The Sri Lankan civil war triggered by the massacre of Tamils has engraved a devastating memory of bloody conflict between the Sri Lankan military and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. During the civil war, two villages—one Tamil and the other Sinhalese—experience a mysterious incident that stops people from conceiving children. Then a message from the gods says the villages must send one Sinhalese man and one Tamil woman to the Forest of the Dead and find out the secret of recovering life. But there is a condition: only one can return from the trip. As the chosen Asoka and Ahalya depart, they encounter the moment of truth while reminiscing on personal and community histories. This is the debut film of director Suba Sivakumaran, a cinematic reconstruction of a politically sensitive theme and a part of tragic history. The film is a poetic rendering of trauma caused by long-lasting political conflict, that conveys a strong message through fantasy and metaphor. (Kim Young-Woo)