I "rented" this via Netflix DVD (soon-to-be-RIP) about a year ago, and I was blown away by it - I'm a big, big fan. Also, very tense and scary; I couldn't get my wife to watch it with me but I watched it late at night and I was jumping at random noises for days.
I rewatched this recently and came away thinking the coda was the key to one of the film’s subtler themes. South Korea is a country with mandatory military service that encourages and profits from male violence. I took the little girl’s description of the killer as “ordinary” to mean that it really could have been *any* man, because it could have been.
It's great that the film is finally more available. For years the only disc I could find was the Korean release, which fortunately had English subtitles. It's nice to finally have a local version, and know that more people are able to see this fantastic film.
A completely brilliant film I'm not sure I could ever watch again because how hopeless I felt afterwards. Very few films have really gotten in me the way this one did.
I didn't get to see this until the Criterion release, but I was surprised at how much I loved it. Bong's ability to make what is essentially a despairing shaggy dog story into something so engaging and unexpected warm and incredibly funny--well, given that I've seen most of the rest of his films, I knew what to expect, but this is just so damn _watchable_. Like, I may throw the disc on tonight, just to hang out in that world, as unsettling as it is. Great write-up.
Real curious to read your thoughts on The Empty Man. I dug it a lot.
Incredible film, and still my favorite of Bong’s (though I think Mother is his best). Some of the funniest, saddest, and most chilling scenes I’ve seen in any movie, and all in the same one. What a fucking balancing act, I still don’t understand how he made it work.
I’ve only seen this film once, about a decade ago, but moments from it have stuck with me. The same goes for Bong’s Mother, which I saw before it.
I’ll be curious to read your take on The Empty Man because I found that one wanting. I know it has its adherents. It just failed to adhere to me.
I "rented" this via Netflix DVD (soon-to-be-RIP) about a year ago, and I was blown away by it - I'm a big, big fan. Also, very tense and scary; I couldn't get my wife to watch it with me but I watched it late at night and I was jumping at random noises for days.
I rewatched this recently and came away thinking the coda was the key to one of the film’s subtler themes. South Korea is a country with mandatory military service that encourages and profits from male violence. I took the little girl’s description of the killer as “ordinary” to mean that it really could have been *any* man, because it could have been.
It's great that the film is finally more available. For years the only disc I could find was the Korean release, which fortunately had English subtitles. It's nice to finally have a local version, and know that more people are able to see this fantastic film.
A completely brilliant film I'm not sure I could ever watch again because how hopeless I felt afterwards. Very few films have really gotten in me the way this one did.
I didn't get to see this until the Criterion release, but I was surprised at how much I loved it. Bong's ability to make what is essentially a despairing shaggy dog story into something so engaging and unexpected warm and incredibly funny--well, given that I've seen most of the rest of his films, I knew what to expect, but this is just so damn _watchable_. Like, I may throw the disc on tonight, just to hang out in that world, as unsettling as it is. Great write-up.
Real curious to read your thoughts on The Empty Man. I dug it a lot.
Incredible film, and still my favorite of Bong’s (though I think Mother is his best). Some of the funniest, saddest, and most chilling scenes I’ve seen in any movie, and all in the same one. What a fucking balancing act, I still don’t understand how he made it work.
Managed to finally catch this one last year. Haunting yet a melange of elements.
Well written, Scott!
Hype Williams’ BELLY would be a fun one for this feature