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| Flandersui-gae, South Korea 2000 |
No dogs were harmed in the making of this movie. This statement wisely appears before the opening credits of Bong Joon-ho's wonderful black comedy Barking Dogs Never Bite, as there are several of man's best friends that meet with rather unfortunate endings in the film. (PETA members beware.) Yun-ju (Lee Sung-jae) is an unemployed professor living with his very pregnant wife who (when not at work) spends most of her time berating him and barking orders. Becoming a full-fledged professor requires bribing a university official, and Yun-ju has neither the money nor the desire to do so (he'd rather go for a walk in the woods.) Lazing away his days in their apartment, he finds himself irritated by a yelping dog, and decides to do something about it. This sets in motion a series of comic events, which include Yun-ju meeting up with Hyeon-nam (Bae Du-na), a frustrated, directionless young woman working in the apartment complex. In the midst of sorting out the various canine disappearances, the two learn a great deal about themselves, but the film never once turns sappy, nor does it take the romantic turn it would had it been made in Hollywood. The film's real strength lies in its rich characters, particularly Hyeon-nam, who is the antithesis of the simple, beautiful young woman often found in Korean comedies. She's more of a slacker with heart who has yet to find her place in the world. For a comedy, the pacing is slow, but deliberate. Bong takes the time to develop the world of this apartment complex, with its odd assortment of characters, including a janitor who tells a lengthy tale of the mysterious 'Boiler Kim' – several minutes that bravely slow the film down to a near crawl, but somehow manages to work. Some of the more subtle moments of social satire/criticism might be lost on those unfamiliar with life in Seoul but the anxieties, stress and feelings of insignificance that arise from living in a crowded, featureless apartment block in an equally crowded metropolis are fairly universal. Nature is literally at their doorstep in the film, yet few have the time (or desire) to even look. Bong emphasizes this by often placing his characters in tiny spaces – cramped toy stores, storage rooms in basements, office cubicles, etc. That the "victims" of all this should be dogs is both comedically brilliant and metaphorically astute. Barking Dogs Never Bite stays dark up until the ending, including a final shot that is surprisingly moving and even a bit depressing. — Filmbrain |
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