It is very hard to review this film and trust me, it is even harder to stay calm while it lasts... Urge to either correct, or punish some atrocious acts by the characters was so strong, that I felt irritated during the movie... I guess it is a good thing.
As you could have guessed, this is a very intense tragedy, (not the contemporary meaning of the word.) which tries to justify some unimaginably inhuman acts by the characters. That being said, I was surprised to realize that in the end, story makes sure to leave no room for such "justifications" whatsoever.
Some of the themes might look familiar to the viewer.
Listed:
Life is hard; Two sisters; Mentally challenged father; Complete a**hole of an uncle; A dream.
Generic eh? NOT QUITE. It's the opposite! Not sure how Mr. Sang-woo Lee achieved this, but I don't think that the same effect can be experienced elsewhere.
Acting and story are superb. While the film is slow and lighthearted, it still keeps on to the idea of punching the viewer in the face, and for me it happened in a very theatrical manner.
The thing is that, both the imagery and the story are very humane, slightly beautiful and immensely simple. I am pretty sure that the most horrifying, unbearable and mildly disgusting part of it, is the fact that it's VERY VERY
SIMPLE.
Cinematography compliments the mood perfectly. While mostly it's generic "daily life" shots, there are moments which are so graphical, (I don't mean violence) that somehow i got the feeling that the operator was mocking the viewer.
In the end, I feel that this might be one of the best movies in its genre (if such exists). Shove the melodrama aside, prepare to be violently gutted, and enjoy the pure awesomeness of a human behavior which is called: "I am not human anymore."
Definite recommend for everyone who wants to see something original in a simplistic, and almost theatrical way.
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+10 for Lee cheon-hee, actor who plays the role of an uncle guy.
