A Girl At My Door lingers in the mind. The film is intelligent and enigmatic as it charts shifting equilibriums, a beautiful landscape and its convincingly flawed inhabitants. The impact is heightened by an unhurried pace that results in remarkably few dull moments.

Doona Bae is mesmerising, subtly evoking intoxicated numbness alongside strength and ephemeral clarity, reinforcing the film’s opacity. Sae-ron Kim is unforgettable; her expressive eyes communicate anguish, delight and intangibility.

Most impressive is the fearless and unresolved conclusion which oversteps archetypal parameters with horrific ramifications. The result is ambiguous, the dilemmas provoking a visceral and analytical response.

Sophisticated, perplexing and unnerving, A Girl At My Door will haunt long after viewing.

RATING: 4/5

INFORMATION

CAST: Doona Bae, Sae-ron Kim, Sae-byuk Song, Hie-jin Jang

DIRECTOR: July Jung

WRITER: July Jung

SYNOPSIS: Temporarily ousted from a job in Seoul, Young-nam (Bae) finds herself Police Chief of a rural town ensnared by alcoholism, an addiction she shares. After encountering Dohee (Kim) – a young girl abused by her father and grandmother – she is compelled to interfere, a decision with problematical results…