By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4 cats
Director: Cho-hee Kim
Starring: Kim Young-min | Mal-Geum Kang | Sang-won Seo | Seung-ah Yoon | Yoo-ram Bae | Yuh-jung Youn
Original language title: Chansilineun bokdo manhji
Country: south_korea
Year: 2021
Running time: 96
IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11639190/reference
Michael says: “A forty-year-old, South Korean movie producer finds herself adrift in a mid-life crisis when the talented director she has collaborated with for years dies unexpectedly. When this turn of events suddenly finds her unable to find work, Chan-sil examines her life as a woman alone entering her 40’s, love and family something she never really thought about while she was enjoying a challenging and fulfilling career. While her best friend Sophie, a scattered, young actress who bounces from interest to interest, supports her, she moves into a new apartment sharing a house with her eccentric older landlady. She meets Sophie’s French tutor, Jang Gook-yeong, an attractive, 35-year-old filmmaker and begins a very tentative flirtation with him. When she mentions Ozu as her favorite filmmaker, Jang responds that he loves Christopher Nolan. Chan-sil comments, “Oh, you’re one of those…” This exchange is emblematic of Chan-sil’s awkwardness a making connections, but also indicative of her passion for artful film. The film takes an interesting turn when Chan-sil starts to have conversations with the ghost of beloved Hong Kong actor Leslie Cheung who helps guide Chan-sil toward the next phase of her life.
“LUCKY CHAN-SIL is a coming-of-middle-age film disguised as a romantic comedy, as Chan-sil’s story follows that of director Cho-hee Kim’s, whose career hit a similar setback before evolving into something much more creative. The script is gentle, funny, and well-structured, with the introduction of Cheung’s ghost as a pleasant, offbeat element. Mal-Geum Kang is lovely as Chan-sil, no-nonsense and practical, until she isn’t, imbuing humor and depth into her simplest actions. It’s a lovely feature directorial debut for Kim after a long career producing films for Korean director Hong Sang-too. 4 cats”