By the Stream
Hong Sang-soo (Our Sunhi) is back at SIFF with another meditative, lo-fi rumination on the creation of art, as a university lecturer calls upon her retired uncle to write and direct a play for her students after their previous hire left under a cloud of scandal.
Tickets
Select showtime for pricing and tickets.
Tuesday, May 20, 2025
- Limited Availability
- On Standby
- Matinee
Wednesday, May 21, 2025
- Limited Availability
- On Standby
- Matinee
After a romantic imbroglio derails a university theater skit, textile artist Jeonim (Kim Minhee) pulls in her estranged Uncle Chu Sieon (Kwon Haehyo) to lend a hand as director. Not unfamiliar to scandals of his own, his presence coaxes both self-reflection and conversation for all involved, on what kind of people they want to be, and what they are willing to move past.
Jeonmin herself is like a leaf in the wind, often sleeping outside and staring off into the vastness of nature. The opportunity for Chu Sieon is almost an apology set up for him to sign, so when he begins an affair with Jeonmin’s enamored boss, tensions flare.
Told mostly over long takes of intimate meals and languid familiarity, we see Jeonim, her uncle, and those in her circle at the university open up to the core of their being, allowing them to explore their paths more honestly under the lubrication of hot spicy food and copious amounts of alcohol that you can almost taste in viewing.
There is poetry in their earnestness. Sometimes in outbursts, sometimes in subtle gestures, they discuss art, the messiness of life, consequences, and even censorship in a way that feels almost improvisational and real.
—Marion Bailey
- Original Language Title: Suyoocheon
- Director: Hong Sang-soo
- Principal Cast: Kim Minhee, Kwon Haehyo, Cho Yunhee
- Country: South Korea, USA
- Year: 2024
- Running Time: 111 min.
- Producer: Hong Sang-soo
- Screenplay: Hong Sang-soo
- Cinematographers: Hong Sang-soo
- Editors: Hong Sang-soo
- Music: Hong Sang-soo
- Website: Official Film Website
- Awards: Locarno Film Festival 2024 (Best Performance)
- Filmography: The Woman Who Ran (2020), Right Now, Wrong Then (2015), Nobody's Daughter Haewon (2013), Our Sunhi (2013), The Day He Arrives (2011), Night and Day (2008)
- Language: Korean
- Has Subtitles: Yes
- Format: DCP
- US Distributor: Cinema Guild
- International Sales: Finecut