FILM PICK OF THE WEEK

This intriguing, stylish and multi-layered movie is a slow burn and one to savour. It is definitely the kind of film that you will be thinking about long after the credits have rolled.

Korean director Park Chan-wook’s compelling mystery drama is set in Busan and sees detective Hae-Joon (Park Hae-il) investigating an unsolved murder case that involves a couple of thuggish suspects but he is not getting anywhere with his investigations and is beginning to get frustrated by it. It turns out there is quite a lot of unresolved tension in his life. He is comfortably, but not necessarily very happily, married to Jung-an (Lee Jung-hyun) who won’t allow him to smoke the cigarettes he craves and makes passive aggressive comments about the lack of intimacy between them. He suffers from insomnia and so he spends most of his nights working on surveillance and stake-outs as it keeps him busy. He looks tired all the time and is probably suffering from depression.

Then a new case comes along that sparks his interest. A wealthy middle-aged businessman who enjoys solo rock climbing in his spare time is found dead at the foot of a mountain. Is it an accident? Suicide? Or murder?

The man’s young widow Seo-rae (Tang Wei), a beautiful Chinese immigrant does not appear to be unduly upset by her husband’s death. She works as a carer for the elderly and is muchloved by her clients for the gentle attention she gives them. Hae-Joon becomes captivated, if not slightly obsessed by her, but as the investigation progresses, he discovers that she has a complicated past.

There are references to Hitchcock here and even Italian ‘giallo’ movies in some of the scenes, especially in the stylised camera angles, the colour palettes and the use of music. There are some impressive action set pieces, including a brilliant rooftop chase, and the cinematography beautifully captures the stunning landscapes.

All the classic film noir tropes are also present and correct – a manipulative femme fatale (but is that what she is, really?) and a gullible, flawed man (but is that what he is, really?). The narrative takes the viewer off on byways that don’t necessarily lead anywhere but which, rather than feel frustrating, are interesting to follow for a while. You have to be prepared to go with the flow a little, and allow yourself to be taken along by the storytelling. You will be richly rewarded for it.