Dream: A Story Of Perseverance

Have you ever heard of the Homeless World Cup? I personally never but through this film, Dream, a South Korean sport comedy released early of 2023, it tells an eccentric story of various homeless with their aspirations in joining the Homeless World Cup. This story was also inspired by real life events of South Korea participation in the event. This film also starred top stars such as IU and Park Seo-Joon.

The film starts with Yoon Hong-Dae (Park Seo-Joon), a soccer player who seemed to have lost his muse to the sport he once loved. During a match, he was acting rashly and ended up getting a disciplinary measure.Especially after he was assaulting an annoying news reporter who was prying into his mother’s life. His mother was supposed to be a convict but she got away a couple of times. Eventually, her mother got into the prison and Hong-Dae had to clear up his reputation. His staff at the agency introduced him to Lee So-Min(IU), a filmmaker who was filming the story of Homeless people from South Korea who participated in the Homeless world cup. Hong-Dae was quite astonished that he had to train with people who had no real skill in soccer. The story follows 6 homeless with their challenges and how with persistence, they were willing to learn soccer and eventually sent to Hungary to participate in it. Unfortunately, they lost the match but were given the award as the best team because of their persistence and despite many losses, they managed to score one win.

This film was moving as each character undergoes its own development. Despite their conditions, they didn’t give up in pursuing their goal and dreams. In the film itself the view about the homeless in South Korea was discussed. At one scene, it was shown that someone was basically saying that Homeless people are smelly but it wasn’t the case because homeless people have their story too and there are clean homeless.It also brings up rather a controversial topic in south korea about being a gay. In South Korea, there are still prejudices against them but films and series have been good at bringing up some uncomfortable topics into the screen.

I have to personally warn you that this isn’t a typical K-drama series or film with romance plastered all over it. It’s simply a story about persistence, going against all odds, and simply not giving up when the going gets tough. It is also hilarious that I find myself laughing so hard at 3 AM. So, if you need a really good laugh,I do recommend this film. It is also worth re-watching as the story is comforting and more importantly, can be inspirational too.