Runtime: 131 minutes
Directed by: Bong Joon-Ho
Starring: Song Kang-Ho,
Kim Sang-Kyung, Kim Roi-Ha, Song Jae-Ho, Byun Hee-Bong
From: Several Korean
companies
It's the return of Hot Take Blair.
Last month I viewed Parasite and thought it great; in the past I have viewed The Host (which was odd yet still very good) and Snowpiercer, which I thought was a confused mess with an illogical story, characters I couldn't stand, and the opening act is so bad it sunk the whole thing; also, until I saw the even worse Suspiria remake, Snowpiercer contained the most baffling Tilda Swinton performance. I am not as mad at Memories of Murder... just disappointed.
I've seen this often compared to Zodiac (by the end, I realized why) and while I haven't viewed that yet and I don't love Fincher like most people do, I will presume that is better and more enjoyable than this. I am not asking for a film about South Korea's first serial killer-who killed more than a few women from 1986 to 1991-to be cheery and upbeat. But the one thing that ruined the movie for me... the three main cops we follow are all A-holes! Did this also occur in the stage play I understand this was based on?
No matter, they horribly abuse multiple suspects; the treatment of a mentally handicapped man-who is also scarred facially-was the worst. I mean, was I supposed to be entertained by their atrocious behavior? Amused? Sympathetic to the suspects? If that wasn't bad enough, those idiots bicker with each other to the point that their fighting causes the murderer to claim his latest victim. If I would have liked these jokers then the movie would be rated higher, yes... the general filmmaking, the cinematography, the suspense, the performances of the cast (especially Kang-Ho Song), those are elements that I cannot complain about.
I do regret not loving this like everyone else does. However, I am more disappointed by the experience rather than hating the finished product.
Last month I viewed Parasite and thought it great; in the past I have viewed The Host (which was odd yet still very good) and Snowpiercer, which I thought was a confused mess with an illogical story, characters I couldn't stand, and the opening act is so bad it sunk the whole thing; also, until I saw the even worse Suspiria remake, Snowpiercer contained the most baffling Tilda Swinton performance. I am not as mad at Memories of Murder... just disappointed.
I've seen this often compared to Zodiac (by the end, I realized why) and while I haven't viewed that yet and I don't love Fincher like most people do, I will presume that is better and more enjoyable than this. I am not asking for a film about South Korea's first serial killer-who killed more than a few women from 1986 to 1991-to be cheery and upbeat. But the one thing that ruined the movie for me... the three main cops we follow are all A-holes! Did this also occur in the stage play I understand this was based on?
No matter, they horribly abuse multiple suspects; the treatment of a mentally handicapped man-who is also scarred facially-was the worst. I mean, was I supposed to be entertained by their atrocious behavior? Amused? Sympathetic to the suspects? If that wasn't bad enough, those idiots bicker with each other to the point that their fighting causes the murderer to claim his latest victim. If I would have liked these jokers then the movie would be rated higher, yes... the general filmmaking, the cinematography, the suspense, the performances of the cast (especially Kang-Ho Song), those are elements that I cannot complain about.
I do regret not loving this like everyone else does. However, I am more disappointed by the experience rather than hating the finished product.
No comments:
Post a Comment