In Front of Your Face

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In Front of Your Face

2022

1h 25m

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

95%

Tomatometer

38 Reviews

85%

Popcornmeter

Fewer than 50 Ratings

After years living abroad, former actress Sangok (Lee Hyeyoung) is back in Seoul, staying with her sister Jeongok (Cho Yunhee) in her high-rise apartment. The siblings sleep late, have breakfast in a café and visit a restaurant owned by Jeongok's son. But as the details of Sangok's day accrue (a spill on her blouse, an encounter at her childhood home), it becomes clear that there is much she is not revealing. And these mysterious circumstances have something to do with her decision to meet with film director Jaewon (Kwon Haehyo) to discuss her return to acting. In her first role for Hong, Lee, a prominent theater and screen actress in South Korea, makes a captivating return to the big screen.

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Critics Consensus

An exploration of the intersection between art and life, In Front of Your Face finds Hong Sang-soo working in a typically -- and beguilingly -- minor key.

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Becca Voelcker

Sight & Sound

May 14, 2026

A piognant and typically minimalist story set beneath the shifting skyline of Seoul.

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Wendy Ide

Observer (UK)

Sep 25, 2022

3/5

Much of the film’s allure comes from a mesmerising Lee Hye-yeong, playing a former actor hoping to reconnect with the past and come to terms with the future.

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Trevor Johnston

Little White Lies

Sep 23, 2022

5/5

The film just gives you so much to unpack. Repeat viewing essential.

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William Stottor

Loud and Clear Reviews

Aug 13, 2024

3.5/5

Prolific director Hong Sang-soo is on fine form again with In Front of Your Face, as he channels the beauty of life’s simplicities into his well-drawn characters.

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Sean Burns

WBUR’s Arts & Culture

Apr 26, 2023

One of the filmmaker’s finest efforts.

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Betsy Sherman

Arts Fuse

Apr 21, 2023

...part of being a Hong fan is adjusting to not knowing how long it’s been since the last bit of action, or even if the next part might have taken place before it...

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Richard B

@RichardB12314 Sep 1, 2024

Meditative movie that gets you to recognize the peace of the present moment. The main character is forced to be there, but pay attention to the ones who are always thinking about the past or the future.

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Hong Sang-soo

Director

Lee Hye-yeong

Sangok

Hae-hyo Kwon

Jaewon

Lee Hye-young

Sangok

Cho Yunhee

Jeongok

Kwon Hae-hyo

Jaewon

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97%

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Synopsis

After years living abroad, former actress Sangok (Lee Hyeyoung) is back in Seoul, staying with her sister Jeongok (Cho Yunhee) in her high-rise apartment. The siblings sleep late, have breakfast in a café and visit a restaurant owned by Jeongok's son. But as the details of Sangok's day accrue (a spill on her blouse, an encounter at her childhood home), it becomes clear that there is much she is not revealing. And these mysterious circumstances have something to do with her decision to meet with film director Jaewon (Kwon Haehyo) to discuss her return to acting. In her first role for Hong, Lee, a prominent theater and screen actress in South Korea, makes a captivating return to the big screen.

Director: Hong Sang-soo
Producer: Hong Sang-soo
Screenwriter: Sang-soo Hong, Hong Sang-soo
Distributor: The Cinema Guild
Production Co: Jeonwonsa Film
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Korean
Release Date (Theaters): May 6, 2022, Limited
Runtime: 1h 25m

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