#kim sang-il

[chronophotographic-gun]

Memories of Murder (2003)

[stuff-diary]

The Frog

TV Shows/Dramas watched in 2024

The Frog (2024, South Korea)

Director: Mo Wan Il

Writer: Son Ho Young

Mini-review:

Wow, I didn't think I would enjoy The Frog so much. I guess I was in the mood for a dark, propulsive thriller. I've seen some people say it's 'slow', but like... where? This kept me glued to the screen from the very first episode, and it got more and more intense throughout the next ones. It even ventures into psychological horror territory from time to time, which made it even more fun to me. The writing isn't perfect (some of the characters aren't as well developed as they should), but the directing and the acting more than make up for it. Go Min Si turns in a particularly strong performance, and it's clear she gave it her all. I'm not gonna say this is the best thriller k-drama I've seen, but it was definitely enjoyable as hell.

[eveneechan]

The Color Concept on Little Women (2022)

Part 1: Princess of Thieves

The Princess of Thieves Orchid have 2 colors: Pink and Purple

Which is the color of dress that Injoo and Hwayoung wear during Singapore climax scene

Injoo: Pink

Hwayoung: Purple

Pink as Injoo's color

Pink orchid have meaning: Romance, Love, Friendship

Injoo's main plot always not far from her sisters and Hwayoung. Her love for them is driving force that keep made Injoo move foward

Purple as Hwayoung's color

Purple orchid have meaning: Wisdom, Intellegence, MYSTERY

Wisdom: Hwayoung is Injoo's senior at workplace. Injoo saw Hwayoung as someone who teach her many things

Intellegence: Hwayoung had planned things very further and details, and outsmarting Sangah's manipulation

Mystery: Hwayoung is central mystery of the story

Hwayoung's Apartment

Hwayoung have small purple orchid on her apartment at Singapore

Hwayoung's apartment wallpaper at South Korea have purple as main color. The wallpaper also used as background for one of main poster

***

Purple and Pink on title of Little Women

In opening sequence, the title Little Women have purple with pink shade as background color

In each ending of episode, the title Little Women appear before credits, usually appear in white text and black screen, before the text got painted. The first color of paint in text is Pink and Purple

Which is color of Injoo and Hwayoung

It's like indicating how Little Women's plot story, beside the Oh Sisters, mostly will be around Injoo and Hwayoung

***

A glimpse of Pink and Purple color on Injoo and Hwayoung's clothes at South Korea

At South Korea, Injoo mostly wear earth color pallete clothes and Hwayoung mostly wear colorless (black/white) clothes

(more explaination on Part 2: Earthenspoon & Nospoon)

But in 1st episode, there's small purple part in Hwayoung clothes. And when Injoo "playing rich", she wear pink clothes.

It's like hinting how they are part of Princess of Thieves later in story

***

Cinderella and Fairygodmother

Hwayoung and Injoo in restaurant scene heavily referenced from Cinderella

Hwayoung is like Fairygodmother who dressing Injoo, the Cinderella, to "playing rich"

The Purple color on Hwayoung and Pink color on Injoo is similar with purple color on Cinderella's Pink dress and Fairygodmother's Purple cloak

***

Color Mood of Princess of Thieves

In each scene when Injoo had thinking or talking about Hwayoung, the color mood around her change into combination of Pink and Purple; the color of Princess of Thieves

Quoting from Choo Jahyun (Hwayoung's actress)'s interview:

"It felt like Goeun (Injoo's actress) was living as both Injoo and Hwayoung at the same time in Little Women"

The combination of pink and purple color mood on those scenes is like symbolized how Injoo and Hwayoung become one on Injoo's mind

***

The Intruder: Yellow

On Princess of Thieves that appear on Singapore's auction, the flower has little shade of Yellow

Which is color of Won Sangah and fake!Hwayoung's dress on Singapore

Won = name of Korean money currency

Korean highest currency (50,000) has color of Yellow

Yellow = Sangah and Won Family = Capitalism

Yellow vs Purple

On color wheel theory, Yellow and Purple are color that opposite to each other

Symbolized how Hwayoung (Purple) and Sangah (Yellow) are total opposite

In opening sequence, Oh sisters were drawn mostly with shade of purple, and their background is yellow.

Indicating how the sisters are like "actors" in Sangah's play vs Hwayoung; how the battle between those masterminds was told from three sisters' perspective

It's also symbolized how Sangah = Yellow = Money = Capitalism is the main enemy

***

The Shadow of Flower

Hwayoung (화영)'s name have meaning Beautiful Flower. The writer JSK had mentioned that she want to give a name to Hwayoung that relate to Flowers because Hwayoung love gardening

In hanja, Hwayoung have secret meaning of her name: 花影 = 꽃의 그림자 = Shadow of Flower

It's like symbolising how Hwayoung is shadow part of flowers:

1. Princess of Thieves: to Injoo

At first, Hwayoung's color seems like also Pink

Hwayoung mostly wear pink on her second account/alter ego Jin Mikyung and on Injoo's imagination about Hwayoung's second life

It's like foreshadowing how Hwayoung live under Injoo's name at Singapore

On locker scene, Hwayoung seems like giving off her pink clothes to Injoo. Like symbolizing she's fully giving the pink side of Princess of Thieves to Injoo, together with all money and Bruno Zumino shoes that she give to her on the bag

2. Blue Ghost Orchid: to Sangah and Won Family/Jeongran

The surname Jin (진) on Jin Hwayoung is to give impression that Hwayoung is came from place that far away (indeed in character description of Hwayoung on official website, it's written Hwayoung is not from Seoul and came to there to work on Orchid Construction). If we look to Jin in Chinese surname version, it has meaning GOLD

It's like secret meaning on how Hwayoung in back have so many money and assets, because she's part of secret society Jeongran and worked for Won family

***

Thief Princess

There's Little Women OST titled "Thief Princess"

The OST indeed mostly got played in some scene that relate to Injoo or/and Hwayoung:

When Injoo decided to search the truth behind Hwayoung's death, and she look to the unbloomed Princess of Thieves

When Sangah give Injoo a blue suit, and then Injoo remembering how Hwayoung give her a black suit before this

When Hwayoung confess that she want Injoo to be happy on court scene

[doublebilldave]

Double Bill Number Eight:

Memories of Murder (2003) + Decision To Leave (2022)

South Korean movies about incompetent, bumbling and violent police detectives trying to solve murder cases.

Great movies, funny, grisly, weird and sad.

[speakingparts]

DECISION TO LEAVE

헤어질 결심

Park Chan-Wook, 2022

stills by filmgrab

[khakilike]

I’m angry because I didn’t think of this one first 🤣.

[blackramhall]

살인의 추억 - Memories of Murder Bong Joon-ho (2003)

val3n_roig

[rookie-critic]

Memories of Murder (2003, dir. Bong Joon-ho) - review by Rookie-Critic

Prior to 2019 (really 2020, if we want to get really specific) there probably weren't a lot of people in the States who could tell you who Bong Joon-ho is if pressed. Nowadays, after Bong's historic first non-English language Best Picture win for Parasite, most people would at least identify the name as familiar, and for good reason. Parasite is undoubtedly amazing; its message is both regionless and timeless, it has superb acting and brilliant cinematography, it is one of the best films of the modern era, if not any era. However, prior to Parasite, back in the days when Bong's fanbase outside of his native South Korea was limited to foreign film lovers and people who really liked Snowpiercer, most people would probably point to his breakout film, Memories of Murder, as his best work, and for a lot of the same reasons that people point to Parasite as his best now.

I'm not entirely sure why it has taken me so long to sit down and watch this considering how much I've enjoyed the other films of his that I've seen, but I'm glad I finally did. Following the true story of the detectives that investigated the Hwaseong serial murders of the mid-80s to the mid-90s, the film works as both a gripping crime thriller and a social satire of the failings of the legal system and the corrupt nature of a lot of its employees. One of our protagonists, Detective Park Doo-man (played brilliantly as always be Song Kang-ho) as well as his partner Detective Cho Yong-koo, are horrible police officers. They fake evidence, they torture victims until they'll confess to anything to make it stop, and they scoff at real investigative discoveries and excuse them as the other detectives "watching too many crime movies" (which in and of itself is an amazing line that both pokes fun at and winks a respectful eye towards the crime films that it follows in the legacy of); all they care about is putting someone away, regardless of if the person is actually guilty of the crime they're accused of committing or not. You can watch the film purely from a plot perspective and be entertained and engrossed, but much like Parasite, the true genius of it lies within this satirical commentary.

The knowledge that maybe the killer could have been stopped, victims could have been saved, if more resources had been poured into actually searching for the real killer instead of trying to put away people who obviously had nothing to do with it is maddening, but somehow Bong is able to inject humor throughout the film that makes all of these frustrating people and darker moments have a brief sense of levity without taking away from the nature of the subject matter. It's truly amazing the way he is able to craft stories that are not only interesting from a surface level perspective, but that contain darker themes and complex social commentary that even casual moviegoers can pick up on and appreciate, and then even with all of that blend comedy and drama so seamlessly you rarely notice the change. Another element of the film that I personally found brilliant, and that I briefly mentioned above, is the way that it seems to be a love letter to the crime dramas/thrillers that came before it and a criticism of them at the same time. If you've been following my reviews for awhile, you'll know how deeply I appreciate films that are able to strike that balance (Scream, Nope, etc.). The ability to acknowledge the problems with a genre without completely dismissing the films that portray those flaws as lesser or bad is something that just appeals to me on such a core level. This may just sound like a meeting of the Bong Joon-ho Fan Club, but it is truly awe-inspiring that he can make a film that has something for everyone in it, and can make everyone enjoy the other bits that, in any other movie, they may not have.

Now, Memories of Murder isn't perfect, it is only Bong's second film and some of those early film maker pitfalls exist here. A lot of the first half of the movie tends to drag a bit, and there may be certain scenes that could have cut or sequences that could have been re-edited to keep that sense of urgency (or maybe even the lack thereof on the part of the detectives) a little more present and flowing. Also, and I know I just got done ranting about how great this exact quality was, but sometimes the injection of humor could overtake the film a little too much. It doesn't happen but maybe once or twice, but I did take note of those moments as something that stood out to me, at least. Outside of these few kinks, Memories of Murder just further proves that Bong Joon-ho just knows what he's doing, and I can safely add another film to the "great" column of his filmography, and hopefully soon I can finish out watching the rest of them.

Score: 9/10

Currently streaming on Hulu.

[geekcavepodcast]

Uprising Teaser

Set during Korea's Joseon Dynasty, Uprising follows two friends, one the master and the other the servant, who "reunite post-war as enemies on opposing sides." (Netflix)

Uprising stars Gang Dong-won, Park Jeong-min, Cha Seung-won, Kim Shin-rock, Jin Sun-kyu, and Jung Sung-il. The film is directed by Kim Sang-man from a screenplay by writer/producer Park Chan-wook.

Uprising hits Netflix on October 11, 2024.

[boomgers]

Una tierra desconocida y una vida desalentadora… “Me Llamo Loh Kiwan”

Loh Kiwan, un desertor norcoreano, se propone cumplir el último deseo de su madre: encontrar un lugar donde pueda ser él mismo y vivir a su manera. Viaja a Bélgica para solicitar asilo como refugiado, pero acaba en el limbo sin medios para ganarse la vida o tener dónde vivir.

Marie, que solía representar al equipo nacional belga de tiro y ahora lucha contra sus demonios internos, se topa con un Kiwan exhausto y le roba la cartera. Los dos tienen un enfrentamiento y solo cuando Marie se da cuenta de que la cartera es el único recuerdo que queda de la madre de Kiwan, empiezan a sentirse conectados por sus experiencias compartidas.

Estreno: 1º de marzo de 2024 en Netflix.

La película está dirigida por Kim Hee-jin y protagonizada por Song Joong-ki, Choi Sung-eun, Waël Sersoub, Cho Han-cheul, Kim Sung-ryoung, Lee Il-hwa, Lee Sang-hee y Seo Hyun-woo.

[everyfilmisaw]

레드아이 (Red Eye) by Kim Dong-bin, 2005

[stuff-diary]

My Demon

TV Shows/Dramas watched in 2024

My Demon (2023/24, South Korea)

Director: Kim Jang Han

Writer: Choi Ah Il

Mini-review:

Look, I'm not gonna lie. I started this drama for a very superficial reason: Kim Yoo Jung and Song Kang are one of the most gorgeous couples I've ever seen. And tbh, that's one of the things that kept me watching until the end. The first half was pretty fun, thanks to their will-they-won't-they dynamic and some really funny supporting characters and recurring gags. Unfortunately, it began to drag around the middle part, and then it got more and more boring with each passing episode. By the time the final episode came out, I no longer cared about the plot, the characters or anything else (although the ending itself was quite nice). With all that in mind, I can't help but think My Demon would have worked much better as a movie.

[swampflix]

Memories of Murder (2003)

Bong Joon-ho’s 2003 feature 살인의 추억 (Memories of Murder) is an example of a familiar genre made unfamiliar in its trappings, at least at first. Initially, this is because it is set in the yesteryear of 1986—and, as L.P. Hartley noted in his 1953 novel The Go-Between, “the past is a foreign country” where things are done differently—but also because it takes place in the South Korean city of…

[erstwhile-punk-guerito]

[speakingparts]

DECISION TO LEAVE

헤어질 결심

Park Chan-Wook, 2022

[intellectures]

Mit Monstern kämpfen

Das Berliner Duo Sheree Domingo und Patrick Spät verbindet in seinem preisgekrönten Comic »Madame Choi und die Monster« die Geschichte einer Entführung mit koreanischer Mythologie. (more…) “”