Secret Sunshine (Milyang)

When I was 7 I was convinced God wasn’t real. At night my mother would sit by my bed and we would silently pray. During that time my thoughts were rehearsed, my inner lines memorized, and when my mom would leave my room and close the door, I would stare at the ceiling,…

PopcornIdeology

I don't know what I was expecting from this but I wasn't expecting one of the most unflinchingly critical examinations of the value and limitations of Evangelical Christian Church as a social and spiritual institution that I've ever seen in a movie. If you liked First…

Thomas Flight

Ottway once uttered with great anger, looking at the skies, screaming out loud, “Fuck Faith, Earn it”. Secret Sunshine is undeniable proof how excruciatingly true those words are. The grief of a Mother losing her child is insatiable. It cannot be understood by…

Peaceful Stoner

Lee Chang-dong's Secret Sunshine is a devastating meditation on coping with grief, loss & a constant search for faith, with an immensely raw & unflinching performance by Jeon Do-yeon. It's also kinda cathartic, and it reminds us that even in the dark waters of trauma &…

Nakul

A very deliberate and grounded inquiry into the senselessness and loss of control that surrounds grief; its awkward lurches, complex accumulations, and cruel denial of easy answers. From the opening image looking up towards the heavenly sky to the closing one looking down…

Josh Lewis

a painful reminder that no one can share your deep pain, and the try to do it might often be only performative. en passant Lee Chang-dong’s drama is a reckoning with the patriarchal South Korean society - the provinciality, chauvinism, the occasional violent outbursts. in…

shookone

Secret Sunshine is the odd one out among Lee Chang-dong's overall impeccable filmography. Lee Chang-dong's obsession with the underrepresented has always been a fascinating sight to behold, from the disabled couple in Oasis, to the grandma suffering from the onset of…

nick

Action! - Lee Chang-dong: The Frictions In The Serenity I hope Lee got a great insurance because Jeon Do-yeon needed it after carrying this behemoth of a film on her shoulders. Talking about an incredibly subtle yet nuanced performance. The way she conveyed every stage of…

Rafael "Mister Movie" Jovine

one of the most raw and truly devastating films i've ever seen i'm an absolute WRECK

˗ˏˋ suspirliam ˊˎ˗