Hope (2013)

Beautiful and Horrific Film That Stays With You Forever

There are those films that are so poignantly powerful, that they stay with you forever, even if you only see it once. Such movies that have left a permanent imprint upon me are movies like this one, "Schindler's List," "Sophie's Choice," "Platoon" and still others. These are films that are so disturbingly realistic because they hit you right where you live.

I'm a TEFL teacher who has taught in four different countries, including South Korea. The most depraved crime that always hits me the worst are those perpetrated on children. I've had many children as students over the years, and even the mere thought of something happening to them pains me beyond comprehension. We like to think that there aren't any monsters out there, but sadly, there are. What makes it even more frustrating are inept justice systems, like the one in Korea, that more or less, rewards the criminal based on some insane notion that, just because the criminal can't remember anything due to his intoxication, then he deserves a lighter sentence.

Still, this film is touching in the power of family and friends who rally behind Hope, doing everything that they can to help her and her family recover. I cannot imagine anything more distressful for a parent than to endure something like this. As a parent, all you want to do is protect your children and make sure that they're safe. Hope's father is especially traumatized when he attempts to help clean his daughter up after escaping the maddening media, only to discover horrifically that she's pleading and crying for him to stop. In his attempt to help her, he partially relives and reawakens her assault.

The way in which Hope's father tries to reach his daughter is pure love and magic. He feels that the only way to help her is to step back himself and take on the persona of her favorite cartoon character. If these precious moments don't strike a chord with you, then I really don't know what can.

Another powerfully touching moment is her schoolmate who comes to see her after she's come home. He bursts into tears, wracked with guilt, for not having walked with her to school on that fateful day. Hope's father is especially sweet in comforting him.

Hope has to recover, not only from the assault, but from the effects as well, both physical and psychological. I had a colostomy for the first five years of life, so I know what it's like and what it means to be different in that way. That resonated deeply with me.

The performances in this film are outstanding, especially Re Lee (Hope) who plays the role with such sweetness and purity that you cringe and pray, that what is about to happen, doesn't happen. She has the face of an angel, which makes all the more horrific. Nothing truly graphic is shown, but a couple of images are likely to stay with you.

Kyoung-gu Sul (Hope's father) also turns in a powerful performance as a distraught father trying to heal his daughter as well as deal with the his own anger and outrage concerning Choi (the assaulter) and the inept legal system. Just as he has helped to save Hope, Hope saves him in the end.

"Hope" is one of those movies that I will likely only be able to watch once, but I've already discovered that once is more than enough for me.

I can only pray helplessly that no child should ever endure something so terrible as this. If only we lived in a world where this was true. Children, with their innocence and purity, cast the brightest light, and among the brightest is certainly Hope's.

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This movie keep haunting me specially lately because of the rating. I keep questioning why this movie has such a high rating here. What makes this special anyway?

Then i decided to watch this. And i realised the reasons why.

This movie is such a painful one. Yet, you'll feel a little warm because of the personality of each character. But truly, this movie is a painful one actually. This might look like too painful for me, like this is just another melodrama movie, a fiction one. But if we consider again the events that happen around us nowadays, this one isn't that fiction. Harassment and violence to children is no longer just a fiction, but an event that has now become reality in today's society. This movie is really breaking my heart. I cried, i cursed, i pray, i cried, i cursed, i pray, and so on.

If i were Im So Won i won't be that strong. I would broken inside and outside immediately. It would be hard for me to recover. And also if i were her parent. I don't know if i can even think clearly. It would be hard for me thinking that killing is a crime if what happened to So Won also happened to my dear, my lovely, future daughter. (This sounds weird because i still a teenager. But, during this film I always pray one day this will not happen again in the real world, especially to my beloved)

There are so many good things, or things that can be learned from this movie. While, i can't decide what bad things from this movie. So, just watch this and found out by yourself what happen here and what things that you can learn from here.

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The strongest girl I know

I remember hearing about this case about a year ago and learned a few days ago it had been adapted into a movie, I was hesitant to watch it but it was late at night and thought why not. I cried the entire movie, so many times I felt my heart break into a million pieces that I can’t even comprehend how heart broken Hope’s parents must’ve been. This is not something that should happen to anyone let alone any child. Hearing the sentencing again in the movie truly broke my heart beyond repair. That little girl and her family is so strong, it’s beyond words. May that bastard survive his punishment in hell and burn for eternity, ay his crimes be returned to him in tenfold and may he die a slow and painful death. May the bastard experience similar torture and “forget” before being inflicted pain worse than anything he’s done all over again. Scum of the earth who can’t even be referred to as human, even animals show more compassion to their prey. Words cannot express what I want done to that bastard. May he never know peace in this life and all the ones that come after.

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This movie has to be one of the most heart-breaking movies I have ever seen.

It is a movie that is hard to watch but is so worth it. The movie is based on a true story of a little girl that suffered an enormous amount of pain. Knowing that the movie is based on a true story is truly painful. Throughout the movie I was so captivated and while watching the little girl and her family going through the effects of the terrible accident I understood the amazing message of the movie, that is that you have to have hope that it will get better even through the toughest times.

I have to applaud both the girl actress and the actors playing the parents. Their acting is some of the most believable acting ever. The roles must have been so difficult to play and it was done so well. The movie is truly amazing and I would definitely recommend it! However it is not for the fainthearted.

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sick

For starters I recommend not eating while you watch this movie, I almost threw up several times. This movie is so heartbreakingly amazing. I know amazing doesn't seem like the right word but the acting alone is deserving. The fact it's based on a true story will rip you apart. I've never cried so much through a movie. As a mother and a friend of a victim of sexual abuse, this hits me personally. This film is not for the weak or faint heart. Unfortunately, this shows the dark side of the law. I honestly, will never watch this again and from what I hear the movie seems to have come out not long after the real incident. I condone the real victim for her bravery! The only thing that gets me through these terrible emotions is imagining the "man" got the Jeffrey Dahmer treatment(and I know I'm not the only one thinking it).
ANYWAY, I hope viewers learn something from this film and I pray God chooses us differently...

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Ya que hablé un poco sobre esta película la semana pasada en la historia, me ha apetecido traer la reseña hoy aprovechando que es viernes de película.
Esta película está basada en una historia real y muy dura y se comenzó a hacer más popular hace unos años porque era inminente que el acusado cumpliera ya su pena de cárcel y gran parte de la población surcoreana estuvo en contra de esto.
Como dije en la historia, Hope es una película muy dura, sobre todo teniendo presente que ocurrió en la vida real, y que por lo tanto no recomendaría a las personas que sean muy sensibles y que se dejen impresionar fácilmente. Aún así, a pesar de su dureza, creo que es una historia que merecía ser contada y que merece que el público, no sólo coreano sino mundial, la vea y podamos reflexionar sobre ello.
Por lo tanto, si os interesa la historia y saber qué ocurrió, os invito a que la veáis, eso sí, preparad un paquete de pañuelos porque vais a llorar y mucho.

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Father-daughter relationship

So the father-daughter relationship in this movie was undoubtedly the best part of it, and I really wish we had seen more of the before-after scenes with them. These scenes were so touching that scenes with the mom honestly paled in comparison and I just didn't love her as a character at all; her subplot felt very extra and I was also just not very interested in her conversations or reactions.

What I was interested in was the reaction of the children; I was honestly expecting this movie to be a lot more depressing, with instances of the community reacting with disgust or blaming the parents, or with other students being nosy/gossipy and there being bullying. But this wasn't the case at all and the movie delivered exactly what the title promised: Hope.

That's not to say that it was all positive, as of course there was the commentary on the legal system. It was interesting but they didn't go much into it and I kind of have mixed feelings on that.

Overall, this was a pretty touching movie and I did feel emotions — but it wasn't consistent.

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