Yong-goo (Ryoo Seung-Ryong) is a mentally challenged man with a warm heart and a 6-year old daughter named Yesung (Gal So-Won), who takes care of him as much as he does her. The death of the police commissioner`s daughter and a false accusation leads to Yong-gu`s incarceration in the titular Cell No. 7, where he ends up making unexpected friends while awaiting trial.
If you`re to enjoy Miracle in Cell No. 7, you`re going to need a healthy suspension of disbelief. Not all the facts of the case add up: the framing device used to introduce the story is legislatively ludicrous, and the central scene of the movie – featuring a hot air balloon – verges on magical realism. That being said, logical fallacies are probably the only flaw one will be able to nitpick at while watching the movie.
It`s an unabashedly sentimental affair that features scruffy, likable characters (cue the motley collection of inmates from Cell No. 7), a generous dose of well-executed slapstick and – at the heart of the story – a touching performance by Ryoo and Gal as the father-daughter pair. One gets the feeling that Ryoo overplays his role on occasion, but those moments are bearable, and his character is well-developed enough that we forgive the rare moments of melodrama.
Miracle in Cell No. 7 is an unabashedly sentimental mix of drama and comedy that wears its heart on its sleeve. The execution is occasionally crude, but the innocence of the delivery more than makes up for it, and even the most jaded of viewers may find themselves teary-eyed at certain choice bits.
Summary: No, I`m not snifflingâ€