The Way Home

I cried so loud for this movie twice on one day. (T_T) one world for this movie is: "i.n.s.p.i.r.i.n.g"

This movie is so simple (its become their power)! Tell about the relationship between grandmother and grandson which have the contrast live style because they live on different generation.

The story begin on a fine summer's morning, when little Sang-woo and his mother board a bus to the country side. His mother is taking him to live with his 75-year-old mute, (but not deaf) while she looks for a new job after a business venture failed in . Eventually they reach their destination, a dusty bus stop in the Korean countryside near an unsophisticated village.

When i saw the village at first, i suddenly remember my own village, but i guess their village is more primitive then mine, there is no running water, no electric, far from the main road. His grandmom must go down to the hill, to the river that far from her home, taking water or washing her clothes. At first, Sang-Wo make me really resentful because he has no attitude, no respect to his grandmother, he even wanting to look at her!! seems so busy with his toys and junkfood! But, many things happen and change him. Such as when Sang-woo's game's boy runs-out of batteries so he asks his grandmother for money, but.. you know his grandmother is so poor so he didnt get it and he (....) ^^ the other story is.. when he ask about Kentuky Fried Chicken but his grandmother give (.....)! The other interesting part is when he meet friends there! (I dont want to tell you more, coz its better if watch this and get inspiration by your self xD )

I love the way he grow to love his grandmother but still looks not really care~ (thats so emotional part!) The sadness part is knowing that Sang-woo must go back to his mother, and let his grandmother alone again. So, at the night before he go he draw and write "I Miss You" and "I am Sick"  He is so worried because she cannot telephone, speak, and, because she is unable to read or write he attempts to teach her to write two sentences: I Miss You, and, I Am Sick. When she practices without much success, he tells her to send him a blank letter if she is sick, and he will know it is from her, and that she needs him to come to her side, which he will do right way. That's so touching!

Its very powerfull and full of value :)

There are many wisdom we can get from this :
1.  Grandmother and grandson have different generation, its really important to respect and still open-mind open-heart!
2. Grandmother generation must be live so hard, because they really respect rice! (which we are often forget that value!)
3. There is no generation gap to say and show love with care and sincere!

and my last word is..

lets watch this movie!

its touching in its mood!

~*syafiyah*~

[07.08.12]

btw, i get the nice interview with the director of this movie on asiancociety.com

The Way Home did very well at the box office in Korea. A reviewer wrote that she was shocked to see how well this film performed since it contains no trace of commercialism, yet it managed to outperform both Hollywood blockbusters and star-studded local movies. What do you think has made your film appeal so widely to audiences in Korea?

Before I made this film, the people who were involved were all worried because it did not have any stars in it and also had a very low budget. These types of movies never make it in the box office. But this movie broke all of those rules and so people who are in the industry were really surprised.

I think that one of the reasons for its success might be that all of us have a grandmother. For those of us whose grandmother has passed away, the movie makes us feel remorse, regret, and longing for her. And for those whose grandmother is still living, we think to ourselves that we are going to treat her better from now on and be good to her. I think this has meaning for all of us. It is something that we all can experience. I think that is a reason why it did well with audiences. 

Why did you choose to use first-time actors in The Way Home? You searched very hard in the countryside to find the right woman to play the grandmother. What drew you to Kim Eul-Boon?

I use non-professional actors not because I wanted to make a film like a documentary; that was not what I was thinking. Even when I was writing the script I knew that only people who have lived in such remote villages would be able to convey a certain feeling. It would be unavoidable that they would have never acted before.

In finding the actor who played the grandmother, somehow I thought that once I found the location to shoot this movie, that the grandmother would be waiting there for me. It was like a miracle. When I decided on the village and went there, I saw her.

Why did you choose to make the character of the grandmother mute?

My main concept was that the grandmother is nature -- the power and strength of nature. Nature does not talk and so the grandmother also does not talk. Also, she represents the person who gives love without words, which can sometimes be larger and more powerful.