A humorous indie Korean road movie about a young man who drowns his unrequited love with soju (the notorious Korean rice wine) and staggers happily from one misunderstanding to the next.
![Daytime Drinking (image 1)](/assets/resized/sm/upload/sb/pc/53/3a/KEY-800-800-450-450-crop-fill.jpg?k=e41eac8cf9)
One of the most charming and successful low-budget films of the last year is the Korean Daytime Drinking.
Screened as part of NZIFF 2009
Daytime Drinking 2008
Natsul
Hyuk-jin's buddies don't think much of his pining over a girlfriend. In fact, he's a killjoy, ruining the mood and resisting their efforts to cheer him up. Drinks downed, a pact is made: they're going for a boys' outing to a resort on the coast. Hyuk-jin reluctantly agrees, only to find himself alone at the bus station the following morning. Everyone else got too drunk to remember. Hyuk-jin nevertheless decides to continue his journey to the resort, little aware of the odyssey that awaits, involving enchanting or crazy girls, near-naked hitchhiking in freezing weather, dodgy companions and the constant invitation to fill a glass right up, because ‘it's so annoying to pour often’. A veritable balm for the heart. This offbeat ode to recuperation heralds a multi-talented newcomer: Noh Young-seok. He carried out virtually every task, even decorating the sets. His distinctive debut winningly mixes romanticism, deadpan humour and lots of soju (the notorious Korean rice wine). — SR