When I Turned Nine (Korea 2004)

When I Turned Nine is a story about a nine-year old boy, Yeo-min Baek, who is in the third grade. At such a young age, he feels responsible for his family and friends' well-being without them telling him so.

During the summer, he sells ice-cream to earn some cash and save up. He wants to buy a special something for the person he cares the most. Because he knows that selling ice-cream won't be enough, he starts cleaning houses and runs errands for other people.

When school started, he became the designated protector of his friends from bullies. Upon Woo-rim Jang's arrival in school, another so-called trouble started to unfold. He became attracted to her much so to the disliking of his long-time girl friend. She feels that Woo-rim isn't what she seems to be. From that day on, Yeo-min tried to balance his relationship between his long-time friends and Woo-rim.

Before anything else, let me tell that, in recent years, there wasn't any movie like this that made me sob like a baby! It is a tearjerker all the way! Although it wasn't the kind that is quite heavy. There may be a lot of strong emotional scenes, this movie may still be considered as light. It is melodramatic without being cheesy.

When I Turned Nine isn't like any other movie. For one thing, the story revolves around children. And they weren't goofing around as most children movies have. They were acting in an environment as if they were adults. The closest comparable movie that I have in mind is My Girl. But then, with regards to the depth and substance of this, My Girl would fall flat.

Nine is about familial love, puppy love, and friendships. It tackles love at a tender age, jealousy, naivete, honesty, sadness, responsibility, generosity, and sincerity. It is such amazing to see how children act in their world. For them, everything is black and white. Either you do it or you don't. Complicated isn't in their vocabulary. If only adults could remain as pure and innocent as them, then the world would be a better place to live in.

What's bothering, however, is how Korean teachers treat their students. I can't imagine myself hurting my students physically the way they do. Korean teachers still treat themselves as superior and a cut above the rest.

Besides that, Nine is perfect in every way! Great casting led by Suk Kim. At such a young age, he can act with intense passion and pure concentration. The dialogues may be pretty much adult-ish but it may be only because of the translations made. It is well-paced and well-characterized.

When I Turned Nine, a novel-turned-movie, is wonderful!

Verdict: Four and a half rolls of tissue!!!