Samaritan Girl

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If you had asked me a year ago whether I'm a Kim Ki-duk fan or not, I would have replied 'yes'. Even films like The Isle fascinated me. However, I have gradually begun to lose my interest and appreciation for his films. I then decided that Samaritan Girl (2004) will be the last of his films I will watch (apart from the possible rewatches of 3-Iron (2004) and Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter ... and Spring (2003)) if it doesn't turn out to be as good as I remembered.

Samaritan Girl is a film about two teenaged girls who resort to prostitution in order to earn some money (apparently they want to go to Europe). The film's first "act" is a solid and rich piece of writing that fascinated me a lot. The characters seemed promising (and well developed) and it felt like Kim really had something to say this time instead of vague and shocking content.

However, a dramatic twist in the plot ruined the rest of the film. The characters became irritatingly static, the focus of the film turned into something so ridiculously redundant and out of place. It seems to be almost a trademark for Kim to throw in a lot of prop motives which only hint at something undefined and end up being rather useless and empty. This can be found in Samaritan Girl as well.

Kim's form is refined though. His clean yet "chaotic" visuals rarely fail to deliver. Pleasant (and occasionally intriguing) compositions, good (and calm) pacing and smooth camera drives make the film enjoyable. This time he also mastered the use of music throughout the film: the bittersweet instrumental soundtrack hits hard. However, there is one peculiar exception to the quality: his use of Erik Satie's Gymnopedie is somewhat unconvincing. The weird thing about it is that I find it hard to see how someone could fail using that masterful composition. As a side note, it is also weird how there are so many Asian films that feature the song - even to the point of obsession.

Samaritan Girl's problems seem to be same as with other films by the same director: while his form is more or less brilliant, his writing stumbles.

Score: 6 out of 10

Bad Guy

Kim Ki-duk's fans often describe his film, Bad Guy (2001), worse than most of his other films. I was surprised because the film is actually an effort more solid than Address Unknown (2001) and The Isle (2000). The film tells about a young woman who is forced to become a prostitute. The English title is a bit weird and I prefer the Finnish translation which literally means "The Pimp".

Despite the weak beginning and overwrought melodrama, the film's writing is quite decent. This time Kim finds truly poetic and beautiful moments in the harsh world. However, the film is quite uneven because there are scenes that stand out as brilliant and then there are scenes that are so utterly failed. The characters are decent enough to not distract me while watching the film - which can not be said of The Isle. The central relationship is explored in a peculiar yet successful way and the final result is intriguing.

Kim's form has become completely refined by now. His use of alienation through compositions is perfect and framing is magnificent in other ways as well. Music is nearly nonexistent apart from two songs which are used well.

Ultimately, Bad Guy is the first sign of true sophistication in Kim's films before he made 3-Iron (2003) and Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter ... and Spring (2004).

Score: 7 of 10

Address Unknown

Kim Ki-duk's Address Unknown (2001) takes place in a small Korean village near an American army base. The film is very similar to Kim's earlier production which focuses on ultraviolent, aggressive and narcissistic characters who are raped, tortured, sent to jail or killed by the end of the film. This time Kim has such a promising cast of characters to be used and an actually clever plot in his hands because this time his writing isn't so blind and one-sided. The characters are well developed and colorful - at first.

The problem is that Kim so utterly fails to use them and the film's final third is an embarrassing climax that couldn't have possibly been worse. The outcomes of the different storylines are portrayed in a confusing and dragging way. Initially the film promises interesting points of view on the American occupation and how all the characters are related to it, but the touchy subject is handled poorly - apart from one exception.

This time Kim's form isn't as refined as it is in his other films. Sometimes the editing works well - sometimes NOT. The cinematography is unfocused and a bit too carefree - his compositions simply don't get to the level of quality of his other films. The music is a bit irritating as well - the most offending moments are when Erik Satie's Gymnopedie is used TERRIBLY. That is unacceptable.

Ultimately, the film's first half is promising and somewhat good, but eventually it veers into a catastrophical failure.

Score: 5 out of 10

The Isle

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I have a love-hate relationship with Kim Ki-duk's films. Some of his efforts rely too much on shock value and obscure characters, but his refined movies like 3-Iron can be very rewarding. The Isle (2000) belongs to the former category. It is a story of a mute woman who is the hostess of a fishing resort.

Kim's screenplay fails quite miserably. He writes like a naive cynic: each and every character is a dumb narcissist. Beyond that, there are only two clear distinctions: you are either whiny or violent and sadistic. The film stumbles because it tries to be alienating and involving at the same time. Relying on shock value - through abusing animals and using fish hooks in a painful way - is cheap and Kim never gets anything worthwhile out of them. There's also a wishy-washy take on obsessive and destructive love.

However, the form is intriguing. Kim creates a strong contrast by shooting the brutal scenes in a graceful, poetic way. His cinematography is haunting and delicate. His editing is also rather interesting, for example the pacing is so perfect. There's also the subtle musical score that was a bit underused but effective.

Kim Ki-duk's The Isle is an interesting film for the fans of the director, but it is far too manipulative and flimsy to be considered something more than mediocre.

Score: 5 out of 10

Time

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The Korean director Kim Ki-duk seems to be quite inconsistent when it comes to the quality of his films: while there are masterpieces like Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter ... and Spring (2003) and 3-Iron (2004), he also has his fair share of disasters like Crocodile (1996). Even though I had once been warned about Time (2006), I did not expect the film to be even below decent. Essentially, the film is about a woman who undergoes extensive plastic surgery in order to "save her relationship".

Kim tries to blend the metaphorical/magical with the literal/realistic again, but the result is a failure. He attempts to raise social and philosophical issues regarding identity, but he makes nothing out of them. The first third of the film shows just how promising the premise is, but the rest of the film hides the lack of proper content under the puzzles and irritating melodrama. However, the biggest offender is the ending which is utterly frustrating and pretentious.

Luckily, the form is very adequate. Kim succeeds in creating an atmosphere which alternates between otherworldly and down-to-earth quite smoothly through careful cinematography and editing. Sadly, that is not enough to redeem this film.

Score: 4 out of 10

3-Iron

Kim Ki-Duk's 3-Iron (2004) is a step away from his prior films. This step already began with his brilliant Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter ... and Spring (2003), and the step is completely realised in 3-Iron. While his older films were filled with cruel violence and other controversial topics, 3-Iron is almost the opposite. While it has a few outbursts of violence, it is a lot sweeter film because these outbursts are well handled and used for a better purpose. At its core, 3-Iron is the story of a man (Hyun-kyoon Lee) who goes around sticking ads to doors. This is only a way to identify the houses the residents of which are elsewhere so that he can spend a night there. He doesnt steal anything and only uses the houses fairly - he even fixes things, washes clothes of the residents and so on: he's not a bad person by any means. The film's real tension comes up when a woman (Seung-yeon Lee) befriends him and accompanies him during these "intrusions".

You can see the film as a piece of social criticism. Kim asks unnerving questions in the film. Is our "property" as important as it seems today? What do we consider our property? There are different reactions to the intrusions in the film - that is if it is discovered that someone really has been or is in the house. The man faces violence on a few occasions and it is luckily not used simple-mindedly. As the two main characters intrude different apartments, they learn a lot about the lives of the residents. They do not directly affect their lives, but there are consequences, of course. There is a husband who treates her wife like an inanimate object that does everything he wants. Is she really his property like he thinks? The conclusion for the conflict that arouses from this problem is fascinating.

As you might expect, these intrusions are not completely without risk in the long run. Where other storytellers and filmmakers would have ended their work, Kim pushes forward to a great climax. The film takes a magical turn that might put some people off because it seems a little weird at first. Yet, it is the only logical way to continue the story, and thus handle the themes in a lot better way.

Kim shows his ability to be a great storyteller with this film, but how is his form? He proves that he is not a fool with that either. His causious use of camera is a fine way to capture the story. The film proceeds at a calm pace yet it never appears to be slow. His editing is fine, but not great. His compositions are interesting to look at  and they accompany the camera movement well. Kim did the right choice by sticking to only one song for the whole film. It is used during various moments in the film, the characters actually listen to it most of the time. It captures the sweet feeling of yearning and love as the relationship between the characters develops.

The main characters never speak - the woman has only one line that has a great impact on the viewer. The woman also screams once in place of dialogue and that scream is like a caged animal's call for help, which totally fits the scene. Hyun-kyoon Lee and Seung-yeon Lee are both fantastic actors. They brilliantly capture the inner sides of the characters through body language and facial expressions. I believe it is impossible for the viewer not to care for the characters due to the magnificent performances.

In overall, 3-Iron is an even and gorgeous film that can easily win anyone's heart. It doesnt have major flaws, but it is by no means a perfect film. It could be further improved, but works well enough as it is.

Score: 9 out of 10