“Past Lives” is an incredibly unique academy-award-winning movie that follows Nora (Greta Lee) and Hae Sung (Teo Yoo) as they reconnect after several years and 7000 miles between them.
Directed by Celine Song, this film is not your typical first-love story where the couple reconciles, gets back together, defies all odds and lives happily ever after. Instead, audiences will take away this reflection of mourning childhood nostalgia.
The film introduces a concept called Inyeon, the idea of fate in which the people important to us in our current lives were people important to us in previous lives and will be important to us in future lives. It is meant to mislead watchers into thinking that Nora and Hae Sung are fated to be together.
In Seoul, South Korea, Nora and Hae Sung meet as young schoolchildren and their relationship blossoms into innocent childhood love. The two have that opposites-attract relationship: Nora is a free-spirited, ambitious and smart girl while Hae Sung is a loyal, timid and sweet young boy.
Nora’s family immigrates to the U.S., hoping to provide a different life for Nora, so she and Hae Sung are forced to say goodbye.
Over a decade later, Nora is now a writer in New York City. She fondly recalls her memories of Korea and Hae Sung, tightly holding on to that part of her identity especially since she now has no real ties to that part of her and associates it with her Korean heritage. Hae Sung has been thinking of Nora all these years, holding a torch for her and the two finally find contact again.
Hae Sung finally gets to visit Nora in New York, and the two have a lovely time together as Nora shows him all the tourist attractions. They connect over their culture and childhood Nora is desperate to keep a part of her identity.
After their day in New York, the final scene is shown. Nora walks Hae Sung to his Uber and watchers will find themselves on the edge of their seats, waiting to see if the two will defy all odds and romantically sweep each other off their feet, finishing their romantic story.
But the two hug goodbye and watchers soon realize the realism “Past Lives” stays true to.
Before getting into the car and saying his final goodbye, Hae Sung asks Nora if she thinks that maybe this is the past life and they will find each other in the next one — such optimism is Hae Sung holding onto his childhood identity, hoping that this young energy never leaves.
Nora has lived her entire life juggling two colliding identities: one of her as a child in Korea and one of her as an adult in New York City.
The final scene of Nora breaking down does not mean that she regrets her choice of marrying someone else and wishes she had stayed in Korea to be with Hae Sung. Instead, it symbolizes her finally saying goodbye to her 12-year-old self, representing the painful process of letting go of that part of her identity to be more present in the life she is leading now. It is a cathartic moment where she is able to recognize the sacrifices she has made while also acknowledging the love she has for her past life.
This ending, while far from conventional, is a testament to Song’s dedication of exploring the complexities of both relationships and growing up. It’s a subtle scene that does not rely on dramatic dialogue but rather forces the audience to read between the lines, observing what is not said between Nora and Hae Sung.
This is a movie that must be watched twice. At first glance, you will wish that Nora and Hae Sung got their happy ending, but upon the second watch, you will realize that this was all a part of Nora’s journey of letting go of her childhood nostalgia. She has a great husband who is not only smart and sweet and a writer like Nora but also a person who deeply wants to understand her.
This article was edited by Alfie Pritchard, Marina Zaczkiewicz and Abigail Turner. Copy editing done by Luna Jinks and Emma Brown.
