There are so many things we take for granted.... Amongst them are those simple things that bring joy and happiness into our lives. The Little Forest is all about those things that we should appreciate.
Directed by Yim Soon-rye, this is a Korean movie that is gentle, contemplative, nourishing, just like a warm bowl of soup on a rainy day.
Plot Summary;
Hye-won, a girl in her twenties is portrayed by Kim Tae-ri who out of frustration, decides to leave her life in Seoul and return to her family home in the countryside. She has gone through failure in her teaching exam and an ugly breakup.
She sought for a slower pace of life, leaving behind the fast pace life in Seoul.
She went back to the countryside, a small, comfortable, a place that was home until her mother disappeared without a trace or a letter, one winter.
Though it's a remote village nearly cut-off from the world, she had good memories of simple things like farming and cooking.
She begins to plant, harvest, and cook her meals using fresh, seasonal foods, using the recipes her mother had once taught her. She also reestablished contact with two of her childhood friends, Jae-ha, played by (Ryu Jun-yeol), an easy-going young man who had opted out of the corporate life for the simple life of farming and Eun-sook, portrayed by (Jin Ki-joo), a tough and happy childhood friend who remained in the village but kept dreaming of escaping from it all, one day.
Through the seasons of spring, summer, autumn, and winter, Hye-won appreciates the beauty of a simple life, with cooking acting as a form of therapy. She is slowing down, charting a new course and escaping a life not determined by society.
Watching this movie, with its slow, steady pulse of a rural lifestyle made me ask about what one really needs to be happy and content? The answer is simplicity.
The visuals, so so beautiful. A countryside filled with Nature, peaceful, serene, tranquil and enjoying all it has to offer.
Of course the sound were soft, organic sounds - rain, birds, fire crackling, soft breeze, as against the noise and screams of an urban lifestyle.
Performances;
Kim Tae-ri gives a powerful performance, I could feel the peace within her as she evolves from the jaded girl, to the more confident. Ryu Jun-yeol brings a nice, charming, and grounding presence.
I am rating this movie (4.5/5)
It’s a gentle reminder that meaning in life can be found in the simplest of things and in the simplest of places.
Thank you very much for your continuous support 🙏