The Korean film industry is making really serious inroads in world cinema. Many of its directors are considered darlings of the critics and while some even manage to bring that elusive balance of critical and box office hit.
Director Bong Joon-ho, is one of those rare directors that have managed to create a movie that made tons at the box office but was also listed as one of the better movies made in that year. His movie, The Host, expertly melded the creature feature with that of a very touching story about family.
Three years after the release of that film, Bong Joon-ho is back with a movie with Mother. This is movie is a return to his earlier roots – specifically, his old movie Memories of Murder. The story deals with an old woman whose dim-witted son was accused of murdering a girl. The mother goes on a quest to find out what happened so she can get her son back. Mother has parallelisms with Memories of Murder in that a murder and memories pay pivotal roles in developing the story.
This is a movie that’s really worth checking out.