Little Forest reminds me what a really good film is all about; it isn’t about the best CGI, the highest budget, and not even about how the different cinematic techniques are applied. It is about GOOD storytelling, after all a film at its core is a form of storytelling.

In an industry saturated with big-budgeted, adrenaline-fueled stories, the calm and no-plot Little Forest shined steadily and confidently. It’s one of those films that would leave you with a warm feeling and would stay in your mind long after the suspense, wonder, and amazement of the other stories you’ve been told left your consciousness. The characters stay with you as if you’ve been friendly neighbors and watched each other for a long time, sometimes you even see yourself in them. That’s the beauty of a good storytelling — it lingers long.

The thing with this kind of film is that it wouldn’t work well if the actors aren’t good in their character portrayal. Kim Tae Ri, Ryu Jun Yeol, and Jin Ki Joo are all exceptional in this film too. Ryu Jun Yeol is such a gem and the way he always owns this kind of characters is simply amazing.

It always amazes me that when a character is portrayed so well, even the smallest and most common of gestures can mean a dozen of things. At the near end of the film, Ryu Jun Yeol's wave of goodbye done while his back is turned from Hae Won could be interpreted in so many ways. I remember pausing the play button after that scene and I just smiled and basked in the rush of emotions that scene evoked in me. It’s one of those moments, the little details of a well-told story that stays with you.