· Directed by Lee Hwan-kyung
· Genre : Comedy
· Starring : Ryu Seung-ryong, Gal So-won
· 127 Min

Who do you think the people closest to you are? You probably think it is family. Most people don‘t realize the importance of family because they are so close. There is a movie that makes you realize this. That movie is “Miracle in Cell No.7”. It has emerged as the number 3 ranking movie at the box in South Korea. So, what does the title of the movie mean?

The movie is a story of a dad, Lee Yong-gu, who has the intelligence of a 6-year-old and a young but smart daughter, Ye-sung. Yong-gu is a dad who acts like his daughter’s friend, squatting in front of a stationery story and singing a Sailor Moon song with his daughter who wants to have a Sailor Moon bag. Ye-sung is a very young but mature girl who helps her incompetent dad. They live happily together, filling in the gaps in each other. One day, he is falsely accused of a homicide and is eventually imprisoned in Cell 7 of a prison with 5 felons. When you hear the crimes they committed, you will think that they are scary people. But they are also normal people who are moved by the love between a cute daughter and stupid dad. These hardened criminals come up with a plan to bring Ye-sung into the prison where outsiders are never allowed. Her presence there is a rare gift for her father, as well as the other men. Those happy days seemed to last forever. Unfortunately, the happy days ended, and despite the efforts of many people, Yong-gu was eventually executed for a crime he didn’t commit.

This movie was developed from the concepts of family and love. Yong-gu and Ye-sung are not an ordinary or affluent family, but they live happily helping each other. Unlike modern people who forget the importance of their family, Yong-gu with low intelligence and young Ye-sung know that they're a gift for each other. Their love makes many people laugh and cry. You can also see the story of powerless people. Yong-gu was convicted and sentenced to death after false representation in an excessive interrogation. He was also threatened during the appeal process. He was told, “If you want to save your daughter, you have to pay for your sin”. We can also see the dual aspect of our society when he says, “I did it. I killed. Please look after Ye-sung. I'm sorry.”

This movie did not have a big production budget; it was about half of other movies. There are not handsome guys and pretty women. Despite these things, it is a great movie with fun and moving scenes. This movie, which is like a fairy tale, is a gift for modern people who are tired of hearing about and seeing criminal cases and need something heart-warming. I think I hear Yong-gu and Ye-sung singing, “One, two, three!”