Moebius (2013)

A father driven into desire, a son coveting that of his father's, and the sorrowful maternity that hovers them into tragedy.

Director:

Ki-duk Kim

Writer:

Ki-duk Kim

Stars:

Jae-Hyun Cho, Yeong-ju Seo, Na-ra Lee

1 nomination.

Cast

Credited cast:
Jae-Hyun Cho	...	Father (as Jae-hyeon Jo)
Yeong-ju Seo	...	Son (as Young-ju Seo)
Na-ra Lee	...	Mother / Mistress (as Eun-woo Lee)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jae-hong Kim	...	Gang Leader
Jae-rok Kim	...	Doctor

Storyline

A housewife (Lee Eun-Woo) becomes enraged with jealousy over her husband's (Cho Jae-Hyun) affair. Meanwhile, their son (Seo Young-Joo) sits in the periphery, observing their violent confrontations. One evening, the housewife takes a kitchen knife into their bedroom to exact revenge on the father. The father though is able to repel her attack and throws her out of the bedroom. The mother then goes into the son's room.

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Plot Keywords:

knife | mother son incest | male full frontal nudity | genital mutilation | castration | 

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

Unrated

Did You Know?

Trivia

There is no spoken dialogues in this film

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Connections

Featured in At the Movies: Venice Film Festival 2013 (2013)

User Reviews

now you've seen everything

Most directors become less experimental or transgressive once they've made a name for themselves. Kim Ki-duk is one of the most notable exceptions. Being Korea's most notorious film maker isn't an easy accomplishment in the first place, given that no other country produces so many veritable authors of cinema. But being able to increase the radicality of one's cinematic language while maintaining the same themes is quite a feat indeed.

Kim's Golden Lion-winning previous work 'Pieta' was already almost silent; with 'Moebius' he has not only succeeded in making an entertaining silent film which isn't a reminiscence of a bygone era, but actually managed to push the limits of film as a medium a bit further ahead. The closest film which could compare is 'Themroc', not just because there's no dialog apart from lascivious or painful grunts, but because it almost seems to be a parody of that film's social critique: 'Moebius' quite on the contrary admits to its own silliness.

Many reviewers seem to take the symbols too seriously. The Buddha heads, knifes used for castration and masturbation and of course the body part which is the main plot device (as well as what the title may ironically refer to) - they may all mean something, but they certainly don't have to. There may be tons of allusions to Greek mythology, but it's entirely possible that this is just what you want - or do not want - to read into the film. If these metaphors were any clearer - then this would make 'Moebius' a lot less brilliant. I prefer to think that, as in many of Kim's previous films, it's the effect which is the meaning, and there's not much of a meaning hidden underneath the effect.

Which is why I think of 'Moebius' as one of this year's very few 'must-sees' - unless one suffers from castration anxiety.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Japan]

Country:

South Korea

Language:

None

Release Date:

29 August 2014 (USA)

Also Known As:

Moebius

Filming Locations:

South Korea

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$876, 3 August 2014

Gross USA:

$2,340

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$10,254

Company Credits

Production Co:

Kim Ki-Duk Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1