Poetry

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1:43

Poetry

2011

2h 19m

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

100%

Tomatometer

71 Reviews

86%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

Kind-hearted Mija (Yun Jung-hee) is tasked with raising her troubled teenage grandson, Jong-wook, while her daughter works in far-off Busan. In denial that her abilities as a caregiver are threatened by the early stages of Alzheimer's disease, Mija begins to study poetry writing at the local cultural center. At first she finds inspiration in the beauty of the natural world, but then, when Jong-wook is mired in a shocking scandal, Mija taps into newfound depths of disappointment and pain.

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Critics Consensus

Poetry is an absorbing, poignant drama because it offers no easy answers to its complex central conflict.

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Trevor Johnston

Sight & Sound

Jul 10, 2018

It's fair to say that the subject-matter... is likely to be a hard sell, but the quality of the film is such that it simply demands an airing.

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J. R. Jones

Chicago Reader

Jan 4, 2012

True to the title, writer-director Lee Chang-dong is principally concerned with rendering emotions that seem inexpressible.

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Maggie Lee

The Hollywood Reporter

Jan 4, 2012

Those with an eye for reading between the lines can find layers of meaning.

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Kathy Fennessy

Video Librarian Magazine

Mar 7, 2025

4/5

Poetry serves as an indictment of a society that sweeps sexual assault under the rug, the better to coddle the perpetrators at the expense of the victims, and to keep the cycle going in perpetuity. Lee wrote the central part for the radiant Yun Jeong-hie.

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Felicia Feaster

Charleston City Paper

Jan 21, 2020

That untapped potential and creativity lurking even within ordinary people is the overriding theme of Lee's achingly poignant film.

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Josh Larsen

LarsenOnFilm

Jan 17, 2020

3.5/4

Yun gives us a lifetime in a few hours.

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Brian T

@RT94656683 10 hrs ago

One of the most beautiful film ever.

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Stephen C

@bob25009 Jul 9, 2025

Success in 2 hours and 19 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! In Korean and American English audio versions with American English subtitles!!!!!!!!!! The USA grossed over $355,000.00!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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May 24, 2022

Veteran Korean actress Yoon Jeong-hee is the truest morally sympathetic soul that keeps the well-written poignant drama afloat that poetically describes wordlessly her thought process towards new developments in life she had to find new meaning. Its titular subject absorbed attention and how such learning experience gets approached and meaningfully structured, despite at times losing focus and just become performative showcases. That very focus becomes more distant when the central conflict makes the story problematically immoral in depicting illogically stalled injustice that lacks depth for any sort of presented reasons. (B)

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Mar 10, 2022

To be clear and honest, such a boring and slow-paced film with an inferior ability to catch the attention of the audience. Not much interesting aspects in the narrative or the plot of this movie

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william d

@acsdoug Oct 4, 2021

Yoon Jeong-hee is exceptional.

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dave s

@RT68722908 Sep 26, 2021

Poetry is a quiet and contemplative film about finding hope in the face of unthinkable sorrow and loss. Yang Mija is a grandmother who takes care of her grandson, a taciturn teen who is found to be implicated in the suicide of a schoolmate. While dealing with this matter, she discovers that her recent bouts of memory loss are attributable to the early stages of Alzheimer's. In order to find solace and meaning, she enrolls in a poetry class. The movie relies on images to express the feelings experienced by the characters, most notably those of the devastated grandmother, relying on long takes and probing shots of faces and actions. Despite an ambiguous ending regarding the fate of the protagonist, it's a poignant film about coming to terms with fate.

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Lee Chang-dong

Director

Yoon Jeong-hee

Yang Mija

Lee David

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Kim Hee-ra

M. Kang

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Poetry: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

Kind-hearted Mija (Yun Jung-hee) is tasked with raising her troubled teenage grandson, Jong-wook, while her daughter works in far-off Busan. In denial that her abilities as a caregiver are threatened by the early stages of Alzheimer's disease, Mija begins to study poetry writing at the local cultural center. At first she finds inspiration in the beauty of the natural world, but then, when Jong-wook is mired in a shocking scandal, Mija taps into newfound depths of disappointment and pain.

Director: Lee Chang-dong
Producer: Lee Jun-dong
Screenwriter: Lee Chang-dong
Production Co: Painhauseupilreum
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Korean
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 11, 2011, Limited
Rerelease Date (Theaters): Apr 26, 2024
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 24, 2012
Box Office (Gross USA): $355.0K
Runtime: 2h 19m

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