"Beyond That Mountain" Depicts Childhood of Korea's First Roman Catholic Cardinal

"Beyond That Mountain" is a biographical movie of Korea's first Roman Catholic cardinal. The film will focus on the early childhood life of the late Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan.

The 10-year-old child star, Lee Kyung-hoon, will have his biggest role to date in the upcoming movie "Beyond That Mountain." Among 260 candidates who auditioned for the role, Lee got the part of young Kim. 

He has been part of a long list of drama series as well.

Here are a few: My Shy Boss (2017), I'm Not a Robot (2017), Ms. Hammurabi (2018), Haechi (2019), Memorist (2020), and many more.

His mother will be played by Lee Hang-na, while his father will be portrayed played by Ahn Nae-sang.

The late Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan was born in 1922 and the youngest among eight siblings. During the Korean War in 1951, he was ordained as a priest, and in 1969 he was named a cardinal by Pope Paul VI.

During his reign, Catholics in South Korea multiplied by a factor of six. And his influence went beyond the walls of Catholics. Both Catholic and non-Catholic South Koreans turned for his comfort and support during the military dictatorship from the 1960s to the 1980s.

The late cardinal was the longest-serving cardinal. He is also the dearest and the most beloved spiritual leader in South Korea.

In 2009, Cardinal Kim died at St. Mary's Hospital in Seoul at the age of 86.

Kim Sou-hwan was quoted as "a big guiding star in our nation's modern history," according to the head of the Democratic Party. He was an advocate of the poor and took an active part in societal and democracy issues, gaining respect from all sections of society.

In the biopic, the early life of Kim Sou-hwan shows his poor life as a child. His father, Kim Young-seok, was a tableware salesman and would often go home empty-handed and nothing to put on their table. Later on, his father died due to complications, and he was not given proper care due to poverty. The family didn't even have the means to buy herbal medicine.

The situation prompted the young Kim to dream of becoming a ginseng dealer since it is the most traditional ingredients added to herbal medicines.

His devoted mother, Seo Jung-ha, is wishful that her two younger sons will become priests someday. Kim then started to consider and moves on in the direction of the priesthood. The film paid attention to the relationship between Kim and his mother and what were the circumstances in his life that made him decide to become a priest.

During the 19th century, Catholic converts were persecuted, including his grandfather, who died while in prison, along with all the converts. In addition, some Christians were rejected by families and lost their social rank. Between 8,000-10000 martyrs died during this era.

Even though the film is about a well-known religious leader, it will not focus solely on religion. Instead, it will mainly center its plot on the importance of family and inner strength.

Lee Hang-na will present her character as a strict and rigid but a kind-hearted person.

"Beyond That Mountain" will hit local theaters on April 30. Since the family month is nearing, the movie is perfect for the family to watch it together.