A Lynch-like nightmare in rural Korea...

After several films which garnered global acclaim and cult status, Joon-ho Bong has created his masterpiece in Mother. It continues the director’s fascination with offbeat characters and the dark underbelly of society.

At the film’s core is a powerful performance by Hye-Ja Kim as the vulnerable mother of the title. She lives in a quiet town with her 27-year-old son Do-Joon, a mentally unstable young man who is prone to bouts of amnesia. After Do-Joon is charged with the murder of a schoolgirl his mother takes it into her own hands to clear his name. In the process the film spirals from a seemingly innocent love story between a mother and her fragile son into a whole other monster. The same can be said of Hye-Ja Kim’s Mother whose protective nature descends into a wild eyed ruthlessness as she strives to clear her son’s name.

A technically brilliant film by a visionary director, Mother is filled with inventive shots and striking imagery. Bong’s use of the tracking shot is particularly impressive as are the wide-screen images of the rural landscape populated by the lone figure of the desperate protagonist.

Bong creates a particularly arresting 'flashback within a flashback' during a bloody interrogation sequence between Do-Joon’s best friend and the ex-lover of the dead schoolgirl. As the young boy speaks of the tormented girl whose secrets hold the apparent key to her demise, the camera simply pans down to show her seemingly resurrected and speaking of her anguish. It is enough to give you goose bumps.

"Although Mother is initially a slow burner, its third act zips by at a rapid pace as the plot twists and turns en route to the powerful climax"

The film is populated by eccentric characters from the lazy and gullible cops to the manipulative residents of the small town. Do-Joon’s best friend Jin Tae says it best when he tells Mother “this town is strange. Don’t trust anyone, not even me.” Which brings us to the comparisons, the most obvious of which is with Twin Peaks-era David Lynch. Like Lynch’s seminal TV series, Mother also makes great use of a haunting soundtrack and exposes the seedy and downright bizarre side of small town communality.

Although Mother is initially a slow burner, its third act zips by at a rapid pace as the plot twists and turns en route to the powerful climax. As with the start of the film its end is with Mother dancing her troubles away during a hallucinatory sequence on a bus filled with elderly people. The film’s greatest achievement is that it succeeds in making the audience empathise with a nightmarish vision of maternal love.

Extras

● The Making of Mother
● The Transformation of Hye-Ja Kim
● Cast and Crew Reflect
● Theatrical Trailer

The Making of features excerpts from interviews with the film’s cast and crew, each reflecting on their own relationships with their mother, this is intercut with on-location footage from the shoot. The most insightful comments come from the director and Hye-Ja Kim, both of whom obviously have a mutual respect for one another. The Transformation of Hye-Ja Kim further emphasises this whilst giving some background on the veteran TV actresses’ past. The Cast and Crew Reflect is a brief segment in which several individuals evaluate the film, generally praising the final product.

Mother is released on the 20th of September.

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