# Hotel by the River (강변호텔)
**Hotel by the River** (강변호텔; *Gangbyeon Hotel*) is a 2018 South Korean black-and-white drama written, directed, and produced by [Hong Sang-soo](https://www.edgepedia.org/hong-sang-soo), in which an aging poet staying at a riverside hotel summons his estranged sons while a young woman recovering from a broken relationship stays in the same building[1](https://fest.afi.com/2018/world-cinema-2018/hotel-by-the-river-gangbyun-hotel/). The film premiered in competition at the 71st Locarno Film Festival on August 9, 2018, where Ki Joo-bong won the Golden Leopard for Best Actor, and it was released in South Korean cinemas on March 27, 2019[2](https://asianwiki.com/Hotel_by_the_River).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Director, writer, producer | Hong Sang-soo[1](https://fest.afi.com/2018/world-cinema-2018/hotel-by-the-river-gangbyun-hotel/) |
| Premiere | August 9, 2018, Locarno Film Festival; South Korean release March 27, 2019[2](https://asianwiki.com/Hotel_by_the_River) |
| Runtime and format | 96 minutes (some sources list 95), DCP, black and white, Korean language[3](https://koreafilmfest.com/en/film/hotel-by-the-river/) |
| Principal cast | Ki Joo-bong, Kim Min-hee, Song Seon-mi, Kwon Hae-hyo, Yu Jun-sang, with Park Ran and Shin Seok-ho[1](https://fest.afi.com/2018/world-cinema-2018/hotel-by-the-river-gangbyun-hotel/) |
| Key award | Golden Leopard for Best Actor to Ki Joo-bong at the 71st Locarno Festival (August 1–11, 2018)[2](https://asianwiki.com/Hotel_by_the_River) |
| Production | Jeonwonsa Film Co.; international distribution by Finecut Co., Ltd.[4](https://www.biff.kr/eng/html/archive/arc_history_view.asp?kind=history&m_idx=43094&page=1&pyear=2019&sec=330) |
| Key crew | Cinematography Kim Hyung-koo; editing Son Yeon-ji; music Dalpalan[4](https://www.biff.kr/eng/html/archive/arc_history_view.asp?kind=history&m_idx=43094&page=1&pyear=2019&sec=330) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
The story is set in winter. Young-hwan (Ki Joo-bong), an aging and celebrated poet, spends an extended stay in a modest provincial hotel overlooking the Han River, where he is a free guest of the hotel's owner, an admirer of his work[5](https://www.haifaff.co.il/eng/Films/5988/Hotel_by_the_River) • [6](https://dennisschwartzreviews.com/hotelbytheriver/). Without any specific reason, he feels that he will die soon, and he summons his two adult sons, Kyung-soo (Kwon Hae-hyo) and Byung-soo ([Yu Jun](https://www.edgepedia.org/yu-jun)-sang), whom he has not seen for a long time, feeling that the time has come for forgiveness[2](https://asianwiki.com/Hotel_by_the_River) • [5](https://www.haifaff.co.il/eng/Films/5988/Hotel_by_the_River).
Down the hall, a younger woman, A-reum (Kim Min-hee), stays at the hotel after being betrayed by the man she lived with; she calls her friend Yeon-joo (Song Seon-mi), who comes to comfort her[2](https://asianwiki.com/Hotel_by_the_River) • [1](https://fest.afi.com/2018/world-cinema-2018/hotel-by-the-river-gangbyun-hotel/). The poet sees the two women, and their beauty and grace inspire him to write a new verse[5](https://www.haifaff.co.il/eng/Films/5988/Hotel_by_the_River). The snowy hotel becomes what the AFI FEST catalog calls a limbo for these lost souls, whose paths intersect in ways the catalog suggests should surprise even devoted viewers of Hong's films[1](https://fest.afi.com/2018/world-cinema-2018/hotel-by-the-river-gangbyun-hotel/).
## Production and style
The film was shot in stark, melancholy black and white[5](https://www.haifaff.co.il/eng/Films/5988/Hotel_by_the_River). Unusually for Hong, the opening voiceover mentions the shooting period, January 29 to February 14, 2018; the voiceover is also the only time Hong has technically appeared in one of his own films[7](https://taipeimansions.com/2022/05/15/). The Busan International Film Festival program notes that the story is simple enough not to need explanation, while the sensations and feelings of the film are complex and delicate, and describes moments such as the two women standing with a small tree in a snow-covered landscape as leading the audience toward something mysterious[4](https://www.biff.kr/eng/html/archive/arc_history_view.asp?kind=history&m_idx=43094&page=1&pyear=2019&sec=330).
**Recurring collaborators.** The cast draws on Hong's regular stable of actors, including Kim Min-hee, Kwon Hae-hyo, and Ki Joo-bong[1](https://fest.afi.com/2018/world-cinema-2018/hotel-by-the-river-gangbyun-hotel/). Kim Hyung-koo served as director of photography, Son Yeon-ji as editor, and the musician Dalpalan composed the score[4](https://www.biff.kr/eng/html/archive/arc_history_view.asp?kind=history&m_idx=43094&page=1&pyear=2019&sec=330). The film was produced by Jeonwonsa Film Co. and sold internationally by Finecut[4](https://www.biff.kr/eng/html/archive/arc_history_view.asp?kind=history&m_idx=43094&page=1&pyear=2019&sec=330); in South Korea it was distributed by Jeonwonsa Film, Contents Panda, and MOVement[2](https://asianwiki.com/Hotel_by_the_River), and The Cinema Guild handled the United States release[8](https://seore.org/w/%EA%B0%95%EB%B3%80%ED%98%B8%ED%85%94).
## Festival reception and awards
At the 71st Locarno Film Festival (August 1–11, 2018), Ki Joo-bong received the Golden Leopard for Best Actor for his performance as the poet[2](https://asianwiki.com/Hotel_by_the_River). The Melbourne International Film Festival, which screened the film in 2019, described it as a lyrical meditation on family, friendship, and the eternal[9](https://miff.com.au/festival-archive/films/30552/hotel-by-the-river). The film also played at the Toronto and New York festivals[5](https://www.haifaff.co.il/eng/Films/5988/Hotel_by_the_River), screened as the opening film of the special invitation section at the 19th Tokyo FILMeX in 2018[10](https://filmex.jp/2018/program/specialscreenings/ss08), and appeared at AFI FEST 2018 in the World Cinema section[1](https://fest.afi.com/2018/world-cinema-2018/hotel-by-the-river-gangbyun-hotel/).
The Korean Film Archive's Cinematheque listed *Hotel by the River* among its 10 Best Korean Movies of 2019 and quoted a New York Times description of it as "one of Hong's most unexpectedly poignant works, self-reflexive in a way that feels searching rather than rote"[11](https://eng.koreafilm.or.kr/movie/PM_008187).
## The director
Hong Sang-soo made his feature debut with *The Day a Pig Fell into the Well* (1996), which won the Tiger Award at the Rotterdam Film Festival, and by the time of this film had made a total of 22 features, winning awards at festivals including Cannes, Locarno, Singapore, and Tokyo[4](https://www.biff.kr/eng/html/archive/arc_history_view.asp?kind=history&m_idx=43094&page=1&pyear=2019&sec=330). AFI FEST describes him as one of the most established auteurs in contemporary Korean cinema, known for a distinctive use of cinematographic language, and lists *Hotel by the River* among the films of his that have regularly played the festival, alongside *[The Day He Arrives](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-day-he-arrives)* (2011), *[In Another Country](https://www.edgepedia.org/in-another-country)* (2012), *Yourself and Yours* (2016), *The Day After* (2017), and *Claire's Camera* (2017)[1](https://fest.afi.com/2018/world-cinema-2018/hotel-by-the-river-gangbyun-hotel/).
## References
1. [HOTEL BY THE RIVER (GANGBYUN HOTEL), AFI FEST 2018](https://fest.afi.com/2018/world-cinema-2018/hotel-by-the-river-gangbyun-hotel/)
2. [Hotel by the River, AsianWiki](https://asianwiki.com/Hotel_by_the_River)
3. [HOTEL BY THE RIVER, Florence Korea Film Fest](https://koreafilmfest.com/en/film/hotel-by-the-river/)
4. [Hotel by the River program note, Busan International Film Festival archive](https://www.biff.kr/eng/html/archive/arc_history_view.asp?kind=history&m_idx=43094&page=1&pyear=2019&sec=330)
5. [Hotel by the River, Haifa International Film Festival](https://www.haifaff.co.il/eng/Films/5988/Hotel_by_the_River)
6. [HOTEL BY THE RIVER, Dennis Schwartz Reviews](https://dennisschwartzreviews.com/hotelbytheriver/)
7. [Taipei Mansions, May 15, 2022](https://taipeimansions.com/2022/05/15/)
8. [강변호텔 (2018), seore.org](https://seore.org/w/%EA%B0%95%EB%B3%80%ED%98%B8%ED%85%94)
9. [Hotel By The River, MIFF Festival Archive](https://miff.com.au/festival-archive/films/30552/hotel-by-the-river)
10. [『川沿いのホテル』 Hotel By The River, 第19回東京フィルメックス](https://filmex.jp/2018/program/specialscreenings/ss08)
11. [Hotel by the River (Gang-byeon ho-tel), Korean Film Archive Cinematheque](https://eng.koreafilm.or.kr/movie/PM_008187)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Drama and biographical films (individual works) › Drama films 2015 to 2019 › Drama films 2017 and 2018*
*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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