It’s a rarity these days that you see a film that is genuinely profound and moving such as Past Lives. This movie premiered at the Sundance Film Festival 2023 back in January. If it had competed I have no doubt it would have won the best film award there. It is that good of a film. It handles tough subject matter with care and professionalism. This is the best move I’ve seen all year to this point and maybe it’ll be one of the best at the end of the year as well. 

Nora Moon (Greta Lee) and Hae Sung (Teo Yoo) are childhood friends until Nora’s family decides to move to Canada from Korea. Later she moves to New York City and becomes a playwright but her friend stays in Seoul and grows up there. He gets a job and lives a happy life. Until he decides to reach out to his old childhood friend 12 years after they separated from each other via Skype sessions. 12 years after that they had one last meeting in person in New York City. The problem is they both have very different lives than they had when they were kids.

It’s a rarity these days that a filmmaker and or screenwriter can capture a romantic relationship the way Celine Song did in Past Lives. Even though the two main characters aren’t married there is a sensuality that permeates through their conversations and Skype sessions. They just have a connection like no two characters I’ve seen in a while. Even though there is a husband (John Magaro, First Cow) character involved, he is more like a third wheel than a husband. Even though he does say some pretty good things. It’s mainly about the love these two long-time friends have for each other after not seeing each for so long.

Part of what makes this movie such a beautiful story is the setting. And I can’t believe I’m about to say this but the city featured mainly in the film was New York City and it was shot beautifully, by Shabier Kirchner. He made New York City look beautiful. By following the leads on a long walk or riding the ferry there was a romanticism that made New York City look like somewhere I’d want to visit. I’ve never seen this city look so good in my life. And I’ve been watching movies for a long time. New York was like a character in the film. 

Past Lives has been getting a lot of awards buzz ever since it premiered at Sundance. That buzz is very much warranted and deserved. Greta Lee, a relative unknown, is absolutely mesmerizing in this movie. I couldn’t take my eyes off her the entire time she was on screen. Her connection to Teo Yoo’s character was magnanimous.  I was glued to the screen while they were on it no matter what they were doing. Their stroke through New York City was akin to that of Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy in the Before Trilogy. 

Celine Song is a relative newcomer to Hollywood with only The Wheel of Time series and this film under her belt. After watching this movie though she seems like a skilled professional. She handles her script perfectly. She knew how to get certain emotions out of the characters while also getting them to be in the right spot for them to be captured in the right light. The cinematography and her direction go hand in hand. Which wouldn’t be anything without the amazing script. And incredible acting from the cast.

.Past Lives has a plot structure that works in the context of the overall film. It has flashbacks and a framing device that is perfectly used to execute the story of these two childhood friends. The acting by both Lee and Yoo is exceptional. The script and direction by song are some of the best in any film this year.  This is the rare movie that gets love correct and has genuine emotion and empathy for a friendship and relationship. This is the only film I’ve seen this year that is perfect in every way possible. I love this movie and its characters and story more than I can express.

5 stars

Dan Skip Allen