Birthday (2019)

I usually don't write reviews but this movie doesn't have one... and i thought that it deserves one so here i am ! I will try my best to write a good one.

Story : This movie follows the life of Jung Il & Soon Nam family after the Sewol tragedy that happened in 2014 and killed 304 people mostly students (250) from Danwon High School.
Jung Il and Soon Nam are a married couple that lost their oldest son in the tragedy. They have another daughter Ye Sol. The movie starts of with Jung Il coming back from abroad. During the movie we see him and his wife trying their best to reconnect with each other while raising their daughter and bearing the pain caused by the loss of their child.
It's a slow paced movie showing the process of mourning a loved one. The plot is simple but it's a beautiful and heartbreaking story. The director did a great job at showing the grief of people, it was realisticly shot. Even if it's slow paced I didn't felt bored at all. Instead i was invested in the story and i was grieving with the family. I even cried at some parts of the movie. It shows how different people, mourn differently and how we must respect their grief even if we're not directly affected. It also shows the pain of other families and friends and how they all try to support each other and how they all deal with the loss of a loved one.
The ending was really beautiful (but it really makes you cry a river). I felt like it was fitting and perfectly ended the movie.

Acting : Sol Kyung Gu and Jeon Do Yeon were amazing in this movie. They gave such a powerful performance. We could see the pain the characters felt in their eyes. It felt so real when they cried my heart broke. Kim Bo Min did also a good job as Ye Sol. All the support characters were great too, they all did a good job at portraying their characters. We could felt the pain through all of them.

Music : I can't really remember any of the music.

Rewatch value : We can definitly watch this movie multiple times. Sure we knows what happens, but as it's a story about life and tragedy we can watch it again without feeling bored.

Overall it's a slow paced movie about life, loss and mourning. The acting is amazing and makes you feel the pain of each characters. If you enjoy slice of life stories or stories that makes you cry then this is for you.

Warning : You will need a box of tissues while watching this !

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Grief Knows No Boundaries!

14/01/2023

This is not based on a true story, but takes elements of what likely happened after the Sewol ferry disaster back in 2014 as well as what most might experience when losing a loved one.

This story mostly focuses on one family that loses their 16 year old son in that incident and how each family member is impacted by his loss as well as others that knew him.

Grief knows no boundaries when it comes to a parent losing a child, a sibling losing a brother or sister, a relative losing a relative or a friend losing a friend.

We see a mother that has difficulty moving on who is stuck in grief and still in mourning, an estranged father trying to make amends and re-establish himself in the family and a young daughter being caught in the crossfire of that grief and sorrow standing in the shadow of her oldest brother who is no longer there.

There is definitely a void that can never be filled when we lose friends or family due to tragic circumstances.

About his friends...

His friends come into play as well - one that held him on pedestal, one that has survivor's guilt and even his best friend who is grieving deeply as well only can't find it in himself to interact with the family - especially the grieving mother. There is one part near the end in which he, the best friend, says to her he doesn't know why he avoids her yet I am sure most of us can guess why? Sometimes we don't know what the right words are to say or how to act towards someone that has lost someone to death, also, it can be a cruel reminder of who is no longer in our own lives anymore.

So, with this movie we also get to witness what it is like for others beyond the family just a bit.

It is a slow burn film yet it isn't really boring and the point of it I feel is powerfully delivered.

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