Critics reviews

“Gyeongju” is obviously a film addressed to art-house fans. However, Zhang Lu’s direction, the beauty of the city, and the performance of the actors result in a film that will entertain most audiences.

The poignancy and humour of the film are well balanced; creating a drama that is both deeply funny and touching... Avoiding resolution for an enigmatic ending wide open to all sort of interpretations, this is just the sort of Korean cinema that everyone should know about.

["Gyeongju" is] just as awkward and insouciant as its protagonist. Zhang hasn’t really developed his halting, downcast style since his impressive sophomore effort "Grain in Ear" (2005). The structure and length of "Gyeongju" simply means that Zhang provides more of these static beats, with an unnerving concatenation that never speaks to any larger frame of reference.

[An] exquisitely observed personal drama... Bathed in radiant sunshine yet not quite impervious to melancholy, it’s a perfectly wonderful place to spend 145 minutes — the cinematic equivalent of a good Haruki Murakami novel, complete with a few delicately supernatural touches.

A breezy, bittersweet drama in which humor and bubbling affections are nearly always subtly moderated by bereavement and faithfulness toward the beloved departed... Zhang has produced what is easily the most lighthearted project in his career. Far from veering deep into rom-com territory, however, "Gyeongju" trades in subtle sentiments and symbolism — with quite a few nods to Zhang's favorite theme of identity politics.