Tears (2000)

A pair of Korean youths are thrust into premature adulthood in this controversial drama. Han (Han Jun) is a teenage boy who doesn’t always fit in with his friends; while his pals are by nature macho and boisterous, Han is introspective and mindful of the feelings of others. When he and his friends sneak into a bar one night, Han ends up helping a girl named Sa-ri (Park Geun-yeong) sneak out when things get out of hand and the boys want a group of girls to put on a strip show. Sa-ri is more hard-edged and independent than Han; while he lives at home with his mother, she has already been abandoned by her family and works at a “hostess club” run by short-fused gangster Yong-ho (Sung Ji-ru). Despite their differences, the two strike up a friendship, and while both are initially hesitant, a tentative romance begins to blossom. However, theirs is hardly a storybook romance; the two like to huff gasoline to get high and begin experimenting with sex (though Sa-ri will not permit Han to have intercourse with her). When Han chivalrously stands up to Yong-ho after he attacks Sa-ri, Han gets a severe beating for his troubles, which leads to ugly consequences for all parties concerned. Shot on digital videotape, Nunmul was the second feature film directed by Im Sang-soo, whose first feature Chunyudleui Jeonyuksiksah was a similarly frank tale of love and sex among Korean teens.