Our Sunhi (2013)

Directed by: Hong Sang-soo
Country: South Korea

Movie Review: “Our Sunhi” is probably the weakest film directed by prolific Korean director Hong Sang-soo in the last few years. The film is almost an extension of his previous studies “The Day He Arrives” and particularly “Nobody’s Daughter Haewon”, where people related to cinema roam through the city having several encounters with acquaintances, fortuitous or not, and exposing their state of mind. Film student Sunhi, always running to go somewhere or hiding from something, shows to be confused about what she really wants in life, including her affective relationships. She asks her former teacher for a reference letter in order to study abroad, but wasn’t so pleased with the truthful statements in it. Nevertheless, a kind of flirtation arises between them and a more 'suitable' letter will come up later. Meantime, she accidentally meets with her ex-boyfriend Munsu who is still in love with her, and gives hope to Jae-hak, a married friend who always had a crush on her. All three men happen to know each other and the story, as you can imagine, won’t end in the way she probably wanted to. The approach relies on the usual simplistic style adopted by Sang-soo: natural and long dialogues, while drinking in pubs or restaurants, and repeated situations in different circumstances or presences. Only this time, the story was not so catchy and drags itself slowly towards a totally predictable ending, failing to surprise. Furthermore, I must confess I’m not a fan of some unexpected and nonsensical camera zooms, so evident in "Our Sunhi", a minor work from a respectable director.