The Beautiful ‘Past Lives’ Was Predestined for Greatness
There is destiny, and then there is inyeon (or in-yeon). It’s one of those beautiful non-English words that hardly translates from its native language. But after watching Past Lives (in theaters June 2), you’ll never forget the meaning of it. You’ll be looking for it everywhere, longing for the depth of feeling it describes—the kind you’ll feel while watching this heartbreakingly brilliant, beautifully crafted film.
Inyeon is a Korean word, speaking to the Buddhist belief of a spiritual, predestined bond between two people. Soulmates don’t just find each other, 24-year-old Nora (Greta Lee) explains to her new friend (and future husband) Arthur (John Magaro), as they sit outside on a beautiful summer night in Montauk. Per inyeon, soulmates are two people who have dug through 8,000 layers of history—of lives—in order to make their fated connection. They are meant to be together in some way, whether it’s as two humans who fall in love or as a tree and its strongest branch.
While Nora laughs off the concept as “something Koreans say to seduce each other,” Past Lives takes inyeon to heart. Written and directed by first-time filmmaker Celine Song, the movie follows two childhood friends, whose unspoken love for each other remains challenged by distance, time, and that inarticulable idea of inyeon.