a steamy tale of love, betrayal, sex, more love, and more betrayal. From Korea, this film tells the tale of a happily-married woman who is confronted by her husband’s young mistress, who gives her a right cosh on the head. The couple retire to a small town, the husband all contrite, the wife prone to constant pain from the healing wound.
There she meets a local doctor, who suggests they embark on a physical affair in which neither can fall in love. Just as the touch of a king may cure scrofula, it seems that sex can cure headaches, which gives our girl a reason to continue. As if screaming sex with a handsome man wasn’t reason enough.
Of course, being a small town, People Will Talk. And as rumours of the scandal spread, the lovers begin to realise that they are lovers: both have broken their rule and fallen in love.
This is a tense, intriguing story, with plenty of torrid sex. The characters are fleshed out well, the small-town life is convincing without being stereotypical, and the story moves along with a langorous pace. A thoughtful movie, rather than a mindless bonk-fest, this film will make you think about your own life, and your own decisions. Perhaps you have the courage to make decisions as our heroine does, and accept the consequences as well.