Doogeundoogeun Nae Insaeng

The mediocre review for this and other superb Korean movies here--which those 'raters' probably didn't even watch--are absurd. This is a brilliant, sweet movie with wonderful actors, especially incredible Jo Sung Mok as the bright and charming boy who suffers with such love and grace. Rather than a tragedy, the movie becomes a celebration of him and the joy he brings to others.

I watched this movie even though it didn't have any reviews after seeing the subject line. The story revolves around a family of three, with the son having Progeria. A disease that makes you grow 10 times faster and affects 1 in 30 million.

Mi-ra and Dae-soo were teenage lovers and conceived Ah-reum at a tender age of 17, who now suffers from Progeria. The film doesn't focus much on anything else and derives its plot mainly from the relation that the three leads share. It surprisingly doesn't focus much on the "teenage parent angle" to make the film sappy and I have to say it works brilliantly. The connection between different characters is explored deeply and is presented with immaculate perfection. We see the parents reminiscing about their old life as a singer and an athlete before they had a child. Whereas Ah-reum struggles to come to terms with his approaching death while trying to take in as much as he can before he passes on to another life.

The actors do a very convincing job and you start feeling for them right from the beginning. While the kid on his death bed wrenches your heart the director makes sure that his quips make you laugh the exact next moment. How he connects to the world around him was a delight to watch. You see him as a super positive person in the beginning and also as a scared and irritated being as he approaches his premature end.

My only gripe was with the characters of teenage Mi-ra and Dae-soo. You shouldn't make people in their mid 30's play teenagers. It looked to evident and distasteful. Apart from this the movie was a delight to watch and I would recommend it to everyone.

In a wonderful way this movie was extremely touching and fresh. The angle is uniquely Korean the feelings of the kid for his parents sacrifices was so moving. Lots of Hollywood movies about dying kids or people are more about the dying person romance and finding love. This Korean movie builds up a back story about the parents.

The tone of this movie is right. Things aren't done in a melodramatic way so when the touching moments happen they are more effective as they unfold in a matter of fact and wryly funny way. Restraint is the key here. Kang Dong Won gives a moving and vulnerable performance as a young father. Song Hye Kyo doesn't overact. They both look a bit strange as teenagers but it would have been too confusing to use another set of actors. The child actor is very effective though he seems a bit agile for a sick person.

This movie is unexpectedly more heartbreaking than I thought it would be. A film where a family have to overcome a seemingly insuperable emotional obstacle. Strong performances from the actors especially from Song Hye-Kyo. This movie will leave you emotionally unstable.

First of all I just have to say one thing; wow! This movie was an amazing emotional journey of a beautiful story. It is the kind of story that sinks right into your heart and soul and sticks with you for a long, long time.

I had no idea what the movie was about, but I happened to come across the movie by sheer random luck. And given my fascination with Asian cinema, and the fact that South Korea often makes really outstanding movies, prompted me to sit down to watch "My Brilliant Life" (aka "Doo-geun-doo-geun nae-in-saeng") without a second thought.

This turned out to be a really outstanding, memorable and beautiful movie. And if you enjoy a good drama, then you should definitely take the time to sit down and watch this 2014 movie from director Je-Yong Lee.

The story is about 16 year old Ah-Reum whom is diagnosed with Progeria Syndrome, an ailment that causes his body to rapidly age and now have but months left to live. Given TV exposure, Ah-Reum finds a soulmate in form of a pen-pal, whom also is suffering from some ailment.

The acting in the movie was really good, and all people on the cast list did really good jobs in portraying their given roles and characters. Especially Hye-Kyo Song, Dong-Won Gang and Seong-Mok Cho put on amazing performances and carried the movie so well.

You might want to have a tissue at hand when you sit down to watch "My Brilliant Life", because there are some very emotional and heartfelt moments throughout the course of this movie. But this is not just a tear-jerker, there are also so very happy and uplifting moments here. And the writers Min-Seok Choi, Je-Yong Lee, Hyo-Jin Oh, Aeran Kim and Je-Yong Lee really managed to create something unique and spectacular here.

"My Brilliant Life" is right up alongside with another South Korean drama titled "Oasis". And I can warmly recommend that you take the time to sit down and watch "My Brilliant Life", as it is a very memorable movie.