Breathless (2010)

After witnessing the deaths of his mother and sister as a child, Sang-hoon (Yang Ik-june) has grown up in anger, bearing hatred towards his father, the one responsible for their deaths. The shadow of this past overrules his present. Sang-hoon, now a merciless debt collector, regularly beats his father, newly returned home after fifteen years in prison. On the other hand, although he hesitates to become close, he often checks in on his half-sister and nephew, who is left alone during the day while his mother is out to make ends meet.

One day he meets high school girl Yeon-hee (Kim Kkobbi), who is experiencing a similarly tough life after her mother's death four years ago at the hands of local gangsters like Sang-hoon. Her violent younger brother, a high school dropout, and her Vietnam veteran father harass her endlessly and treat her like a slave. Without realizing how their lives may be connected, Sang-hoon and Yeon-hee form a friendship of sorts, allowing them to share some moments of relief from the brutal reality they face every day. Sang-hoon slowly discovers that perhaps he too can change and affect the lives of those around him for the better.