Time to Be Strong
Three retired K-pop idols take a trip to Jeju Island. After failed careers and missed school trips, they finally have the time to go on a trip on their own. On their first day on the island, things start to go awry.
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Time to Be Strong is the 15th Human Rights Movie Project by the National Human Rights Commission of Korea and explores the human rights of idols. There are a lot of issues raised in the film about the violation of idols’ human rights. It deals with various issues, from financial problems, excessive working hours, sexual violation to emotional issues, which may still arise if these idols are not affiliated to any large agency. Some human rights films are so entertaining that they may not be recognized as human rights films, if the definition of it were not mentioned. These include Fly, Penguin (2009) by Lim Soon-rye and Maggie (2018) by Lee Okseop. Time to Be Strong is in line with these films. Director Namkoong Sun, who depicted the life of a pregnant woman in a candid yet hilarious way in Ten Months (2021), displays her talent once again, seamlessly blending human rights issues in this cheerful youth drama. A belated school trip for three former idols is also the story of ordinary young people, who look back on the past and vow to make a fresh start. The message of the film, “I am here. The one called I is here”, is something that all young people can relate to. (MOON Seok)
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National Human Rights Commission of Korea⎜right2da@naver.com
Before We Die⎜namkoongsun.seoul@gmail.com
NAMKOONG Sun
