a review on „It’s okay“.
Dancing is at the centre of In-young's (Lee Re) life. A year after her mother's death, dancing still gives her comfort and feelings of strength and security, because professional dancing was also a dream for In-young's mother, which In-young wants to fulfil for her and herself. On the outside, In-young always seems happy and full of life, but on the inside, the teenager has to deal with problems that no one her age should have to face: In-young has lived alone since her mother's death, has no guardian and avoids the child care services, which appear at her door from time to time. With her small mini-job in a convenience store, however, she can hardly afford the rent, which is why In-young is kicked out of her flat and decides to secretly stay at her dance school. It's clear that this can't go on for long, and so she is discovered by the strict dance teacher Seol-ah (Jin Seo-yeon), who unexpectedly takes In-young home to her for a while. Over time, the two grow closer and learn from each other about their approach to expectations, dreams and themselves.
"It's okay" is a well structured, dramaturgically complete and moving coming-of-age film. Overall, it is very smooth and somewhat predictable - but the dramaturgy is by no means boring. Director Kim Hye-young addresses important topics in "It's okay", but manages to bring them to the audience in a very easy-going way. Unlike what I expected, the film focuses less on grief. Instead, the film focuses much more on In-young's extroverted and open way of dealing with her people and situations. There are moments of sadness and despair for In-young in between, but overall "It's okay" is a cheerful, funny film. In the q&a after one screening Kim tells us that she wanted to create a film that doesn't focus on sadness, but rather on hope. It's okay" certainly does that, but every now and then the mother's death almost seems a little as if it is only part of the story so that it works dramaturgically as such.
I particularly like the way In-young is first taken serious as a teenager in the film. "It's okay" is clearly told from the perspective of an adolescent, with her feelings and worries taking centre stage. Kim also portrays many strong young and adult women - In-young and her fellow dancers, Seol-ah as the trainer and artistic director of the dance group and also all the other leading positions in the dance school. As a result, "It's okay" is also a very empowering film and can show especially the non-male young audience to believe in their dreams and themselves.
"It's okay" also addresses and criticises topics such as expectations and the pressure in a performance-oriented society. The film shows in an unembellished way how the young dancers suffer from the pressure to perform, but finds a positive twist in that the protagonists question these values and rediscover the joy of dancing itself. Many viewers can certainly identify with the pressure and expectations in a meritocracy, which is why everyone can take something home from the message that "It's okay" communicates.
"It's okay" may not be a "typical" generational film, but it definitely fits into the K-Plus programme due to the topics addressed and the way they are dealt with. It is a film in which young and old can share in the joy, laughter, tears and hope. "It's okay" would definitely be an enrichment for the german and world wide cinema and we can only hope that the South Korean production will also make it out of the Berlinale and into cinemas.
You can still watch "It's okay" at the Berlinale tomorrow (25/02) at 1pm at the HKW!
