''The Peach Tree'' () is a 2012
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
n film directed by actress
Ku Hye-sun. It stars
Cho Seung-woo and
Ryu Deok-hwan as
conjoined twin brothers who fall in love with the same woman played by
Nam Sang-mi
Nam Sang-mi (born May 3, 1984) is a South Korean actress.
Career
Nam Sang-mi was working in a Lotteria restaurant near Hanyang University in the fall of 2001 when someone posted her personal photos on the internet. Her popularity as an ulzza ...
.
The film premiered at the 2011
Busan International Film Festival
The Busan International Film Festival (BIFF, previously Pusan International Film Festival, PIFF), held annually in Haeundae-gu, Busan (''also'' Pusan), South Korea, is one of the most significant film festivals in Asia. The first festiv ...
,
[Lee, Ji-hye (13 October 2011)]
"Ku Hye-sun: The appeal to being a director is that you get to do everything together"
''TenAsia''. Retrieved 2012-11-19. and was released in theaters a year later. In 2013 it was also invited to the
Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival
The Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival (BIFFF), previously named Brussels International Festival of Fantastic Film (french: Festival international du film fantastique de Bruxelles, nl, Internationaal Festival van de Fantastische Fil ...
,
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northe ...
's Golden Horse Fantastic Film Festival, and the
New York Asian Film Festival
The New York Asian Film Festival (NYAFF) is a critically acclaimed film festival held in New York City, dedicated to the display of Asian Film Culture. The New York Asian Film Festival generally features contemporary premieres and classic titles ...
.
Plot
Sang-hyun and Dong-hyun were born as
conjoined twins
Conjoined twins – sometimes popularly referred to as Siamese twins – are twins joined '' in utero''. A very rare phenomenon, the occurrence is estimated to range from 1 in 49,000 births to 1 in 189,000 births, with a somewhat higher incidence ...
with two heads sharing one body. Dong-hyun has the full control of their shared body, except his brother's head which is attached to the back of his. The two can never look at each other directly, as their heads always face the opposite direction. Dong-hyun looks "normal" as long as he wears his hoodie, which fully covers his brother's face. The two have lived nearly 30 years in a remote house with their father, who tells them not to go outside the property. However, things change when their father brings Seung-ah, a bubbly, good-hearted young artist, to the house to help Dong-hyun publish a children's book ― one of his lifelong dreams.
Despite having the same body, the brothers share little else. While Sang-hyun is patient and generous, Dong-hyun is always questioning something and extremely selfish. Dong-hyun gradually builds a grudge against Sang-hyun, blaming him for his unhappiness and isolated life. Sang-hyun, who lets his brother do whatever he wants, does not recognize his own wants and needs until he gets to know Seung-ah. And things worsen as Dong-hyun, who wants to appear as a "normal writer" for his upcoming book, desperately tries hiding what he thinks as his ultimate flaw ― his own brother.
Throughout the film, peaches appear frequently. Before the twins were born, their parents enjoyed a date near a peach tree. Near the same tree is where the young twins saw their mother for the last time, since she gradually lost her sanity and health after giving birth to them. The tree and its fruits are witness to Sang-hyun and Dong-hyun's history; it sees the twins' beginning, their loss, and their isolated dreams and experiences.
Cast
*
Cho Seung-woo - Sang-hyun
*
Ryu Deok-hwan - Dong-hyun
*
Nam Sang-mi
Nam Sang-mi (born May 3, 1984) is a South Korean actress.
Career
Nam Sang-mi was working in a Lotteria restaurant near Hanyang University in the fall of 2001 when someone posted her personal photos on the internet. Her popularity as an ulzza ...
- Park Seung-ah
*
Choi Il-hwa
Choi Il-hwa (born May 9, 1959) is a South Korean actor. He joined the Madang Sesil Theatre Group in 1983, and has since continued acting in Korean theater, television and film.
Filmography
Film
*'' No Tomorrow (2016)
*'' Wonderful Nightmare'' ...
*Kim Hye-na - Ji-hyun
*Kim Byung-oh - Reporter Kim
*Shin Hye-jung - publishing company manager
*Baek Gyeong-min - Tae-seong
*Jeon Mi-ra
*Sun Yeong-sun
*
Choi Daniel - cameo
*
Lee Joon-hyuk - cameo
*
Seo Hyun-jin - cameo
*
Im Ji-kyu - cameo
Music
Cho Seung-woo sang the track to the film's music video.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Peach Tree, The
South Korean romantic drama films
2011 films
Films about twin brothers
2010s South Korean films