Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring (Korean: Bom yeoreum gaeul gyeoul geurigo bom)

Movie: Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring

Year: 2003

Director: Kim Ki-duk

Language: Korean

Synopsis:The movie begins in a small lake inside a forest that has a floating monastery. The monk and his young apprentice spend time going into the forest and collecting herbs and praying. The young monk one day finds it amusing to tie rocks to a fish, a frog and a snake. The teacher seeing this ties a rock to the apprentice and tells him that he shall free him from the torment only after he frees the other animals. He also tells him that if any one of them is dead he will carry the stone in his heart for the rest of his life. Years later there is a young lady who comes to the monastery to cure herself of a strange disease. The young monk slowly explores the feelings of love and experiments with his feelings. As events unfold his life is told in seasons which are set many years apart. The story moves from his running away from the monastery to finally coming back years later and then finally taking over as the caretaker of the monastery with a new apprentice.

My own take: If I had to put a genre to this movie I would be really in a fix. So lets just call it a really thought provoking movie. The beauty of the movie is in the small one liners which will sum up the seasons like the crux of the matter. And that is what makes you think again and again about the movie. These pearls of wisdom actually make the movie so rich in parts that you tend to forgive the guy who was writing the subtitles for missing out couple of lines . As I saw in the other movies by Kim Ki-duk, the dialogues are minimal and scenes are breath taking. There is a lot said without words and a lot left to imagination. The strength of the movie also comes from the fact that a lot is left unsaid like the woman who drops her baby never takes off her veil. Or the master’s spirit which comes to guard the monastery as a snake. At times even the shots are pretty mysterious. Like in the monastery you have doors but no walls, some are even more intriguing like the scene where the monk carves the sutra on the wood and its painted in a strange pattern. The mystic feeling refuses to cease. Over all another movie which people with a slight bent of spiritual mind would love. Strong suggestion: Don’t watch it in parts. Finish it in one go to let it sink

Baran (Persian: باران )

Movie: Baran

Year: 2001

Director: Majid Majidi

Language: Persian

Synopsis: Set in 2001 when a lot of Afghan refugees had come to Iran. the story begins in one of the construction sites in Iran where the contractor breaks the rules and employs a lot of cheap Afghan labour. Lateef is an Iranian boy working in one of these sites. He does all kinds of odd jobs like serving tea and making the meals. He enjoys his light work and keeps cracking witty liners. One day in an accident Najaf is injured and breaks his leg. As the only earning member he sends his son Rahmat to the site as a replacement. Rahmat is a weakling and is unable to do to the heavy manual work at the construction site. Hence, the contractor, Memar, allocates Lateef's easy job to Rahmat and Lateef has to help with the construction of the building. Lateef hates this shift and is very sore about it. He wastes no opportunity to insult Rahmat. Till one day when he finds out by sheer accident something that changes his life  After a lot of deliberation within myself I have decided that I shall not spoil the fun for all my readers and let them find the twist themselves. But trust me it’s a scene that makes the rest of the movie a cinematic experience not worth missing.

My own take: Baran is by far the most sensitive movie I have ever seen. The movie scenes are so subtle and the mood is so quiet and subdued that it’s a rare find. The strongest point of Majidi movies I feel is that there is no real villain out to ruin anybody’s life. Situations are all normal life situations; the drama comes from everyday dilemmas. The characters are all doing their job and making the choices which work best for them yet there is room for complications, for love, for pain, for agony, for helplessness, for courage, for stupidity. The characters are not even caught in a never ending whirlwind of chaos or bad luck but plain lives meeting unexpected twists. The other strength of the movie lies in its rare display of love in a different society itself. The appreciation of the beauty happens automatically when you see that how you really don’t need dialogues or words to express love and compassion. Must watch for people who like movies of Satyajit Ray. The genre is the same. Special thanks to Jerry Jose for gifting me this movie.

In the Mood for Love (Cantonese)

Movie: In the Mood for Love

Year: 2000

Director: Wong Kar-wai

Language: Cantonese

Synopsis: Chow and So become next door neighbours in an apartment in Hong Kong. Each has a spouse who is working and often leaves them alone on overtime shift. Despite the presence of a friendly landlady, Mrs Suen, and bustling, mahjong-playing neighbours, Chow and So often find themselves alone in their rooms, and they begin to strike up a friendship. Very soon they find out that their spouses are having an affair and all their long absence is actually because they spend time together. Chow insists that they re-enact the scenes that they might have had. Very soon its obvious to casual onlookers that Chow and So are more than friends. Chow and So are however convinced that they are no more than friends and will not end up like their spouses. However, as time passes, Chow falls in love with So. Firm in his moral convictions that forbid adultery, he leaves Hong Kong for a job offered by his old friend in Singapore. Watch it to know if they meet

My own take: The biggest dilemma which sets the movie apart is the simple fact that does your partners adultery makes yours legitimate? And more importantly does it give you a higher plane? Does this plane actually give you a sense of self righteousness and does it make you feel good because people will feel you did well. Too many questions but that’s what the movie is about. After a point in time you feel the same feeling that Samsara left you with. The dilemma remains on if the desire should be fulfilled or conquered. The other strong point of the movie is the excellent way the story is told. The treatment is very subtle and is shot in dim light for most of the time. Finally I think the last part of the movie takes the cake. Very different way of approaching the subject.