(Hong Sangsoo, 2025, South Korea, 111 minutes)

In Hong Sangsoo’s 33^rd feature film What Does That Nature Say to You, Donghwa (Ha Seongguk, By the Stream) is a fledgling poet in his thirties. He rejects material aspirations and seeks to lead a life dedicated to truth and beauty. On a lazy afternoon, he drives his girlfriend, Junhee (Kang Soyi, A Traveler’s Needs), back to her parents’ home outside Seoul. In the driveway, they run into her father (Kwon Haehyo, star of Walk Up, here in his eleventh Hong film), who is strangely interested in Donghwa’s dinged up old car. He takes it for a spin around the block, then invites Donghwa to stay and meet the family: him, his wife (Cho Yunhee, By the Stream), who also writes poetry, and Junhee’s reclusive sister (Park Miso, By the Stream), who practices the gayageum, a traditional string instrument. They end up wiling away the day together, visiting a temple by the river, climbing the hill near the house, watching the sunset, and, sure enough, imbibing drinks. (This a Hong Sangsoo film, after all!) Egged on by Junhee’s dad, Donghwa gets progressively more drunk as the day advances. Finally, he makes a fool of himself at dinner. Then everything begins to unravel for the poet: his relationship, his art, his revolutionary ideals.

In Korean with English subtitles.