Mother

"I shouldn't have rented this, it's gonna be a torturing- 2 hours or so to reach the end title credit. This was honestly what I felt in a couple of minites just after I started watching.

It was a scene of a middle-aged woman standing and singing alone in the middle of nowhere.
She looked partly emotionless, absent-minded, sad and scared, but some other part, silently angry.

It's quite natural that I have no idea what it means since this is very beginning, but at least it was too weird and I didn't think at all that I could immerse myself into this film, at first...

Do-Joon (Won Bin) is somewhat mentally challenged young man.
Because of that, he's slow and quiet, like he has some difficulties in expressing himself.

His mother, who is a widow, manages to make their living by selling medical herbs and doing unlicensed acupuncture.

She dotes on her only son so much. They sleep together on a single bed from time to time.
It's impossible, frankly, it's disgusting, even considered Do-joon is a bit handicapped.

Yes, he's mentally disabled, but this is not so serious enough to do such a thing.
It seemed overprotective to me, but as the story goes, I take it as a meaningful scene shows unconditional motherhood. One of metaphorical scenes for the film.
Umm, no, it might not be the right word to describe. The truth is, I no longer feel the way as I first felt.



One day, a high school girl is found dead.
With only circumstantial evidence placing Do-joon near the crime scene, the police jump to the conclusion that he did it.

His defense attorney is unreliable and the police trick him into signing a confession including a long jail sentence, taking advantage of Do-joon being challenged.
Now Mother is convinced that she's the only one who can help him and prove his innocense.

Scouring around the town, it is revealed the girl's life is salacious.

With this fact, Mother investigates farther on.

The course of unraveling, actually, I was a little distracted. Typical me, hahaha !!

For some reason I'm not good at criminal investigation drama.

I usually half-way understand.

But I understand more than half this time around, hehehe.

I'm not going to tell any more details. Because it's going to be a spoiler.
Last several ten miniutes are so impressive !!

Especially one phrase Do-joon makes to his mother, my heart almost stopped!!

It's NOT exaggeration. This made me revisit if he was genuinely mentally disabled.

This is one of the best films I've ever watched this year, totally !!!

Won Bin plays Do-joon so well.
In the film, Mother and her neighbor woman say Do-joon's baby deer's eyes are so adoreble.
Yes, Won Bin's eye are just like those. Cute.

After watching the DVD, I desperately like to know more about this film and I bought this magazine. Also I even read a novelized book.

I'm going to watch this again, anyway.

And I'm looking forward to his next film, "The Man From Nowhere".

Please release sooner !!