KOFFIA 2015 MOVIE REVIEW: REVIVRE






31/2/5

Oh Sang Moon, an older and successful company man, struggles through a thought period in his life as his wife is dying from a brain tumour. With the pressures of work and looking after his fading wife his mind is looking for escape, finally finding it in the face of a younger woman who recently joins the office team. As they strike a friendship, Oh Sang Moon finds himself on a crossroad.

 REVIVRE is a character focused drama, with one performance at its centre. Ahn Sung-ki, a veteran Korean actor, who made his first film when he was just four years old, gives us a subtle and meaningful performance, shoving a seamless transformation of a man who is choosing a new path in life. REVIVRE is not an easy viewing: The movie has a "cut and pace" structure, constantly switching between the time lines and can be very confusing and the scenes with Oh Sang Moon's dying wife are upfront and shocking, describing in detail the human degradation and loss of dignity and not for the faint hearted.

 The word REVIVRE has a double meaning, while it is a reference to the facial creams of the company the main characters work for, it also has the meaning of revival and new beginnings in life. It gives a clear message that it is what we do in life, and not what we feel of how we thing is what truly matter.


REVIVRE is a one man performance drama. It has a few lengthy scenes, and takes a long time to tell the story, but if you persevere, you will leave the cinema satisfied.

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