Ji-Woon Kims A Bittersweet Life - Movie Review Example

Ji-Woon Kim’s A Bittersweet Life In creative works like films where the creator or filmmaker will adopt different ways to tell his/her story, narrative structure is the key. The narrative structure will only help define the story and also moves the story with the aid of plot and characters. Narrative structure can take any form to tell or define a story; however there are two structures, which are commonly adopted by the Filmmakers. It could be a chronological telling of story with a logical order of events or it could take particular points of view, so that, story is revealed or moves from the perspective of particular character or characters. The second type of narration could come under nonlinear form of narrative, as the story is revealed in a disjointed and non-chronological order. Even when the film takes a chronological or linear narrative structure, certain events could go to and fro. So, films could maximally include different narrative structures or could take a narrative structure, which could balance different aspects of the plot or the character. This balancing act or tightrope walking form of narrative structure is adopted by many filmmakers. In the case of the Korean film, A Bittersweet Life, written and directed by Ji-Woon Kim, the narrative structure takes a intense and at the same time stylish tightrope walk between violence and philosophy of life, or if said in another way between recklessness and reflection. Visually also, it mixes well-choreographed action scenes with more transcendental based settings, wide-angled shots, character’s outlook, body language, etc. As a function of a film’s narration, characters around Sun-woo appear increasingly bizarre and unpredictable all the time, but his character was one of calmness, with violence exhibited at appropriate situations. Sun-woo, who is a manager of hotel La Dolce Vita, is a no ordinary manger, there is a ‘volcano’ behind that calm facade. Young and handsome, a tightly controlled gang enforcer in a narrow black suit who is decisive and efficient, he is also the trusted right hand man of his underworld boss (Mr.Kang). He served Mr.Kang like a faithful dog for 7 years committing extreme violence for him, but at the same he leads a lonely existence with his unflinching loyalty In line with narrative structure of philosophy mixed with violence, the film starts with a Buddhist parable, “Master, are the branches moving or is it the wind?” Not even glancing to where his pupil was pointing the master smiled and said, “That which moves are neither the branches nor the wind. It’s your heart and mind.” Following this opening voice-over by the protagonist, there is a delicate slow-motion shot depicting long willow leaves swaying in the wind. This opening scene narration capturing the conversation between the discipline and the master, captures the essence of what the movie is all about, which is how certain decisions by the character or characters decides their fates and not their external situations. In the hindsight after watching the film, this opening scene can be understood, however the director made a fine decision of setting this parable as part of the opening scene narration as precursor of what to follow. Also, Director Kim shows the initial encounters between the enforcer and the moll from the protagonist’s (Sun-woo’s) perspective, using diverse camera angles and deep focus to share his insightful philosophy and cynicism: While the life is short, those fleeting, precious moments that change a person’s life are beautiful and sweet—thus, it is always the human heart and mind that move, never an external object. The setting related aspects also toe this narrative structure and the prime example is the Hotel La Dolce Vita (A Sweet Dream in Italian where the protagonist works). It lacks any enticing or over the top elements, sticking to the transcendental concept - it is, just bleak and simple, just like our protagonists. The hotel La Dolce Vita conveys the mood of Sun-woo. With its surrounding in colors of intense shades of red, black, and pure white, the hotel represents the world of protagonists to us, picture-perfect but ruthlessly detached and at the same time being violent. Thus, the director with the above mentioned variations or even absence of light in the place, where he spends his maximum time, tries to convey, how the protagonist’s mindset also encompasses both reflection and recklessness. The colors in the hotel also make the acts of recklessness stand out more clearly because apart from playing heavily in the film, they also show any small deviations in action very clearly. That is, the dark colors particularly red and black provide a glossy and at the same time a visually forceful mis-en-scene of the lounge. In that setting, any blood that flows due to violence clearly stands out, like the same way, the colorful foods that are served in the hotel stands out amidst the setting. The way the camera moves and focuses and importantly the way the protagonist reacts to situations also toes the narrative structure of calmness mixed with agitation. It is easy to recognize this characteristic of Sun-woo by watching the beginning sequence of the film where Sun-woo is eating chocolate fudge in the sky lounge of La Dolce Vita. He is bothered by a small commotion in the basement, caused by the three men sent by a rival gang. After he slowly and carefully finishes his chocolate fudge, without any fuss he walks down into the basement keeping all his calm composure, with the tracking shot from his behind compose and shows an atmosphere in which he has no sense of panic or even urgency. Although, he showcases a calm demeanor, he wants to showcase his authority there. That is, it is not his responsibility to manage those altercations in the hotel, but he sets out to take care of it, thereby asserting his influence. From this introduction scene, it can be understood that Sun-woo is a confident and at the same an unyielding character, who is very tenacious in his actions and is not hesitant to use violence. However, there is a paradox that lies behind this balancing nature of the narrative structure. That is, although throughout the film, the narration balances violence and meditative nature in a balanced way, the relationship between film’s male protagonist and the female protagonist provides a different perspective to this structure. In the film, Sun-woo never proposes his love for Hee-soo, and so never consummates their relationship, but still undergoes extreme torture, face opposition from everywhere and eventually dies, only for Hee-soo and only for the thing that stayed within his mind. Here, the violence maker, Sun-woo is at the receiving end of violence, all because he had mental tranquility because of his love for Hee-soo. Thus, the narrative structure of violence and calmness, which is reflected through the actions and view of the character of Sun-woo, has a different perspective here. Thus, this oblivion is both consequences to humans being in pain and inevitably directs humans to commit “mistakes” in different ways. A Bittersweet Life is a film about terrifying inevitability that such circumstances can push any individual into abyss of despair and tragedy. One late autumn night, the disciple awoke crying. So the master asked the disciple, “Did you have a nightmare?" "No." "Did you have a sad dream?" "No", said the disciple. "I had a sweet dream." "Then why are you crying so sadly?" The disciple wiped his tears away and quietly answered, “Because the dream I had can’t come true." This end sequence of the movie with the narration speaking again about or in the words of the Master and the disciple, shows how both his violence and his transcendental state initiated by his love for Hee-soo is a kind of sweat dream, which could become bitter, when he “wakes up”. (This also provides a key understanding to the movie’s title). That is, for Sun-woo, falling in love with the girl and his confident or blind belief that he can kill anyone, without being killed are kinds of sweet dreams, which cannot come true like the disciple’s one. This is also the reason why he is able to survive after a lot of physical assaults and torture. Even, after being ‘unrealistically’ shot and stabbed so much, he survives and goes on not simply because he is portrayed as the hero character, but mainly because all the things he does after meeting Hee-soo appears like a sweet dream to him. As he kind of lives in a surreal world, the narration ends with those words, again validating the balancing act of violence and unreal or meditative state. Throughout the film, the main protagonist of Sun-woo undergoes a kind of psychological gear-changes. He works as a loyal and at the same time tenacious man to his jealous boss, then in a moment of weakness or transcendental state falls for his boss’ lover and finally unleashes gruesome violence on a revengeful streak. So, the director portrays him with Zen like mystique and self-enclosed taciturnity then shifting to a furious killer, thus showing the film’s balancing narrative dynamics. Read More