My Love, Don't Cross That River

Aging and true love between two people are rarely covered as beautiful as in director Jin Mo-Young's My Dear, Don't Cross That River. A just comparison in the world of fiction film may be Michael Haneke's Amour from 2012.

In My Love, Don't Cross That River we follow an old married couple in the countryside of South Korea. 98-year-old Jo Byeong- man and 89-year-old Kang Kye-yeol have been married for 76 years, wear matching outfits, have snowball fights and sleep hand in hand. We get to know their daily activities in slow motion. There is no glamour, just an honest portrait of two people with an enormous amount of respect and love for each other. This love is confirmed when 98-year old Jo's health is getting poorer. His wife tries to make the last part of life as good as possible for her life companion through all these years. However, it is hard for both of them to see the once so strong man struggle to carry out his daily tasks.

Although the film looks into many of the sad sides connected to aging, the couples life-enhancing worldview is always present. Close-ups of the two main characters are beautifully accompanied by pictures of the surrounding nature and lingering focuses on details, such as the pregnant dog in the neighbourhood. The director manages in an impressive way to make a duality in the film. The old couple is facing life's autumn, while there are lot of optimism in the surroundings. Well-deserved, My Dear, Don't Cross That River won the award for best documentary at the Los Angeles Film Festival.

Jin Mo-Young My Dear Don't Cross That River is Jin Mo-Young's feature directorial debut. Since 1997 he has worked with different documentaries for South Korean TV. With My Dear, Don't Cross That River he has made the most grossing independent film in South Korea ever. The film won the award for best documentary at Los Angeles Film Festival this year.