South Korean comedy film “Delivery” wants to generate some laughs from unplanned pregnancy, and that was fine with me at the beginning. Sure, it is true that anything can be comic material, but the movie does not work as well as intended because it often seems hesitating between being funny and serious, and it is also frequently hampered by its weak story and thin characterization. 

The movie opens with the serious problem of one married dude. Although he is a fairly successful doctor running a woman’s clinic, his father-in-law expects him and his wife to have a baby as soon as possible, but they have somehow failed for a while. In the opening scene, the doctor is notified that he is actually the one having a serious infertility problem, but he lies to his wife that she is infertile, and, after some discussion, they decide to look for any unmarried pregnant woman willing to give away her baby to them.

And such a woman soon comes handy for them by coincidence. When she finds that she is pregnant thanks to her thoughtless loser boyfriend Dal-soo (Kang Taeu), Woo-hee (Kwon So-hyun) promptly decides to have an abortion without much hesitation, and she and her reluctant boyfriend subsequently go to the woman’s clinic of that aforementioned doctor. However, it later turns out that the doctor did not do his job well, so Woo-hee naturally becomes furious, but then the doctor gives an offer she and her boyfriend cannot possibly refuse as a financially struggling young couple. In exchange for giving away her baby, the doctor and his wife will provide Woo-hee and her boyfriend not only a new place to stay during next several months but also a considerable amount of money to be paid during and after that period, and Woo-hee and her boyfriend instantly see a golden opportunity to improve their miserable current status of life.

Once they accept the deal, Woo-hee and her boyfriend’s daily life is certainly changed a lot. They quickly move to a nice and comfortable apartment, and Woo-hee is quite delighted to have some economic freedom while Dal-soo must get a job for being a bit more responsible than before. In case of the doctor and his wife, they lie to his father-in-law that they are going to have a baby, and they hope that this impertinent lie of theirs will make them more favorable to his father-in-law, who is incidentally about to decide on how to divide his wealth among the family members.  

Not so surprisingly, there soon come several setbacks along the story, and we get some laughs from how selfish or opportunistic its main characters can be. The doctor’s wife, who is your average superficial online influencer, has no compunction about disguising herself as a pregnant woman to not only her friends but also her numerous followers out there, and she also attempts to control over almost everything involved with Woo-hee’s pregnancy. While her boyfriend remains obtuse about the ongoing situation, Woo-hee understandably becomes very annoyed about being constantly monitored by the doctor and his wife. Nevertheless, she demands more money for going along with the blatant fraud of the doctor’s wife, and that certainly brings more headache for the doctor and his wife, who have no choice but to accept Woo-hee’s demand.

Although it could push this absurd circumstance further for more satire, the screenplay by director/writer Jang Min-joon, who made a feature film debut here after making several short films, eventually becomes more serious during the last act where Woo-hee and several other main characters come to see more of how tricky the situation can be. While Woo-hee and her boyfriend’s relationship becomes more strained due to her growing concern over her baby, the doctor and his wife become more distant from each other after she belatedly comes to realize how untrustworthy her husband really is. 

In the end, the movie resorts to a melodramatic moment of confrontation, but we only come to observe that from the distance because its main characters remain broad caricatures we do not care that much about. In addition, I do not like how it hastily and clumsily moves onto the following sentimental epilogue, which feels rather jarring compared to the satiric aspects of the story. 

Anyway, the four principal main cast members of the movie try their best in filling their stereotype roles. While Kim Young-min and Kwon So-hyun, who previously appeared together in “Madonna” (2014), are well-cast as a rich but ultimately banal couple, Kwon so-hyun, whose name in Chinese character (權素賢) is a bit different from that of the aforementioned actress (權㕖賢), brings some pluck and spirit to her character, and Kang Taeu, who recently appeared in acclaimed South Korean film “House of the Seasons” (2023), somehow makes his pathetic character more sympathetic than expected. 

On the whole, “Delivery” is modestly amusing in the farcical handling of its serious subject, but I was constantly reminded of several better movies which handled unplanned pregnancy with more humor and depth. While Oscar-winning American film “Juno” (2007) naturally comes to my mind first, I still remember well South Korean film “Ten Month” (2021), which is often painfully funny and touching as how much unplanned pregnancy can affect the life and career of one promising South Korean woman. I incidentally chose it as one of the best South Korean films of 2022, and the rather disappointing result of “Delivery” reminds me that I made a right choice at that time. Believe me, you will have a better time with that film or “Juno”, and then you will be thankful for my little advice.