To Bathe in Filmic Waters

Mother | Bong Joon-ho, 2009

Korean writer/director Bong Joon-ho has slowly risen to worldwide stardom over the past five years, thanks in particular to the international success of his two recent features Memories of Murder (2003) and The Host (2006). Each of these films played with a given genre: Memories of Murder took on the classic serial killer thriller mould that became popular in the US during the eighties, whereas The Host is a modern take on the Japanese monster movies of old. Bong’s fourth feature film, Mother, is set in the Korean suburbs and centres around the relationship between an eccentric mother and her slow, handsome son. Many were expecting Mother to follow this genre-driven approach of taking a given cinematic staple and exploiting it, but thankfully this is not the case. The film does borrow many aspects from Memories of Murder, however: the rural setting, the generally dark aesthetic used to complement both the nature of the story and the humour. Mother, too, revolves around a police investigation: a young girl is found murdered and abandoned on top of a building, and all the clues point towards the mentally-impaired Do-joon (the son) as the killer. His mother, when not preparing and selling ginseng or administering under-the-counter acupuncture therapy, dotes on his every need – so much so that when the cops finally force an admission out of poor Do-joon she takes it upon herself to prove his innocence. This desperate vigilante quest through the darkened streets of such a sleepy, sinister village uncovers much more than anyone, especially Hye-ja had expected, and just like the rain she washes away what is a quiet suburban outer layer to reveal the true nature of the village and its inhabitants, including herself.

As with Memories of Murder, Mother does serve up one or two almighty plot-turns, especially towards the end of the film – they are calculated but effective, the only problem being that it takes so long for us to reach that point. Many of the earlier scenes are used to detail and develop the relationship between Mother and Son (played by Kim Hye-ja and Won Bin respectively) rather than further the plot, which while interesting enough – it is an odd relationship; obsessive and somewhat naive – don’t particularly help the film. Once over that half-way point, however, the twists come thick and fast, ensuring that if you manage to anticipate one then the next will be ready and waiting to trip both you and your presumptions up. By the end, as usual, Bong has us swaying to the beat of his drum, perched on the very edge of our seats and absorbing every hairpin twist his rapidly darkening plot has to offer. Aside from this tight writing and Bong’s wonderfully unique directorial style, the highlight of Mother is undoubtedly Kim Hye-ja’s performance in the titular role. She is an actress who has made her name playing all kinds of mothers on Korean television over the past  few decades, and all of this experience is used to help her produce a quite stunning performance that is both powerful and tender. Won Bin, on the other hand, disappoints in his role as the son – his empty eyes and open mouth do not go very far in creating what is supposed to be an innocent yet also clearly spoilt character. Bong Joon-ho’s Mother is set to represent Korea at next year’s Academy Awards, and at this rate it may not be long before the talented young auteur is actually making films over there rather than merely promoting them.

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