A simple-minded young man is accused of the brutal murder of a young girl. His mother, unable to accept the guilt of the son upon whom she dotes, begins a frenetic investigation of her own.
This film has something mainstream Hollywood seems unable or unwilling to produce: a great script. There are many twists and turns but none of them seem character driven, none feel like gratuitous inventions to allow the mother to chew scenery, as would be the case in a star vehicle. Rather, the passionate excesses of this mother and her adventures seem inevitable, given her frenzied search and her almost hysterical dotage upon her son. Slowly, the secrets and vulnerabilities of the characters are revealed and we feel the increase of dread.
Even without the superb, Oscar-worthy performance of the lead character, this would be a fine film. But Kim Hye-Ja's performance truly is astounding and it does elevate what already is a fine thriller to the "must see" category.
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Topic - Bong Joon-ho's excellent, "Mother": don't take your Mom to this one! - tinear 11:25:31 05/09/10 (2)
- That's odd... - Harmonia 08:41:01 05/14/10 (1)
- By "character driven" I mean the type of writing that - tinear 17:00:17 05/14/10 (0)