Mother Madeo (2009)

Directed by: Joon-ho Bong | 128 minutes | drama, thriller, crime | Actors: Hye-ja Kim, Bin Won, Ku Jin, Yoon Jae-Moon, Mi-sun Jun, Young-Suck Lee, Sae-Beauk Song, Mun-hee Na, Woo-hee Chun, Byoung-Soon Kim, Pil- Kyeong Jang, Jeong-wuk Kim, Seung-hyeon Lee, Bok-dong Mun, Hee-ra Mun

The great thing about Joon-ho Bong’s films is that they are always surprising. In a positive sense, that is, and always on several levels. The characters, the plot twists, but also the choice of genre and especially the interpretation thereof are a pleasant surprise every time. One time you get to choose personal drama, the other time a mega spectacle, such as his biggest success ‘The Host’. Here you see similarities with, for example, Peter Jackson, who is also not afraid to show different sides of himself as a filmmaker. But secretly what makes the talented Korean director is that little bit more special, less influenced, it seems, by the laws of Hollywood.

You can see that especially in the characters and development of the characters. Few directors are so good at creating flesh and blood people. People you sometimes don’t want to identify with because they’re so stupid, yet oh so recognizable, so you do it anyway. The mother, her son, the son’s best friend, the police inspector; in ‘Mother’ every character has its black and its light sides, its stupidity and shrewdness, its usefulness and superfluousness.

Individual scenes are worked out with great love, both fitting within the big picture, as well as rich in subtle details that make the film unquestionably worth watching multiple times. The characters again play an important role in this, because Joon-ho Bong is not a pretty film maker (perhaps after the beginning), everything contributes mainly to creating an atmosphere and telling the story, but always the conveying a sort of central theme in his films: we are all only human.

This story is captivating, again, especially because of the characters, who are excellently played by a cast unknown to us, but with a lot of talent. Mother in particular is sublimely portrayed by actress Hye-ja Kim, fragile and selfish at the same time. A lot of talent is needed to portray such a person without hesitation credibly. It is therefore surprising that this actress (at age) has only four films to her name. One of the highlights is the opening sequence of the film in which she performs a kind of modern dance in an open field that immediately confuses you as a viewer, but at the same time makes you eager to experience the rest of the story.

The development of the plot is also surprising and has several exciting and fascinating twists, which of course should not be revealed here. In any case, they remain credible and that is the most important. Incidentally, this is not a horror and even almost not a thriller, that would be too simple for these makers. In the end it’s all about the characters and their friends, their mutual relationships and of course their actions and their consequences. The apparent darkness of the film is also relative. The realism is told with such flair and humor that it remains light, manageable.

‘Mother’ looks well cared for and well thought out. Everything is nicely coordinated: the tempo, the surprises, the music, the acting style. Already from the opening scene you know that there are people behind this with vision. And along the way you learn that these people have knowledge of ‘how things work’ in real life and how to translate that into film. And that is done on all fronts with professional precision, craftsmanship, but also with a lot of idiosyncratic (mainly black) humor, the signature of the master. And although the plot is ultimately not one hundred percent satisfied, you can only conclude that you have enjoyed it from start to finish, fascinated by what special things are coming your way.

Conclusion: Bong Joon-ho is one of the great film talents of his time and ‘Mother’ is a complete addition to his still modest but impressive oeuvre.