The Handmaiden, Released in August 25, 2016 is a South Korean erotic psychological thriller film directed by Park Chan-wook. The flim is an adaptation of the 2002 novel Fingersmith written by Sarah Waters. The cast of the film are Kim Tae-ri, Kim Min-hee, Ha Jung-woo, Cho Jin woong, Kim Hae-sook and many more. The flim won Asian Film Award for Best Newcomer and Best Supporting Actress (2017), Blue Dragon Film Award for Best Leading Actress, Best new Actress and Best Art Direction (2016) etc.
Summary Of the Plot
A Korean con artist plots to seduce and inherit the wealth of a Japanese lady named Hideko, a pickpocketer named Sook-hee joins as a helping hand but as everyone starts to play their parts, the fog mystery starts to set in.
Review
I stumbled upon this film on a lazy day, with nothing else to do a psychological thriller seemed appropriate to pass the time. The film is divided into three parts and I don't know if it was my boredom or the linear plot line, Part one came off quite boring to the point I was considering to stop watching. But the moment Part two hit the timeframe, I was hooked. To me, completing circles while telling a story is a form of satisfaction, an art this film managed to portray perfectly multiple times. Each character was complex and had depth of their own and the character development was a pure satisfaction. The complex plotline intrigued me to the point that I was reading the book by the time closing credits were showing on the screen. It was kind of disappointing to notice the difference in plotline, story setting and characters complexity in the book but both book and the Korean version of the film had one thing in common, the element of surprises. The depth of small details and hidden clues of this film make the re-watch experience more entertaining.
Favorite Quote
"What does a crook know about love?"
Conclusion
It’s rare for me to get invested in a plotline where I spend days on analyzing the small details, plotline and complexity of each character. The cinematography of the film managed to add more depth to the complexity and the directed plotline managed to create a mysterious fog around it.
Reference
Cover Poster - Source
(Rest of the images are taken from the film)