"I just realised what a great story this is: childhood sweethearts reconnect and realise they were meant for each other."
A little movie with the biggest of hearts, Past Lives heralds the arrival of playwright turned director Celine Song as a filmmaker with the brightest of futures. It's the most charming of debuts, and if you miss it, your screen life will be the poorer.
Based on Song's own life and travelling across decades, Past Lives begins in Seoul as 12-year-old classmates Na Young (Moon Seung-ah) and Hae Sung (Leem Seung-min) prepare to say goodbye to each other - Na Young's family are emigrating to Canada.
Twelve years later, Na Young - now Nora (Greta Lee) - has moved to New York while Hae Sung (Teo Yoo) has just completed his military service back home. Having long lost track of each other, they get back in touch, only for life to get in the way again.
Another twelve years pass. Playwright Nora is now married to author Arthur (John Magaro) - and Hae Sung is on his way to New York.
Lovers of Brief Encounter, The Remains of the Day, and Before Sunrise will again be in the best of company here as this universal tale works its magic. You'll see yourself in the drama; sometimes as one character, sometimes as all three.
The upheaval of the past few years ensures that the emotional intimacy of Past Lives is all the more powerful. The shared experience of watching these delicate events and excellent performances unfold in a cinema is as profound as ever.
As the seasons change, you'll be left with a lot to think about, both happy and sad. The days are long, the years are short. Past Lives gently urges us to make the most of both.
