Director Joon-ho Bong first came to my attention, as well as to most U.S. viewers, for his eco-statement monster movie THE HOST. In certain circles it was highly praised, I found it muddled and pointlessly depressing, especially when dealing with questionable parenting. Now he deals with parenting, both questionable and dedicated, in this film, a remarkable thriller that never fails to keep surprising us up until the end.
A mother (Hye-ja Kim, LATE AUTUMN), known as nothing more than that, is very protective of her mentally challenged 20-something son Do-joon (Bin Won, TAE GUK GI: BROTHERHOOD OF WAR). Early on he gets clipped by a car because he was standing in the street. Along with his bad influence friend Jin-tae (Ku Jin, A BITTERSWEET LIFE), they head out to seek revenge. This incident leads to Do-joon being arrested, interrogated and confessing to the murder of a teenage girl.
The mother begins to investigate the crime to free her son. He doesn’t help her case waving to spectators when the police walk him through the crime scene. The cops intimidated him into his confession. He’s confused about what happened that night after he left a bar drunk. His mother tells him to think really hard about it.
The film keeps us wondering where it will go from the moment the mother sets out to free her son. Early leads don’t pan out. She gets herself into trouble and has to work her way out. Enemies turn into strange allies and allies turn out to be no help whatsoever. The story has a way flipping our expectations of the characters on us. Secrets are revealed and change our perspective of the entire film and the motivations of each of the key characters.
This is the rare thriller where the characters actions really do drive the narrative. Do-joon’s mental problems get him in trouble. His mother constantly worries about him, tries to protect him and goes to unbelievable extents to save him. Her motivations are not as clear as they seem. There is more than motherly love going on here.
Bong plays with the viewers’ expectations. Nothing turns out to be quite what it seems. He masterfully keeps the viewers’ attention where he wants it. Then a big reveal changes everything that came before and puts it in a new light. You stop trying to figure out where the story will go and just let yourself take the ride.
This is the mother that anyone would want. Or maybe not. What we learn from this film is that no one is perfect. And that a mother’s love is strong… and strange sometimes. Perspective is a big element here. Terrible things can be done with good intentions.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
