SOUTH KOREA/USA, 2008, 89 MIN
DIRECTED BY SO YONG KIM
In Korean with English subtitles
Southeast Premiere
A precious and unpretentious gem to unearth, TREELESS MOUNTAIN quietly unfolds as a simple story based on director's So Yong Kim's early childhood in Seoul. We don't witness six-year-old Jin (Hee Yeon Kim) and younger sister Bin (Song Hee Kim) abandoned by their father, but we see its impact by the way their mother has woven a warm, protective cocoon as protection from the outside world, until she too unexpectedly forsakes them. The children are left first in the care of Big Aunt, who sees them as bothersome, then dumped on grandparents. Two elements make this drama special, one being that we see through Jin's eyes, where the world seems larger and new every day. And while she's old enough to experience the pain of abandonment, she's too young and confused to understand its consequences. Secondly, Kim draws amazing and natural emotional performances from her young leads. TREELESS MOUNTAIN is a gentle and subtle masterpiece that's moving without being melodramatic. Don't miss this journey of a lifetime which offers us the resiliency of children and hope.
DIRECTED BY SO YONG KIM
In Korean with English subtitles
Southeast Premiere
A precious and unpretentious gem to unearth, TREELESS MOUNTAIN quietly unfolds as a simple story based on director's So Yong Kim's early childhood in Seoul. We don't witness six-year-old Jin (Hee Yeon Kim) and younger sister Bin (Song Hee Kim) abandoned by their father, but we see its impact by the way their mother has woven a warm, protective cocoon as protection from the outside world, until she too unexpectedly forsakes them. The children are left first in the care of Big Aunt, who sees them as bothersome, then dumped on grandparents. Two elements make this drama special, one being that we see through Jin's eyes, where the world seems larger and new every day. And while she's old enough to experience the pain of abandonment, she's too young and confused to understand its consequences. Secondly, Kim draws amazing and natural emotional performances from her young leads. TREELESS MOUNTAIN is a gentle and subtle masterpiece that's moving without being melodramatic. Don't miss this journey of a lifetime which offers us the resiliency of children and hope.
