Directed by Han Ji-won, Lost in Starlight is a story of love; love that has the power to heal, to lift, to inspire, and to change every perception a person holds. I have to say here that the love story depicted in the film was much better than the sort we witness in romantic dramas these days. It was so nuanced, so realistic and authentic, that I never felt like I was watching an animated film. That said, the entire space expedition angle seemed forced, and I didn’t understand why the writers tried so hard to connect two different stories that could have been standalone films in themselves. Let’s find out what happened in Lost in Starlight and how Nan-young was able to find closure in her life.
Spoiler Alert
What happened to Nan-young’s mother?
Joo Nan-young’s mother, Soo Ji-young, was a part of NASA’s second Mars expedition. Everything was going great until, one day there was a tremor felt on the Mars surface that ultimately led to the collapse of the underground manned research facility. NASA tried establishing contact with Ji-young and the other scientists, but to no avail. Also, the tremor was such that it was assumed that every member who was a part of that expedition had met their fateful end. But how could a little girl accept the fact that her mother had left her for good without even saying goodbye? Nan-young never got the closure she craved. Years passed, and she still clung to the hope that one day she would become an astronaut, just like her mother, go to Mars, and rescue her. Not only Nan-young, but even her father believed that Soo Ji-young was still alive. The man handmade a communication device through which he believed he could establish contact with his wife. For years that man ventured out with his communication device and sat looking at the sky, expecting that a miracle would happen. Maybe deep down, both Nan-young and her mother knew that Son Ji-young wasn’t alive, but they were just not ready to accept that fact. Nan-young joined NASA when she grew up, and as she had always wanted, she was selected to be one of the scientists who would be a part of the space center’s 4th mission to Mars. But then, Nan-youn’s boss got to know about her mother, and he took the decision to not let her be a part of the mission. Nan-young tried to convince her boss, but to no avail. Her boss knew that, with that kind of emotional baggage, there was a possibility that she might not be able to deal with things rationally, and he didn’t want to put the lives of the other members in jeopardy.
Why didn’t Jay want Nan-young to go to Mars ?
It is said that love finds you when you least expect it to. It was just sheer luck that Nan-young stumbled upon Jay. Nan-young’s all-in-one Crosley record player fell on the floor, as she bumped onto Jay. He felt guilty and offered to repair it for her. Jay fell for Nan-young the moment he saw her, but the latter was too uptight, too rigid, to let anybody be a part of her life. She stalled Jay for days, but ultimately she gave in. But why did she? I think Jay’s persistence made her realize that he was somebody she could depend on. Jay was not there to have a fling with her; he wasn’t there to take advantage of her vulnerabilities; he was there because he knew that she was the girl he could spend his entire life with. Falling in love was never a part of Nan-young’s plan, but then when does life go as we expect it to? She tried to overlook her own feelings, but then she couldn’t hide it for long. Nan-young expressed her feelings for Jay, and they entered a relationship. Jay met Nan-young’s father, and he also saw the communication device that he had created. Jay knew that Nan-young’s father was just not ready to accept reality, but he didn’t say anything at that moment. It was Nan-young who pushed Jay to once again go on stage and start singing. She used to love a song that she had heard somewhere, and she was surprised beyond her wits when Jay told her that he was the one who had written and sung it back in the day.
Jay was a member of a band called the Moles, but due to some creative differences, he had decided to leave music for good. He got so infuriated with whatever had happened that he never stepped foot on stage again, though those who had seen him perform knew that he belonged there. While Jay, on Nan-young’s advice, was planning to make a comeback on stage, Nan-young got a call from her boss, who informed her that he wanted her to be a part of the 4th Mars expedition. Nan-young had created a life form detector, a droid capable of detecting organic life. Apart from that, her knowledge about the entire expedition was unparalleled, and her boss came to the conclusion that she would be a valuable asset for the team. When Nan-young told Jay about it, he got really furious. He knew what had happened to her mother, and he felt that she was being selfish and putting her life in so much danger. Yes, Nan-young was selfish, but going to Mars and leading a space expedition had been her dream since childhood. Moreover, she knew that she wouldn’t be able to get closure if she didn’t go there. She felt as if some inexplicable force was calling her there. So the day Jay was supposed to go on stage, Nan-young left for Mars, not knowing if she would ever meet him again. A lot was at stake for Nan-young, but she knew that in order to move ahead in her life and stop being regretful about her past, she needed to take that step.
Did Nan-young end up with Jay?
For a relationship to last, one needs to embrace the shadows if they crave the light. They need to understand that every person has their own set of beliefs, their unique viewpoint, and their dreams and aspirations that are close to their heart. It took Jay some time, but he realized that Nan-young was that ray of sunshine without which his life would become like a gloomy afternoon. He didn’t want to lose her, and at the end of Lost in Starlight, it seems as if his worst fears were going to come true. Nan-young found a lava cave on the surface of Mars that had probably been formed due to a meteor impact. Her droid detected some organic life forms beneath the surface of Mars, in that lava cave, and Nan-young decided to go and see for herself what was there. That’s when a deadly tornado tore through the surface of Mars, making it impossible for Nan-young to return to her base. Nan-young’s team realized that she had only 10 minutes of oxygen left in her tank and that it was impossible to save her. When all hope seemed lost, when it seemed that Nan-young would lose her life just like her mother, a miracle happened. Nan-young found her mother’s working quarters, and her life was saved by the Amur Adonis flowers, the same ones that she showed Jay back in the day, telling him how they radiated heat and oxygen. When Jay got to know about the tornado, the lover boy took Nan-young’s father’s communication device and used it to establish contact with Nan-young. It was no less than a miracle that Jay was able to successfully establish contact, and it was his voice that Nan-young heard first when she came back to her senses.
In Lost in Starlight’s ending, Nan-young saw a dream, while she was unconscious, that her mother came and whispered in her ears. Nan-young knew that her mother was looking down at her, and she would always be there to protect her, to guide her, and to make sure she made all the right decisions. She didn’t know why, but she felt a sense of closure after that harrowing experience. Those flowers, that entire experience, made her feel like she could move ahead with her life. She realized that life was too short to not spend it with the people you absolutely adore. Yes, sometimes a person doesn’t get an opportunity to do so, which was why Nan-young knew that she had to make the most of the opportunity she had gotten.
