Movies - a cure for the 'disease of the times'

Not just a movie

In the past days of March and April, movie lovers were caught up in the intense emotional flow of the TV series “When Life Gives You Tangerines”. The film is considered a film phenomenon in 2025 when it not only caused a fever in Korea but also spread strongly around the world.

Belonging to the Slice Of Life genre, “When Life Gives You a Tangerine” revolves around the lives of Kwan Sik (played by Park Bo Gum) and Ae Soon (played by IU) since they were 10 and 9 years old. They have been together for 50 years, experiencing countless bitter and sweet moments in life until their children grow up and one of them has to leave first. The film is divided into 4 chapters, corresponding to 4 seasons of the year, each chapter brings slices of life that are very close, simple but full of life, making it easy for the audience to watch, easy to absorb, and also easy to bring both laughter and tears.

With its profound content that touches the hearts of viewers, “When Life Gives You a Tangerine” has broken a series of records for views on Netflix (a world-famous online movie viewing platform). Notably, the film also made history when it achieved a score of 9.8 on IMDb (an online database of world cinema), which is the highest rating ever recorded for a Korean work on this platform.

In fact, it is not uncommon for Korean films to take the world by storm in recent years, but it is rare for a Korean television production to achieve such an admirable achievement. What makes it so attractive is that “When Life Gives You a Tangerine” is not just a film, but also conveys profound and meaningful messages about life, family and love of the most ordinary people.

In the film, each character shows the audience how they face everyday challenges, from complicated family relationships, difficulties in life to sadness and separation. These are all familiar challenges in real life that sometimes we feel confused and do not know how to handle. However, through the resilient and persistent way each character faces them, the film shows the audience not to give up but instead find the strength to overcome the challenges.

Not only conveying a message in the content, the title "When Life Gives You Lemons" also contains a profound philosophy about life. The Korean name of the film is Pokssak Sogatsuda, which means "You've worked hard" in the Jeju language. Meanwhile, the English name of the film is a variation of the famous saying "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade". This is a saying that encourages people to face difficulties and overcome challenges with an optimistic and positive attitude. Replacing "lemon" with "tangerine" - two fruits with a characteristic sour taste, not only retains the spirit of the saying but also subtly connects with Jeju's famous specialty, suitable for the context of the film.

As a fan and having watched many Korean dramas, T.Van (28 years old, Hanoi) still feels especially impressed with “When Life Gives You a Tangerine”. “I know the film with the label of a healing film, which is very suitable for my mood when I am looking for a film to relieve stress. The first few episodes, the film made me feel truly healing with humorous details and a dreamlike love story. But just a few more episodes, the film brought me completely different feelings, leading me into a flow of intense emotions. Not only did it make me laugh but also made me cry, worry and contemplate, and finally made me love and cherish this life more,” T.Van confided.

On the global film map, there are many works that bring viewers the same emotions as “When Life Gives You Oranges”. In general, these films often follow characters on their journey of healing as they face trauma, pain and mental health issues in their daily lives, thereby showing how they face and overcome challenges. With realistic plots and relatable characters, these works skillfully guide viewers so that they can see themselves in each frame. Although exploiting human sadness, the films always end with optimism and hope for a brighter tomorrow, bringing positive energy, helping us to soothe mental stress, heal emotional wounds and rekindle faith in life.

Mirror of emotions

Reality proves that movies in particular and entertainment in general can have a strong positive impact on people's mental health. Watching movies to relax is not only an effective way to relieve stress but also a useful method to overcome psychological barriers. In addition, through movies, audiences can find deep harmony in their souls and encounter mirrors that truly reflect all levels of emotions.

Many surveys have also confirmed that watching inspirational movies will equip viewers with strong motivation to face and overcome difficult challenges in life. For example, an experiment by researchers at Ohio State University (USA) revolved around meaningful movies produced after 1985 with the participation of 1,098 adult volunteers who had a special passion for cinema.

In the experiment, volunteers spent time watching movies that were rated as having the ability to lift viewers' spirits and make them feel more positive. Then, they participated in a survey with a series of diverse questions to measure emotions and psychological reactions. The results showed that many people felt better psychologically to cope with difficulties and challenges in life. At the same time, it was shown that with movies that lead viewers through the range of emotions of joy and sadness, interwoven with heart-touching stories, they often find harmony, easily accept difficulties in life and practice thinking more rationally and thoroughly about their own problems.

Movies show that hardships and obstacles are an inevitable part of life that everyone must go through. Behind every incident, there are reasons, lessons and valuable experiences. When viewers understand and accept this reality, they no longer feel alone in their journey to overcome adversity. Instead, they learn to cope with a strong, stable mindset and a more optimistic, positive attitude.

Many volunteers even shared that meaningful movies not only touched their emotions but also aroused in them the desire to live better, to become a better version of themselves. In summary, the research results show that for many people, movies are not simply a form of entertainment. On the contrary, they can become a strong source of inspiration, helping them courageously face and develop themselves through difficult times in life.

It can be seen that in an era where stress and pressure are always present, healing films are gradually becoming a spiritual “refuge” for millions of viewers around the world. It is the simple but emotional stories, familiar characters and humane messages that have made this genre of film increasingly popular and become an emotional support for many viewers.

Ganoderma

Source: https://baophapluat.vn/phim-anh-lieu-thuoc-chua-can-benh-thoi-dai-post547888.html