I watched this film through once and then the first half a second time in order to try to gain a bit more certainty about what is happening. The movie is moody and dark (literally & figuratively) and having to depend on subtitles was distracting. So at times I wasn't even certain which of the two primary characters was speaking and the plot was anything but obvious.
The term "inscrutable Asian" is a somewhat condescending cliché, but watching this film I can understand why, especially to westerners, the near absence of facial tells and behavioral cues may be interpreted as a shortcoming on the part of the actors and a sign of an amateurish production. I am not Asian but have lived in Asia for nearly two decades, which does not imbue me with magical insight into Asian behavior, but it has apparently made me sympathetic to what appears to be a calculated and inculcated concealment of emotions. In fact, the stoic, stiff and apparently cold behavior of the actors speaks volumes to empathetic eyes far more than the emotional & dramatic circus that might be considered appropriate in a similar western production of the same story.
Because the plot is intentionally difficult to fathom, at least at first it is, I've indicated that my comments could be construed as including a spoiler for the beginning of the movie, but honestly I think most people who watch this movie are going to feel somewhat lost. My review is not so much a spoiler as a little help to understand what's going on and it's a case of the blind leading the blind because I'm only about 80% sure I've got it right.
Before the movie begins, two young men are attacked by a homophobic bully. Won-gyu manages to escape the attack, leaving his companion to take the brunt of it, which results in injury and a permanent limp for him. The incident essentially also amounts to a devastating outing of the two men, causing them alienation from family and friends.
One of the men, Won-gyu, a flight attendant, then leaves Korea for two years. At the start of the film he returns to Korea and meets the former friend who was left with the injury and who clearly blames Won-gyu for running away from the fight, leaving him to attempt to defend himself alone. The two again part company, both are angry, depressed and burdened with self-loathing. Absent a more appropriate target, they've vented their anger at each another.
The reason Won-gyu has returned to Korea is because he has heard that the attacker has been released from prison after serving a reduced sentence. This then become the less than obvious focus of what follows.
Won-gyu meets Tae-joon, both of them having the intention of having a one-night stand. Tae-joon has experienced many of the same social and family issues as Won-gyu, but is far better able, both physically and mentally, to deal with it all and defend himself. Won-gyu's emotional baggage gets in the way of them really connecting, although there is a fairly subtle bonding between them.
If you get to this point in the movie with a reasonable idea of what's going on, the rest will be fairly obvious and I'll leave it to you to see how some things are resolved to an extent and left hanging in other ways, bringing some closure and opening new possibilities.
My favorite line in the movie follows the fairly violent resolution of one issue. Sitting next to each other, totally stony poker-faced throughout the conversation, Tae-joon asks, "So is that why you came back to Korea?" Without batting an eye or changing his expression, Won-gyu says," No, I heard that house prices were going down." Under the circumstances and taking into account the manner in which the reply is delivered, it really is pretty funny.
Quite a good movie, but not an easy one.
The term "inscrutable Asian" is a somewhat condescending cliché, but watching this film I can understand why, especially to westerners, the near absence of facial tells and behavioral cues may be interpreted as a shortcoming on the part of the actors and a sign of an amateurish production. I am not Asian but have lived in Asia for nearly two decades, which does not imbue me with magical insight into Asian behavior, but it has apparently made me sympathetic to what appears to be a calculated and inculcated concealment of emotions. In fact, the stoic, stiff and apparently cold behavior of the actors speaks volumes to empathetic eyes far more than the emotional & dramatic circus that might be considered appropriate in a similar western production of the same story.
Because the plot is intentionally difficult to fathom, at least at first it is, I've indicated that my comments could be construed as including a spoiler for the beginning of the movie, but honestly I think most people who watch this movie are going to feel somewhat lost. My review is not so much a spoiler as a little help to understand what's going on and it's a case of the blind leading the blind because I'm only about 80% sure I've got it right.
Before the movie begins, two young men are attacked by a homophobic bully. Won-gyu manages to escape the attack, leaving his companion to take the brunt of it, which results in injury and a permanent limp for him. The incident essentially also amounts to a devastating outing of the two men, causing them alienation from family and friends.
One of the men, Won-gyu, a flight attendant, then leaves Korea for two years. At the start of the film he returns to Korea and meets the former friend who was left with the injury and who clearly blames Won-gyu for running away from the fight, leaving him to attempt to defend himself alone. The two again part company, both are angry, depressed and burdened with self-loathing. Absent a more appropriate target, they've vented their anger at each another.
The reason Won-gyu has returned to Korea is because he has heard that the attacker has been released from prison after serving a reduced sentence. This then become the less than obvious focus of what follows.
Won-gyu meets Tae-joon, both of them having the intention of having a one-night stand. Tae-joon has experienced many of the same social and family issues as Won-gyu, but is far better able, both physically and mentally, to deal with it all and defend himself. Won-gyu's emotional baggage gets in the way of them really connecting, although there is a fairly subtle bonding between them.
If you get to this point in the movie with a reasonable idea of what's going on, the rest will be fairly obvious and I'll leave it to you to see how some things are resolved to an extent and left hanging in other ways, bringing some closure and opening new possibilities.
My favorite line in the movie follows the fairly violent resolution of one issue. Sitting next to each other, totally stony poker-faced throughout the conversation, Tae-joon asks, "So is that why you came back to Korea?" Without batting an eye or changing his expression, Won-gyu says," No, I heard that house prices were going down." Under the circumstances and taking into account the manner in which the reply is delivered, it really is pretty funny.
Quite a good movie, but not an easy one.
