It’s very depressing and it never lets up. Even the small moments of fun/bonding between the two main characters does not lift the tone. This is ok if you are not put off by heavy, sad and depressing topics that don’t sugar-coat things. Me saying that it’s depressing isn't necessarily a bad thing. A lot of satisfaction can be gotten from watching a character go through hardship after hardship and come out on the other side. For me, I don’t regret watching it. I did find some satisfaction, narratively. It was an interesting enough story and the acting was decent. It also had a good message and it didn’t feel like suicide propaganda. In fact, it felt sincere in its message. The last 30 or so minutes at the end of the film are it’s best. You’ll see why.

And for once, they referenced a country with darker skinned people without being derogatory. I particularly liked that the Yun character didn’t look to go there to satisfy some sort of saviour complex or to ‘civilise’ the population. Instead, he went there to be with them. To be with the people who reminded him of himself. He also had lovely things to say about the community there. He didn’t patronise their sense of care and community towards raising the orphan children. Rather, it sounded like he was talking about people he held in high esteem. Listen up Asian film makers…this is how it’s done. This is how you include other non-western countries without being a-holes about it.