![]() Isn't the director's purpose perhaps to bring to the forefront those individuals who are considered the discarded remnants of the metropolis, the forgotten ones, the defeated, and the outcasts? Perhaps the morally questionable characters in “Bad Movie” are so repugnant precisely because they are the failed product of the previous generation's shortcomings. ![]() However, it is precisely in this process of emotional confrontation with the protagonists that we find ourselves victims of the trap devised by Jang Sun-woo. Their authentic subversive spirit ends up rendering them almost unbearable to see. Those “bloody punks” that populate the two-and-a-half hours of this experimental work are precisely the antithesis of characters with whom one can empathize throughout the viewing experience. We witness motorcycles speeding through the main streets of Seoul, conversations among the homeless, young girls engaging in prostitution, drug addiction, and promiscuous sexuality played out in cramped KTV establishments, urban vandalism, and theft. Given the absence of a defined plot, the viewer is transported into spontaneous glimpses of violence and ordinary madness within the Korean capital. The film is divided into sub-chapters, such as “Sorrow of a Beggar”, “Why Did You Lie?” and “Robbing Middle-Aged Men”, featuring young rebels with whimsical nicknames like “Birdbrain”, “Mr. The most challenging aspect that significantly contributes to the complexity of understanding “Bad Movie” lies in its deliberately fragmented and chaotic structure. Follow our coverage of lesser known movies from Korea by clicking on the image below The abrupt changes in locations, characters, and style immerse the viewer in the suburban chaos of the metropolis, akin to finding oneself at a hectic street intersection, on the verge of being almost struck by a car. Jang Sun-Woo's camera becomes a frenetic force, ceaselessly moving through the city of Seoul, much like its youthful inhabitants. The film was shot on 35mm and 16mm film, employing a semi-documentary style that is incredibly intricate to follow. “Bad Movie” does not betray its underlying values it is what one imagines when thinking of a “bad” movie. The movie's manifesto immediately implies a rejection of rigid cinematic dogmas, while inviting the viewers to embark on a journey where the boundaries of storytelling, character development, and visual aesthetics are pushed to their limits. ![]() With such a striking and thought-provoking overture, the director signals a certain rupture with traditional storytelling conventions, embracing a more rebellious and unpredictable narrative structure. Nothing else like it.The premises that will shape the entirety of the film are evident right from the vibrant and colorful opening credits, set to the syncopated rhythm of punk-rock music: “Plot: not fixed. While entirely un-recommendable to those not ready for something this intimately abstruse, Bad Movie is an experience I won’t forget. Only watchable past midnight to be closely followed by a steaming hot shower. Fiction becoming reality becoming fiction. So many images burned into my mind, scored with a flurry of diegetic and non-diegetic music (the DJ Doc Gangsta’s Paradise needle drop is an all timer). What we get is a narratively incoherent but tonally consistent nasty and angry, yet, strangely beautiful time-capsule. A rare Korean film in cinéma vérité style (top review on here is just “Harmony Korean”, which, beyond the pun, is an apt comparison), Jang lets his untrained actors carry us from moment to moment. Spontaneous vignettes of wandering youth trapped in death spirals (both from their own actions and from society’s blind eye) in the streets, alleys, tunnels, and dives of Seoul.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |