“Just because you’re breathing doesn’t mean you’re alive.”
I watched #Hopeless, a Korean noir film by debuting director Kim Changhoon starring Song Joongki, Hong Xabin, and BiBi.
At 17 years of age, Kim Yeongyu (Hong Xabin) is desperate to escape the bullies in his life—school thugs harassing him and his stepsister Hayan (BiBi), his alcoholic stepfather, and the crippling burden of poverty. Some semblance of hope introduces itself with a wad of cash that solves an urgent problem, but it comes with a warning: “Don’t look for us.”
Nothing in Yeongyu’s life is easy, however, and his desperation leads him to Chigeon (Song Joongki), a middle boss doing shady work that involved stealing and smuggling motorcycles, among other things. Immediately, they form a quiet bond rooted in similar experiences, and Yeongyu falls deeper into the murky waters of gang activity even as he still dreams of a better life somewhere else.
This was really heavy on the heart, and despite my love for Joongki, I don’t think I’ll be able to rewatch it more than once. That said, the title Hopeless perfectly describes the main characters’ lives. They are caught in a vicious cycle of poverty, desperation, and crime, that even someone who has an innately good heart cannot escape without blood in their hands. The story, though simple, was made powerful by the film’s ensemble cast. There were very few light moments in this film, but I liked the banter between the step-siblings Yeongyu and Hayan.
Joongki played a supporting character here (for free!), but his screen presence was no less impactful. In interviews, Joongki described Chigeon as a human corpse, and that was really how this character came off. He didn’t seem like he had any desire to do anything and was only running on autopilot. But let me just say—even if Joongki’s eyes looked empty most of the time, it wasn’t EMPTY, if you know what I’m saying. His eyes looked dead but they carried a certain baggage that almost spilled during that scene in the riverbank/reservoir. I will be thinking of that scene and Chigeon’s final scene for a long time.
Still, I left the cinema with a heaviness in my chest, which in my world means the movie was effective enough to make me feel THAT affected. Film’s rated R-13 for violence and language.
Total run time: 133 mins
Where to watch: The movie is being shown in Philippine cinemas right now. Check out Click The City for movie schedules.
Trigger warnings: I was expecting more violence in this film actually, but compared to other noir movies I’ve seen, this was pretty tame. There are scenes though, that prompted me to cover my face. Anyway…trigger warning for violence, bullying, implied sexual harassment.
Overall rating
I give Hopeless a 3.5 out of 5 popcorns. Though beautifully shot and acted, there were moments where the editing seemed awkward and disjointed. And while I appreciate movies that don’t rely on too much dialogue to tell a story, the movie unfolded a bit too slowly for my liking. A bit of a trim wouldn’t have hurt, and might have made the story tighter.
