Three extremes is a showcase of Asian horror cinema, three short movies from three different countries released by Tartan Asia Extreme.
This segment, Cut, is my favourite from the first release.
I might review my favourite from Three Extremes 2 (first released as Three in 2002), but I dont think I can without spoilers as it is the perfect storyline of Peter Chan's Hong Kong segment Going Home that I absolutely love, and I'm not sure where to begin describing that without just ruining it completely.
I also like the Korean segment from 2 by Kim Ji Woon (obviously) as he is one of my favourite directors of all time, and last night I watched one of my all time favourite movies Tale of Two Sisters which belongs to his lovely list of amazing movies I adore.
Before I sat down to watch Tale of Two Sisters again I put Park Chan Wook's segment from Three Extremes on to get in the horror mood.
This film is twisted and dark but also not void of Park's humour and tact.
Staring one of Kim Ji Woon's old favourite actors Lee Byun Hun (my absolute hands down favourite actor in the world for years and years ever since A Bittersweet Life) this film has a quiet snide humour that sits rather uncomfortably underneath the surface of this disgusting snippet in to the mind of a failed dishearten man bent on revenge over nothing much in particular.
Revenge seems to be Park Chan Wook's favourite subject to tackle, he loves to show all the sides of self torment and psychosis and Cut is no back step in his exploration of the theme.
Cut was made not long after Oldboy. It sits in between this second installment of Vengeance trilogy and Lady vengeance - the final gorgeous edition to his Vengeance works. It follows suit nicely and show yet another side to the twisted human condition affected and afflicted at every corner of existence by the things we are exposed to.
In Cut, the 'stranger', as he is credited (Im Wonhee), has devised a perfect torture for a man he envies and despises for pointless reasons. He confesses to killing his own wife but being too much of a coward to kill his young child, rants and raves at the Director he worked for many times (Lee Byunhun) for being beneath him.
The premise is thin, its an obviously pointless reason to target someone, just to feel they are a better person than you...
It doesn't really make sense, but only it unravels as a further destruction of the director, causing him to lose the plot (if you pardon the pun) and fall into the insane rantings of a vengeful twisted man himself.
Watching his wife strung up to a piano and have her fingers cut off one by one will do that.
The director turns on his wife, turns on the helpless child tied to the couch, turns on himself, and fails to pull himself out of the darkness the stranger threw him into.
In this short 40 minute movie we watch the director fall in and out of his morality and fear many times but its only his wife who plays honestly along with her feelings throughout, just screaming in pain and crying in fear - she is ultimately the only one who reacts honestly to what is happening around her... But ultimately it makes no difference what side you play here, everyone loses.
Cast:
Lee Byung-hun - Director
Im Won-hee - Stranger
Kang Hye-jung - Director's wife
Yeom Jeong-ah - Vampire actress
Lee Dae-Yeon - Actor in school girl uniform
Park Jin-Woo - Assistant Director
Lee Mi-Mi - Kyung-Ah
Gyu-sik Kim - Mannequin man
The thing that strike me about this short is that Park Chan Wook and his perfect small cast, plus the thoughtful soundtrack and stripped down set (almost completely set in the film studio of the director's latest shoot) is perfectly equipped to show case everything amazing about Korean cinema.
Yeah, the production team is of a higher budget than you would usually get for this kind of thing I guess, but anyway its a stunning introduction into Korean extreme cinema - its intended function, and a perfect addition to an already awesome, in the true sense of the word, collection of Vengeance movies that cut much deeper than the average psychological horror.
This is exactly why I can somehow watch these kinds of movies only from certain directors and actors (Kim Ji Woon's I saw the devil is the prime example). The humanity or absolute lack there of is always a present question - you always sit inside, right inside, each character, questioning their motives, feeling every single flicker of rage, frustration, contempt or fear.
With most of the really good movies of this nature you never quite know how to feel about what you are watching. You never know whether to be supporting characters in what they are doing, then they turn on you as soon as you start to believe in them.
Its a mirror for emotional distress and paranoia and inner torment, dressed up in the same clothes it has on underneath; concealing the true horror of emotion ...within more horrific emotion.
As you can probably tell, I'm pretty in love with these movies. There is a very important reason for me behind why I respect these directors so much. I hate some western directors with a fiery passion.
Plastic, flat expressions of savage behaviour for shock value causing nothing but desensitisation of a whole culture... I cant abide it. I just vehemently hate it.
I cant describe how much of a bad taste it puts in my mouth for people to just be ok with this sh*t.
The point of vengeance movies like I saw the devil and the Vengeance trillogy is so very different. You can tell from the first second till the last. Even things like Save the Green Planet - which is slightly different but still pretty graphic and twisted, to all the ghosty horrors like Tale of Two Sisters and Hansel and Gretel, these movies make you feel so much more than gratification from gawping at horror.
I dont think you should laugh and cheer at violence! What the hell is wrong with you people? In flocks people go to the cinema to watch my most hated director and his violent shock f*cking awful movies. They laugh and shout, and are amazed by the savage behaviour on screen, jeering and occasionally feeling sick, living vicariously through the trash they see on screen. I hate them. Violently.
When you see this kind of pain and torment you should be crying. You should feel disappointed and lost.
That is what you get from Korean vengeance you don't get so clearly anywhere anywhere else. I think. You feel sick to your core and understand a little more about human emotion than you did before. That is the only reason you should be choosing to watch this kind of thing. To feel that. It is art work not entertainment. I firmly believe that. If its not... then I don't want to be a part of it.
Getting back to this movie in particular, the point that makes me feel this the most, though there are many points that twinge in the same way, is the last downward spiral of the director as he apologises with tears in his eyes for what he is doing, face pressed so close to the person he has in his grip, not even being able to clearly see who is really in front of him...
The fear in both their eyes is what gives me that sinking feeling of regret. Regret is the sole point here... If you don't feel that when you watch this kind of thing, please do your self a favour and check yourself in to a facility.
One of the many reason I love Lee Byunhun is that look in his eyes when he plays a character who realises he cant turn back, loses hope, is utterly lost, that look describes everything I've said here wrapped up in a few silent tears blinked away in despair.
As you can probably tell, by the length of this post, I feel pretty strongly about this kind of thing. I have Park Chan Wook and Kim Ji Woon pretty much solely to thank for restoring my faith in film makers after being so utterly disappointed in humanity from years of leaving the room when my peers happily sat through some American gore fest without a care in the world.
I think Cut is beautiful with that striking imagery and a gorgeous set. I think it is also horrific with all the unnecessary lengths the characters go to just reacting to their own lives.
I have so much respect for these movies for showing how quickly and easy we can just lose all sense of morality and humanity, without making these characters into people we can admire.
I'm going to end my rant here. I'm exhausted. I guess I can't ever shake this adoration for korean cinema after all.
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