raw thoughts.

honestly i thought the ending was a bit anti-climatic because the whole point of what made the movie have another layer of depth was the representation and usage of ASL. however, i’m so invested in the characters that i’m just happy they have a happy ending.

the entire movie was like taking a breath of fresh air in a field that stretched on for miles and had green grass under a light blue sky. it’s the epitome of summer, and it could be passed off as a “silent” movie, as there’s barely any talking with the exception of conversations between the male lead and his family.

as someone that likes listening to ASMR now and then to feel a sense of calm, watching this movie was like watching an ASMR video. i was really impressed by all three actors that played the main leading characters. hong kyung i had previously seen in weak hero class 1, but i was impressed once again by the depth of his acting; you can really tell he loves the artistry of it, and studies the characters he portrays in every project he’s in.

i think this film likes exploring the definitions of love and how we communicate regardless of physical hearing abilities. whether it’s romantic love (yong-jun and yeo-reum), familial love (yeo-reum and ga-eul), or love between friends (all three!), communication is one of the most important aspects of sharing and keeping that love in tact. in this movie, it shows that other methods of communication besides word-of-mouth and what you hear can be as effective, if not stronger, to protect the love people have for one another.

i’m a sucker for a good wholesome summer romance, but my favorite arc of the movie was actually the development in the dynamics between the sisters. yeo-reum wants to make sure ga-eul can reach her potential and achieve her dreams no matter what the world tells them, but neglects her own dreams and livelihood in order to commit to doing this. ga-eul is thankful that her sister puts so much effort into helping her reach her goals, but feels that a burden weighs on her to do well and meet her sister’s expectations in order to not let her efforts go to waste. because of this, she is unable to live her dream by herself, and it causes a rift between the sisters as ga-eul runs into conflict with her swimming career. i love the way this conflict occurs and is resolved, as it feels realistic. yeo-reum eventually finds out that she’s been placing a burden on not only on her sister, but also herself to take care of her family instead of her own. at the end of the movie, she’s able to choose a decision that makes her happy, which represents the development she went through.