By the Stream
By Kit Macdonald
Hong Sang-soo’s By the Stream is, like many of the South Korean auteur's many films, a deceptively modest character study that explores creativity, loneliness and human connection with his trademark dry humour and philosophical reflection. Kim Min-hee plays Jeonim, a university art lecturer who asks her uncle Sieon, a former actor and director now running a bookshop, to stage a student performance after the original director is fired. As rehearsals unfold, old memories resurface, quiet attractions emerge and professional boundaries become increasingly blurred.
In keeping with much of Hong’s recent work, By the Stream lingers on extended conversations, gentle observation and what seem to be incidental moments. The recurring image of Jeonim sketching beside a stream lends the film a contemplative rhythm, suggesting that art offers a way of making sense of life's uncertainties.