THE FOLLOWING REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS OF THE DISCUSSED FILM. READERS DISCRETION IS ADVISED.
Love evolves like every other trait of ourselves, which helps in the long run because it tells us what we really want to be happy and what must be done to achieve it. PLOT
Past Lives follows Na Young and Hae Sung, two Koreans who have been friends since they were 12 years old. They had feelings for one another and had a play date arranged by their parents, but their time together wouldn’t last due to the former and her family emigrating to Toronto for a better life. In 2012, Na Young, now under the American name ‘Nora Moon’ has been residing in New York and pursuing the path of being a writer like her father. For Hae Sung, he had recently completed military service and tries reaching out to her through Facebook. She sees the messages and reaches out in return, resulting in them to catch up via Skype. Their long distance relationship wouldn’t last long either as Nora would decide to stop talking for a while due to attending a writer’s retreat in Monotauk, whereas Hae Sung would move to China for a Mandarin language exchange. In 2024, Nora has been married to an American man named Arthur who she met at the retreat and now live in New York together. Hae Sung is planning to visit New York and reunite with Nora. Arthur feels minimal suspicion when sharing the possibility she maybe married him for the sake of a green card, but she assures him her love for him is real. When the three end up going to dinner together, Nora would translate between both men before eventually speaking to Hae Sung exclusively in Korean. During that exchange, the latter would wonder how different their lives would have been had she never left Seoul. When Nora later goes to the bathroom, Hae Sung apologizes to Arthur for having an exclusive conversation, but the latter doesn’t mind because he’s glad to have met him. When returning to the couple’s apartment, Hae Sung recommends them visiting South Korea while waiting for his Uber. When Nora waits with him, he again shares a wonder on what could happen in their next lives, only for her to reply not being sure. They would share long meaningful looks with each other until the Uber arrives and when he leaves & returns to his home, the film ends with Nora crying in her husband’s arms.
THOUGHTS
Romantic dramas are quite the challenge to make for any generation because the story must have an unpredictable setting. Writer/Director Celine Song knew this better than anyone and pulled off making something smarter than what met the eye. While there are people who have had one soulmate to be content with, she showed the conflict on what it feels like to miss that opportunity for someone else. What Song is sharing is this journey where each bond we make with one individual after another is going to have a long lasting impact that makes personal growth in the long run. It's about accepting destiny where some moments are bound to happen and some are just not meant to. That is the perspective I pick up on when following Na Young/Nora. Greta Lee gives a sensational performance of someone who seeks happiness and wants to make every decision matter to achieve it. She felt genuine chemistry with Hae Sung when they Skyped, reflecting how close they were as kids. But she made a tough call to stop talking to him because the more she talked to him in 2012, the more homesick she would've gotten and she didn't want to feel such when also wanting to build a successful life she seemingly achieved afterwards. The decision wasn't in vain however because the chemistry between the two picked up where they left off and she still found love when she wasn't even looking. This is where things pick up where you expect it, who deserves her more. It can be easy to say Sae Hung because he was her first love and Teo Yoo shows him to be shows him to be shy yet passive. He has to be this way because he can't force anything to happen and lets life play out the way it would. He visibly clings on to what he had with Nora because he was himself when with her and never felt the pressure to be different when talking to her. He cherishes that and doesn't think any other woman can do what she did. You respect all his good intentions, but it's not gonna be enough because she doesn't feel that way like she used to. There isn't a reason to hate Arthur because John Magaro portrays him as an open minded guy who doesn't overthink anything the way others would in past films of this genre. He doesn't have a reason to hate Hae Sung, because he's glad someone made Nora happy before he did. He did put out a possibility of something far off, but didn't let it consume him and quickly accepted the truth. I think Nora picks him over Hae Sung because he represents all the maturity she made for herself and appreciates how they're at the same page for that. You want to be happy with what she decides, but you also notice how it affects others. The closing shot in which she parts ways with her first love is an elite acting lesson because you can so much conflict they have for themselves from the looks alone and have to maintain composure to avoid embarrassing each other; The cinematography nails all the tension going between the two because you don't know what's gonna happen until it does. Hae Sung is able to overcome the tension because by then, he feels content with his future. But it is Nora who shows regret when she breaks down because she knows she broke his heart and wishes she didn't. Thankfully, this moment will make them stronger rather than cripple them. To wrap up, Past Lives will be the 2020's definitive romantic drama for showing how unpredictable of a journey love and destiny will love us. If romance is your thing, check this out when you can.
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