Film Illiterate, wherein the proprietor records movies seen, and sporadic progress through assorted lists of the "best". Originally started after regretfully renting something forgettable for the third time. I've forgotten what, but never again! A tedious endeavour since 2005. Hello. 🙂
A spoiled city boy, Sang-Woo (Seung-ho Yu), is sent to live with his peasant grandmother (Eul-boon Kim) out in the country while his mother looks for work back in the city. He's selfish, ungrateful, and cruel as only a child can be, but her quiet kindness and unconditional generosity eventually win him over.
The Korean countryside is beautiful and beautifully shot, albeit without flair, and the soundtrack is lovely, with an upbeat charm in its refrain that keeps the mood from ever dropping too low. The film as isn't very interesting as film; its power is in it's excruciating veracity. Sang-Woo is a horrible brat, but there's enough innocence to his cruelty to keep him believably childish, and Eul-boon Kim is absolutely perfect as the grandmother. It's an uncomfortable perfection: prior to this role, she'd never even seen a film, let alone starred in one. She's devastatingly real because she is real.
Touching and worth the time, though some viewers might not enjoy the reminder of their own history of selfishness -- I didn't. Still, the unexamined life...