Review of Memories of Murder (2003) by Josh S — 05 Dec 2009

Another one of those slow yet incredibly tense and uncomfortable detective films. This one is relentless in its delivery as a killer stalks a small Korean town when the country was under military dictatorship in 1986. His prey is women. Three detectives work on the case, two being local policemen, the third a Seoul cop who has come to the town to bring his "city" skills to hopefully apprehend the suspect.

The investigation and overall film is a statement on Korea in itself. An interesting look at the police force in what they do, and what methods they go about using to find the killer. The two local cops are brutal and incompetent, they beat potential suspects into submission and fabricate confessions to seal the case prematurely. But as the murders continue, getting grislier with each violent act, the three detectives must resort to drastic measures, all while maintaining an emotional balance during the investigation.

The shots are beautiful and eerily plain, but so much fits the frame, there is an almost Terrence Malick-like influence over the filming. And like I said earlier, the story is slow-going, but that's where Bong Joon-ho shines. He demands your attention. This is not some CSI show where evidence flashes before your very eyes. We get a stark realism to everything. And the fact that the film is set on unfamiliar terrain for (most) of us North Americans, it is a delight to see the outcome of this case.

Bong Joon-ho is another one of those Korean directors who doesn't give what the typical audience wants. He makes his films and whether you like it or not is entirely up to you. This is where he gets my praise. The execution of this film is superb. As the minutes go by for us and the days go by for our protagonists, we both feel disturbed and in need of closure to this case. And the film's outcome really brings a chilling aspect of how great South Korean cinema really is. Along with Bruno Dumont's L'humanit�©, this is another police film that stands above the rest with its sheer and utter simplicity yet heavy realism.

Also the final scene is one of the finest scenes I have ever witnessed in a police film.