Persona: Sulli, a posthumous documentary film on the life of the late K-pop idol Sulli, was released on Monday, November 13, 2023, on Netflix. The documentary provides a close-up view of Sulli’s thought processes both as the person Choi Jin-Ri (her legal name) and as an idol. It showcases the gaps between the two identities, accompanied by Sulli’s interview bits.
The late K-pop idol has left her legacy in the posthumous Netflix documentary Persona: Sulli. This is the last ever piece of work by the artist and follows her story of identity, fame, and struggle. The documentary comprises two parts: an opening play titled 4: Clean Island, and the documentary itself, titled Dear Jinri. The latter talks about the multiple lives existing inside of her. This work delves deep into the psyche of both the artist, Sulli, and the human, Choi Jinri. Sulli was found dead in her home by her manager on October 14, 2019.
Trigger Warning: This story discusses suicide. Reader discretion is advised.
Persona: Sulli’s opening act 4: Clean Island is a story of longing and identity
Sulli’s biographical work comprises two sections. The first drama 4: Clean Island follows the journey of a pig named 4 as it travels to the clean island where everything is pure. However, to do so, it has to confess to all the sins it committed in its lifetime. Meanwhile, a little girl takes the pig’s identity, and the journey eventually becomes hers.
In a confessional room, Sulli talks about the journey of a little girl 12 years ago. The girl longs for her mother, so she looks for anyone to call “mom.” The scene is an accident site where before dying, her so-called mother, writes “4” on her cheek with her blood, reducing the girl to a mere number. That identity is symbolized as a “pig from the slaughterhouse.”
Sulli describes how the little girl lived in a slaughterhouse because she couldn’t die, looking for someone to call “mom.” The dead pig in the scene pretty much describes her own mental state. She relates a tale of a pig in a war, whose noise would chase away soldiers. However, for the little girl, those screams sounded human, indicating a cry for help.
Eventually, the girl slaughters a pig that has the same number “4” inscribed on it. As she wipes the blood off the pig’s face, she cries and murmurs “Mom,” describing her longing for her mother, and her coming face to face with her own reality. She becomes best friends with the pig, recalling potential conversations with her mother or even forming multiple identities.
The day finally comes when the little girl takes the pig to the Clean Island – the cleanest place on Earth where one can erase their guilt and pain, and lead a new life. At the end of the drama, as she cleanses her sins, she makes one final confession. On their way to the island, the girl assumes the identity of the pig, and sees her original self in front of the mirror, mocking and laughing at her.
Before killing herself, she says, “The heart is quite strange. You don’t know when you’re a pig. But when you’re human, you overflow with worry. What is sin? In the end, can it be the heart? But, it can’t be from my heart.” She removes the ring symbolizing the sin from her own body, hugs her own self, passes immigration and reaches the clean island, free of all sins.
Persona: Sulli is available to stream on Netflix.
