Doomsday Book

An anthology of apocalyptic sci-fi. Kind of. The film as a whole is infuriatingly confusing in its conception and execution. The first segment, directed by Pil-Sung Yim (of the Korean Hansel & Gretel movie), is the part that can be definitively labeled horror. Tainted beef turns people into zombies. The film has some decent comic moments, but it never really goes anywhere. Plus, I'm absolutely sick of zombies. The third segment, also directed by Yim, concerns a gigantic pool ball from space on a collision course with Earth. Turns out a young girl accidentally ordered an alien attack on the planet. This segment is so absolutely bizarre, I have no idea what they were going for. It is, at least, a bit amusing even if baffling. Bae Doon-Na appears at the very end of this segment, in the last ten minutes of the movie, and director Bong Joon-Ho also appears. The middle segment, directed by Kim Jee-Woon, cannot be considered horror at all. It concerns a robot which has achieved enlightenment and is considered by his fellow monks to be the reincarnation of Buddha. His makers are incensed at the idea, though, and wish to destroy him. This starts off as the most interesting segment, but as it goes on it gets lost in endless dialogue. Kim is a great action filmmaker and has no ability to make abstract concepts interesting. It's the most boring segment of the film, unfortunately. The one thing I can say for the film as a whole is that it always looks fantastic. Even when it's dull, which is often, it's always pretty.

If you can live with the Korean style of human expression: abrasive, aggressive, cruel, and loud, you will find this film wonderfully imaginative. I admit I have some prejudices against a culture of violence and domination, but the Koreans can't pretend to be otherwise. The Japanese seem to disguise their violence and cruelty quite well, for instance. So it takes me a few dozens films of Korea to get me to overcome the bias. Having said that, the central episode / story of this 3-part anthology is most breathtaking. Beautifully shot. Clear and clean script. Thought-provoking underlined message. I am a Buddhist. I experience first-hand the great contrast of scientific go-getting and religious cry for us to accept whatever the present. The Buddha robot represents us very well, and quite understandable to the ones who are not Buddhists. This episode does not set to convert anybody religiously, but it successfully conveys the anguishes and self-conflicts reasonably well. I am not very much into the first and the final episodes. They are too abrasive and too loud to think anything deep. Even a death, or freaking zombies, can be nice and serene. The eighth ball that destroyed the world? Entertaining and imaginative in young adults' way. It leaves nothing. Cinematically, there are some scenes or shots which I think memorable and telling. A dirty trash can with strayed cats around is one. Creepy and indicative. Buddha robot's movement in general is another. Serene and internalizing. Korean filmmakers are now on top of their game, production-wise. But for culture and internal feelings, that's another story.

If there's a common point that links all 3 of these short movies, it's how they show human stupidity and the realistic statement that that's the reason why we are coming to our own end.

The first movie present us with a zombie scenario, more credible than those created by other movies. It's a superb critic of a society drowned in consumerism, the abuse of other life forms and the worshipping of the shallow. It also presents us with the hypocrisy people live by, with somehow subtle imagery of religion and the disregard for those same values when it comes to feeling pleasure through the material and sex. The point of view is original, for which we see the event unfold mostly from the perspective of a zombie, rather than a hero trying to save him/herself. The film is filled with humour, although an underlying seriousness is palpable.

The second movie is a completely different story. It's comparable to Ghost in the Shell for its cyberpunk elements as well as deep philosophy. There's no comedy here. It's the only film with no direct doomsday scenario, although the human folly is obviously present. The future presented here is most plausible and, indeed, this is likely to happen sooner or later. This film is worth watching on its own, if you want to skip the other 2.

The last film is pure absurd comedy. I personally didn't find it amusing, particularly after watching the previous one. The nonsensical idea of this movie is not helped by the fact that the plot wasn't really thought throughly, and not much effort was put into giving any sense to anything, even to the parts that supposedly help the movie unfolds (i.e.: they randomly find silly solutions out of nowhere, comparable to the "deus ex machina" a child playing with toys would create).

Alas, I'd give individual scores as follows: First movie 5/10 Second one 7/10 Final movie 2/10

Part of the appeal of movies is the chance to see other cultures. Doomsday Book starts off with a great view of Korea, not so unlike here in Australia, which was refreshing. I hadn't read anything about this movie before I watched it and was disappointed when the first of three stories descended into rather ordinary zombie fare. For me, it was kept afloat by my unfamiliarity with the country and its customs, but that was all. The next story, concerning robotics, is a quantum leap better, well directed, acted and edited, showing some class. The final idea, concerning a meteorite, had some of the sparkle I last enjoyed watching The Host, with a similar family dynamic. It wasn't as well thought through as the former idea however, and was confusing for the first half. When I got it though, it was a good idea, if a tad on the weird side. There was a welcome scattering of sci-fi visuals throughout the three stories. As a trilogy of shorts I feel this endeavour could have been better served with a more original idea for the first part.

"In-lyu-myeol-mang-bo-go-seo", a.k.a. "Doomsday Book", is a South Korean science-fiction film divided in three uneven segments:

1) "A Brave New World": the research scientist Yoon Seok-woo stays alone at home while his parents travel for a holiday with his sister. He is in charge of cleaning their apartment and he dumps all the garbage, including a rotten apple, in a disposal recycling system. This apple becomes animal food and soon the cow meet contaminates the population of Seoul that becomes zombies.

This segment is the best one with a funny story and beautiful, but nasty cinematography.

2) "The Heavenly Creature": the technician Park Do-wan is summoned to repair the robot In-Myung in a monastery since the robot claims that he is Buddhist and has reached enlightenment. Park is not capable to fix the robot and the company's president decides to decommission the robot.

This segment is boring and annoying despite the great cinematography and special effects.

3) "Happy Birthday": a girls damages an 8 ball and she buys another one in the computer of her father. Then she throws the ball through the window in order her father does not find it. A couple of years later, an asteroid will collide on Earth and her family seeks protection in an underground shelter.

This segment has also a great cinematography but the story is senseless.

My vote is four.

Title (Brazil): Not available on Blu-Ray or DVD