Nothing can stop a mother’s love for her child. That seems to be what Director Bong Joon-ho wants to convey through Mother. The film, released in 2009, has made Bong Joon-ho’s name as director long before Parasite. Top Movie Site
The film Mother tells the story of Hye-ja (Kim Hye-ja), a ginseng peasant woman with acupuncture abilities who have lived a widow for many years. His current life is only accompanied by a son, Do-joon (Won Bin), who, despite being 28 years old, still often sleeps in the same bed with him. It’s nothing, when compared to other adult men, Do-joon has a little emotional backwardness in his daily life.
Even so, Do-joon lives his days like an ordinary person. Although not approved by his mother, he often gathered with Jin-tae (Jin Goo), an unemployed man who was a good friend of Do-joon. Together, they often visit the bar, get drunk or do various other useless activities. The problem comes one night, when Do-joon and Jin-tae promise to meet in a bar, but until the early hours of the morning, Jin-tae has not shown the bridge of his nose. Finally, while drunk, Do-joon is driven out by the bar owner.
On his way home, Do-joon then follows a girl who looks scared. Had tempted the girl for a while, but ended in rejection, Do-joon finally chose to go home. The next day, it turns out the girl has been found dead in a house last night that Do-joon passed by the girl. Unfortunately, some of the evidence found at the crime scene, shows that Do-joon was the perpetrator of the girl’s murder. By using certain techniques, the police finally succeeded in getting Do-joon to sign an acknowledgment that he had killed the girl. Best Movie
Not accepting that his only son is being arbitrarily treated, Hye-ja finally takes every means to free Do-joon. The method of contacting several well-known lawyers in the area, to collecting evidence to show that the child is innocent is done by Hye-ja. Slowly, Hye-ja finally manages to find the trace of the girl’s real killer.
Mother showed the bad habits of a number of people in real life, such as often oppressing weaker or disadvantaged people, bullying others because of boredom and just for fun, and looking at the eyes of underprivileged people.
The ugliness of the law enforcement system such as not providing assistance to those in need, not conducting investigations properly, as well as the workings of lawyers, were also criticized through the film.
Another thing that makes this film interesting is the depiction of a gray situation like in real life. Black and white, good and evil all depend on the point of view. Not everything that looks good will help. And vice versa, not everything that looks bad is always evil.
Mother also has beautiful and detailed cinematography. deserves thumbs up. This film also has an unusual initial scene and is actually able to make the audience feel uncomfortable and start thinking things that could happen next. The background music that is played also sometimes feels absurd and can increase the tension of the film.
Bong Joon-ho for the umpteenth time I was amazed because Mother is a neat unity. Each scene at the beginning or middle turns out to have a new meaning revealed at the end of the film.
Kim Hye-ja’s acting ability as a parent is unquestionable in this film. Her totality resulted in a number of Best Actress trophies, including awards such as the Busan Film Critics Awards, Golden Rooster Awards, Korean Association of Film Critics Awards, Asia Pacific Screen Awards, and many more. Jin Goo also performed so well despite only appearing in short duration. This is evident from a number of award trophies that were brought home for being the Best Supporting Actor version of the Grand Bell Awards, and the Blue Dragon Film Awards. Won Bin also displays the figure of a child with mental problems in this film. Movie Review
Overall, Mother is a film that still feels real and is very related to the current life situation even though it was released 11 years ago.
