Memories of the Sword

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08/28/2020 If you see one movie this year, make it this one. From the opening sequences in "Memories of the Sword", we meet three great warriors in medieval Korea who battle to overthrow an unjust empire. In doing so, they doom themselves to an unexpected lifetime Pandora's Box of Sturm and Drang. This remarkable film unfolds a Jeremiad of misfortune and tragedy. Even it's title is wistful, doleful. See the theatrical trailer here : https://youtu.be/sFvAPcl_jUg "Memories of the Sword" is as much a complex love story as an intense psychological thriller, mystery, suspense, action film, and historical drama. It is not a martial arts movie in the traditional sense.,the martial arts scenes serve the plot and character development adeptly, but never become the focus of the movie. While It has ample swordplay, it's a tale of betrayal: an acrimonious, deeply disturbing, four way " love rectangle", with mistaken identity, hidden identify, unrequited love, revenge, rage, regrets, assassins, infanticide suicide and more. Up and coming international actress Go-eun Kim plays Seol-hee (and another role), and is the central heroine and pivotal character who wields the symbolic Sword of Revenge in the film. This is a physically and emotionally demanding role that reveals a budding talent destined for more great roles. This star vehicle has made Go-eun Kim better known to American audiences. Do-Yeon Jeon, as Seol-rang, is the driving force of tragedy in this story who wields the symbolic sword of Justice . She plays the role of angst ridden step Mother, (plus another role), of Seol-hee, and masters the duality of lethal femme fatal and vulnerable love muse. Seol-rang is one of two grandmaster martial artists who teaches Seol-hee her unrivaled deadly skills. This is the role of a lifetime that every veteran acting great like Do-Yeon Jeon waits a career to cherish and bring to life. If made in the USA, this would likely be an Academy Award winning role for Do-Yeon Jeon. In a masterful performance as Deck-gi, international Korean actor Lee Byung-hun is the cold, menacing, symbolic, "Sword of Ambition", who also plays a dual role. A nuanced performance of a man in salient conflict with himself to be benevolent and honorable,but failing, and struggling as a lessor man, of greed and cruelty. As Deck-gi, (Byung-hun), ruthlessly dispatches his enemies., his pain shows as he battles his greatest enemy, himself, in the inner psychological morass and dichotomy of two opposing selves. This same dichotomy of opposing passions permeates the film in the manner in which the 3 Principals passionately love each other and hate each other simultaneously, but, it is this epic tolerance for ambiguity that makes this film so dynamic, complex, and engrossing. The smoldering love that unites Seol-rang and Deck-gi is held in check by their visceral hatred for each other as this inexplicable gestalt leads to the unstoppable tragedy to come. In my analysis, we come to understand why this movie is named "Memories of the Sword " because the "Swords" represent the stories of the persons who play out their (sword) symbolism, and these are their memories. This film is a rare masterpiece with a gut wrenching plot of profound psychological pathos, terrific cinematography, a fantastic ensemble of all star Korean actors, stunning production values, and excellent fight choreography. Often compared to 3 Chinese Wushu, (Martial Arts), masterpieces : "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", "The House of Flying Daggers ", and, "Hero", this film is the most poignant and tragic of that revered trio. Profound, anguish ridden, enthralling, agonizingly tragic, and beautifully produced, and acted, this movie is an unforgettable and indelible cinematic experience. Audiences around the world are swept away in tears and awe by its soul stirring analysis of the Human psyche embodied in its "Three Swords of Ambition, Justice, and Revenge". "Memories of the Sword" is the finest film from South Korea and one of he best action dramas ever made. 2hs 1.minute. In Korean with English Subtitles. Memories of the Sword Released AUGUST 28, 2015 Action/Adventure Drama Cast Lee Byung-hun is Deok-gi Do-Yeon Jeon is Seol-rang Kyeong-yeong Lee is Teacher Go-eun Kim is Seol-hee Tae-woo Kim is Jon-bok Jun-Ho Lee is Yool Bae Soo-Bin is Poong-chun Crew Heung-Sik Park Director, Screenwriter Ah-reum Choi Screenwriter Heung-Sik Park Director, Screenwriter Review by Marchello Caracalla See more 02/22/2020 I loved it, very artistic scenes, great story that got my attention from the start, I recommend it a lot. See more 12/22/2016 A mediocre at best. Great cast but the storyline is too bland to showcase the acting. See more 12/08/2016 1. IF you were expecting non stop action; you will be bummed out 2. IF you were looking for a storyline, romance and action....you won't be disappointed. Great pic; great production....acting was fantastic as well. See more 10/13/2016 Beautifully shot and well acted The story line felt rushed that if you're not paying attention you would be lost. See more jesse o @RT12547577 03/20/2016 As it stands right now, the movie's rating is two and a half stars. That may change as I write this review. Let's just get this out of the way first, Byung-hun Lee and Jeon Do-yeon are two incredibly talented actors and they are the biggest component of why I gave the film the rating I did. But. realistically speaking, the movie tends to be a little dramatic. Not annoyingly melodramatic, to me at least, but dramatic like a soap opera. Don't get me wrong, in some parts it does work, since I think there's a certain effectiveness to some elements of the story. Like Deok-gi's changes as he's given a position of general and how his greed and ambition have taken over his entire being. But, and I credit Byung-hun Lee for this, there's a certain part to Deok where you can see that, deep down, even if it's a small remnant of it, there remains a good man at Deok's core. And I will admit that it is simplistic character development, but I do think the movie finds a way to get a lot out of it. And the character of Seol-rang is also fairly interesting. This is a woman who raised her daughter as someone that she wasn't in order to give justice to the people she wronged in the past. She had her believe she was the daughter of two people that ended up being murdered due to her and Deok-gi's actions. The guilt was such that she raised her daughter with one mission and one mission only and that was to avenger her 'parents'' deaths. This leads to an interesting revelation at the climax of the film. Essentially, and I'm gonna SPOIL the movie so skip ahead, Seol-hee, the one lied to, finds out that she, in fact, wasn't the daughter of the people she's been trained to avenge, but in fact the woman that raised her was indeed her mother and the general was her father. She finds this out and, in the climax, kills both of her real parents anyway. Which I found a little silly and felt like an excuse to give the film a tragic ending. There's a scene prior to the climax, but after Seol-hee finds out the truth, that essentially says that she was putting aside the personal and carrying out her mission regardless of the fact that the people she's been 'commissioned' to murder are her parents. I realize that she was raised to believe she was a completely different person, but once you find out the truth, wouldn't that change everything? It makes Seol-hee look even more unlikable than she already was, because two deaths could've been avoided. And I understood why it had to happen, or why Seol-hee's mother wanted it to happen this way, she wanted to give the people she wronged and got murdered the justice they deserved, but it was still a little silly to me. Again, it just felt like an excuse to end the film in tragic fashion, add a little drama. With that said, the way that particular scene was shot, in the soon-to-be unveiled palace, did have some beautiful moments, visually at least. Thematically, it had its moments as well, but it was excessive in its drama. Really, though, the production values for this film are indeed top-notch. The narrative is fine, but it seems like the movie is too long for its own good. They introduce certain elements that feel like they've been placed there in order to extend the running time. And I get that this type of 'period drama epic' almost usually are long films, but this one would've benefited from eliminating unnecessary elements. Like there's this whole thing where Seol-hee and one of the guards meet each other that, literally, served no purpose. I mean he does save her from drowning, but, by and large, it really serves no purpose. There's this sword master that trained Seol-rang and Deok-gi when they were part of the reistance to overthrow the corrupy monarchy, but, again, this character never really seems to do anything. Well, with the exception of being the one that reveals the truth to Seol-hee about who she really is. But it's not like he HAD to be the one to do it, Seol-rang could've very easily told her. And there's just certain scenes that drag the movie down a bit. Should've been edited down, might have made the movie better. The acting, as I mentioned, is real strong. But, like I said, the narrative itself is a little too heavy on the dramatics. I wasn't annoyed by it. In fact, in parts, I was almost kind of interested in seeing where it headed, but when you have actors the caliber of Jeon Do-yeon and Byung-hun Lee, you expect the narrative to match how great they actually are. It was not to be, at least in this case. So, yea, I think the rating will indeed stay at two and a half stars. The climax itself, while featuring some solid action, is a little too goofy for my liking and the narrative isn't great, but the performances are solid enough and the film does manage to hold your interest. Even if it might not be good. It won't impress you, but it is what it is. This is really an average movie, though it should've been much better than it was. See more Read all reviews

Memories of the Sword

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