Microhabitat

As a fan of Korean movies I was looking forward to watching Sogongnyeo (or Microhabitat for the English title). It got a high rating on here and Korean cinema produced a lot of excellent movies so it was promising. But in the end it was disappointing to me. The story is a bit boring, certainly towards the second half, a bit repeating itself, nothing really enjoyable to follow. It has a couple good scenes and the acting wasn't bad but that's about it. I just think it's not really the kind of stories I enjoy watching, but others might do.

Everything is perfect and nothing bothers me. If all those who produce movies have this much sense, directing, and neatness, the world will be filled with really good films.

I literally can't believe such a wonderful and beautiful movie can be made with $320k in production costs. It is super LIT!

The most remarkable thing is lighting. The lighting behind the camera, which illuminates characters in a narrow space such as a dark alley or room, evokes naturalness but also makes them more adorable. However, there was no lighting in the scene of couple at dawn, and this delivers the temperature of air, which is so much colder and heavier. I really like these lighting decisions.

The structure, script, and acting were also good. Leakless structure, editing without superfluous parts! I felt like that I read a tidy article with a fabulous topic and solution.

It was a very enviable and respectful time for people who make fun things fun. The world is full of fun and cool stuffs, and it makes me struggling!

Hyeon-jeong, Dae-yong, and Rok-yi's episodes were very fun and giggling, but Jung-mi's consternated me. The movie was so adept at getting the issue off the table, but I think we should highlight it.

"I have money for a glass of whiskey and cigarettes, but no money to pay the rent."

If I regard the former as a metaphor for the most indispensable and fundemental cost of pursuing individual happiness, yes I can agree. I don't want to force the people to give it up. However, I think it is a pretty dangerous idea to ask someone else for a favor because I'm willing to give someone a bed when he or she asks me. I would have hooked if Mi-so slept in the parks and spent the rent at an indispensable basic cost. But she decided to share the burden with others, so she didn't lose anything. Of course, Jung-mi is rich to waste in throwing good food away, so in that episode it's almost Jung-mi's fault to reject Mi-so. But I doubt that Mi-so did well.

"Let's owe a favor to others just until I save the deposit of the house rent."

Can't she stop pursuing her own happiness until she save the deposit?

This movie really make me thinking about life. The plot is simple but for some reason it can touch my heart. I also like the acting a lot. The meaning behind the story is subtle enough and I like it a lot.

... even though it's not my house.

The more I watch productions from regions whose culture hasn't been deeply influenced - until recently - by western culture, the more I'm undecided on my capacity to judge them. Had this movie been produced in Germany or the Uk I would have given it a 4-5 for its restrained gaze, farcical tone and not particularly original themes. But I'll give it a cosmopolitan benefit of the doubt.

The film shows how willing people are to settle for less than ideal socio-economic bargains, just for inexperience or social pressures, actually ruining their lifes. And how outsiders are dissed, blamed and ultimately discriminated (though the movie doesn't show that much) for their choices.

Unfortunately the film feels a little too surreal to my eyes: things seem forcibly represented as cute and fine and often even comical where I'd expect struggling, drama and wounds. And while I guess that may well be my bias towards realism, the result is that overall the production fell a little flat.

The conclusion too left me cold: a more direct collision against hypocrisy and conformism would have made everything more meaningful. Instead we are left believing that outsiders aren't going to get crushed by the rest of society and will do just fine.

A cute little fell-good movie whose social critique doesn't really hit... unless OFC the purpose wasn't hitting in the first place but a more gentle reproach.

My Rating : 8/10

'Microhabitat' is a Korean-drama. It is full of the kind of good depression energy that the viewer can engage with. There is a lot of humour and one can glean into the culture of the place.

I love a movie that can bring such cozy vibes, it makes you feel lazy, triumphant and rooting for the underdog which is what most viewers enjoy. If someone is bored with watching mainstream Western or Hollywood dramas and wants something different then 'Microhabitat' maybe just the right thing. Simple, full of charisma of the main actor (she has done a stellar job!) - this is a feast for the lazy, drunken eyes. Transcendental, meditative and extremely healing...go watch it already.