The same story can be told in countless ways, and "The Handmaiden" could have been yet one more erotic thriller if it wasn't directed by Park Chan-wook. The fascinatingly decadent mood, the quirky way he mixes opposite genres, the sharp black humor and sarcasm even in the worst situations, the visceral depiction of sex and sensuality, the way he keeps adding more and more to the plate and stop right before it overflows. Despite the demanding running time the pacing is consistently tight: there is always a lot going on on-screen both aesthetically and narratively, but never to the point it becomes overwhelming.
The only thing that could have been better might be the ending, as the twists in the middle inevitably lead you to set even higher expectations for the finale. You get mindblown the first time, but everything starts to become quite predictable after you grasp the general tone.
The film clearly plays with gender roles, but one more concept explored is Korea's identity during Japan's colonization. We see a lot of Koreans who try to imitate the Japanese lifestyle, but at the same time Japanese are under the strong influence of western countries. The mansion Hideko lives in is a hybrid of Japanese and British architecture, owned by a Korean who pretends to be a Japanese man of letters. Count Fujiwara is another example of Korean aspiring to be a Japanese gentleman dressed in British fashion. They both flaunt their Japanese language skills while Hideko, who is supposed to be an actual Japanese, doesn't like to speak her own language as it represents the readings imposed by her uncle.
The use of two languages generates some interesting situations, even though sometimes the actors' Korean accent gets so thick that it was hard to understand some of the Japanese lines. It's understandable for Kouzuki and Fujiwaraas are supposed to be Korean in the story, but Hideko was not so believable as a Japanese.
Review by manicureVIP 4BlockedParent2021-05-01T14:00:14Z
The same story can be told in countless ways, and "The Handmaiden" could have been yet one more erotic thriller if it wasn't directed by Park Chan-wook. The fascinatingly decadent mood, the quirky way he mixes opposite genres, the sharp black humor and sarcasm even in the worst situations, the visceral depiction of sex and sensuality, the way he keeps adding more and more to the plate and stop right before it overflows. Despite the demanding running time the pacing is consistently tight: there is always a lot going on on-screen both aesthetically and narratively, but never to the point it becomes overwhelming.
The only thing that could have been better might be the ending, as the twists in the middle inevitably lead you to set even higher expectations for the finale. You get mindblown the first time, but everything starts to become quite predictable after you grasp the general tone.
The film clearly plays with gender roles, but one more concept explored is Korea's identity during Japan's colonization. We see a lot of Koreans who try to imitate the Japanese lifestyle, but at the same time Japanese are under the strong influence of western countries. The mansion Hideko lives in is a hybrid of Japanese and British architecture, owned by a Korean who pretends to be a Japanese man of letters. Count Fujiwara is another example of Korean aspiring to be a Japanese gentleman dressed in British fashion. They both flaunt their Japanese language skills while Hideko, who is supposed to be an actual Japanese, doesn't like to speak her own language as it represents the readings imposed by her uncle.
The use of two languages generates some interesting situations, even though sometimes the actors' Korean accent gets so thick that it was hard to understand some of the Japanese lines. It's understandable for Kouzuki and Fujiwaraas are supposed to be Korean in the story, but Hideko was not so believable as a Japanese.