Writer: Ankita Panda (Kolkata, West Bengal, India)

Editor: Divya Sonawane (Pune, Maharashtra, India)

Move to Heaven (무브 투 헤븐: 나는 유품정리사입니다)  is an original Netflix series directed by Kim Sung-ho and written by Yoon Ji-ryeon. It stars Lee Je-hoon, Tang Joon-sang, Ji Jin-hee, Lee Jae-wook, Hong Seung-hee, Choi Soo-young, and was released worldwide by Netflix on May 14, 2021. It spanned over 10 episodes; each episode’s running time was 44-62 minutes. 

This drama is special because the inspiration for the plot came from a nonfiction essay titled “Things Left Behind” by Kim Sae-byul, a former “trauma cleaner”. Geu-ru (Tang Joon-sang) and his father, Jeong-woo (Ji Jin-hee), are trauma cleaners and own the company “Move to Heaven.” After his father’s death, Geu-ru becomes the sole owner and is left without a guardian. Jeong-woo’s brother, who is an ex-convict, is entrusted to be Geu-ru’s guardian; Sang-gu (Lee Je-hoon) meets his nephew for the first time and learns that he has Asperger’s syndrome.

Both Sang-gu and Geu-ru are asked to live with each other for three months and decide on the guardianship, as Geu-ru is old enough not to have a guardian, and Sang-gu didn’t part ways with Jeong-woo on a happy note. Sang-gu joins the family company as an employee, and what unfolds is a healing journey for both the characters and the audience.

Geu-ru is someone who was always loved and grew up in a safe environment, whereas Sang-gu has lived a harsh life ever since he was a child; with Geu-ru’s safety net gone and Sang-gu suddenly being entrusted with such a huge responsibility, it was interesting to see how these two extremely clashing personalities would learn to trust and work with each other. Due to his condition, Geu-ru faces difficulty with social interaction and nonverbal communication, while Sang-gu has closed off his heart and struggles with handling emotions; while carrying out their job, they try to uncover the stories left behind by the deceased. 

This is a drama I hold very close to my heart and would probably watch over and over again. It changed my perspective on death and grieving, which was probably the message they were trying to convey. With each episode, it tries to make us understand that the dead shouldn’t be forgotten just because they are gone; they should be remembered and respected, as they too have led a tumultuous life and have stories to tell; this is what makes the trauma cleaners of Move to Heaven different from others.

They don’t just clean the space of their clients; they try to figure out the kind of person their client was and the kind of life they lived while going through their things. Geu-ru’s father taught him that the things owned by the deceased speak volumes, just waiting to be heard and narrated, and it is his job to solve the puzzle and find the things important to them. He then puts those valuable objects inside a yellow box and delivers them to the person who needs to know the deceased’s story.

Something I loved about Move to Heaven was that even though it had a running plotline, each episode’s main focus was always the deceased’s story. But it wasn’t just focused on one thing; rather, it paid homage to people of different ages, genders, and sexualities. The drama used its platform to highlight societal issues, some of which are talked about, while others are neglected.

Focusing mostly on the marginalized sectors, it showed the story of a mother abandoned by his son, a good person dying because no one believed that she was getting stalked, two lovers couldn’t hold hands in public because their love was perceived as strange; it addressed how the people in South Korea can be hateful towards deported adoptees and more. The stories of these people were painful, but they were executed beautifully. I am not going to lie, I might or might not have cried throughout all the episodes, but it felt rather liberating.

Move to Heaven celebrates the importance of little things, balances out angst and tragedy with hope, and reminds us not to judge people or their circumstances from a surface level.

Trigger Warning: This K-Drama contains depictions of decomposition (maggots), bodily fluids, blood, abuse, violence, and suicide. 

Have you watched the drama yet? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!