The World of Love: A Review by Cineplay Journalists

Before its release, a film that fellow filmmakers actively promoted was released on October 22. The film 〈The World of Love〉 was invited to the competition section of the 50th Toronto International Film Festival, making it the first Korean film to do so. Director Yoon Ga-eun, who has shown emotional films centered on youth such as 〈Our Body〉 and 〈Our Home〉, presents her new work after six years. It depicts the experiences of an enigmatic eighteen-year-old high school girl, Joo-in (Seo Soo-bin), who refuses to participate in a signature campaign involving the entire student body. At a press screening before its release, Cineplay journalists who encountered 〈The World of Love〉 shared their impressions. While they adhered to the production team's request to minimize spoilers, it should be noted that there may be descriptions that hint at the film's progression.

Kim Ji-yeon

“A Story of Youth and Sexuality Without Filters”

Ironically, after watching the film, I was reminded of two completely opposite works, 〈Boys' Time〉 (Netflix series) and 〈Monster〉 (Hirokazu Kore-eda, 2023). 〈The World of Love〉 is a rare film that looks at the sexuality and love of a teenage Korean girl without a distorted lens, but rather with bare eyes. Typically, there are multiple layers of filters when dealing with the 'love' of teenage Korean girls. It is often portrayed as either too shiny and sublime or completely naive and outrageous. In contrast, the sexuality of teenage boys is usually depicted as a 'boiling' desire, while the 'sexuality' in the love of teenage girls has been excluded as if it never existed. 〈The World of Love〉 challenges the narrative of teenage sexuality that has been viewed solely through the lens of adults, through the journey of the not-so-mature yet not-so-immature Joo-in (Seo Soo-bin). The high school girls in the film exchange lewd jokes and treat sexuality as something natural and ordinary, rather than sacred or uncomfortable. As suggested by the Netflix series 〈Boys' Time〉, in an era where distorted sexual concepts are deeply rooted among youth, and where adults tend to judge children through their own perspectives as seen in 〈Monster〉, it is refreshing that 〈The World of Love〉 tells a story about youth and sexuality without filters.

Joo Sung-cheol

“An Incredibly Beautiful and Elegant Film”

Joo-in's world consists of three. The protagonist, Joo-in (Seo Soo-bin), moves between three communities, excluding her family. The school she must attend, the gym where she practices Taekwondo, and a gathering of women of various ages. Joo-in does not share any of her own stories in these three different worlds. Even when her grandmother, who accompanies her to a temple, talks about 'a troubled heart,' or when an older sister (Go Min-si) suddenly mentions 'impossible forgiveness' during a walk, Joo-in remains silent. Such moments occur only once, when she is with her mother (Jang Hye-jin), who knows everything. Living in silence forever is impossible, and we must somehow navigate this 'world.' Director Yoon Ga-eun, following 〈Our Body〉 and 〈Our Home〉, quietly gazes at the protagonist and reads the waves of her heart. Joo-in never fully enters her world. The sender of the notes Joo-in receives is unknown to both her and the audience, and perhaps even to the director herself. Imagining something invisible, and further, loving something much larger and more beautiful than our imagination, is what 〈The World of Love〉 allows us to do, making it an incredibly beautiful and elegant film.

Sung Chan-eol

“A Precious and Warm Complexity Only Yoon Ga-eun Can Create”

A human being is a gap just by existing. They have actions and an inner self. Gaps can arise from actions and the inner self alone, but when societal guidelines and the ethics built up by humanity overlap, it shows how one existence can be represented in many ways. Moreover, the world filled with such humans is not something that can be read at once. However, we live believing that our world is the standard. This is perhaps because it is already overwhelming to live, and it is difficult to prepare the capacity to handle that complexity.

What I felt after watching 〈The World of Love〉 can be summarized like this: When one believes their world is the standard, how violently can they act? The series of situations that the ordinary yet extraordinary Joo-in experiences reminds us of this. At the same time, it does not overlook the greatness of the courage needed to endure life as 'living.' As a journalist, there are times when I have the arrogant thought, 'I could write this too.' However, I was convinced that 〈The World of Love〉 is something only Yoon Ga-eun could create. Characters and depictions that cannot emerge without contemplation are intertwined. Traces of a sensitively perceptive person are visible, and yet, the footprints of courage to live together remain. It is a truly precious and warm complexity.

Choo Ah-young

“Yoon Ga-eun's Magic That Brings Us Face to Face with Unconcealed Hearts”

Director Yoon Ga-eun's film 〈The World of Love〉 reveals two worlds. One is a bright world where teenagers clumsily yet actively explore sexuality and love. The other is a dark world where sexuality is mediated by violence. The two worlds resemble the two faces of sexuality. Sexuality as a playful expression of human instinct and sexuality as violence that objectifies the other and robs them of sexual self-determination. Joo-in (Seo Soo-bin) bravely moves forward into the light at the boundary of these two worlds.

The peaceful daily life of children spending time with friends and being absorbed in romance occasionally coexists with fragments of violence that intrude uncomfortably. Su-ho (Kim Jung-sik) faces words condemning sex offenders written on a wall near his home on the way to school, and at school, the children start a petition against the residence of sex offenders. However, the film does not stop at merely reflecting the reality of violence being close at hand. It presents victims not as wounded and powerless individuals but as subjects capable of reclaiming their lives. 〈The World of Love〉 calmly follows the process of Joo-in confronting the wounds buried in her heart and healing them autonomously. Yoon Ga-eun's magic that brings us face to face with unconcealed hearts is truly marvelous.