Smoking in a couple of scenes, including by a group of young, conventionally attractive men. Drinking throughout, including drunk supporting characters.
Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.
Romantic plot explores notion of soulmates and is centered on an emotional love triangle two decades in the making. Kissing. A married couple lie in bed together, playfully holding each other, the husband wearing only underwear.
Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.
Korean lead characters demonstrate and discuss Korean culture, speak in Korean, eat Korean dishes, and live authentically. While there are often English subtitles (for U.S. release), when Korean is spoken, not everything is translated. Main character Nora (Greta Lee) is Korean American; lots of rumination about her experience feeling like she's in a hybrid culture. Another key character is a Jewish man who's thoughtful, intelligent, sensitive, loving. Writer-director Celine Song is a Korean Canadian woman.
Nora is self-possessed and demonstrates enormous self-control: She knows who she is, she knows what she wants, and she doesn't get thrown off that path. Other characters display phenomenal self-restraint, are deeply respectful of others, and share emotional and vulnerable feelings. All show they're working hard to achieve their career goals.
Positive Messages
some
Life isn't destiny, but a series of choices. And when we leave something -- or a certain life -- behind, we gain something, too. Explores Korean concept of In Yun, which suggests that anyone we interact with in this life is someone we've connected with in a past life.
Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that Past Lives is a romantic drama that revolves around the Korean concept of In Yun, which has no direct English translation but is based in the idea that everyone we share an encounter with is someone we've previously known in a past life. The story is drawn from the real-life experiences of first-time writer-director Celine Song, which contributes to the authenticity of the movie's Korean and Korean American characters. And as much as the movie is presented as a romance, it's also very much about an immigrant reconciling her cultural past with her present. Characters smoke and drink throughout. Strong language isn't frequent but includes "bitch," "s--t," and a couple of uses of "f--k." There's kissing and a scene of a married couple lying in bed together. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.
Halting, quiet and beautiful meditation on those who we end up not being in a relationship with
Halting, quiet and packs an emotional punch for anyone who has wondered what if? with someone who they no longer have in their orbit. Song nails the subtlety and the long distance longing. Yoo is perfectly cast and has this face of sadness, pain, longing, and endurance that is never overwrought and always feels silently present. The artistic efficiency of which this film is shot is impressive. Song appears to give us all a master class in her directing debut of saying a lot without using a lot of words and what the costs of diaspora, listening to our inner spirit, maintaining human connections and how much being in each other's physical presence alters our feelings and expectations.
This is an emotionally intimate debut movie from Celine Song who is Korean-American- Canadian. It has " grown up" themes ( love and marriage). An emotionally intelligent 15 year old, or your college age kids might appreciate this. Otherwise, this is a movie aimed at adults.
It is the story of two childhood friends who share a bond of close friendship (agape love) across decades. Hollywood would have turned their love story into a story of “eros”, and shown us passion, eroticism and intensity. But this a movie about the timelessness of love, martial fidelity and wistfulness. It’s a story of love and friendship, laced with quiet regret, but the characters show grace and kindness. Philia and Agape love, not eros.
More than once the Korean word “inyeon' is used, which does not translate to English. Like the Greek/ gospel words for love, it is a transcendental word. It is a Buddhist reincarnation belief that every deep relationship is a meeting between two souls who have met countless times in their past lives.
The movie compresses two decades from the characters lives into two hours, and is a beautiful love story. The ending is hope filled, but sad, as the characters’ past regrets and future hopes are realistically interwoven.
The main character Nora (Greta Lee) immigrates to Canada from South Korea when she is twelve, leaving behind her childhood sweetheart ( Hae Sung). Twelve years later they reconnect online, and seem to form an intense bond of friendship and love thru on line chatting. But this is short-lived, since Nora wants to focus on her career and she stops communicating with him. Another decade passes, and in the third meeting of the two characters, Hae Sung comes to New York to find her.
But Nora is now happily married. Secure in a loving and happy marriage, Nora feels the conflicts of navigating her feelings from the past and present, but never waivers from choosing wisely. She has to choose between someone who could have been her soul mate in another life, and her husband, who is a sweet man she adores.
“This is my life, and I’m living it with you,” Nora tells her husband. “This is where I ended up, and this is where I’m supposed to be.” Few movies portray marital love ( which combines phila, eros and agape) so well.
What's the Story?
In PAST LIVES, 12 years after Nora (Greta Lee) and her family immigrated to North America from South Korea, she reconnects with her childhood friend, Hae Sung (Ted Yoo). The two pick up where they left off, their bond still as strong as when they were kids. Their careers take them on different paths, but when Hae Sung vacations in the city where Nora lives, they meet face to face and must confront questions about love and destiny.
Thoughts will spin and conversations will erupt over this film's take on the idea of soulmates (based in the Korean concept of In Yun), but Celine Song's romantic drama requires patience. Teens who are used to fast cuts, expressive reactions, and entertainment that gets to the point won't find any of those in the contemplative Past Lives. Song takes her time, with long, continuous shots that sweep through spaces and cityscapes. A good portion of the film takes place on Skype. And characters do a lot of internalizing. It makes for a beautiful film, but it's one that takes some maturity to appreciate. The payoff really comes in the final few minutes, so you'll need to make it to the end to achieve the full sigh. But for teens who thrive on romance, the concept of In Yunis likely to stick with them, like a soul returning to earth lifetime after lifetime.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the concept of In Yun. Do you believe it's possible or probable? Using your imagination, who do you think you might have been in a past life?
How are Korean and Korean American culture depicted in Past Lives? If a movie was made about something related to your own culture or heritage, what would it be about?
Parents, how is your adult life different from what you envisioned for yourself as a kid? How are you different from the person you were when you were younger? How did the people in your life help shape you into the person you are now?
Smoking and drinking are presented fairly matter-of-factly here. Do you think normalizing smoking and drinking makes them more appealing?
What is self-control, and why is it an important life skill? How do all three characters demonstrate self-control? How do you think a big-budget blockbuster movie might handle this same subject?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
suggesting a diversity update.
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
By Tara McNamara
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
