La cantante de Pansori

This is one of the best films about the Blues that I have ever seen. I defy you to find a member of the Hoary Tarnation of Blues, Delta, Mississippi, USA, that wouldn't spit, squint up at you and say, "Dang! That is the Blues!" Verdad! And while I'm exclaiming away, I swear to you that as I sat in our little local art house theater the audience just let the tears stream when they must with complete abandon. With no shame. Now there is some eastern magic.

The film begins in an interesting way. The style is clearly modern and places the story distant from a medieval or fantasy era. The young actor's (Kyu-chul Kim) style however hearkens to the older traditions in Korean Theater. And soon his search fades into the story of his emotional roots. The film doesn't make an obvious judgment about the 'life' of these three people or their domination by their father-mentor. Yet the film challenges you to decide if his assumption to rule these growing children is culturally acceptable or extraordinary even in their world at large.

There is a scene in a pension when the song master (Myung-gon Kim) becomes very drunk and garrulous. It is at once hilarious, tense and pathetic. Another, when the itinerants are walking with back packs in the middle of nowhere and begin a spontaneous dancing walk as they go along their way. These are glowing moments in cinema. The productions values are good and keep you placed always on the edge of the wild.

And then the music! This is the blues. Truly, I can say no more.

Sopyonje brought me to my knees before a tradition that previously was unknown to me - pansori. The power, tenderness, and pain that lies in art, in life, longing, and the music was conveyed in full force and with beauty. I couldn't directly understand the Korean words (subtitled) that were spoken or the songs that were sung, but i could feel and was in awe of the emotions especially in the second half of the movie. I can still hear the melodies, voice, and the drum.

Every time you look at this wonderful movie, be sure not to be disturbed by anything or by anyone. Especially if you are looking for the first time! In this case, it may be you find it boring for a short while, but don't you dare to give up! You must realize that the "slow motion" of this movie and the long silences are exactly some of the characteristics that make it one of the most wonderful movies I ever saw. You WILL find extraordinary contrasts at certain times. IN ANY CASE, KEEP CONCENTRATED AND CONTINUE LOOKING TILL THE VERY END!! You will not regret! I am a man, 55 years old, father of two big boys, and I am not ashamed to say that every time I look at this movie a few tears run over my cheeks... Thank you so much, I'm Kwon Taek !

The story, not bad in itself, is not the main point. The music is. The main characters - a father and his daughter and son - are all folk music performers, and the musical numbers, dispersed throughout the film, make up an integral part of the film. It is not easily accessible for those used to the ordinary Hollywood stuff, but well worth the time if the musical genre presented - pansori - a form of Korean folk music, and actually the main character of the picture - appeals to you. Those who don't like the music will probably be very bored and should not waste their time on this. I loved it, but I know people who would fall asleep fast if they tried to see this.

Pansori - the traditional Korean musical storytelling, which is performed by a singer and a drummer, is the key component in this movie. If I were to describe it, I'd compare it heart that fuels this movie and makes it function - it encompasses the Korean culture during the period when Japanese and Western influences are taking over the Korean peninsula.

This movie isn't a musical but music is everywhere around the three main characters and music, or rather - the continuation of this traditional kind of music - is the main motivator for everything. For one, it's the task to save it; for the second, it's the task to please her father; and for the third - it's the task to convince them that Pansori isn't profitable anymore. Each of them had different views on the music and the music filled them up in a different way, creating this unorthodox father-pupil family tandem. Even though their trio broke up and broke them up emotionally, the chain of events concluded with one of the most powerful musical exhibitions in the cinema I've ever seen. The raw emotional display, the sadness mixed with guilt, pity, and remorse, the closure that is both making the audience cry and making the audience feel immense joy - everything that comes into making this movie has an effect that sincerely moves people. At the very least, it moved me more than anything else recently and I couldn't be happier.