Mong-ta-joo

It had been a long time since I have seen such a well rounded thriller, where motives are not cliché and predictive. The acting jives extremely well with the dialog (albeit I watched with sub-titles) and the actors were awesome.

The mother's acting was so realistic that in empathizing with her, a layer of understanding is added to the storyline. The story neatly makes a subtle point about the similarity in human motives, and how where you stand in relation to it, determines your perception.

The use of time is very interesting in this movie, like an origami. It starts as a plain paper (linear), but takes on elaborate form. There are a couple of movies where this technique has been used, but in this case, the time/origami texture is seamless.

I am sure the above description might sound abstract and arcane, but if you watch the movie, you will understand what I mean. :)

A gripping and intelligent thriller, a must see.

So, here we go: another great thriller coming (not surprisingly) for South Korea. Wonderfully written and well directed by Jeong, Montage is hands-down one of the best South Korean movies of 2013 (on par with features like Miracle in Cell No. 7, The Berlin File, New World etc.).

Montage presents a well-rounded script that triggers a mesmerizing narrative mechanism, full of almost unbearable suspense (especially in the last half-hour). We are in the presence of an excellent movie that will leave you on the edge of your seat and will definitely immerse you in its narrative till the very end (and the totally unpredictable final plot twist of a long series of them)

The effectiveness of the plot is due to its clever way of twisting viewers' expectations by playing with the "montage of the timeline", that always comes back and forth between the present and the past... I cannot say more to avoid spoil anything to you.

I'll just say that you should not let yourself be lead astray by the seemingly conventional beginning 'cause as it goes on the movie becomes more and more interesting and gripping and starts to pack some real plot twists that'll almost ever leave you astonished. Montage is the work of a clever screenwriter that knows how to masterfully play with a lot of genre tropes just to, as I already said, deceive the viewer.

And, even though its main purpose may very well be pure entertainment, it anyways somehow manages to convey some interesting points of social critique in the way it portraits the lengths we are disposed to go (or, sometimes, forced to go) as to try to survive in a ruthless world where, when there is a crisis, the ones paying the highest toll are always the weakest and the poorest. And, apart from direction and screenwriting, Montage is also well-served by a gloomy cinematography and a perfect acting ensemble.

So, to sum it all up: if you're in for a masterful thriller that will leave you constantly guessing and will amaze you over and over till a final plot twist that it's totally unexpected well, hurry up and give Montage a try.

One thing that surprise me about movies coming out of South Korea is the huge amount of revenge movies there are. It's not a handful of movies, there are dozens of movies. I think maybe half the South Korean movies I have seen have some sort of revenge theme.

This movie is riveting and like a murder mystery it sets all the pieces in places so that can pick them up and examine them.

Even then though, when you think you know what's going on there's a dawning realization that you've been wrong as the plot comes to fruition and the real truth comes to light.

It's a great movie with a magic ending and well worth the watch.

If you have seen as many films as I have in my life you may feel compelled to stop watching this movie, because, who cares about Another kidnapper, another obsessed and tormented mother ("Azooma") piecing the case together? and a hunted detective?. Seriously? How many times we have seen this and the (sometimes) over-melodramatic Korean style? Well,I am glad I pushed myself to see how this story would end! The clever and twisting last half of it, made me regret those times when I paused it to fix coffee,I am so glad I did not walk away when I felt a little bored with the "familiar" plot. The last thirty minutes will stick on your memory as one of those endings that must be watched again to savor a good writing,so rare and hard to find. Acting is good enough, in any case this is a must-watch, and I will recommend it to anyone who ask: Have you seen a good movie lately? So my rating 7.5 out of 10 for having such a clever ending!

I am so happy that I watched this movie ...

Not only just the great story, great acting, and great directing. This movie somehow move you at some point. I was blown away by how this story well written and put some message in it. At the end I was shed a tears and share deep feeling with main character when she hugged the tree and call her daughter's name as well as when the kidnapper told his story. I mean WOW ... some movie like this is very rare ... so you should see it for yourself.

I praised the writer ... director and actors ... to bring the gems into cinema. BRAVO