Bomnaleun ganda

When I finished watching this film, I was reminded of what poet Lord Tennyson said about love: 'Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.

And I agree with others who have commented here on the film that it s only if you have loved and had been loved that you fully appreciate the film.

One aspect of the film that I found most interesting was that Eun-su (Lee Yoeng-Ae) and Sang-woo (Jit-taeYue) met and fell in love because of sound but yet the acting was mostly silent. A simple gesture or a grimace here and there conveyed with clarity the powerful emotions and inner turmoil of these two main characters.

I am grateful that I saw the film. It was so refreshing and so different that it was sort of a catharsis and I actually said to myself, "I needed that" when it was over.

I watched this movie with no expectations and was brought on a roller coaster ride of emotions. All the highs and lows of love are here and presented through visually emotional camera work as well low-key yet powerful acting. When I'd finished watching, there was a gut-wrenching feeling in me that lingered for days. There is little dialogue in this film. Yet it speaks volumes because of the performances of Lee Young-Ae and Yu Ji-Tae. Each look, each gesture, each simple touch said more than a thousand words. If you want a genuine portrayal of a love affair from its beginning to its end, then watch this.

This isn't a film about plot, so I'll concentrate on describing the main characters. Sang-Woo is a single sound engineer living with his family. Eun-su is a radio show host who lives about 4 hours away, by herself in a small, somewhat messy apartment. They meet to record the sound of wind in a bamboo forest for her radio show, and a relationship develops between them. The film observes them over the course of the changing seasons in Korea, starting in the Spring both in terms of the calendar and their relationship.

The pace is deliberate, and the characters don't really change much, but the film is beautiful and, not surprisingly, lovely to listen to, and it's definitely worth seeing. I think that the male lead (Ji-tae Yu) is particularly good in his role. My understanding is that the film won the top prize at Korea's equivalent to the Academy Awards.

I saw this at the San Francisco International Film Festival on 4/21/2002, where an earlier showing was the U.S. premiere. The director was present to answer questions, through an interpreter, and one of his responses indicated that viewers who are more experienced in love tend to identify with the female lead, while those less experienced see themselves in the male character.

From the very beginning, this film reminds me of a Japanese filmmaker Ozu. Well, there are few lines for characters and little music, they exchange their feeling by their facial expression. The film has a stereoscope effect owing to describe the vast nature image. It is all the more interesting that the subtle movement of love is contrasted with that immense spring nature.

I guess the impression of this film is dependent on each person because the film leaves room for thinking more deeply about their relationship and their character. Superficially, Eun-su looks a little wicked since she leaves him suddenly, but I think there is something about her. She was divorced once and she may need someone to rely on. Also, Sang-woo lost his mother and is seeking for maternity in Eun-su. Both want someone to depend on but what they want in their partner is different. So they keep passing each other.

Like August in Christmas(the previous film of Jin-ho Hur), their love is one way. Namely, an young pure innocent person loves an elder person. And the elder one leaves him or her at the end. The film makes me wonder how and what the young learn through love. Do you think he can recover from the loss?

This is another very quiet film by Hur about the relationship between two people. Like "Christmas in August" the direction is such that excessive dialogue is unnecessary. We know what the two people involved are thinking at all times through their eyes, the way the look (or don't look) at each other.

It's a story that anyone who has had any experience in love will immediately recognize and get that "I have been there" feeling. The film doesn't sympathize with one person or the other but you probably will empathize with one of them based on your own experiences in love and loss. Two people fall in love, one of them falls out of love (or does she?), is anyone to blame?