Sunny () is a 2011 South Korean comedy-drama film. The film is about a middle-aged woman who tries to fulfill her friend's dying wish of reuniting their group of high school friends. The film alternates between two timelines: the present day where the women are middle-aged, and the 1980s when they were in high school. It is the second film by writer-director Kang Hyeong-cheol, who previously directed Scandal Makers (2008).
Released on 4 May 2011, Sunny was the first film of that year to sell five million tickets in South Korea, and became the second highest-grossing South Korean film by the end of the year. , it is the 13th best-selling film of all-time in South Korea. Kang Hyeong-cheol and Nam Na-yeong won Best Director and Best Editing, respectively, at the Grand Bell Awards. Actress Kang So-ra won several awards for her role as the teenage girl Ha Chun-hwa.
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 visits her old teacher at the high school she once studied at 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: eyelashes-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 a police riot. Na-mi also experiences her first love with Han Joon-ho, Jang-mi's brother friend, but ends her feelings towards him when she sees 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 a private detective, Na-mi finds all the group members and learns about their diverse, often troubled lives. Jang-mi is now a struggling insurance agent, Jin-hee is now an elegant woman with a cheating husband, 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 getting along with "Sunny" and tries bullying her, but Su-ji arrives to save Na-mi from Sang-mi; both of them later get along. At the annual school festival, Sang-mi, who is now out of control, once again tries to torment Na-mi and Chun-hwa. She ends up fighting with her, but the fight ends horribly when Sang-mi cuts Su-ji's face with the piece of glass she was holding, causing Su-ji to scream in shock before being taken away by an ambulance. As a result of this incident, the "Sunny" members were beaten by the principal. Later that night, Na-mi meets the "Sunny" group members in front of Su-ji's house and everyone joins hands at the insistence of Chun-hwa, making a promise that they will meet again in the future no matter what happens.
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, all of the members show up except for Su-ji. 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 dance 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, "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.
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.
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: Event Location Event dates Category/Remarks 16th Busan International Film Festival Busan, South Korea 6–14 October 2011 Korean Cinema Today: Panorama *Director's Cut 6th Korean Film Festival in Paris Paris, France 11–18 October 2011 Opening Night Film *European Premiere 13th Mumbai Film Festival Mumbai, India 13–30 October 2011 World Cinema 6th London Korean Film Festival London, England 4–10 November 2011 Contemporary Korean Cinema 10th New York Korean Film Festival New York City, United States 24–26 February 2012 7th Osaka Asian Film Festival Osaka, Japan 9–18 March 2012 Special Screenings 2nd San Diego Asian Film Foundation Spring Showcase San Diego, United States 19–26 April 2012 Opening Night Film 14th Udine Far East Film Festival Udine, Italy 20–28 April 2012 Opening Night Film 16th Fantasia International Film Festival Montreal, Quebec, Canada 19 July–9 August 2012 3rd Korean Film Festival in Australia Sydney, Australia 22–28 September 2012 Closing Night Film2013 Korean Film FestivalManila, Philippines18 September −10 October 2013
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 Year Award Category Recipient Result 2011 5th Mnet 20's Choice Awards Hot Movie Star Kang So-ra 20th Buil Film Awards Best New Actress Kang So-ra 48th Grand Bell Awards Best Film Sunny Best Director Kang Hyeong-cheol Best Supporting Actress Chun Woo-hee Best New Actress Kang So-ra Best Screenplay Kang Hyeong-cheol Best Planning Ahn Byeong-ki, Lee Anna Best Editing Nam Na-yeong Best Costume Design Chae Kyung-hwa Best Music Kim Jun-seok 32nd Blue Dragon Film Awards Best Film Sunny Best Director Kang Hyeong-cheol Best Supporting Actress Chun Woo-hee Best New Actress Kang So-ra Best Screenplay Kang Hyeong-cheol Best Art Direction Lee Yo-han Best Music Kim Jun-seok Technical Award Nam Na-yeong (editing) 19th Korean Culture and Entertainment Awards Grand Prize (Daesang) for Film Sunny Best New Actress Min Hyo-rin 4th Style Icon Awards Content of the Year Sunny 2012 3rd KOFRA Film Awards Best Director Kang Hyeong-cheol 48th Baeksang Arts Awards Best Film Sunny Best Actress Shim Eun-kyung Best New Actress Kang So-ra Most Popular Actress Kang So-ra
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 film.
A Hollywood remake of the movie was announced to be in production in 2016, but has yet to be made.
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 (collecting 490,000 views) and received overwhelming positive feedback 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 () was released on 11 June 2021.
A Philippine adaptation of the movie by Viva Films was released on 10 April 2024.
References
External links
Sunny at Naver