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A Beautiful, Sad Story
This is an excellent short film (30 mins) which chronicles the central relationship in sensitive ways. It does not shy away from focusing on the pain that both of the characters feel -- from external bullying as well as internalized homophobia. The characters deal with these pains in their own ways.....some of which are frankly heartbreaking, but very realistic. (Running away in the face of challenges is not at all rare.)The plot also features some cute and funny moments.....the one involving shopping in a pharmacy was beautifully acted and had me laughing out loud. I found these moments disarming -- they make you empathize with the characters, which heightens the impact of the ending, which while sensitively handled, is quite sad.
The cinematography was excellent -- nice scenes along the shore but also back at school. The camera does not shy away from the blood and bruises that result from bullying.
And the messaging is very clear -- bullied teens need help, and when they don't get it, bad things happen.
P.S. Pay no attention to my rating for "music." I was so captivated by the plot that I cannot remember the music at all, but MDL requires a number!
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If you are sensitive don't watch, this is heavy.
A mix of feelings and thoughts passing through our mind everyday, i mean if you are off this community. I think this movie is the real point of view of a lot of our lives, It's a film that needs a warning because it deals with a lot of senstives things. The actors are great , the soundtrack good too, the story It's sensitive, they are all good because it reflects with perfection what real young couples are going through in real life. Don't watch if you are passing by a hard moment. It's a beautiful sad history.Was this review helpful to you?
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It's a reality check.
And that how tears dropped from my eyes That is why people say read review before watching .It's a worth watching short drama.
Even certain things are unclear ,i feel both the character's view , but i want to say these, minha needed some encouraging words from his bf ,when he said why are you being nice to me ,say it,I felt broken .And about the ending let's just hope no one's dead ( if you know what i mean.)😭 but thinking that too , there were moments were we see him giving up the urge to live .......
it's a short drama that's why many us of feel he's dead , there is exactly something we feel like 50- 50 chances of him being alive or dead.
loved it ....
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my feelings about this movie
first of all if youre having a hard time i beg you to not watch this. i am currently strugling a little and decided to rewatch this movie and let me tell yoi i cried a RIVER of tears. now to the actual movie from what i think it talks about being queer in a place where you cant be accepted, being the outcast and overall wanting to be free. i think i cried even more when i rewatched this movie cause it literatly left me questioning my whole existance and what i did wrong to end up strugling. so once again dont watch this if youre strugling 👍Was this review helpful to you?
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My heart is bleeding
This short movie is wonderful. Someone wrote this story with the intention to make the viewer fall in love with the characters in seconds and then break them in also seconds. Felt a bit too realistic, my heart hurts.The moment at the end where they were looking at each other during the firework was the moment I knew what would be happening.
And the drawing in the end? I don't know why, but it felt like someone was trying to rip my heart out of my chest. This was.. this was something.
Don't know what else to say. Just - watch it
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Loving Freely Isn't for Everyone
Journey to the Shore is one of the most painfully realistic portrayals of internalized homophobia, societal pressure, and the silent tragedy that queer youth face in conservative Korean society.Sang Beom is a boy who’s already been burned by homophobic bullying in his previous school, and now, even though he finds love again in Minha, he’s terrified to be outed. Minha, on the other hand, doesn't try to hide—he doesn’t care what others think, but that doesn’t mean he’s not hurting. In fact, he’s been hurting for a long time. The scars on his wrist say it all.
They both keep hurting each other unknowingly. Minha clings to Sang Beom like he’s his last strand of life. Sang Beom loves him too, but he’s suffocating under the pressure of fear and guilt. On their 100th day, when Minha is beaten and Sang Beom finally breaks down crying, the shift is devastating. That moment was heartbreaking—Minha realized he wasn’t just hurting himself anymore… he was hurting the only person he loved.
The film doesn’t point fingers. There are no villains here. Just pain, repression, love, and confusion. It ends in silence, and you're left to guess: did Minha die by suicide? All signs seem to say yes. But nothing is confirmed. That’s what makes it even more haunting.
Technically, the film is low-budget, but it doesn't matter. The acting is phenomenal. Everything—the shaky camera work, the mundane school setting, the rawness—feels intentional. This film didn’t need polish. It needed truth. And it gave us that.
This movie will leave you hollow, and that’s its strength. It lingers.
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So sad!
What a sad movie about how hard it is on people just because they love someone of the same gender. Why can't people accept love in the different forms there are. Love is such a beautifull thing but it gets destroyed by small minded people.The visuals and musc were ok.
The acting and kisses good.
One time watching is enough for me, but i do recommend watching if you haven't yet!
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its a realistic love story ,tragic and educational but realistical
before I review on the couple let me just say Sang bum being scared to express his feelings shows how generally the cruelty teenagers face when being open about them self and Min ha shows the backlash we do when we gain the courage . he is bullied, and how the adults paid no attention says a lot I mean , bullying is usually the victims fault you will hear phrases such as "you should have told us , you shouldn't have provoked them , maybe if you talked more , or they just playing." which affects how the victim sees themselves and how their made to feel like their being dramatic. Sang bum who also hints that he also transferred because of the same situation that shows how bullying can affect you at a later stage and generally this show shows how bullying can really affect peoplethe relationship —now the fact that sang bum is afraid to receive backlash affects Min ha cause the person he developed courage to be public about his relationship makes him feel like a Problem which bring internalized homophobia and affects Min ha's personality. Now sang bum fear affects him because as much as he is afraid and doesn't want issues he is also wants to defend Min ha ( scene where Min ha got beat up and he didn't do anything) and Min ha realising that this relationship is affecting both of them decides to leave it and unfortunately the ending is left for speculation . which makes me feel like Min ha committed suicide as he didn't come to school and no one heard from him which would make sense since the the self harm and bullying but it's overall a beautiful movie and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did
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Hermosa.
It’s only 30 minutes, but Journey to the Shore hits hard. It tells a full emotional, and painfully story. I didn’t expect to feel so much in such a short time.Sambeon’s development is the heart of it. Watching him struggle between guilt, love, and helplessness was heartbreaking. And Minha wanting to die, needing to escape...it’s brutal, but honest. You slowly realize he did take his life, and it just crushes you. No melodrama, just a quiet, heavy truth.
But then there’s that scene at the beach. That one moment of freedom, of peace. Just the two of them, far from the cruelty, being who they are without fear. It’s beautiful. It’s fleeting. And it hurts even more because you know it couldn’t last. But still for a second, they were able to be happy 🥲
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This review may contain spoilers
The movie had heartbreaking representation of reality and how the fear of being bullied leads to internalized homophobia. Minha already accepted his feelings and is not afraid to admit it in public. He didn’t even try denying it when the girls were bullying him. The bullies beat him up and yet he still openly expresses himself because he knows there is nothing actually wrong with him.
Sangbeom on the other hand fears all of that. Perhaps because he was already bullied before transferring. For him coming out is harder because he fears he will get bullied again. The reason behind the bulling wasn’t told but it was most likely because he was gay and maybe thats why Minha said he doesnt want to know.
The pharmacy scene also showed how open Minha was.
One scene I really liked was when Sangbeom reached for Minha’s hand on the bus. it was at the very back of a bus in a small town and maybe that was the only place where Sangbeom could express his love in public.
That scene really showed that Sangbeom really wanted to show his love too.
But imo the communication was lacking. It is expected fron teenagers, but if the person you love gets bullied, staying silent is not the best option.
And the way he blamed Minha for it too.
I wish he just would’ve tried comforting Minha a little.
He blamed Minha for it and didn’t even try to tell him that he is afraid when Minha expressed his frustration and desire to hold his hand in public. Instead he just got up and tried to leave.
"Do you tink things will be better once we are adults?"
"-What do you mean?"
"I don’t know… but… we can make money and drink and smoke. And watch X-rated movies."
"-You’re so childish. "
"You know what I mean. There’s more stuff to do. "
"-You do that."
"What are you talking about? We’ll do it together or it won’t be fun. "
This scene showed that Sangbeom as looking forward to a future with Minha despite their struggles, while Minha stayed silent, because he didn’t see himself in the future at all.
This is why I personally think that Minha most likely committed.
Maybe he planned it for a long time because at the beginning of the movie he draws an illustration. At the end when Sangbeom opens his locker he finds a Peter Pan drawing.
Peter pan is a character that lives in the Neverland and never grows up. While the character Wendy grows up.
Minha could be Peter Pan because he won’t grow up if he died. And sangbeom grows up at the end.
My fav quotes from the movie:
"Who do you keep cutting yourself?
It will leave a scar."
"-Because I hate being alive."
"i want to walk holding your hand. why do you always let go?"
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That hurt
Rarely has a piece of media stuck to my brain in the way that Journey to the Shore has.From the very get go I was invested in these two's relationship and their dynamic. How had they first fallen for each other? When did they start dating? You are immediately put into an established dynamic that only grows clearer by the minute. I truly felt for Ming Ha, wanting to rally around him whenever the world and the bullies around him put him down for being gay. He seemed so strong and ready to stand up for himself and his identity, so surely the world will respond positively to that? Right? But I was constantly reminded of the truth of the situation by way of Sang Bum, as well as the scars on Ming Ha.
Just because someone seems strong and keeps their head up, does not mean that they don't feel pain, even if we don't see it.
Sang Bum was not ready to be an out gay/queer teenager and thus feels stuck in between his love for Ming Ha and the desire to keep his head down and go through school life not being a target for bullying. So even though it breaks his heart he needs to break up with Ming Ha to avoid the homophobia of the school. And the way Ming Ha keeps his head up, holds Sang Bum as he cries, and even makes jokes - just twisted the knife in my heart even deeper.
I truly commend these two actors, they really put in a great performance.
The ending... oh god the ending. To the very end I was holding out for a happy end. I was biting my nails hoping for a 'Ten years later' and the two are happily married and everything is great. But that's not the story being told. The story being told was about two kids facing bullying, and each just trying to survive and holding onto their identity. Sang Bum got out, Ming Ha didn't.
The choice of not directly telling the audience what happened to Ming Ha, does not stop one from putting the pieces together.
It's a beautifully shot, wonderfully acted film, that tells a pretty painful story but remains impactful.
(also want to add that right after this 'the one that got away' by Katy Perry came up on shuffle and I cried like a baby)
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