Audience Member
[size=2]A few months ago I posted some comments on Hong Sang-Soo's first three movies, and now I've had the pleasure (?) to complete his filmography, watching his last two efforts, [i]Turning Gate[/i] and [i]Woman is the Future of Man[/i]. My impression of his first three films was generally positive, although I couldn't fully connect withhis style at times. Sangsoo's films are very unique, and I really don't think they could be compared with anything else. His direction has got a strange rhythm, a strange tempo. His characters are not grotesque yet I can by no means feel identified with them. His vision of relationships is harsh an unromantic. I think the quintessential HSS image is two persons talking in some korean bar. An image which is constantly repeated throughout his movies. I read an article which compared him to Antonioni. An understandable comparision, considering his movies aren't much impressive, at least apparently, and that they're pretty slow. I'd also like to comment in that his themes are constantly repeated throughout his filmography - love is always the main subject. However, since the rather bleak and unfriendly piece which was [i]The Day the Pig Fell into the Well[/i], his style seems to have turned a bit... brighter? Lighter? His last two films are indeed more poignant and comedic, and while not being as wonderful as my favourite film by him, [i]Oh! Soojung![/i] (curiously his most experimental), they're possibly more subtle and... accessible?
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The accessible comment is aimed at [i]Turning Gate[/i], the director's highest grossing film to date. I had read this was a romantic comedy, and that's waaay wrong. In fact, I don't think HSS's films can be qualified as comedies or dramas. This is indeed his most comical movie, yet is far from being funny, but it's certainly more charming and rewarding. As other HSS movies, this one features a simple premise, and the developement is very straightfoward; it's far from being complex. Also, HSS continues to use this (godardian?) technique of dividing the film in chapters. The protagonist here is Kyungsoo, an actor who recieves a call from an old school friend, who invites him to spend some days in a rural province. There he meets a sensual dancer, Myungsook, who doesn't seem very interested on him at the start but which ends up becoming heartbroken after Kyungsoo is unable to tell her he loves her. Rather disappointed, he returns to Seoul, and meets on the train another woman, Sunyoung, whom he ends up following. She seems to be the woman he's destined to live for , but his love doesn't seem to be matched. The film ends with an anti-climatic (in this kind of film there's really no point in talking about climaxes) yet whismical way; after having been read the future by a fortune teller, Kyungsoo finds himself in the turning gate of the title (a legend which is explained in the first half of the movie and which is similar to the plot), as the last scene very nicely shows. The lack of comunication and the anectdotal quality of love relationships seem to be the remarkable motifs of the film, which seems to be divided in two clear parts, each concerning one of the women. As I commented, this movie is not very funny, but it contains a strange aura of irony and poignancy which I haven't found in other HSS flicks. The lead character is rarely interesting, his personality is not much explicit nor developed, yet there are very interesting scenes here, specially the both in which our protagonist talks to the women... while eating. Considering it is his most "accessible" effort, I must say it's quite hard to get into, as the story is by no means affecting or engaging (it might even seem repetitive), yet it can actually be more than satisfying - I think it's useless to try to connect with those characters, it's better just to regard them and enjoy their story for what it is.
[center][img]http://www.koreanfilm.org/womanis8.jpg[/img][/center]
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[left]Then there's [i]La Femme est l'Avenir d l'Homme[/i], a title whose meaning I ignore but which is probably from some painting or poem or book or something. Perhaps I'm not sharp enough, but I don't see its relation with the movie. I think this has been HSS's most criticized effort so far, as it got rather negative reviews at le festival de Cannes, in which it was in competition. Well, it's far from being mediocre. In fact, I really liked it, but I'm glad I had seen his other movies previously, because I'm afraid this is not the best introduction to his work. It's not one of his most radical, but it asks for some patience and open mindedness. In some ways, this could be considered as his quintessential movie; it's not as bleak as [i]Pig[/i], not as quirky as [i]Turning Gate[/i], yet it deals with the same idea of a love triangle - the director continues to reinvent himself withouth losing the freshness of his curious movies. I'd consider it to be part of his "brighter period", though, even if it is slightly mean spirited. The narrative continues to be very clear, even if there's some time jumps involved. Teh film starts with the meeting of two old friends which are grown up but still don't seem satisfied with their lives. They end up deciding to visit and old friend and lover of them both. This film continues to be an study of two ignorant men, their egocentric behaviour and their vain and failed love life. In fact, this is a film which directly deals with their past. This is indeed a minimalist, deceptively simple movie but which is very complex and offers a valuable and worthwhile look at relationships and time's impact on them. However, at this point of my life I'm not sure I'm in a position to correctly evaluate... time and rewatches will do, I guess. What I witnessed is an interesting, sometimes playful, but ultimately sorrowful exercise on human behaviour. HSS continues to presents us losers as the leaders, as well as unpassionate sex scenes, continuing his style of using long takes of dialog when possible as well as a very open (and incomplete?) end. This time he has managed to get a more famous cast: Tae-woo Kim (i]JSA[/i]), Ji-tae Yu ([i]One Fine Spring Day[/i]) and Hyeon-a Seong form the leading trio with memorable performances - I'd also like to comment on the repetitive yet amusing score. Overall, I can understand people being disappointed with this, but it really shouldn't be a letdown if you're used to HSS's style. This movie is less trascendental (I guess) than his previous efforts (a rewatch is completely necessary), yet it is still very good and I would certainly recommend it. I'm looking foward to whatever the man does next.[/left]
Here's how I'd rank his films:
1. Virgin Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors
2. Turning Gate
3. The Day the Pig Fell into the Well
4. Woman is the Future of Man
5. The Power of the Kangwon Province
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Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
02/02/23
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