So-won

I had not heard about "Hope" (aka "So-won" and "Wish") prior to finding it when browsing through the Asian selection of movies. I only needed to look at the movie's cover in order to decide to sit down to watch it. I didn't read the synopsis for the movie, so I sat down to watch it with no anticipations or expectations.

It should be said that this movie is very atypical for a South Korean movie, and I mean that in a positive way. The movie deals with a topic that is taboo and very rarely seen in cinema, much less in South Korean cinema. And writer Ji-hye Kim and director Joon-ik Lee came up with a story and a movie that was brutal, realistic, emotional, realistic and very moving.

The movie tells the story of a family of three whose lives are abruptly uprooted and flipped upside down as the 8 year old daughter is abducted and raped by a sexual predator as she is on her way to school. Barely surviving the ordeal, the mother, father and little girl are left to struggle with the aftermath of the horrible ordeal.

"Hope" boasts some amazing acting performances from everyone on the cast list. And especially Mi-ran Ra (playing the mother), Sol Kyung Gu (playing the father) and child actress Lee Re (playing So-won) really carried the movie so beautifully with some amazing acting performances. I read that Mi-ran Ra had initially stated that she thought herself unable and inadequate to perform in the role of the mother in this movie, but I must say that she nailed it, and she really have a good talent for acting, and she was very convincing in the role. So I was very glad that she decided to perform in this movie after all.

The characters in the movie were very detailed and well-rounded, which added a lot to the overall enjoyment of the movie. It was especially so because the main characters - mother, father and daughter - were characters that you instantly take a liking to and sympathize for.

Director Joon-ik Lee luckily opted to deal with the atrocious event of the rape of a child in a very tactful manner, which was by showing nothing of the act on the screen. But it was very clear afterwards what had transpired. And that was the only way and the right way to deal with the topic, otherwise it would pass a threshold and step into a sleazy and creepy place.

Sure there are some visual aspects to the movie that can be difficult to watch for some viewers in the audience, such as seeing So-won in the hospital immediately after the act, and that visual had a very strong impact. But those are vital to the story and to the flow of the movie, because those visuals indeed tell so much without any words being necessary. The make-up and special effects department also managed to do a good job with their assigned tasks; especially on little So-won, because the injuries and bruises looked very realistic.

The dialogue in the movie is very well-written and very suitable and fitting to the movie. And it is actually clever dialogue which is so well delivered by all cast members. And there was a lot of emotion between the three main cast - Mi-ran Ra, Sol Kyung Gu and Lee Re.

Some of the music seemed rather unfitting for the movie, especially the music that played when So-won was sitting and talking with the social worker. The music they used there was just too upbeat and seemed quite out of place for the atmosphere of the movie. But in general, I will say that the music was adequate for the movie, especially because it was subtle enough to serve as background music.

The movie depicts quite well how the family struggles with the aftermath of the horrible tragedy. And it does tell the aspects quite nicely, both how So-won struggles with coming to terms with what happened to her and trying to return to a normal life. But it also deals nicely with how the mother and father are struggling with the events, and especially how the father is struggling to regain his relationship with her daughter in the aftermath as her trust in males was shattered.

However, do take into consideration that this movie deals with a very heavy and difficult topic and it is one that might cause a stir and not sit well with just everyone in the audience. And since it is a drama that is story-driven and character-driven, then the movie could even seem a bit slow paced and long for some viewers.

"Hope" is a beautiful movie, and I am very glad that I decided to sit down to watch it, because this was a very touching experience and a moving movie. "Hope" is definitely well worth your time, effort and money.