In this blog post, I’ll analyze the impact the movie “The Hitchhikers” had on me and examine its documentary-style elements. Why “The Hitchhikers”? I don’t remember exactly when, but there was a time when I decided to seek out a variety of films—not just those shown exclusively in multiplexes. I clearly remember watching it before starting college in 2014, and since the film was released...
Why Did “Oldboy” Captivate Audiences So Much?
In this blog post, we’ll examine the film “Oldboy”—one of Park Chan-wook’s “Revenge Trilogy”—in terms of its plot, concept, art direction, editing, characters, and marketing. Plot Oh Dae-su, the head of an ordinary family, is kidnapped one day while returning home with a birthday gift for his daughter and held captive for 15 years. Suddenly released after 15 years, Oh Dae-su sets out to...
Is “Oh! Soo-jin” a realist film? How does it differ from a fantasy film?
In this blog post, I’ll analyze the narrative and mise-en-scène of “Oh! Soo-jin” to reveal how the film subverts audience expectations through its everyday storytelling, and I’ll compare the differences between realist and fantasy films. Introduction A few days ago, I had a conversation with my boyfriend. When he said, “There’s an indie documentary festival,” I replied, “What? Indie, and a...
How does the movie “Marathon” portray the natural reconciliation between autism and the world?
In this blog post, we’ll examine how the movie “Marathon” elicits empathy from audiences by presenting disability—particularly autism—not as a simple story of overcoming adversity, but as a glimpse into a person’s inner world and daily life. What is a human drama? While “human” originally means “a person,” the film genre “human drama” carries a slightly more specific meaning. Generally...
“The War on Crime” and “Good Friends” are both crime films, so why do they offer different kinds of thrills?
In this blog post, I’ll compare and examine the structure of desire shared by “The War on Crime” and “Good Friends,” and how their differing cinematic realisms create distinct thrills and levels of immersion. The Challenges and Thrills of Crime Films Depicting crime in film is surprisingly tricky. While romantic dramas focus on the emotions of love, comedies on laughter, and horror films...
Why does ‘Art Museum by the Zoo’ make our hearts flutter even more in the fall?
In this blog post, we’ll analyze how director Lee Jeong-hyang’s ‘Art Museum by the Zoo’ (1998) uses its characters, narrative, and cinematic frames and devices to depict a love that blossoms gradually. Film Overview Title: ‘Art Museum by the Zoo’ (1998) Director/Screenplay: Lee Jeong-hyang Starring: Ahn Sung-ki, Shim Eun-ha, Lee Sung-jae, Song Sun-mi Runtime: 108...
What effect do the fantasy elements have in the romantic drama ‘Bungee Jumping of Their Own’?
In this blog post, I’ll examine how the fantasy elements woven into the film ‘Bungee Jumping of Their Own’ amplify the emotions and narrative of the romantic drama. Why I Chose This Film I was drawn to unrealistic, cinematically expanded romantic dramas—that is, the “romantic fantasy” genre—rather than realistic ones. I found it intriguing that unrealistic love stories can...
How has melodrama manipulated public sentiment and social order?
In this blog post, we’ll take a close look at why this genre evokes empathy and catharsis in audiences—and what social functions lie hidden within it—by examining the background and history of melodrama, its components, and its modern variations. The Concept and Origins of Melodrama The Concept of Melodrama Melodrama is a genre that literally means “sung drama,” and it is a...
Romantic Comedy: An Inherent Limitation?
In this blog post, we’ll take a step-by-step look at how the romantic comedy genre internalizes a male-centered perspective, using representative works as examples. Romantic Comedies and Their Historical Background Romantic comedies are a genre that many audiences enjoy without feeling any pressure. In fact, a 2004 survey of moviegoers in Seoul found that romance and melodrama were the...
How has the history of the romantic comedy unfolded?
In this blog post, we’ll summarize the major trends and characteristics of the genre, from the emergence of screwball comedy to the evolution of modern romantic comedy. The Hollywood Landscape of the 1930s By the early 1930s, the American film industry was built on relatively solid ground. Despite the global economic downturn of the late 1920s, the number of films produced actually...