The ending of Pavane is bittersweet, to say the least. While the film progresses on a hopeful note, an anxious feeling always seems to loom over it until the resolution. Directed by Lee Jong-pil, Pavane’s (파반느) stars Go Ah-sung as Mi-jeong, Byun Yo-han as Park Yo-han, Moon Sang-min as Lee Gyeong-rok, Lee Yi-dam as Se-ra, Seo Yi-ra, Han Yu-eun, Lee Bong-ryun, Park Hae-joon, and Woo Jung-won.
According to Netflix, the film’s description reads:
“Pavane follows three emotionally closed-off individuals who slowly become a ray of light for one another, ultimately learning to face life and love again.”
Pavane Ending Explained
In Pavane, Lee Gyeong-rok is a popular actor, Lee Dong’s illegitimate son. The actor abandons him and his mother after becoming successful and marrying a rich woman. Gyeong-rok’s mother falls into depression and takes her own life. As an adult, Gyeong-rok works part-time at the Utopia department store’s parking lot. He dreams of becoming a contemporary dancer, but his immediate goal is to visit Iceland and see the aurora borealis with money from his job.
Also Read: Pavane Review: Moon Sang-min and Go Ah-sung’s Solemn Love Story You Hope Doesn’t End in Heartbreak
At work, he comes across Park Yo-han, a free-spirited person who takes him under his wing. While skateboarding around the store’s basement, Gyeong-rok comes across a mysterious woman in the storage unit. Yo-han explains that everyone calls her a dinosaur, and compared to others, she is a full-time employee who was hired after scoring the highest marks in recruitment evaluations. Since then, Gyeong-rok has kept noticing her at work.
One day, he sees her carrying multiple gift bags to a nearby concert hall and offers help. There, Maurice Ravel’s pavane pour une infante difunte plays on stage, and he sees the woman move her fingers in the air as if playing the piano. He strikes up a conversation, and she reveals it’s her favorite piece — heard on an ad-free classical radio station. She introduces herself as Kim Mi-jeong.
Feeling acquainted enough, Gyeong-rok tries eating lunch with her. But as soon as he sits down, the whole cafeteria stares, as Mi-jeong is an outcast whom everyone usually avoids. He continues asking questions, but she grows uneasy and leaves with her lunch. Later, Yo-han helps him by bringing her to the Kentucky bar, which they often visited. From there, Gyeong-rok and Mi-jeong start getting to know each other better.
When other people at work ask Yo-han about their relationship, he lies that Mi-jeong is Gyeong-rok’s distant cousin. While Gyeong-rok continues hanging out with her in record stores or walking home together. Yo-han even gives them extra walkie-talkies to communicate, as Mi-jeong has no cellphone. Se-ra, who works as a saleswoman at the store, feels envious of their relationship and often ridicules Mi-jeong in front of Gyeong-rok.
Due to bullying and feelings of unworthiness, Mi-jeong turns down Gyeong-rok, saying that he might go away after some time, but she will be stuck working with the same people for years. Yet, he continues to show up for her, and they confess their feelings. Gradually, Mi-jeong also starts standing up to Se-ra. However, Yo-han feels neglected, as Gyeong-rok and Mi-jeong do not hang out with him as much.
He confides in the bar owner that he is writing a novel and is divorced. He once brought Mi-jeong as his “unattractive” girlfriend to a meet-up where his father tried to set him up. Unaware of the ruse, she pitied him instead of getting angry. When Gyeong-rok enrolls in a school and starts to learn dance professionally, Mi-jeong and Yo-han feel a bit distant from him and question their own futures.
It is then revealed that Yo-han is the departmental store owner’s son. He was born out of an extramarital affair, and his mother faced a tragic death because of it. The family wants him to live by their rules, but he refuses to do as they say. Feeling depressed and hopeless, Yo-han tries to take his own life but survives. When Gyeong-rok and Mi-jeong come back after seeing him in the hospital, Gyeong-rok shouts at her for crying incessantly in the train, attracting everyone’s attention. Mi-jeong gets off the train while Gyeong-rok stays inside and leaves.
They reconcile soon after when Gyeong-rok apologises. He invites her to meet his dancer friends. While getting ready and applying makeup for the first time, she pauses while looking in the mirror and feels dispirited. While parting after meeting his friends, she hints at wanting to spend the night together by saying she wants to eat ramen at his place. But he takes it literally and says that he only has cup ramen. She brushes it off and heads home.
What Gyeong-rok doesn’t realise it’s the last he’ll see of her. Mi-jeong suddenly moves away without contact. Later, she sends him a letter explaining that she has been an outcast since childhood. She is comfortable being alone, and while being with Gyeong-rok made her happy, she also started to feel scared and anxious, thinking that there might come a day when he won’t need her anymore. She says that she left for herself and her peace of mind, instead of getting heartbroken later on by him.
This sends Gyeong-rok spiraling down to his old ways, roaming around passively without any ambition in life. He comes back to his part-time parking job, and Se-ra takes this chance to get close to him. She nudges him to come along to the nightclub and have meals with her, but everything reminds him of his time with Mi-jeong. Seeing him cry at the record store, where he used to visit with Mi-jeong, Se-ra gets her information from the hiring manager and gives it to Gyeong-rok.
He decides to make Mi-jeong a blue scarf and sends it along with a letter that says he will wait for her at Jangjawon bus station on December 24, from 5 pm onwards. It’s upto her whether she wants to meet or not, but he will wait. On that day, Gyeong-rok’s bus broke down due to a snowstorm, and he ran to the bus station hoping Mi-jeong would be there. Luckily, she waits for him until he arrives and they have dinner together. They share an intimate moment while dancing, but part ways as Mi-jeong states that it was getting late.
Gyeong-rok gets on his bus, but it halts soon after, and he comes running back, asking Mi-jeong if it means that they are back together or not. He wants them to be together and professes his love to her. They kiss passionately, and he boards the bus again with the promise of meeting on December 31 at 3 pm near the Kentucky pub. However, Gyeong-rok does not show up while Mi-jeong keeps on waiting.
The story takes a leap and shows Yo-han all better, giving a radio interview as the author of a newly released book. He says that his book is based on the love story of his two close friends, but hesitates to answer if they are living happily together. Mi-jeong is shown to be working with kids, and Gyeong-rok is nowhere in sight. She receives a copy of Yo-han’s novel and reads the final chapter of how their story ends.
She reads that while going back on December 24, Gyeong-rok’s bus was caught in an accident, and he woke up injured with memory loss. He didn’t remember Mi-jeong or his promise to meet on December 31. His love for music doesn’t fade away, and he visits a candlelight classical concert and starts remembering Mi-jeong. Miraculously, she sat right beside him, and they reconnected. He then fulfills his wish to visit Iceland with Mi-jeong, and the book ends on this note.
What happens to Gyeong-rok in Pavane?
After reading, Mi-jeong calls Yo-han and says that the ending is too happy. While he keeps asking if it will be a best seller, in reality, Gyeong-rok dies in the accident. Mi-jeong feels guilty letting him go that night, but it also becomes a precursor for her to live her life to the fullest. She doesn’t hide or feel inferior, and likewise, Yo-han achieves his dream of becoming a writer. Gyeong-rok might not be with them, but he left such an impact that made his friends live their lives without fear.
Pavane is available to watch on Netflix.
Also Read: Single’s Inferno Season 5 Reunion: Which Couples are Still Together After the Show?
Leave a Reply