Secret Sunshine

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Secret Sunshine

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2h 22m

Drama

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94%

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31 Reviews

76%

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2,500+ Ratings

Tragedy follows a young Korean widow (Jeon Do-yeon) after she and her son move to another town to make a fresh start.

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Critics Consensus

Plumbing the depths of tragedy without succuming to melodrama, Chang-dong Lee's Secret Sunshine is a grueling, albeit moving, piece of beautifully acted cinema.

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Keith Uhlich

Time Out

May 24, 2023

4/5

Like Michael Tolkin’s end-times melodrama The Rapture, this is a disquietingly ambiguous take on piety.

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A.O. Scott

New York Times

Dec 22, 2010

4/5

The cinematic equivalent of prose that is clear, elegant and lyrical.

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Michael Atkinson

Village Voice

Dec 21, 2010

Buried in the year-end rush but one of the year's best films.

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Ellie Lucas

From the Front Row

Aug 5, 2019

3.5/4

The film can be different things to different people and be equally effective in any of its interpretations.

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Panos Kotzathanasis

HanCinema

Apr 7, 2019

Lee Chang-dong directs a highly insightful, heart-breaking drama about a woman who finds herself completely unable to control her fate, and subsequently, her life, with devastating consequences.

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Josh Larsen

LarsenOnFilm

Nov 6, 2013

3.5/4

The amount of tragedy delivered by this story would feel abusive if a lesser talent was at its center.

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Brian T

@RT94656683 Oct 16, 2026

Easily the best acting performance I’ve ever witnessed, backed by a strongly outstanding direction.

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Mark G

@RT42161674 Nov 25, 2024

In a word....devastating.

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sun w

@RT80342210 Jun 4, 2024

It was only after watching it for the fifth time that I understood the true nature of this work... Being with someone's darkness and shadow requires true courage... Continuing to be a part of that shadow is something greater than religion.

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Dave S

@RT68722908 May 30, 2023

Shin-ae (Jeon Do-yeon) is a woman suffering. After losing her husband in a car accident, she tries to escape the past by moving to her deceased husband's hometown with her young son in tow. However, things quickly spiral out of control when her child is kidnapped and murdered, leaving Shin-ae a thoroughly broken woman. Director Lee Chang-dong's Secret Sunshine is a heartbreaking movie about loss, anger, forgiveness and the perils of blind faith, bolstered by a great performance from Jeon and some effective directorial decisions from Lee, who often allows the camera to linger on a character or scene to maximize the impact. Despite the 142-minute running time, which feels a bit excessive, Secret Sunshine is well worth the time.

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JJJJJJ J

@RT10868636 Apr 30, 2023

A nothing movie. There is no real driving plot. No real themes or ideas. No emotions, no beauty. Just lots of nothingness. This film just didn't work for me. It felt like there may have been some good ideas that it could have played with then it just did nothing. I was not engaged and would not recommend to basically anyone. There are so many better choices in Korean cinema, drama films, films about lose, korean drama films about lose, pain and grievance... yeah just not very good.

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Jul 19, 2020

A masterpiece. A really unique approach to religion told in an unexpecting way. Very nice acting from the female lead.

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Lee Chang-dong

Director

Jeon Do-yeon

Lee Shin-ae

Song Kang-ho

Kim Jong-chan

Jo Yeong-jin

Park Do-seob

Kim Yeong-jae

Min-gi

Jeong-yeob Seon

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Synopsis

Tragedy follows a young Korean widow (Jeon Do-yeon) after she and her son move to another town to make a fresh start.

Director: Lee Chang-dong
Producer: Hanna Lee
Screenwriter: Lee Chang-dong
Production Co: Pine House Film
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Korean
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 10, 2017
Runtime: 2h 22m

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