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It was only after watching it for the fifth time that I understood the true nature of this work... Being with someone's darkness and shadow requires true courage... Continuing to be a part of that shadow is something greater than religion.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
06/04/24
Full Review
Dave S
Shin-ae (Jeon Do-yeon) is a woman suffering. After losing her husband in a car accident, she tries to escape the past by moving to her deceased husband's hometown with her young son in tow. However, things quickly spiral out of control when her child is kidnapped and murdered, leaving Shin-ae a thoroughly broken woman. Director Lee Chang-dong's Secret Sunshine is a heartbreaking movie about loss, anger, forgiveness and the perils of blind faith, bolstered by a great performance from Jeon and some effective directorial decisions from Lee, who often allows the camera to linger on a character or scene to maximize the impact. Despite the 142-minute running time, which feels a bit excessive, Secret Sunshine is well worth the time.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
05/30/23
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JJJJJJ J
A nothing movie. There is no real driving plot. No real themes or ideas. No emotions, no beauty. Just lots of nothingness. This film just didn't work for me. It felt like there may have been some good ideas that it could have played with then it just did nothing. I was not engaged and would not recommend to basically anyone. There are so many better choices in Korean cinema, drama films, films about lose, korean drama films about lose, pain and grievance... yeah just not very good.
Rated 2/5 Stars •
Rated 2 out of 5 stars
04/30/23
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Audience Member
A masterpiece. A really unique approach to religion told in an unexpecting way. Very nice acting from the female lead.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
02/21/23
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Audience Member
The works of Lee Chang-dong are unique specimens. Though I have only viewed three of his films (Poetry, Oasis, and this film), all of them have made me think more than most other dramas I've seen, as they pose very difficult questions and thoughts on complex situations. Not only that, but they make sure you feel every moment of what a character is going through, making you realize just how difficult their situation actually is because of how immersive and compelling his stories are.
Secret Sunshine is not easy viewing and not for viewers who require happy endings and easy answers to dilemmas. No, quite the opposite in fact. It challenges you, it makes you think, and it may even make you hurt as you feel the moments of pain and struggle with its complex dilemmas and devastating, soul-crushing moments. It's a drama about tragedy that feels very real and holds back nothing, allowing the viewer to immerse themselves and feel every moment that happens to the main character.
*WARNING: SPOILERS*
After the death of her husband, Lee Shin-ae, and her son, Jun, have decided to relocate to her husband's old town of Miryang (Translates to Secret Sunshine) from Seoul, but their car has broken down.
She meets the town mechanic, Kim Jong-chan, who is friendly and amicable enough, and they become friends of sorts. Kim even develops a crush on the attractive Lee, but he keeps his attractions to himself.
Lee becomes a piano teacher, but finds it difficult to really connect with anyone in town, especially as some are rather gossipy about her or talk crap about her behind her back, especially with how she talks about wanting to buy land. The only person she connects with is Kim, who is willing to help her out whenever she needs it.
Despite some minor hiccups with starting anew, life is going okay for Lee and her son. It seems as though things will work out for them.
However, Lee's life is turned upside down when she comes home and finds her son is missing. She then receives a phone call from a man saying that he has kidnapped her son and demands ransom money, under the assumption that she is wealthy because she had talked about buying land (When in reality, as she tries to explain to the kidnapper, she only said so to impress people). The kidnapper is not swayed and demands the money along with a drop-off location.
She empties her bank account of all her savings and goes to the drop-off point, leaving the money as instructed. But it is all in vain, and her son is found dead and she is thrown deep into the depths of depression and unfathomable horror as her life is shattered to pieces in an instant. The killer is caught, but the damage is already done.
In her state of grief, while wandering around with Kim at her side, she stumbles upon a church service and curiously wanders in (It had been suggested by the town pharmacist earlier in the film, before the tragedy, that she seek out Jesus in her life), and has a complete break down during the service.
She ends up becoming a born-again Christian and finds solace in the church and its members, attending meetings and such. Even Kim follows suit, wanting to be near her.
Things hit a turning when Lee gets the courage to visit her son's killer in jail with the intention of forgiving him for his unspeakable crime and receiving closure so she can go forward in life and be at peace.
But the killer, too, has found God and already asked for his forgiveness, so hers is not necessary. By such doctrines, he has already been absolved in God's eyes.
After leaving the jail, Lee collapses in the parking lot and her life falls apart once more, as her last bit of power over her son's killer and her one chance at moving forward in life is taken from her cruelly by the hands of fate.
She becomes disillusioned with religion and her life falls into a downward spiral of which it might never recover from, while her friend, Kim does his best to save her from herself.
I may have revealed much of the plot, but it's hard not to give details because there's a great deal to discuss, especially with its themes of tragedy and how it explores the fleeting nature of faith and the belief in the motives of a higher power.
The film's story explores tragedy in a way that will make you feel because it all feels so real and it hurts pretty damn bad at times because of it. It shows how everything can be taken away in an instant. It's a harsh film that hits you like a punch in the gut as these events unfold.
However, it's not just death in the way tragedy takes hold. It also ties directly to the story's exploration of faith. Because of the particular questions and outcomes shown in this film, some have accused it of being anti-Christian. In reality, it is no such thing.
No, the film is not Christian, per se, but it explores it from a secular perspective, posing difficult questions as it does so. One of the angles it shows is how it can positively affect people, showing their happiness and contentment in life, and even how it can lead to potential growth even in the face of tragedy, allowing one to go forward in life. It certainly does show how it can be a good thing in life to have faith and to believe in the benevolence of a higher power. Religion is perfectly capable of great things and contributions in life.
But, the story also looks at the nature of faith on a more critical, scrutinizing level, especially with how it works on an earthly level during life's many complexities. This is no more apparent than the jail scene when the killer has already been absolved by God for his crime, not needing the forgiveness of Lee, which takes away her power over him and control over her own life that she is just starting to put back together.
It basically shows how fragile faith actually can be, and certainly questions the benevolence of a higher power when such things occur.
It looks at both sides and offers no easy answers, much like how life actually is. I have certainly enjoyed many films that were melodramatic and perhaps answered things a little too conveniently, but it is rare to come across a film that looks at life and its darkest moments in a more brutal, honest way with difficult, perhaps impossible questions to answer in the process. It's not a matter of black and white - much of it is grey.
The acting, as to be expected by a film with such complex dilemmas is superb - never succumbing to overwrought emotions.
The best performance, as she is the lead, would have to go to Jeon Do-yeon as Lee Shin-ae. Her performance felt very real - a woman trying to start anew with her son, but also with her own flaws. She's not some perfect character, she's human and makes mistakes like the rest of us.
She's perhaps a bit too boastful as she tries to win over the townspeople who disapprove of her, and she could improve some areas of parenting (You know, like any parent), but she means well and wants the best for her son and herself. She is a flawed, but good person who has the most unimaginable thing happen to her with the loss of her child and how she tries to cope with it, only to get beat down repeatedly by cruel fate.
You feel the pain. You feel every moment she is going through - through her eyes, through her subtle expressions, and through her actions. All of it feels real. There is not a single moment of insincerity in her performance. I believe it to be one of the best performances we'll see this century of film-making. It's that damn good.
Special note must also be given to Song Kang-ho, as Kim Jong-chan, the mechanic with a crush on Lee. While he has a crush on her, he mostly keeps it to himself, showing it instead through helping her out with tasks or even becoming a Christian and joining her church so he can be near her.
But, he's not simply following her around. He's also a friend to her in a place where she is mostly rejected and treats her with kindness. He also does his best to help her during her darkest of times and guide her out of the darkness.
This becomes no more apparent than the final scene in the film, which seems to suggest Kim is Lee's guardian angel of sorts in the flesh through a very subtle, very quiet moment that is something my words can never do justice to. It's something that just needs to be watched, like the rest of this film. But needless to say, despite its calm demeanor, it's a very powerful moment.
For entertainment, this film is only for viewers who are up for watching tough, emotionally-complex dramas that will hit you like a punch in the gut over and over again. It's not pleasant viewing - it's quite sorrowful, but it's not without its brief moments of perhaps what could be described as benevolence from the higher power this film seeks to scrutinize and understand in its motives - like the ending, particularly.
Secret Sunshine joins the ranks of the greatest dramas I've ever seen. It's tough viewing - one that will break your heart, sometimes make you feel like you're being beaten down, give you tough questions to awful dilemmas, and then some. But, it's well worth it to explore one of the most emotionally-complex and devastating dramas ever made. It's so powerful, it's one of those films that if I think about, there are times when I'm on the verge of tears because of the impact it had on me.
I also recommend it highly to Christian viewers to watch and look a the dilemmas and questions this film poses. If you would like a challenge of sorts and seek to perhaps understand the nature of your faith more, this is something to watch, on top of being highly recommended viewing for those who claim to enjoy dramas.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
02/26/23
Full Review
Audience Member
It's been a while since I saw "Shi" from Chang-dong Lee. A film I remember as a slow grinder drama. This is one of the earlier break-trough films from the same director and it follows the same groove.
A quite young single mom moves with her son to the city of Milyang - the birthplace of her dead husband. She tries to astablish a life, but it's not easy. She get some friends, but I'm not so sure that she is satisfied with what she gets as a circut. Things get worse, a lot worse.
We follow her struggles troughout this slow, sad film. She tests herself and her new town and surrountings is also giving her a solid test. It's very well built, supported by terrific acting. Not much I don't like about this film - even the long playtime is all right.
The (anti) christian vibe is strong and it is a certain undertone here. I like this feature, putting up some serious religious questions.
The character done by Kang-ho Song, from brilliant "Memories of Murder" is debatablygreat and another lift for me here. A sober and honest film that deals with real pain and grieving.
8 out of 10 snores.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
01/17/23
Full Review
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