"Little Forest" is an underrated masterpiece.

Introduction

The first movie I want to introduce to Kenny’s Raspberry Cloud is “Little Forest”. Words aren’t sufficient enough to describe how much this movie means to me. So, I tried to settle the score by writing a comprehensive review and theme analysis in this blog post. But, even with this wordy post, nothing beats watching the actual film yourself. [SPOILERS IN ARTICLE]

Film Synopsis

Little Forest (2018) is the Korean film adaption of the Japanese slice-of-life manga, Little Forest, by Daisuke Igarashi. In the Korean adaption, directed by Soo Rye Rim, Hye-won [Kim Tae Ri] moves back to her rural hometown after failing her teacher’s certification exam; in order to clear her head and escape city life. Through staying in her childhood home, farming, and connecting with old friends—she discovers her true direction in life.

Hye-won's journey begins

When Hye-won first arrives in her hometown, she tries to keep a low profile, by staying hidden from her friends, family, and neighbors. She tells herself that she’ll only stay for two weeks to refresh herself, then head back to her job, boyfriend, and apartment in the city.

When I first saw this part of the film, I thought Hye-won was being completely reasonable. I mean, who wouldn’t want to go home and disconnect for a while after being caught up in the stuffy city? Isn’t that the definition of a vacation or a retreat? My first impression was that she was not running away, just simply recharging.

But day by day, we start to realize, her return to Seoul isn’t going to happen anytime soon. As each week passes, and another harvest season is added to her calendar, we watch this two-week “vacation” transform into an extended stay that lasts several months.

Slow living, or hiding out from reality?

The entire time Hye-won is at her childhood home, I can’t help but feel the undertones of her running away from her responsibilities in the city rumbling under the surface. Almost like building a house on the side of a dormant volcano, and ignoring the researchers' copious warnings because there “hasn’t been an eruption in years.” She’s living on top of a simmering volcano, but all she sees around her is a peaceful mountainside.

The almost hypnotic allure of living secluded from other people and responsibilities is shown effectively through every highly curated shot of her making garden fresh meals and enjoying them in nature. The cicadas singing, chickens cooing and dog barking seems to fill up every empty moment with peaceful white noise that drowns out any nagging feelings pulling at her subconscious.

Hye-won even starts to help her aunt out at her family farm to fool herself into believing that she’s never lived a life separate from her childhood home. Her childhood friend Jae-Ha [Ryu Joon Yeol] even points this out, much to Hae-won’s annoyance and reluctance. She even muses over the fact that she only pretends to work hard to make up for the fact that she’s a chronic runner.

You can run, but you can't hide (at least not forever)

As the film slowly progresses we start to feel the underlying tension caused by Hye-Won’s actions from the people closest to her. One night, in particular, Eun Sook [Ki-joo jin] was complaining about how much she hated her manager at work, and the mental toll of working under a shitty boss. In response to her complaining, Hye-Won just tells her to quit her job if she hates it that much, to which Eun Sook replies, “Is quitting really that easy for you?”

Hye-Won is genuinely shocked at her friend's reaction because she wasn’t expecting to be chastised for a behavioral pattern that she thought was normal. At this moment in the film, Hye-Won has another realization— running away from your problems isn’t the only answer to any sort of difficulty in your life.

When I think of this shift in Hye-Won’s perspective, the song, “Can’t run forever” by Vacation manor comes to mind. Sometimes certain conflicts in life can only be resolved through direct confrontation. This is where the story experiences a tone shift, that leads Hye-Won back to Seoul to tie up loose ends, and finally plant permanent roots back in her hometown.

Why I love this movie so much

In my life, I used to be a serial runner. If I sensed any sort of conflict or trouble looming over the horizon, I would run for the hills and never actually resolve a situation. I would act like everything was okay, and continue living my life as if nothing ever happened in the first place. I really didn’t handle failure or confrontation well, so when I saw Hye-Won dipping to her hometown after failing to live the life she wanted, I immediately resonated.

Like Hye-Won, I lived in denial and avoidance of overarching issues for a long time. Even if my friends or family tried to tell me something, I would ignore them, swerve, or get really angry and storm off, instead of facing the truth.

But it was only after spending a large amount of time alone and trying to work hard on unfruitful pursuits, that I realized, I had some unfinished business to handle and some serious introspecting to do.

Watching this movie felt like looking in the mirror, which is probably why I cried when it ended. To see something so raw and honest, without any overly dramatic or ridiculous plot points, really made this introspective movie’s personal philosophy, shine. The authenticity, groundedness, and adherence to reality helped me see myself clearly for the first time in a long time.

Because of this, I will always carry “Little Forest”, and the lessons I learned from it, deep within my heart.