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A Mother Caught Between Two Versions of Her Son
South Korean filmmaker Yeon Sang-ho’s psychological thriller “Paradise Lost” will open in South Korean theaters on the 21st, telling the story of a mother forced to choose between the son preserved in artificial intelligence and the young man who returns after nine years.
So-young, played by Kim Hyun-joo, lost her 10-year-old son, Sun-woo, after a bus carrying children to a camping program disappeared. She has endured his absence by visiting “Children of Paradise,” an AI-powered virtual reality program that recreates the missing children as they were at the time of the incident.
Her carefully maintained reality begins to unravel when Sun-woo, played by Bae Hyun-sung, unexpectedly returns alive. Now a scar-covered young man with a chilling demeanor, he feels like a stranger to his mother. Even with the real Sun-woo in the next room, So-young continues putting on specialized glasses to visit his 10-year-old virtual counterpart.
Kim portrays So-young as outwardly composed but unable to accept reality, revealing her turmoil through subtle shifts in expression. Bae, previously known for warm-hearted young characters in Korean television dramas including “Our Blues” and “Family by Choice,” takes on a darker role marked by slow movements and an unreadable stare.
A Low-Budget Production With a Personal Origin
The film continues Yeon’s recent turn toward lower-budget filmmaking. “Paradise Lost” was made for about 500 million won and completed in 14 shooting sessions. It follows “The Face,” which Yeon finished last year on a production budget of roughly 200 million won.
The story began with three pages handwritten by Yeon’s mother in a notebook. Yeon developed several versions from that material, including the novel “Black Inferno,” written by Oh Seong-eun from an original concept by Yeon and Ryu Yong-jae.
At a press event on the 12th, Yeon said he was intrigued by the psychology of an evil son and a mother who loves him deeply. He said he wrote the screenplay to explore that relationship more fully.
Festival Debuts and an AI Companion Series
“Paradise Lost” premiered at the 51st Toronto International Film Festival, where it was invited to the Special Presentations section. About 2,300 tickets across four official screenings sold out as soon as reservations opened. The film later screened at the 31st Busan International Film Festival in South Korea.
Yeon said he was moved by the detailed questions from international journalists in Toronto, but conversations with South Korean audiences in Busan reminded him that Korea remains the film’s primary stage.
Ahead of the theatrical release, Yeon also introduced “Paradise Lost — Universe,” a four-part short-film series created with generative AI. The companion stories focus on technology developed by Trans Human, the fictional company behind “Children of Paradise,” and follow people who reunite with deceased family members in virtual reality.
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