Tag: bong joon-ho

Know your place. Keep your place. Be a shoe. “Snowpiercer” (2013)

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directed by Bong Joon-ho
© 2013 The Weinstein Company. All Rights Reserved.

Today I’d like to recommend you my so far favourite film by Bong Joon-ho. I know that there are mixed feelings about this one, because those who liked his typical Korean way of making films were disappointed because this film is quite westernised, and those who were used to American sci-fi productions found it a bit too dramatic and strange. You can’t satisfy people, can you? I remember that I saw this film many years ago in the cinema. Back then I didn’t know much about Bong Joon-ho, so I didn’t have any expectations and I just wanted to see a sci-fi film on a big screen. And I must say that I was very much pleased. The story is based on the novel “Le Transperceneige” by Jacques Lob and it’s about… well, what can happen if we keep being equally ignorant as humanity as we are now. We get the world after the climate catastrophe, where only a small number of people have survived. The main character, Curtis Everett (Chris Evans), is travelling around the globe on the train called Snowpiercer. It’s become his new home, since the rest of the planet is absolutely frozen, so the passengers have been living on that train for several years. And even there the people have been segregated into classes. Curtis is living in the car for the poor, which is extremely frustrating, because he knows that the elite in other cars has it much better than them. One day, he decides to start a revolution and get to the front cars, where a better reality may await them. I guess I’ve already mentioned that in some post, but I’ll repeat – I really like films that happen in one place only. Like one room, one building, a plane, or like in this case – on the train. And maybe it was because of the fact that I saw it on the big screen, but I felt excited about the whole social revolution in the Snowpiercer and everything looked very well-done. Bong Joon-ho has a very good eye for films, he got a wonderful cast and a story that hits audience in the face with its messages (climate change, global warming, class wars etc.) – for me it’s a perfect example of a decent sci-fi film. More, please!

My rating: 7/10
S.

Do you get up each morning too? “Memories of Murder” (“Sarinui Chueok”, 2003)

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directed by Bong Joon-ho
© 2003 CJ Entertainment. All Rights Reserved.

I have a problem with Bong Joon-ho. I mean, I feel like he’s a visionary, full of very interesting ideas and he totally knows how to make a connection with the audience. But somehow, his films can be pretty annoying when it comes to the form. The same with “Parasite”. I loved the story, cinematography was on point, but generally I finished watching it with a frown on my face. With today’s film, it was different. I was rather frowning for the whole time and smiled at the end. But let me tell you a bit about the plot first. We follow Park Doo-man (Song Kang-ho), who’s a detective trying to solve a very difficult case. Recently, two women have been found raped and murdered. It’s quite hard for him to cooperate with the police because they seem to be incompetent, in his opinion. The man meets a boy with an intellectual disability, Baek Kwan-ho (Park No-shik), who becomes the main suspect. Soon, another detective arrives. Seo Tae-yoon (Kim Sang-kyung) is from Seoul and he has totally different working culture, so those two men aren’t getting on with each other that well. Especially since Seo is quite sure that the handicapped boy is not guilty. In spite of him being right or wrong, new victims appear and the killer keeps on playing his game. And as I said, I was confused by the whole story and the way it was presented. Or perhaps it’s because I’m not a fan of Korean way of filmmaking. For me it’s often too messy and emotionless, even though actors are overacting pretty often. But if you’re a fan of such cinema, don’t feel offended. It’s perhaps because I’m used to watching American and European productions and it’s just difficult for me to enjoy something that culturally different. Still, the ending was marvellous and, after reading some comments, I noticed that quite a lot of people misunderstood the director’s idea about it. So to sum up, it’s totally not my style, but I appreciate the hard work and I can understand why people love this production. And I promise not to give up on Korean cinema!

My rating: 7/10
S.

Get yourself a bowl of peaches. “Parasite” (“Gisaengchung”, 2019)

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directed by Bong Joon-ho
© 2019 CJ Entertainment. All Rights Reserved.

Will there be a film by Bong Joon-ho that will make me stay excited till the very end? You know, something that will scream “give me 10/10!” It may sound funny, but I always give around 7/10 to his productions. They are never average nor excellent. Always somewhere in between. Which is super frustrating for me, because the ideas for the films are marvellous. I’m always curious about his productions and almost always end up feeling incomplete. However, today’s film is still good, so let me shortly present you what it’s about and then I can complain more. We get a lovely family living in South Korea. The father, Kim Ki-taek (Song Kang-ho) is an unemployed driver and has to take care of his wife Choon-sook (Jang Hye-jin), son Ki-woo (Choi Woo-shik) and daughter Ki-jeong (Park So-Dam). As you may be guessing from the father’s “profession”, they live… or rather try to survive in a basement-looking flat. One day Ki-woo’s friend Min-hyuk (Park Seo-joon) visits him and proposes him a job. The man used to be tutoring a girl from a wealthy family, but now he’s going abroad and searches for someone to take it over. Ki-woo accepts and soon becomes the new tutor. But such wealthy family doesn’t need only a tutor. They also need a driver, a housekeeper and another tutor, because why not? Doesn’t Ki-woo have 3 members in his family who currently need a job? Interesting… I’m not going to say anything more, you will see it yourself. However, time for my complaining. It is a well-made film with several plot twists and I enjoyed watching it. Or rather the first 1,5h. The last part is simply annoying and tiring for me. Somehow I expected something more mysterious and… smart? Not sure how to express what I expected. But it wasn’t what I got. I know a lot of people love this production, but for me there was something missing. I think that for Bong Joon-ho the ending was too simplistic. Or maybe it was for me. You should definitely check it out and judge yourself. Generally, an old topic presented in a modern picture.

My rating: 7/10
S.

You don’t kill friends, do you? “Okja” (2017)

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directed by Bong Joon-ho
© 2017 Netflix. All Rights Reserved.

If you’re sensitive, better get yourself a box of tissues. If you’re a sensitive vegetarian, get yourself a box of tissues and a bottle of wine. You’re about to read a short recommendation written by a mid-sensitive vegetarian, so just in case, if you’re wondering why I consider this film a really good picture of our hypocritical society, you already know. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not planning to write anything like “Why you should stop eating meat, a book for the resistant”. But you cannot ignore the fact that the producers of “Okja” are showing our meat-eating society as a bunch of manipulated people. Sorry, don’t look at me. In case of any complaints, you have the name of the director above. Anyway, let me shortly tell you what’s this controversial story is about. We have an adorable girl named Mi-ja (Seo-hyeon Ahn) who has an extraordinary pet, an enormous pig that kind of looks like a combination of an elephant, a pig and a rhino. This huge but lovely creature is called Okja. Unfortunately, one day Okja ends up being in danger – a multinational company wants to… well… do what such companies do with animals – kill it and eat it. At first I didn’t like the way they shot and edited the film, it was a bit messy for me, but then the whole message (that I see for myself at least) coming from the film didn’t let me give less than 7/10. I’m not going to argue who’s right or wrong because it’s pointless, but this story made me remind myself why I feel ashamed that I’m a human, and proud I’ve chosen to be vegetarian. Okja is a super pig, indeed 🙂

My rating: 7/10
S.