The Wailing, a Korean film clocking in at over two and a half hours is not homework. I have been meaning to watch this film since its release last year and brief run at Film Scene downtown. Now that it has been staring me in the face on my Netflix que for a week, I knew the time had come.

I watched it twice in a row, back to back. Not because I wanted to write about it. It is just that engrossing. The Wailing, directed by Na Hong-jin, is most easily defined as a horror film. But like many successful films in the genre, it is great at bending and twisting itself to fit many different labels.

At its heart, The Wailing is a terrifying thriller following a small town policeman, Jong-goo. He investigates a series of mysterious crimes that all seem connected in the form of a strange illness that all of the perpetrators share. All of these incidents begin happening after an enigmatic Japanese man moves into the village, and become more personal once Jong-goo’s daughter appears to become infected with this dark malady.

Horror is hard to sustain for a long period of time however, and the movie is well served by an injection of other genre influences. The first forty-five minutes take on a very comedic tone, bolstered by Do-wan Kwak‘s performance as Jong-goo.

Jong-goo may be a policeman, but he is an everyman in the mold of Homer Simpson more than John McClane. He is constantly late to work, gets berated by his boss, and seems to be quite bad at his job. This performance serves to endear the audience to the character and makes the latter part of the film where his daughter is in danger all the more affecting.

As far as horror goes, The Wailing runs the gamut from body horror to zombie movie to demonic possession. It is amazing that with all of these aspects the film at no point seems overstuffed or jumpy. Many movies try to cross genres but with varying levels of success.

Where the film makes serious gains though, is in the second half revolving around the mysterious Japanese man in the village and a shaman that Jong-goo eventually hires to help cure his daughter. This large portion of the film appropriately dumps most comedic undertones and cuts viewers straight to the bone, in more ways than one.

There are gory scenes that wil strike more sensitive movie goers, while appeasing genre buffs. A constant conversation involving ghosts and whether or not certain characters are actually real also serves to keep the audience on their toes and guessing until, and past the end of the movie. After two viewings, I am still not 100% certain as to the exact sequence of events in the film.

Director Na Hong-jin did purposefully end the film with an air of ambiguity. While I do have a fairly definite structure in my head on what was happening, other viewers will have wildly different interpretations of what was actually going on from the middle of the film to the conclusion.

This uncertainty that the film is willing to plant in the viewer’s mind does not undercut the primary message or theme of the film. Indeed, the film is most powerful when viewed as a parable of faith. There are numerous religious overtones and references in the film, some more obvious than others. The conclusion, while somewhat logically perplexing, takes viewers to the edge of an emotional cliff and dangles them over the abyss.

This question of faith is incredibly powerful, and I am not a religious person in the least. The Wailing is an undeniable triumph of horror, tone, and theme. And now that I think about it, I may need to go watch it again.

The Movie Dude reviews limited release films, smaller movies, and independent releases.

The post The Movie Dude: The Wailing appeared first on KRUI Radio.

If you’re a fan of action films, perhaps you ought to look outside of mainstream Hollywood for your adrenaline-pumping kicks. In fact, perhaps it’s time to look outside of Western cinema in general. Sure, there are the occasional great American action films; we’ve got our Mad Max‘s and our endless glut of superhero movies. But there are many rich traditions of action movies from outside the U.S., and in particular from Asian cinemas. Hong Kong, Japan, and now South Korea are all famous for their unique stylistic takes on the action genre, and many of these styles, and occasionally even entire film re-makes, can be seen influencing later American films.

A Hard Day, directed by Kim Seong-hun, is one of the latest critical darlings in a currently booming South Korean film industry. The film, which originally debuted at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival, deals with the increasingly wacky and dangerous situations that Detective Ko Gun-su finds himself as he becomes tangled in an intricate conspiracy of corruption. The film begins with Ko Gun-su racing to his mother’s funeral when he hits what appears to be a homeless man with his car. Driven nearly insane with the stress of his day, he decides to hide the man’s body in his trunk and dispose of it later.

Of course, this action is completely insane. And it is not the last moment in the movie that leaves audiences scratching their heads, wondering how the characters could be so stupid. However, the film’s focus isn’t on realism, it’s on action, and it asks the viewer to suspend their disbelief in order to be taken on a wild journey. Besides, we’re offered very limited time to reflect on the stupidity of the characters with the film’s break-neck pace. The vast majority of the film is constant action, moving throughout space and time from one fight or chase scene to the next. Even the brief quieter moments are often filled with suspense and dread, and any chance the audience gets to breath easy are often punctuated by startling twists in the story.

Another important aspect of the film is its humor. While many Western films might look to break up the action with cheap comedic relief, A Hard Day takes an entirely different route. Often times, the moments when the audience laughs the loudest are the moments when they are sitting on the edge of their seats. The humor isn’t found through dialogue, it’s built into the action itself. For example, after returning to the funeral, Ko Gun-su learns that his car may be searched as part of an investigation into his corruption as a detective. Left with no other choice, he is forced to drag the body of the homeless man through the vents of the funeral home, and smuggle it into the casket with his mother. It’s a perfect example of the film’s trademark dark humor.

The camera work is also one of the main strengths of the movie. There are many beautiful visual contrasts between the dark nights and the bright neon lights of the city. The editing is also excellent. Too often in Western action films, quick cuts are used to create a feeling of action, without ever letting the viewer actually see it. If we constantly jump our viewpoint around, we might feel the chaos of a fight scene, but we rarely get to see what’s really going on. In contrast, A Hard Day takes a much different approach, cutting less often and allowing the audience to see fights and chases unfold naturally. In one particularly impressive shot, we are shown an ariel long take as Ko Gun-su chases his target through a back alley and traffic congested streets.

All of this is to say, if you like action movies, you should definitely check this film out. It totally kicks ass. If you consider yourself a fan of the genre, but have never really explored anything outside of Hollywood, then you’re really missing out on some fantastic thrillers. And A Hard Day can be the perfect start down the rabbit hole of foreign action films.

Click here to see if A Hard Day is playing in a theater near you. It is also available for digital download through iTunes.

Check out the trailer for the film below:

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