"very unnatural" makeup as an elderly woman. According to Shim, the film's greatest weakness is the storyline, because it is vague about how Yoon-woo's love shifts from So-yul to Yeon-hee, and why Yeon-hee feels no remorse for taking her best friend's lover. Shim said the film's greatest strength is its "immaculate period reconstruction", with accurate sets, props, costumes and music. Themes Highlighted in the film is the conflict between tradition and modernity, illustrated by the classical jeongga and early Korean pop music (later known as trot). At a press junket for the film, director Park Heung-sik explained how he chose the film's setting: "The 1940s was a doomed period for Koreans ... But it was also a period when Korean pop first emerged and experienced its golden age. It was a good period to show the conflict between two female gisaeng who wanted to become top singers." Park concentrated on how So-yul loses herself through jealousy, the "universal emotion", and later finds herself and regrets her past. He said the film can be summed up by the phrase, "Why didn't I know that before, if it was so good". Another theme in the film is the duality that was expected of gisaeng, who were well-educated in the arts but treated as socially inferior, and ultimately existed for men's pleasure. The film's Korean title literally means "flowers that understand words" or "a flower that can talk", referring to gisaeng. This is explained by So-yul's mother in the film: "Gisaeng are like flowers that can understand human speech...We're flowers meant to be picked by men who grant our wishes". Awards 2016 4th BIFF with Marie Claire Asia Star Awards Asia Star Award: Han Hyo-joo References External links South Korean romantic drama films 2016 films Films directed by Park Heung-sik (born 1965) Lotte Entertainment films Films set in 1943 Films set in Korea under Japanese rule 2016 romantic drama films South Korean historical romance films South Korean musical drama films 2010s South Korean films