Kenneth Turan reviews a Korean film whose main character, an aging woman, makes a
typically impulsive decision to take a poetry course at a local adult education center. Attracted by the hand-lettered sign that reads “You Can Be A Poet,” she finagles her way into the class and sits spellbound as the charismatic teacher tells the group “the most important thing in life is to see. Poetry is all about discovering true beauty in our everyday life.”
As she tries to write a poem, true ugliness intervenes.
[W]hat’s difficult [the character’s poetry teacher tells her] is not writing the poem but finding the heart to write one, and as Mija becomes aware of the corruption of the society she lives in, the intensity of her quest for purity and poetry increasingly impresses us.
The film’s trailer.