My Brother (Uri hyeong /우리형 -2004)

Starring:
Ha-kyun Shin ... Sung-hyun
Bin Won ... Jong-hyun
Hae-suk Kim ... Mother
Bo-young Lee ... Mi-ryeong
Jeong-tae Kim
Tae-wook Kim
Jin-ung Jo

The story is narrated by the younger brother of a cleft-lipped boy, who is the runt of the family and thus gets all the attention from his doting mother. The boys’ father left them because of his son’s disfigurement, and shortly after that, the mother discovered she was pregnant (with the narrator).

The father leaves little behind - except an old camera. The show begins and ends with that camera. As the boys grow up, there is rivalry for a girl, and the older son’s heart is broken as his brother plagiarises his love poetry for her, and ends up going out with her instead. Still, the older son shows love and patience to his brother, despite getting constantly abused by him. Eventually they start to get along. But there is one thing the narrator is unable to do - call his disfigured sibling ‘his brother’. His whole life has been filled with jealousy towards his older brother, and resentment towards his mother for the unequal treatment.

While the older son goes on to medical school, the narrator falls out with society, his mother, and even his brother, becoming a debt-collector. Ultimately a string of unfortunate misdeeds which he commits, comes back to haunt him, and it is finally then that he can call his cleft-lipped sibling ‘his brother’.

I'm going to start off with my review before I add the "scenery". I'm still crying my heart out. This was the most beautiful movie about siblings I've ever seen. I'd heard it was tear-jerker but I didn't realize how much so.....until now.

This movie is a definite box of Kleenex type of movie. Be prepared to weep to your hearts content.

Won Bin and Shin Ha Kyun were exceptional in their portrayal of Jung-hyun and Sung-hyun. This movie compels me to get out my stationary and write my brother and sister and tell them how much they mean to me before it's too late. Reminiscent of my life with my siblings and to others as well, this movie will throw in curve balls and make you realize how much family really means in the long run. We've all been jealous of a sibling before and probably have fought over those feelings as well. But as we get older, we either part our separate ways or bond closer together as we never did before. This movie tells that tale.

Geez, all I can do at this moment is control the over flow of tears and snot running out my nose. This movie is a must watch by all accounts and don't say I didn't warn you about the Kleenex!!

Won Bin