Hey! It's The Wailing! And I'm on vacation, and have come down with a little case of vacation brain. And I've also get a pretty nasty case of Election Brain. So forgive me if things are short, bad(der), or more random. Like Bruce Hornsby says, that's just the way it is...
I remember The Wailing getting really good press when it was released earlier this year... and now I'm kicking myself for not having seen it in the theaters. It's an engrossing film, but it's also kind of long (about two-and-a-half hours). Having the distraction-free environment of a movie theater would have been nice. Plus, it's got some shots that would have looked gorgeous on the big screen, and a couple of intense scenes I would have loved to see with a proper sound system.
My Synopsis: Some strange shit is going on in a small Korean village. People are getting sick, going mad, and committing crazy acts of violence. Local policeman Jong-Goo is investigating the case, but it gets personal when his daughter is infected with the disease. Some people blame a mysterious foreigner who has recently moved nearby, who is rumored to be up to some supernatural shenanigans. Jong-Goo must take matters into his own hands to solve the mystery and save his family.
Elaborate Genre: Supernatural Possession Mystery Thriller
Overall: Really, really good. It's a very well crafted and exciting film, that covers a lot of ground both genre-wise and thematically.
There's just a lot happening in The Wailing. There are times where it feels it could be a gritty police procedural, a religious thriller, a dark comedy, or even a surreal zombie film. It kind of bounces around - it keeps you off balance and is often times intentionally vague, but it always feels like a cohesive piece. It feels meticulously crafted, and writer/director Hong-jin Na manages to keep the story focused but shrouded in secrecy at the same time.
It's a fantastic looking film - it's got a snappy, crisp feel to it, and all of the sets are fantastic. They decorated the hell out of the "evil worship areas" (for lack of a better term), with grimy pictures, sticks, and animal carcasses - the general concept they seem to be going for is that it's supposed to be a nest or sorts, and it's a really cool visual. The whole visual feel of the film is unsettling, but while some scenes are more grim than others, you are switching locations and characters enough that it never feels stale or overpowering. And the outdoor/nature scenes are beautifully shot.
And really, sometimes it's just interesting to see everyday life in a foreign country. The small village where Jong-Goo lives is so vastly different from small town USA; and it's fascinating to see the differences and similarities. There's some sociological undercurrents in The Wailing too - you've got some religious conflicts going on (Christianity vs. Shamanism), as well as some race-based stuff (the man who just moved in is Japanese).
Probably the most intense scenes in the film are the two where we see the shaman doing a religious ritual. The music here is loud and in your face, and it's one of the few times where you see some bright colors in the film. And it's shot in such a way where you feel like you are right in it - the camera isn't afraid to get right up into the shaman's business while the drums are pounding and he's doing his thing. Even when you don't know what's going on, it's undeniably powerful stuff.
I'm not really doing The Wailing justice here. There's a lot happening in the film, and it manages to be vague at times but still wraps things up in a satisfactory manner. It's an extremely well made film, and if you have a little patience with the run time, it's very rewarding.
I would highly recommend this film.
No comments:
Post a Comment