SPRING, SUMMER, FALL, WINTER... AND SPRING
A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 2004 Steve Rhodes
RATING (0 TO ****): *** 1/2
Kim Ki-duk's absolutely stunning and unforgettable SPRING, SUMMER, FALL, WINTER... AND SPRING (BOM YEOREUM GAEUL GYEOUL GEURIGO BOM) was Korea's entry for this year's Academy Awards. I haven't yet seen this year's winner (THE BARBARIAN INVASIONS from Canada), but I'd posit that this Korean film may be better.
Composed as five small morality tales or religious tone poems, the story is set in its entirety on a remote lake, nestled in a lush green valley. The dense forests on the surrounding mountains are cooled by sporadic clouds and mist. In the center of the water is an anchored house boat that has a single room that is both bedroom and temple for an Old Monk (Oh Young-soo) and his young charge (Kim Jong Ho), a boy of perhaps four years old who is training to be a monk like his "Master." If you've ever thought that you might want to enter a monastery then this is the spot you want to pick. Rarely has a location appeared so serene.
The five seasons of the movie represent five subjects for meditation and reflection as well as the passages in the young monk's life -- Seo Jae-kyeong plays the monk-in-training as an older teen, Kim Young-min as a young adult and Kim Ki-duk as an adult. In the first episode, the boy learns the Golden Rule. His teacher prefers a hands-on approach to lessons, and the movie itself has such little dialog that it's almost a silent picture. After finding the lad tying a snake, a frog and a fish down with small stones attached to strings, the older monk ties a large rock to the boy one night as he sleeps. The youngster quickly learns to treat others as he wants to be treated himself.
The second part introduces a teenage girl (Ha Yeo-jin) into the mix. She stays briefly at the monk's shrine, having been brought there by her mother in order to cure an unknown illness. This part of the story might be titled "the inevitability of sexual awakening." Suffice it to say that she is eventually healed in a most pleasurable manner.
The third movement of this cinematic symphony -- all parts are accompanied by lovely staccato music from a piano or a violin -- could be labeled "punishment and atonement." The fourth part is about death and rebirth, and the final brief movement is about life repeating itself. And speaking of repeating, you'll want to savor this gem again and again with repeated viewings.
SPRING, SUMMER, FALL, WINTER... AND SPRING runs a mesmerizing 1:43. The film is in Korean with English subtitles. It is rated R for "some strong sexuality" and would be acceptable for teenagers.
The film opens nationwide in the United States on Friday, April 16, 2004. In the Silicon Valley, it will be showing at the Camera Cinemas.
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