NYFF Review: Secret Sunshine

"Secret Sunshine" is the Chinese meaning of "Milyang," the name of the town where Shin-ae (Jeon Do-yeon) and her seven-year-old son are moving to start a new life. Shin-ae's husband has recently died in a car accident, and Milyang was the home town he always yearned to return to. Secret sunshine is also a metaphor for everything that is unseen: faith, lost loves ones. Director Lee Chang-dong has a novelist's eye for detail and hidden meaning; he guides us through the dramatic twists and sudden reversals in the young widow's life with exquisite care. Continue reading Jürgen's review.

Secret Sunshine screened at the 45th New York Film Festival. The film does not have U.S. distribution yet.