Garibong-dong is a district in Seoul which has become known for its population of homeless teens. Set within this locale, Tears details the lives of four young runaways who, despite their differences, join together in an uneasy team.

Although Tears is director Im Sang-soo's second film, he was envisioning it in his mind years before the release of his debut feature Girls' Night Out (1998). In the mid-nineties, he developed an interest in the lives of homeless teens and decided to live among them for five months, trying to understand them and earn their trust. Tears is based on this experience, and although certain dramatic elements of the plot are fictional, Im insists that most all of the situations and dialogues are taken from real life.

Shot on digital video (mostly to reduce costs), Tears captures the gritty feel of its protagonists' lives. Ultimately, however, the film is less concerned with exposing the excesses of street life than in coaxing us to side with the teens, or at least see life from their point of view. Im tries hard to make his heroes seem human and to show us the insecurity behind their tough behavior. Shots of abusive parents or cruel employers remind us of the forces that have shaped these kids' lives.

Yet the film's most memorable scenes are probably its quietest, when the kids carouse on a muddy beach or creep towards sexual intimacy. These moments hold enough gloom and beauty to let us picture these kids either in or out of their present lives.

Particularly worthy of praise are the group of debut actors who star in this film. Without their guts and talent, Tears would never work. Although similarly-themed works have been shot before in Korea and elsewhere, Tears remains worth seeing for its finely-drawn characters and personal approach.

A cafe in on a street in Seoul; some teen age boys threatens some teenage girls to take off their clothes. Chang is the boss of the boys. Seri, one of girls, escapes the place and Han helps her. Seri works at a bar and she stays at a motel. She is addicted to inhaling gas. But, she does not do sex with men as she has been raped by one of her relatives when she was young. She likes Han, a young man, as she feels comfortable with him. She decides to live with him. Chang, a violent and unpredictable boy meets Lan, a teenage girl who left her home, is a hostess in a bar and a prostitute. She likes him and she sacrifices for him. One day, the four decide to take a vacation. They ride motorcycles. What are waiting for them, however, was a beach with wastes and all dirty things on it. They realize that there is no hope and they return to where they are. Chang and Han are put into prison and Seri and Lan return to their jobs, hostesses at the bars. Han visits Lan after he was released from the prison, but she is already a wife of Yong-ho, the owner of the bar. He was full of rages, and he became hopeless.