Mother by Bong Joon-Ho (2009) *Korean An informal discussion with Shayne
Personally, Bong Joon Ho is a director whose works I have long wanted to catch. With south korean cinema leading the way these days, it was with much anticipation that I caught Mother. I will also be watching Memories of Murder (2003) and The Host (2006) by this same director.
I loved the film opening very much. The anonymous mother portrayed with realistic and moving acting by Hye Ja Kim who does not even have a name, is seen in a state of disarray and the camera moves around her, maintaining a safe distance from her descent into hysteria as she slowly dances, moving and swaying, as if oblivious to the world around her and the consequences of her actions. The camera edges closer and she then covers her face with her hand in a swift motion, as though it were part of the choreographed dance. She recovers herself and the hand maintains its position near her mouth as she struggles to fight her emotions. And then, she dances again, waving her hands in the air. Throughout the long take, the non-diegetic blue inflections of Latin music on the score somehow fit very naturally for the setting of this small Korean countryside. The opening title "Mother" appears in korean characters and we see a medium shot of the mother, one hand in her jacket, we take in her messy hair and her looking dejectedly down as the diegetic ambient sound of the wind is now heard. This is the stunning visual mastery of Bong Joon-Ho. It sets up a hook for the audience, why is she behaving in this way? What caused her to be in this state of despair? And by bringing us back through all the events that lead up to that scene, we understand exactly what caused this descent into the rabbit hole of darkness. We derive much satisfaction, even though some questions are still left open.
This review http://www.koreasociety.org/film_blog/reviews/mother_by_bong_joon-ho.html. speaks wonderfully of this scene too.
"The full-body title shot of Hye-ja in the country field, as the word “Mother” scrawls into place is at once powerful yet wanting, because we instantly recognize that certain look on her face – not what it means exactly, but what it feels. Kim's superb performance that follows is similarly riddled with the grace, nerve, love, hysteria, and honesty that we have come to expect from our mothers. "
In this review, http://movies.nytimes.com/2010/03/12/movies/12mother.html it says
"A different menace storms through “Mother,” the fourth feature from this sensationally talented South Korean filmmaker, though she too seems to spring from unfathomable depths. Unlike the beast in “The Host” — a catastrophic byproduct of the American military — the monster in “Mother” doesn’t come with much of a backstory, which suggests that she is a primal force, in other words, a natural. She is and she isn’t as Mr. Bong reveals through a kinked narrative and a monumental, ferocious performance by Kim Hye-ja as the title character. Written by Mr. Bong, sharing credit with Park Eun-kyo, “Mother” opens as a love story that turns into a crime story before fusing into something of a criminal love story. Nothing is really certain here, even the film’s genre, and little is explained, even when the characters fill in the blanks. Though richly and believably drawn, Mr. Bong’s characters are often opaque and mysterious, given to sudden rages, behavioral blurts and hiccups of weird humor. But it’s this very mystery that can make them feel terribly real."
It is true that the film leaves much ambiguous. Even though we start out with a mystery thriller, answering the central question of "Who dunnit" ultimately when it seems to get resolved, we are still left wondering if they nabbed the wrong guy. Also, much of the film evolves to become the audience's journey with the Mother as she becomes a victim of her own beliefs and her wish to trust in her son's innocence, so much so that it propels her into murder. The set up and exposition of the relationship between the son Do-joon and his mother who brings him up painstakingly, dealing with his child like tendencies and even possibly, retarded helps the audience to later identify with this natural force of motherly love that compels and dominates all other logic. Bong's refusal to explain character motivations clearly give the film its valued ambiguity and beauty as we are left to think what we want.
In this review "http://articles.latimes.com/2010/mar/10/news/la-bx-movies10-2010mar10" it says
"The elements of the story resemble a subplot in Bong's acclaimed 2003 "Memories of Murder," which was told from the point of view of the homicide investigators. The change in focus makes "Mother" an even more intense work. Bong conceived the story specifically for actress Kim, who was best known for playing doting mothers on TV. Mother is certainly doting, but, with the pressure of defending her son, this quality quickly turns into obsession, ruthlessness and a series of increasing transgressions of her own."
This very much subverts the idea of the mother figure to become not just one who is loving and doting, but willing to resort to violence and torture to achieve her goals. Even though these acts are terrible, as the audience identifies with the mother's increasing desperation, it makes them less condemnable for the audience. Its storytelling is complex, well paced and a gripping experience for all.
