Lost In Starlight
Lost in Starlight (2025)
Image From IMDB
Lost in Starlight was a beautifully sweet movie. A cross between so many films I like, from Your Name to Once, and Before Sunrise (which always seems to be an influence in Korean cinema) while always being its own thing. It’s visually spectacular, but also has some of the strongest character work I've seen in animation. The story was the exact sort of thing that’s always going to provoke an emotion from me. Tug at my heartstrings: A beautiful scientist falls in love with a struggling artist just before she’s blasted to Mars. Literal star crossed lovers. It’s a wonderful movie.
The film has a very indie vibe with the big city stuff, and the romantic story, but also contains a surprising amount of subtle world building. You have the big holographic advertisements and self driving cars, but I also loved the way the video phones work, and the super convenient cupboards that retreat back into the floor. It’s all very charming.
But it’s the two lead characters that really make the film. Nan-young and Jay’s relationship is just incredibly sweet. The film perfectly captures those beautiful early moments of them falling in love, before taking you on the journey of their relationship always knowing that a difficult obstacle lays ahead. Nan Young is never going to turn down the opportunity to travel to Mars, and the site of her mothers death, it just sucks that it coincides with her finally finding a reason to remain on Earth.
Jay on the other hand is finally finding his feet and growing more confident thanks to Nan-young’s influence. but he can’t stand in the way of her dreams. It’s a story we all know, but the unique setting, gorgeous visuals, and brilliant characters give it extra life. It’s an easy movie to get swept away in.
There’s a very heavy musical influence within the movie, but it’s also beautiful how art and science constantly seem to be in harmony within the story, adding layers to the characters, rather than dividing them. The score is wonderful. The voice acting is fantastic from Kim Tae-ri (Alienoid) and Hong Kyung. The animation is gorgeous. Everything about this movie works. Sure, some may find it a little melodramatic and sickly, but I didn’t. I just found it very very sweet.
Lost in Starlight was a movie I was looking forward too, but it exceeded my expectations. Maybe I was just in the right mood to watch it, but I found it beautiful, sweet, and interesting throughout. A great blend of romance and sci-fi, with an interesting story and great central concept. Maybe not for everyone, but I think it’s very heartfelt, and definitely worth a watch.
