2024 Movie Log: May

Three Times – Hou Hsiao-hsien (2005)
Astoundingly beautiful. Considering you have Chang Chen and Shu Qi as the two leads and love interests, that’s not a total surprise. But truly, few people are as gifted as Hou when it comes to mood, atmosphere, and framing. I love that this project really lets him flex those muscles without it ever coming at the expense of the story. In fact, because of the film’s narrative structure, each vignette is allowed to be its own slow burn. We derive meaning from the look and feel of each section as much, if not more than we do from the plot.
A Time for Love: A+
A Time for Freedom: A
A Time for Youth: A-
Grade: A-

Green Fish – Lee Chang-dong (1997)
Easily one of my favorite debut films. The first 30 minutes or so have a real Bottle Rocket scrappiness to them. And even as the film gets much darker, Chang-dong still leaves room for darkly comedic moments. Really, the only aspect of the film I have to quibble with is the ending, which is not bad but a tad over-engineered; something that’s kind of ironic considering in his later work, Chang-dong’s brilliance often comes from letting the audience sit with uncertainty. In any case, between the story, the tone, and the incredible cinematography, this is as good as it gets.
Grade: A-

Peppermint Candy – Lee Chang-dong (1999)
With all due respect to Joachim Trier, I’d like to nominate another film/character for the title of Worst Person in the World. This was a harrowing watch. In reading some of Chang-dong’s comments about Korean cinema at the time of his debut, I get the sense that showing this much violence, harassment, and misogyny was rare and is very much an intentional move here. That doesn’t make it any easier to watch. That all being said, the cinematography here is once again so captivating that the film as a whole is undeniable.
Grade: B

Poetry – Lee Chang-dong (2010)
I thought Lee Chang-dong’s other films were harrowing but compared to this, they’re practically romps. This is absolutely not for the faint of heart. Something this bleak often falls into the trap of becoming trauma porn; the point at which the film uses devastation to manipulate the audience into a feeling that’s unearned. And to be fair, if one were to simply read the plot description of this film, they’d be right in having that skepticism. And yet, what I find so remarkable about Chang-dong’s work is how reserved he always remains in his filmmaking. So many aspects of this story are left for the audience to discover and interpret. It’s the ultimate testament to the rule of “show, don’t tell.” Like seriously, use this in any writing course or film class to show the power of theme and subtext over plot. I could go on forever but let me close on this note. This is the first time I have seen Yoon Jeong-hee on screen and my god, she gives the performance of a lifetime. Just across the board, a masterpiece of a film.
Grade: A

Burning – Lee Chang-dong (2018)
Much more to say but yeah this is definitely like my favorite movie.
Grade: A

Wildcat – Ethan Hawke (2024)
I have no idea whether this works as an adaptation of Flannery O’Conner’s work as I have not read any of Flannery O’Conner’s work. That being said, I certainly feel compelled to now. And regardless of the context, Maya Hawke’s performance here is truly captivating.
Grade: B

Troy – Wolfgang Peterson (2004)
Every year I get a Sling TV subscription for a few months so I can watch the NBA playoffs and then wind up watching cable broadcasts of movies I would have never thought to put on. And you know what, it rules! Even in the case when the movie is poorly conceived, cast, and executed as is the case with Troy.
Grade: C

The Iron Claw – Sean Durkin (2023)
As someone who has never watched one single wrestling match, I found this to be way more successful than I anticipated. I really admired the tone and approach Sean Durkin takes in telling this story. For the most part, the film maintains a healthy balance of being wrenching and humanistic without falling into any trauma porn pitfalls. To me, the most successful aspect of the film is the performances, and in particular, Zac Efron’s. Would that be the case if I were more familiar with the Von Erichs? Maybe not. But as a wrestling agnostic, it worked for me.
Grade: B+

Oasis – Lee Chang-dong (2002)
This film should absolutely not work and yet it totally does. There are parts in it, in fact, that I think border on greatness. I really don’t have much to say except for once again lauding the brilliance of Lee Chang-dong. We are incredibly lucky to live in a time with a filmmaker who is as bold and daring as he is. If you ever feel like you’re in a rut of seeing the same types of movies over and over again, watch one of his. I can guarantee it’s something you haven’t seen before.
Grade: B+

Total Recall – Paul Verhoeven (1990)
This movie absolutely rips. Just not enough I can say about it except that I am long overdue to read some PKD. I’m in love with the economy of the story (a bit ironic considering at the time this was made it was the 2nd most expensive film of all time). But in all seriousness, in the course of two hours, we are introduced to a whole world and universe in which our protagonist doesn’t even know his identity. That the film is able to explore ideas such as memory, control, free will, and colonization without needing some extended lore behind it is absolutely remarkable. Not to mention that Verhoeven’s feel for this story is just top-notch. A lot of the effects and the technology in this film would have normally aged poorly, but because the film is infused with such a sense of fun and camp, it remains timeless.
Grade: A