Aloners

Directed by Hong Sung-eun, Aloners follows a solitary young woman (Gong Seung-yeon’s Jina) as she reconsiders her reclusive existence after her day-to-day habits are disrupted by external forces. First-time filmmaker Hong, working from her own screenplay, delivers an exceedingly low-key yet mostly watchable drama that succeeds as a portrait of isolation and loneliness, and there’s little doubt, certainly, that the movie benefits from Gong’s convincing, subtle turn as the initially far-from-sympathetic central character. It’s clear, then, that Aloners‘ overall impact is dulled significantly by its excessively deliberate pace and periodic emphasis on questionable elements (eg Jina’s recurring penchant for inadvertently communicating with dead people seems out of place, to put it mildly), with the picture’s expanded-from-a-short feel paving the way for a second half that isn’t quite as impactful or resonant as Hong has obviously intended. (The final few minutes are very satisfying, at least.) The end result is a decent-enough debut feature that generally feels like it could (and should) be better, although, to be fair, it’s hard to deny that Hong captures the ennui that is, especially these days, part-and-parcel with solo urban living.

**1/2 out of ****