Bouvier des Flandres

Reviewed @Filmmining101

Lovers of the Bong Joon-ho's (now) distinct style will find plenty to love in his directional debut, "Barking Dogs Never Bite" (2000). While the beloved South Korean filmmaker has indulged us into more socially conscious stories supported by sharp commentary around the working and human ethics which bound the film's world, "Barking Dogs Never Bite" is the first step towards an evolutionary scale of artistry that will attract moviegoers around the world for years to come.

Starting his career with a less ambitious (for the lack of a better term) story, the movie features all his known trademarks you would have come to expect (e.g., imposing architecture, isolated main characters, layered storytelling). Dressed heartily with black humor, this comedy centered around missing dogs in a massive apartment complex has reflective undertones about a society that neglects its citizens (before they do it themselves first). Dogs, used as a symbol of status, currency and supply even between the lower socio-economic individuals seem to be having a better life than their owners live in a poetic sense of irony.

Struggling to make means end and lacking a job, our "hero", a dubious and passive academic is in an abusive relationship with his pregnant wife, hates dogs and has no money to buy out his promotion to professor. This protagonist becomes the key player in a tale of theft, misunderstandings and social allegory which the West rarely offers. Typically in a Joon-ho flick, several elements are usually metaphors for the cast's state of mind and the story's progression: cigarettes breaks and dogs represent freedom in a world that relies on self catered interactions to move forward. Bae Donna's character is also stuck in a thankless position of building management conjuring an interesting dynamic with Sung-Jae Lee's pair-less academic and complementing the same coin from a different side.

A master at blending genres with extreme efficiency, Joon-ho manages to generate suspense from the simplest of circumstances; an account of Boiler Kim's (who represents the working and honorable class of South Korea) tragedy feels like something that John Carpenter would direct, echoing similar sentiments in Joon-ho's own Oscar winning "Parasite" (2019) nineteen years later. When the final resolution comes in the complex parable of human relationships, Bong-ho's script keeps the audience guessing on whether this will end in tears or laughs simultaneously making it clear where he and his actors stand. Occasionally it does feel smaller in scale and less engulfing in its thematic presentation than the rest of his iconic filmography with with frequent tonal shifts and a not so likeable main character, especially for those who like dogs. But it is the birth of one of the most important voices in cinema which three years later will give us the masterpiece that "Memories of Murder" is (2003).

The movie never has a real climax nor is it set up to have one. The most redeeming quality is its passivity. Such a comment may not seem like flattery, but hear me out. The movie very accurately captures the mundaneness that is life and the ever so rare mishaps that disrupt it. If drama is life with the boring parts cut out then this movie manages to successfully cut nothing out. I suppose that is the beauty of the movie: nothing ever seems contrived or pieced together. There are no real villains in this movie nor is it designed for the audience to choose sides. The movie is therefore flat, but in this case that is a good thing because it is different. As far as the comedy goes, on about three or four jokes I genuinely laughed at. Again, they are lines one might hear in real life discourse. Ultimately I got a sense of sincerity out of the movie, and for that it is worth a viewing.

and that would have been a real shame. This movie was thoroughly enjoyable. I think this would make an excellent introduction to Korean cinema because it was MY introduction to korean cinema and I didn't find it inaccessible in any way.

It was not as gruesome or hard to stomach as I was expecting, nor was it really as dark as mentioned above. If you could sit through Fargo, you could certainly sit through and really enjoy this film.

To say it does not have many jokes misses the point, because some of the situations that characters find themselves are quite hilarious--especially the chase scenes. The acting and directing are excellent. If you get a chance to catch "Barking Dogs Never Bite" don't miss it.

There is a trove of criticisms of life in Korea embedded in this film, which was the first from director Bong Joon-ho:

• The bribery of professors needed to get a positon at a university.
• The corruption and the use of cheap materials in the construction boom of the late 1980's.
• How the dogs of the affluent live better than many people.
• How worthless a graduate degree in the humanities is.
• How no one in Korea follows the rules.
• How clouds of billowing insecticide are sprayed in a public area for "pest control."
• How at great risk to herself, a bank teller is lauded for taking on an armed robber, rather than rewarded for just doing her job.
• A homeless guy living in a basement who is happy to go to prison, where he'll get regular meals.
• A woman begging for money on public transportation with her small child strapped to her back.
• A woman let go from her job of eleven years because she's gotten pregnant.

I love some of things he was aiming for, many of which are clear precursors to his later films, but unfortunately, the messages here are wrapped up in a story that's pretty lackluster. A man in a loveless marriage is trying to get a job as a professor and takes out some of his frustrations on the dogs in his apartment complex whose barking irritates him. A janitor in the complex secretly kidnaps dogs to stew them up and eat them. A couple of young women see one of the dogs killed and try to do something about it. It's all kind of blah, which maybe was also part of the point, but it didn't make for compelling viewing to me, particularly as the pace was on the slow side.

Barking Dogs Never Bite is written & directed by Bong Joon-ho and stars Sung-jae Lee, Doona Bae, Hie-bong Byeon, Su-hee Go and Ho-jung Kim.

An idle part-time college lector is annoyed by the yapping sound of a near-by dog. He decides to take drastic action.

Bong Joon-ho is a critically-acclaimed, visionary director who has created some of cinema's finest moments; be it cinematography, editing or storytelling, he has made a name for himself and is most definitely one to look out for. But, what kickstarted this successful career? A little film called Puhran Dah Suh Uigeh, translated as Barking Dogs Never Bite. The question is, how good is it?

The answer; very good. Even though the story seems unadorned, this is an incredibly intricate experience, featuring compelling visuals, brilliant performances, smart editing and the foundation of Joon-ho's unique staging technique. He allows actors to perform with their body, eyes and hands, as a way of attracting the viewers attention, further propelling the story forward. This can be seen in the scene where the Janitor (Hie-Bong Byeon) is telling the tale of Boiler Kim in the apartment complex basement. Ensemble staging becomes a great part of Joon-ho's films, especially in Memories of Murder, but this is where it started. The performances from Sung-jae Lee and Doona Bae are satisfyingly entertaining, and although never branching out to anything more dynamic, they both complement each other well and keep the film running trippingly.

Original music by Sung-woo Jo is strangely fitting and enjoyable, being a well- developed framework that sounds simplistic yet never venturing too far as to distract the viewer.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, editing is a huge part of any film, and so should be treated with absolute care. I imagine Joon-ho had a watchful eye over Eun Soo Lee in the editing process. There are moments where it's sharp and fast-paced and others slow and steady, it all depends on the pace and rhythm of the scene. It's also hard to place the genre of this film, it's sold as a dark comedy, but here and there are drops of horror/thriller themes, which really adds to the originality of this film and aids its director.

It was incredibly difficult to come by a copy of this film with English subtitles attached, so I only hope the version I watched was accurate and true to the original dialogue. However, I feel the experience would stay very much the same without any understanding of the spoken language. It's all told through visuals and body-language which is likely why Bong Joon-ho's work is so widely respected by most audiences.

Verdict; I truly believe that anyone studying film, or looking to work in the industry, should take a look at the work of Joon-ho, if only to gain more of an understanding of how stories can be told not just through words, but through movement and emotion. While Barking Dogs Never Bite is a simple concept, it's captured beautifully through visuals.

Puhran Dah Suh Uigeh (Barking Dogs Never Bite), 8/10.