Sunny (2011 film)

Plot

Im Na-mi, a wealthy but depressed housewife, feels disconnected from her family and lonely in her seemingly perfect life. Her husband and daughter are indifferent towards her, and she eats breakfast alone every morning. One day, she visits her mother in the hospital and recalls her high school days upon seeing the name "Ha Chun-hwa" on a patient's room.

Na-mi then visited her old teacher at the high school she once study and is then taken back to her teenage years, where she is introduced as a new student in an all-girls high school in Seoul. Initially ridiculed for her country accent and appearance, she befriends Ha Chun-hwa and joins her group of friends called "Sunny." The group consists of six other girls: eye-lashes obsessed Kim Jang-mi, foul-mouthed Hwang Jin-hee, writer's daughter Seo Geum-ok, beauty queen wannabe Ryu Bok-hee, and the school goddess but distant Jung Su-ji. They bond over shared experiences and adventures, including a memorable rivalry with another school group at the police riot. Na-mi also experiences her first love with Han Joon-ho, Jang-mi's brother friend, but end her feeling when she saw him with Su-ji.

In the present, Na-mi discovers Chun-hwa is terminally ill and wishes to reunite "Sunny". With help from her old teacher and private detective, Na-mi found all the group members and learning about their diverse, often troubled lives. Jang-mi is now a struggling insurance agent, Jin-hee is now an elegant woman while her husband cheats on her, Geum-ok is unemployed and living in a cramped space, Bok-hee has turned to prostitution while her daughter is in the hospital, and Su-ji remains elusive. Na-mi eventually finds Joon-ho and gets closure on her past feelings for him.

Back in the past, a girl named Sang-mi who is jealous of Na-mi get along with "Sunny" and was try to bully her, but Su-ji was there to save Na-mi from Sang-mi and both of them later get along. At the school annual festival, Sang-mi who is now out of control once again try to torment Na-mi and Chun-hwa goes on fighting with her, but the fight end horribly when Sang-mi cuts Su-ji's face with the piece of glass she was holding, causing Su-ji screamed in shock and was taken away in an ambulance, and the "Sunny" members were beaten by the principal in the principal room. Later that night, Na-mi meet the "Sunny" in front of Su-ji's house and Chun-hwa tell everyone join hands to make a promise that they will meet again in the future no matter what happen.

Despite Chun-hwa passing away before the reunion, the women rekindle their friendship and joy in life. They also get revenge on a group of girls bullying Na-mi's daughter. At Chun-hwa's funeral, they all showed up except for Su-ji, only to invite her through a newspaper. Then the lawyer reads Chun-hwa's will, which includes thoughtful gifts and opportunities for each member of Sunny. They celebrate Chun-hwa's life by dancing to their old routine, and Su-ji makes a surprise appearance, completing their reunion. The film ends with nostalgic flashbacks to their teenage years.

Cast

;Present

• Yoo Ho-jeong as Im Na-mi
• Jin Hee-kyung as Ha Chun-hwa
• Go Soo-hee as Kim Jang-mi
• Hong Jin-hee as Hwang Jin-hee
• Lee Yeon-kyung as Seo Geum-ok
• Kim Sun-kyung as Ryu Bok-hee
• Yoon Jung as Jung Su-ji
• Baek Jong-hak as Na-mi's husband
• Ha Seung-ri as Ye-bin, Na-mi's daughter
• Jung Suk-yong as Jong-ki, Na-mi's older brother
• Lee Jun-hyeok as Owner of private detective agency
• Lee Geung-young as Han Joon-ho
• Kim Shi-hoo as Joon-ho's son
• Kim Ji-kyung as Jin-hee's husband
• Joo-ho as Insurance company manager
• Cha Tae-hyun as Model of insurance company
• Kim Joon-ho as Private detective
• Sung Ji-ru as Chun-hwa's lawyer ;1980s
• Shim Eun-kyung as Im Na-mi
• Kang So-ra as Ha Chun-hwa
• Kim Min-young as Kim Jang-mi
• Park Jin-joo as Hwang Jin-hee
• Nam Bo-ra as Seo Geum-ok
• Kim Bo-mi as Ryu Bok-hee
• Min Hyo-rin as Jung Su-ji
• Kim Shi-hoo as Han Joon-ho
• Kim Young-ok as Na-mi's grandmother
• Jung Won-joong as Na-mi's father
• Kim Hye-ok as Na-mi's mother
• Park Young-seo as Jong-ki, Na-mi's older brother
• Chun Woo-hee as Sang-mi
• Kim Ye-won as Leader of rival gang "Girls' Generation"
• Ryu Hye-rin as Member of band "Girl's Generation"
• So Hee-jung as Homeroom teacher
• Kim Won-hae as Student liaison teacher
• Park Hee-jung as Young-jin
• Han Seung-hyun as Jang-mi's older brother
• Kang Ji-won as Su-jin's stepmother
• Kang Rae-yeon as Jong-ki's girlfriend
• Yang Hee-kyung as Jang-mi's mother

Allusions

The flashback scenes juxtaposed the fun and silly, drama-filled lives of high school students with the Gwangju Uprising that took place in May 1980. In the film, Na-mi's brother is a university student who participates in the protests. The scenes where Sunny fights the rival gang are backgrounded with the violent clash between the protestors and the military.

The movie's release was timely with the entertainment industry's focus on 1980s musicals, films, and pop music. Western brands and products were abundantly present in the flashback portions of the film. The trendy high school students all wore Nike and Adidas. A billboard for Rocky was visible in the background of the fight between Sunny and their rivals. The music also referenced songs from the 1980s including "Touch by Touch" by Joy, "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" by Cyndi Lauper,Although the movie displays events from the democratization movement in 1980, it also features the Cyndi Lauper song that was released in 1983. "Reality" by Richard Sanderson, and Boney M.'s 1976 cover of Bobby Hebb's song "Sunny," as well as the Korean pop songs "In My Dreams" by Jo Duk-bae and "I See" by Nami. Especially the song use in the first and ending scene is "Time after time", sang by Tuck & Patti, original version of Cyndi Lauper.

Original soundtrack

The album is comprised by instrumentals composed by music director Kim Jun-seok that express the characters' emotional state. The film also featured a mix of 1980s Korean and Western pop music to evoke nostalgia, and to signify the Western "fad" that swept over students in Korea at the time.

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Release

The film was released on 4 May 2011 in South Korea. It also received a limited release in the United States in July 2011, screening in Los Angeles, Torrance, New York City, New Jersey, Chicago, Virginia, Washington D.C., Seattle, Texas and Hawaii.

Film festivals

The film has been shown in film festivals worldwide:

Reception

Box office

In 2011, the movie sold 7,375,110 tickets, and grossed (), making it the year's second highest grossing Korean film and fourth highest grossing overall film in South Korea. At the end of the movie's run, it had sold 7.38 million admissions, with an additional 90,555 from a director's cut.

Awards and nominations

Remakes

Hong Kong television series Never Dance Alone, which aired on TVB in 2014, is reportedly inspired by this movie. The remake is not official.

The 2016 Mongolian film "6th Wish" was inspired by the Korean film Sunny 2011.

A Hollywood remake of the movie was announced to be in production since 2016.

A Vietnamese remake of the movie, titled Tháng Năm Rực Rỡ (Go Go Sisters) was released on 9 March 2018. It topped the Southeast Asian country’s box office in its opening weekend (collected 490,000 views) and received overwhelming positive feedbacks from the media, movie reviewers, and public audiences.

A Japanese remake of the movie, titled Sunny: Our Hearts Beat Together (Sunny: Tsuyoi Kimochi Tsuyoi Ai, lit. Sunny: Strong Mind Strong Love) was released on 31 August 2018. An Indonesian adaptation remake of the movie, titled Bebas (Glorious Days) was released on 3 October 2019.

A Chinese remake of the movie, titled Sunny Sisters (阳光姐妹淘) was released on 11 June 2021.

A Philippine adaptation of the movie by Viva Films was released on 10 April 2024.

Notes

References

References

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4. (April 2012). "Interview: Hyeong-Cheol Kang, director of ''Sunny''".
5. (18 October 2011). "48th Daejong Film Awards Highlight Year's Best".
6. (19 October 2011). "The Front Line top winner at Korea's Grand Bell Awards".
7. (28 May 2011). "Kang So-ra Soars to Stardom with ''Sunny''".
8. Lee, Maggie. (2011-12-08). "Sunny: Movie Review".
9. Wong, Amy. (23 October 2011). "Sunny (Korean Film)".
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15. (1 August 2012). "Korean films take over Fantasia, Osian's-Cinefan".
16. (July 2012). "Korean Film Fest in Australia rolls out ambitious 2012 line-up".
17. "6 Korean movies to screen at film festival". ABS-CBN News.
18. Paquet, Darcy. (8 January 2012). "South Korean box office in 2011".
19. Kim, Hong-chun. (5 March 2012). "KOFIC reports record box office in 2011".
20. (7 December 2011). "Top issues in the 2011 Korean film industry".
21. "The Best Selling Films of 2011".
22. (1 November 2011). "Review: ''Sunny''".
23. (8 April 2014). "Synopsis Of ''Never Dance Alone''".
24. (27 October 2016). "Hollywood remake of 'Sunny' under production".
25. (28 November 2018). "Kevin Hart to Produce Remake of Korean Comedy-Drama 'Sunny'".
26. (3 October 2017). "Ohne to direct Japanese remake of 'Sunny'".
27. "South Korean film "Sunny" to be remade for overseas audiences".
28. Rafikasari, Diana. (5 September 2019). "Adaptasi Box Office Korea Film Bebas Tayang 3 Oktober 2019".
29. Lukman, Josa. (26 September 2019). "Mira Riri Filmmaking Duo Bring 1990s Back with Bebas".
30. "[Reportage] Korean film sees new horizons in Southeast Asia".
31. (2021-07-11). "【观影零距离】《阳光姐妹淘》". [[Xinhua News Agency.
32. (9 April 2024). "Back-to-back movie treats from Viva Films".