Just realizing I forgot to add an image or two..but not passing 3 weeks time for a new upload so NOT going to edit the minor aesthetic details and reupload! Enjoy the video everyone! Love.
CAN YOU EXPLAIN THAT WHEN THE MOTHER IS ABOUT TO GET ON BUS, THE SON GIVES HER THAT ACUPUNCTURE BOX HE FOUND THERE ON MURDER SITE AND THEN SAYS "HOW COULD YOU LEAVE IT THERE" SO DOES THAT MEAN HE REMEMBERS WHAT HE DID AND KNOWS WHAT HIS MOTHER DID AS WELL?
Despite Parasite being Bong's most masterful twist, I find this film to be a bigger gut-punch. It feels most personal as we followed this mother who would do anything to save her son (sounding already cliche as I typed), but her love isn't perfect. She has an image of who her son is, but reality shattered it by the end. The result is that haunting dance for oblivion. What a beautiful tragedy.
@Renzo Williams The son gave an explanation about why the "killer" put the body on the roof, and that's because he wanted someone to see her as soon as posible because she "was bleeding", by him saying that, it's sort of a confession, he didn't mean to harm her so badly, and he didn't realized she was dead, but he didn't want to get in trouble. The mother also says that doing the "motion" on his head it's not only to remember something, but to also concentrate and think clearly, that's when he came with the idea of putting her on the roof so someone helps her. Like they said in other comment, there's no reason about why the old dude would tell her all these things to the mother instead of killing her, he had no way of knowing that the son would act like that if the victim insulted him with that specific word. Also, there's no way he would know that the son did that motion on his head because if the old man is lying, that would mean that what we saw at first (the son version of the incident) is the true of what happened, but in that version he never does that motion. He knows too many details about the son that there was no way he would knew if he didn't saw it happening.
When he threw the rock at the girl in the recollection of the man the mother talked to I got chills all over my body, inside and out. I really thought he was the good guy up until then, but it hit me that his violent outbursts have been present forever, and this was only bound to happen. I found myself not knowing whether to feel bad for him or not.
That's how I felt too! I seriously thought it was going to be a movie about a disabled person being falsely accused, but I was so so wrong. I think what made me feel even more angry was the fact that even when the mother found out that he WASN'T innocent, she STILL went out of her way to try to prove his innocence. So much so, that she hoped his disability would "benefit" them for once, and make him never ever remembered what he did to that girl. Why? So, he still, hopefully wouldn't get jail time. She never truly cared about the victim, not once.
Don’t think it was as simple as “good guy/bad guy”. He has a mental disability, his aggression wasn’t a source of evil. He was dangerous and needed to be controlled/medicated, not evil.
I dont think he was good or evil. Just a person really. Thats what i kinda like abt the film as so many shows and movies either make disabled people out to be either villains or superhumans but in reality theyre just people, and do good or bad things intentional or not, just as complex as any other person. Idk thats just my perspective
The mother using the acupuncture needles on herself at the end to forget the bad memories and then dancing off with the other parents remind me of the ending of "Old Boy". We won't ever know for sure if they forgot their memories or if they are just pretending they forgot. Both ambiguous. Both very haunting.
Another way to look at the scene where Mother crying for jp is that she is actually crying in relief after knowing he doesnt have parents, explaining why she asked jp once whether he has parents then proceed to repeat the question about whether he has mother to double confirm. Knowing the cops are so incompetent and jp being completely defenseless, ie no "mother" like her to get jp out of the jail, she could rest assure that her son is free. Just my two cent.
Okay this sounds fucked up hahaha. I thought she felt sympathy because nobody was going to fight for JP. This only shows how amazing and deep this movie is
The director wanted to make the last dancing-in-the-bus scene to portray all damned mothers burning alive and screaming in hell. So they took a few days to complete the shot as they could only film it during a brief moment during sunset. If you think about this and re-watch the last scene, you can almost hear their scream...truly one of the most scary and eerie movie scenes ever.
Wow, that actually makes sense as it contrasts what was mentioned by the mother. If I remember correctly, the mother said earlier in the movie about being in heaven and stuff.
Wow! I always thought it was a moment of freedom and emancipation (from her memories, her son and the role of the overbearing mother) so some strange sort of "happy" ending. If you as a viewer suppress the memories of what she did, you can even find some solace in that moment, too. Your interpretation completely destroyed my naive view 😥 The emotional brutality of that film is truly crushing
It's not about hell. It's a moment of liberation, maybe redemption. Sad and poetically ironic because she's far from happy right at that moment, but life goes on and as a mother she did what she could.
The best part of this movie is the subversion of good and evil, which is also present in other Bong Joon-Ho's movies. It conveys that feeling that no one can save themselves without oppressing someone else. Take a look at Mother and it's wonderful irony: you spend all the movie rooting for this poor old lady struggling against a great injustice, and you can feel that misery and impotence. And in the end not only you (and her) discover that this crusade was invain, but the movie ends with another even bigger sense of injustice, but this time perpetrated by the "hero". And so an even more innocent and vulnerable person gets thrown under the bus.
as i watched the movie yesterday I'm still struggling to come to terms with the fact that it was actually Do Joon that killed the girl and he gave the reason as to why he left her on the roof so that someone could quickly come help her, but he thinks it isn't him because of his frequent memory loses
She got too blinded by her love for her son. If only she had actually let her son serve his jail time, an innocent person could have been saved from it. In the end, she even asks jp( the one who gets jailed instead of her son) whether he has parents. Specifically a mother. Not because she cares for him, but because she wants to make sure no one will again try to save him or prove his alibi. It was cruel. I felt anger towards the woman who I was rooting for all along in the film
It took me a third viewing spaced out over a few years to finally appreciate what a wonderful and beautiful film this is. I like your point about 'concealment' being an important theme in the movie. For me, it was about a mother's love that can be beautiful and terrifying. The mother dance at the beginning and the end was truly mesmerizing --- either/both an ascent/descent into euphoria or madness. Fantastic performances by the mother and the son. Did everyone catch a glimpse of the actress who played the original housekeeper in Parasite? She's in the funeral/memorial scene for the girl. Thank you for a great review/description of another masterpiece by Bong Joon Ho. I read that the actress felt uncomfortable dancing solo in that field so Bong Joon Ho was behind the camera dancing with her -- what a director... anything to make it more comfortable for his actors so that they do their best work.
that's so cute .. i remember a similar story about Matilda behind the scene, when Mara was too shy to dance alone in a dancing scene Dany Devitto (film director + actor who played Matilda dad) made the whole crew backstage dance for her 😁 its such gentle gesture
Spikima Movies I just watched it for the first time last month (a long with The Host) and I feel like I need a rewatch to understand its themes. I still liked it, but I don't fully understand it yet.
I don’t like all of Bong’s movies, but several of them left a permanent images in my mind that give me the chills down my spine even to this day. A very talented filmmaker.
Mother is one of the best films I’ve ever watched in my life. The dance and the end of it nails simbolically everything and it is gigantic. This film is my inspiration to do art. Thanks for this perfectly pointed & explained resume. Congratulations!
The emphasis on the eyes really added to the scene when the cop came to tell her that they found the killer, you can see how impossible of a task it had become for her to not conceal the truth anymore as her eyes we're telling in the whole story. One of my favourite scenes front the movie
Some scenes in Mother have hit me emotionally with a ton of bricks. Like the scene with his son in prison. This film shows how far is a mother willing to go to protect her child, even though she didn't want him at the beginning. The ending is bittersweet and in my opinion perfect for the story. They are going to screen it here in Italy in July in theaters, I hope I'll be able to go and see it again on the big screen 😊
I just watched Mother for the first time and stumbled upon this video study of the film. I liked the coherence of your points and you pointed out some powerful chess moves than Bong Joon-Ho included within the film (most notably the scene where the kid reveals the beaten half of his face). I interpreted the film slightly differently; I saw it as a character study of the titular Mother. For me, the film explored this character psychologically and her relationship with motherhood in the context of the socioeconomic backdrop of the story. Her relationship with her son is her driver/her purpose, and I read the film as a series of circumstances that throw her preconceived ideologies into disarray or psychosis. The dances at the beginning and at the end of the film are physical embodiments of her mental state - of tragedy, psychosis, disarray or chaos. I completely agree with you on the stylistic choice that Joon-Ho made in terms of audience distancing, creating that voyeuristic element. Anyway, I just subscribed to your channel because I like that this review challenged my own interpretation of the film and stimulated a dialogue. :)
Great..! What you pointed out is most definitely a big part of what the film is about. There are many things the film discusses and I decided to focus on a theme that not many seem to catch/talk about! Happy to hear you enjoyed it !
@Renzo Williams All your points about the junk collector being the killer are in the movie because the director made the junk collector suspicious so that audience wouldn’t see the end coming. You gave two reasons to prove the killer was the junk collector. Kevin showed your first reason was incorrect because we do get a very good reason for why the son would put the girl up there. But I noticed your reply didn’t address that. Instead you just said the junk collector could have also put her up there. Now your second reason: the son holding his head when he remembers something. He doesn’t just hold his head when he’s trying to remember. He also holds his head when he’s confused or trying to to figure stuff out.So that would explain why he held his head in that situation. Unless you have other reasons for why the son couldn’t possibly do it, I think the junk collector was a decoy and the son did actually do it.
Just got around to watching this film recently and I find this to be an interesting point @ 13:09 because right after she killed the old man and realizes what she's done, she said something to the effect of "What do I do, mom?", showing that while she is meticulously prepared and thougtful in looking out for herself and her son, there are still moments she couldn't possibly be prepared and never learned how to deal with. It's the one moment that hints at her still needing guidance herself, or a savior as you put it, and in her mind, that guidance could only come from a mother.
This movie blew my mind, not all mothers are alike, but a mother’s love is universal. The most successful movies are ones that can make you relate to your life. This movie does exactly that, I see my mother through the screen
This is an amazing analysis. So many little details you caught on here which really give an insight into some of Bong Joon Ho's intricate writing and directorial choices. Great video!
To explain how to dance on the bus, it is like Korea's tourist bus play enjoyed by older adults. When you see the dancers, they are all women. Dancing away from the time and space of home and on the bus shows their bacaition. its shows that they ar the same mother as the main character. Director Bong Joon-ho thought this was ugly when he was young. But when he got older, he said he was both funny and sad. There is a great deal of maternal love for my son in Korean sentiment. This is especially true of the characters in the work. It seems like a fanatic who falls in love with his son, but is the main character unique? No. Any mother could be like that. For my son. The film is intended to question the twisted motherhood, or whether it can be called that.
@@ohmygodlawl When you even look at parents of terrorists/murderers it's usually the mother who is in denial and keeps pushing the narrative that their child is innocent. Even I remember my friend telling that in a Netflix documentary a serial killer's mother kept defending her son's actions even though he murdered people, tortured cats and is now convicted.
@@nimazsheik5152 not just mothers, the criminals themselves often justify their actions. “to whom it may concern, under my coat is a weary heart, but a kind one - one that would do nobody any harm.” -Francis Crowley, a serial murderer Or "I have spent the best years of my life giving people the lighter pleasures, helping them have a good time, and all I get is abuse, the existence of a hunted man"-al capone Just shows how bias can blind us
To me, both Mother and especially Memories of Murder are far more rewatchable than Parasite. Parasite is probably the best 1st watch of the three for the sheer spectacle, but it is that very same spectacle that gives it diminishing returns on subsequent viewings.
Just watched the movie this morning, i liked memories of murder better but mother is stuck in my head especially after that one line " be more careful "
theres some enigmatic power and beauty in bong's movies .. i cant describe that but it surely intrigues me from the start of the movie.. i became his instant fan after watching Memories of Murder.. and though i watched Zodiac first .. i didnt feel that much of satisfaction from Zodiac but memories of murder created a 'happy despair' ending for me.. Great Work as Always man ♥ .. Love from India ♥ ♥ ♥
Thanks so much, I'm glad I found this channel because this is one of the best video essays I've seen in years of watching so many repetitive and often uninformative essays. Your care for detail is thought provoking and reminded me why I love this medium. Damn, you're so overlooked.
@@SpikimaMovies I'm literally watching all of your videos now. I know you said you don't like to call them essays, but let me at least say that you've put more effort and detail than most of channels who proudly call themselves "essayists", all with a really good style in editing
I watched The Man From Nowhere before seeing Mother. I couldn’t believe the handsome lead from the first film was the actor portraying the son in the latter.
The hand over the eye scene is the most pivotal scene for the audience. It reveals the attempt of the murder-suicide of his past. It reveals the mother's overprotection of her son's memory, for her own intentions. It reveals how she mentally, physically, and emotionally disabled him to keep him in boyhood. It reveals the lengths she'll go to cover up her on wrongdoings. It reveals how she'll misuse "love" to not hold herself accountable fir nefarious actions. It reveals how she taught her son that it's okay to be volatile for pride... But it then it shows the audience her response to truths being revealed; She loses her mind. It is at the moment the film foreshadows what she will ultimately do once the truth is revealed. We the audience were told to trust no one in the town, by the son's friend. In that moment the audience gives their trust to Mother. I scream at the brilliance of it all.
Thank you for this video! I just watched Mother recently and was just stunned at its construction. If you liked Parasite, Mother should be on your list.
Mother is an amazing film. Though the main theme seems to be about the lenght to which a mother would go to protect her son, the subtle, underlying secret of the film is that the mother's obssesion with her son is what made him the way he is. She is unable to let go of her son to become his own entity outside of her and she knows it, this is emphasized three times: first when he remebers she tried to kill him, second time when she cried out knowing JP doesn't have parents ( deep down she wishes to be caught) and the third time in the ending scene when he gives her her acupuncture kit. She's unable to step out of her cycle and she's forever doomed to live the guilt, shame and pain of her own narcissism and psychopathy.
the masterpiece in all time. half profile shot, a half-truth. “Life is a tragedy when seen in close-up, but a comedy in long-shot.” by Charlie Chaplin but in this Tragedy to the end. MUST SEE.
Just wondering, did anyone feel like "The three billboards" is a US version of "Mother" + "Memories of Murder"? The mixed tones of dark, comedy and thriller, and that strange mood of uncomfort out of comfort small town.. and incompetent cops too!
Please discuse a korean masterpice “the wailing 2016” because ppl should shine more light on it had to watch it 4 times to trully understand it its amazing highly recomend it
Loved "The Wailing". I do feel that the movie would have benefited from an absence of comedy (more referring to the doofy lead) because it upset the atmosphere a bit, however, that can easily be ignored because it's a solid film, all in all. Plus, Jun Kunimura is awesome in it, as he is in everything else.
I watched this movie years ago and kind of forgot the title but it never left the back of my mind. I just couldn’t ever remember the title. But recently, I found it and watched it again, and I gotta say, there was a reason as to why I couldn’t ever forget it.
I disagree with your interpretation of the eye covering scene. However you do make an interesting observation. The reason I think it's an honest retelling of the mother trying to kill the son story is because of how the mother reacts. She tries to force him to forget that moment, she never denies it from happening. What I think the hand gesture means is that the mother was the one who caused her son to become mentally challenged. Just look at the way he tells the story. When he begins the story his hand covers his eye, and his face appears normal, once he reveals what his mother did, he then removes his hand revealing his sluggish eye. I think what Bong is communicating through this simple gesture is that the mother is actually a root cause of her son's memory problems, and his mental capacity.... This is just what I think, could be wrong... I do enjoy your interpretation though.
I don’t think he was saying that the sons retelling is necessarily dishonest but that’s it’s not the whole truth which is the reoccurring theme of the film. Yes everything he said was true but it leaves out the context of WHY the mother took that route, which leads into the point that he was making on the scene. I saw her pleading to just be her desperate attempt at getting him to forget a memory that could potentially be the reason she loses her sons love, not to outright suppress the truth but more so to keep their bond
the mother's undying love towards her mentally challenged son is because she feels guilty of the fact that she is responsible for the condition his in right now
@@Cambria358 I agree that the recurring theme in this film is discovering the truth behind what is presented. However I think in that particular scene, the truth actually lies with what the son is saying rather than the mother. In that scene the mother is scrambling to get the son to forget a moment, while the son revealing something very dark about her. I don't think he's presenting a lie in this case. The way he reveals his sluggish eye is Bong's method of visually trying to reveal a back story to the audience. He's trying to get us to see that the mother isn't as innocent as she presents herself.
Mother is a true Masterpiece. Phenomenal and brilliant. I love art that is captivating. Truly taking the audience on a journey. I love storytelling when done well.
Just some of the directors are. Mostly born in the 60's or 70's. Korean directors in relatively younger generations create films that are not up to the scratch these days.
Bong Joon-Ho is my favourite ❣️I watched Parasite and Memories of Murder but didn’t know that it was him who is the head behind it 🤯I just saw the Mother trailer and I can’t wait to watch it😦I think he is absolutely brilliant 💎✨can’t wait to see all his other movies ❤️🔥
You forgot to mention how society (korea and the world) still misunderstand and mistreat people with mental illness/disability. Btw very nice review for this great movie.
The one thing that catch my attention is that how the son look at her mother at the bus station through the glass window....it terrifying me somehow😂....anyway it's a great movie and you fid a good job at explanation too...now I'll be more focused on their eyes especially at bong joon ho's work.....my fav in his work is memories of murder
Film is how the individua interprets it. The scene of the son uncovering his face to tell his mom the story he remembered without full context mean't kind of the opposite to what you and the film critic took it as (spoilers although if you're watching the video, then it's just me going in depth). You said the scene was the sun covering half his face implying he's not trust worthy. When he says he remembers his mom trying to kill him and uncovers his face to reveal a bruised eye, you said the asymmetry is implying how his story is flawed because it failed to consider the mom trying to commit double suicide. To me though, that was the whole story. He's not wrong, full context or not. His mom tried to kill him. He didn't no the wiser and suicide wasn't something he was constenting to as a five year old. I saw him exposing his full face as a sybmol of exposing her. Showing the ugly truth to his mother and the his eyes are open. The bruise on his face was kind of symbolic to how she hurt him as well.
Do-Joon wasn't the killer, and that's a mistake I see many reviewers commit. The killer was the old man who Mother killed at the end, he instantly recognized her and told a lie to make her reveal herself, however Mother killed him believing his lies, and that's what makes this movie beautiful, is not about what really happened, is about Mother's reality, she will live the rest of her life thinking she killed an innocent man, that her son was the killer, and that she is to blame for her son's killing, because she is the one who told her son to fight anyone who called him retarded, so she will forever believe she ruined 4 people's lives: her son, the murdered girl, the old man and the special needs guy who ended up in jail for the crime.
와우!! 굉장히 예리하고 정확한 시선으로 마더를 풀어버여주셔서 감사합니다. 저도 봉준호감독의 영화들을 사랑하고 애정하지만 마더같은 경우 약간 어려운 느낌이어서 자주 보게되는 작품은 아니었는데요. 스키피아님깨서 이 영화의 포인트를 잘 집어주신것 같네요. 덕분에 조금 더 이해가 되네요.
I recently saw the movie and it reminded me of an old Indian movie Mother India 1956 . I cannot stop wondering how these two movies are similar and so different at the same time.
Just watched the movie,and couldn't miss how similar the mother is to Lady Macbeth, in the guilt, how she keeps staring at her hands, even the dramatic scraming, the cover up and trying to save her son. In a sense it's foreshadowing that she might actually go crazy and kills herself too.
Another detail to add is that the mother’s legs at the end are unequal when she does acupuncture on herself. Medically this is cellulitis from performing acupuncture on herself so many times with an unclean needle in order to try and forget the bad memory. The meridian point she was talking about the entire movie.
![Felix "Unfair" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Oswujxm2Ag0/mqdefault.jpg)
Just realizing I forgot to add an image or two..but not passing 3 weeks time for a new upload so NOT going to edit the minor aesthetic details and reupload! Enjoy the video everyone! Love.
CAN YOU EXPLAIN THAT WHEN THE MOTHER IS ABOUT TO GET ON BUS, THE SON GIVES HER THAT ACUPUNCTURE BOX HE FOUND THERE ON MURDER SITE AND THEN SAYS "HOW COULD YOU LEAVE IT THERE" SO DOES THAT MEAN HE REMEMBERS WHAT HE DID AND KNOWS WHAT HIS MOTHER DID AS WELL?
Despite Parasite being Bong's most masterful twist, I find this film to be a bigger gut-punch.
It feels most personal as we followed this mother who would do anything to save her son (sounding already cliche as I typed), but her love isn't perfect. She has an image of who her son is, but reality shattered it by the end. The result is that haunting dance for oblivion. What a beautiful tragedy.
@Renzo Williams why wouldn’t he have just killed the mother?
@Renzo Williams The son gave an explanation about why the "killer" put the body on the roof, and that's because he wanted someone to see her as soon as posible because she "was bleeding", by him saying that, it's sort of a confession, he didn't mean to harm her so badly, and he didn't realized she was dead, but he didn't want to get in trouble. The mother also says that doing the "motion" on his head it's not only to remember something, but to also concentrate and think clearly, that's when he came with the idea of putting her on the roof so someone helps her. Like they said in other comment, there's no reason about why the old dude would tell her all these things to the mother instead of killing her, he had no way of knowing that the son would act like that if the victim insulted him with that specific word. Also, there's no way he would know that the son did that motion on his head because if the old man is lying, that would mean that what we saw at first (the son version of the incident) is the true of what happened, but in that version he never does that motion. He knows too many details about the son that there was no way he would knew if he didn't saw it happening.
I saw parasite first and Shit was good but mother had me crying
The mother's acting is insanely good. This and memories of murder maybe even better than parasite to be honest.
Kim Hye Ja (김혜자). That's her name.
Agree,
For me personally, Memories of Murder is his best film.
And this movie is his second.
Then Parasite as third.
When he threw the rock at the girl in the recollection of the man the mother talked to I got chills all over my body, inside and out.
I really thought he was the good guy up until then, but it hit me that his violent outbursts have been present forever, and this was only bound to happen. I found myself not knowing whether to feel bad for him or not.
That's how I felt too! I seriously thought it was going to be a movie about a disabled person being falsely accused, but I was so so wrong. I think what made me feel even more angry was the fact that even when the mother found out that he WASN'T innocent, she STILL went out of her way to try to prove his innocence. So much so, that she hoped his disability would "benefit" them for once, and make him never ever remembered what he did to that girl. Why? So, he still, hopefully wouldn't get jail time.
She never truly cared about the victim, not once.
Don’t think it was as simple as “good guy/bad guy”. He has a mental disability, his aggression wasn’t a source of evil. He was dangerous and needed to be controlled/medicated, not evil.
I dont think he was good or evil. Just a person really. Thats what i kinda like abt the film as so many shows and movies either make disabled people out to be either villains or superhumans but in reality theyre just people, and do good or bad things intentional or not, just as complex as any other person. Idk thats just my perspective
The mother went this far to help her son get out of the prison. And that's why she breaks down when she asked JP whether he got a mother.
And another genius thing is like movie was foreshadowing his angry behavior the whole time.
The mother using the acupuncture needles on herself at the end to forget the bad memories and then dancing off with the other parents remind me of the ending of "Old Boy". We won't ever know for sure if they forgot their memories or if they are just pretending they forgot. Both ambiguous. Both very haunting.
Another way to look at the scene where Mother crying for jp is that she is actually crying in relief after knowing he doesnt have parents, explaining why she asked jp once whether he has parents then proceed to repeat the question about whether he has mother to double confirm. Knowing the cops are so incompetent and jp being completely defenseless, ie no "mother" like her to get jp out of the jail, she could rest assure that her son is free. Just my two cent.
Oh that’s it. I’ve always thought she felt sympathy cus he reminded her of her son. But what you said made more sense.
oh my god. you gave me a extra bludgeon. she's totally mad. now i got it
Okay this sounds fucked up hahaha. I thought she felt sympathy because nobody was going to fight for JP. This only shows how amazing and deep this movie is
I thought she cried out of guilt, but your explanation is much more interesting
@@anamorel2634 it would really be both. Sympathy and relief
"Mother" is a great movie, and demonstrates just how much of a master Bong Joon-ho is. It's a must-see!
The director wanted to make the last dancing-in-the-bus scene to portray all damned mothers burning alive and screaming in hell. So they took a few days to complete the shot as they could only film it during a brief moment during sunset. If you think about this and re-watch the last scene, you can almost hear their scream...truly one of the most scary and eerie movie scenes ever.
nah ur actually tripping 😭😭😭
Wow, that actually makes sense as it contrasts what was mentioned by the mother. If I remember correctly, the mother said earlier in the movie about being in heaven and stuff.
Wow! I always thought it was a moment of freedom and emancipation (from her memories, her son and the role of the overbearing mother) so some strange sort of "happy" ending. If you as a viewer suppress the memories of what she did, you can even find some solace in that moment, too.
Your interpretation completely destroyed my naive view 😥
The emotional brutality of that film is truly crushing
@@dianademara5637 it came across that way to me too
It's not about hell. It's a moment of liberation, maybe redemption. Sad and poetically ironic because she's far from happy right at that moment, but life goes on and as a mother she did what she could.
The ending scene of this movie just so powerful that I hardly can think of any other ending that can compete. It is beyond art, just genius creation
The best part of this movie is the subversion of good and evil, which is also present in other Bong Joon-Ho's movies. It conveys that feeling that no one can save themselves without oppressing someone else.
Take a look at Mother and it's wonderful irony: you spend all the movie rooting for this poor old lady struggling against a great injustice, and you can feel that misery and impotence. And in the end not only you (and her) discover that this crusade was invain, but the movie ends with another even bigger sense of injustice, but this time perpetrated by the "hero". And so an even more innocent and vulnerable person gets thrown under the bus.
as i watched the movie yesterday I'm still struggling to come to terms with the fact that it was actually Do Joon that killed the girl and he gave the reason as to why he left her on the roof so that someone could quickly come help her, but he thinks it isn't him because of his frequent memory loses
She got too blinded by her love for her son. If only she had actually let her son serve his jail time, an innocent person could have been saved from it.
In the end, she even asks jp( the one who gets jailed instead of her son) whether he has parents. Specifically a mother. Not because she cares for him, but because she wants to make sure no one will again try to save him or prove his alibi. It was cruel.
I felt anger towards the woman who I was rooting for all along in the film
Holy crap no wonder why she broke down when JP told her he has no mother.
@@_ashmason007hmm I think she did care there cuz why else would she cry?
I wish Hye-ja Kim would've been nominated and won an Oscar for her performance in Mother. She was amazing and mesmerizing.
It took me a third viewing spaced out over a few years to finally appreciate what a wonderful and beautiful film this is. I like your point about 'concealment' being an important theme in the movie. For me, it was about a mother's love that can be beautiful and terrifying. The mother dance at the beginning and the end was truly mesmerizing --- either/both an ascent/descent into euphoria or madness. Fantastic performances by the mother and the son. Did everyone catch a glimpse of the actress who played the original housekeeper in Parasite? She's in the funeral/memorial scene for the girl. Thank you for a great review/description of another masterpiece by Bong Joon Ho. I read that the actress felt uncomfortable dancing solo in that field so Bong Joon Ho was behind the camera dancing with her -- what a director... anything to make it more comfortable for his actors so that they do their best work.
'Mother' has so many different themes and ideas- was very hard to decide on which aspect to talk about
that's so cute .. i remember a similar story about Matilda behind the scene, when Mara was too shy to dance alone in a dancing scene Dany Devitto (film director + actor who played Matilda dad) made the whole crew backstage dance for her 😁 its such gentle gesture
Spikima Movies I just watched it for the first time last month (a long with The Host) and I feel like I need a rewatch to understand its themes. I still liked it, but I don't fully understand it yet.
Your video helped a lot though.😁
Yeh it needs multiple viewings mainly because the story itself is so prominent you forget about everything else! Not a bad thing at all tho!
spoiler similar both movie: throwing a large rock
In the host as well.
To love hurts.
To love kills.
To love distorts and
To love conceals.
Every bong joon ho movie felt different from any movie I saw. They were amazing 😍
Won bin was one of the best korean actors ever. I've never missed an actor as I missed him
this movie scared me because some mothers wil really allow their sons to do anything and they will still go to hell and back for them
@禅Aki you can support him while he's behind bars
Just watched this movie. Bong joonho's brain is so damn sexy
💀😭
AYOOO HSHAGA
💯
Mother is a masterclass in acting
I don’t like all of Bong’s movies, but several of them left a permanent images in my mind that give me the chills down my spine even to this day. A very talented filmmaker.
Mother is one of the best films I’ve ever watched in my life. The dance and the end of it nails simbolically everything and it is gigantic. This film is my inspiration to do art. Thanks for this perfectly pointed & explained resume. Congratulations!
The emphasis on the eyes really added to the scene when the cop came to tell her that they found the killer, you can see how impossible of a task it had become for her to not conceal the truth anymore as her eyes we're telling in the whole story. One of my favourite scenes front the movie
Didn’t know and aspect ratio completely changes the way we view the characters. Thank You for that.
omg , joker's dancing scene is similar with mother's dancing scene. not just dancing sequece but also dancing's background motive.
Good observation 🤔
And also before she killed the guy she said ''you are such a joker'' when he started talking with her.... :D:D:D:D
thats where the joker movie got it from. no joke
Lots of American movies drink on Asian Cinema
ewww
Of all the Bong Joong-ho films I've watched, Mother was the most emotionally draining to watch.
Both Parasite and Mother are amazing movies with both having great twist endings you didn't see coming..
Some scenes in Mother have hit me emotionally with a ton of bricks. Like the scene with his son in prison. This film shows how far is a mother willing to go to protect her child, even though she didn't want him at the beginning. The ending is bittersweet and in my opinion perfect for the story. They are going to screen it here in Italy in July in theaters, I hope I'll be able to go and see it again on the big screen 😊
I just watched Mother for the first time and stumbled upon this video study of the film. I liked the coherence of your points and you pointed out some powerful chess moves than Bong Joon-Ho included within the film (most notably the scene where the kid reveals the beaten half of his face). I interpreted the film slightly differently; I saw it as a character study of the titular Mother. For me, the film explored this character psychologically and her relationship with motherhood in the context of the socioeconomic backdrop of the story. Her relationship with her son is her driver/her purpose, and I read the film as a series of circumstances that throw her preconceived ideologies into disarray or psychosis. The dances at the beginning and at the end of the film are physical embodiments of her mental state - of tragedy, psychosis, disarray or chaos. I completely agree with you on the stylistic choice that Joon-Ho made in terms of audience distancing, creating that voyeuristic element. Anyway, I just subscribed to your channel because I like that this review challenged my own interpretation of the film and stimulated a dialogue. :)
Great..! What you pointed out is most definitely a big part of what the film is about. There are many things the film discusses and I decided to focus on a theme that not many seem to catch/talk about! Happy to hear you enjoyed it !
How do you analyze films in this intricate manner ? please teach me , I want to learn
@Renzo Williams All your points about the junk collector being the killer are in the movie because the director made the junk collector suspicious so that audience wouldn’t see the end coming.
You gave two reasons to prove the killer was the junk collector. Kevin showed your first reason was incorrect because we do get a very good reason for why the son would put the girl up there. But I noticed your reply didn’t address that. Instead you just said the junk collector could have also put her up there.
Now your second reason: the son holding his head when he remembers something. He doesn’t just hold his head when he’s trying to remember. He also holds his head when he’s confused or trying to to figure stuff out.So that would explain why he held his head in that situation.
Unless you have other reasons for why the son couldn’t possibly do it, I think the junk collector was a decoy and the son did actually do it.
Just got around to watching this film recently and I find this to be an interesting point @ 13:09 because right after she killed the old man and realizes what she's done, she said something to the effect of "What do I do, mom?", showing that while she is meticulously prepared and thougtful in looking out for herself and her son, there are still moments she couldn't possibly be prepared and never learned how to deal with. It's the one moment that hints at her still needing guidance herself, or a savior as you put it, and in her mind, that guidance could only come from a mother.
This movie blew my mind, not all mothers are alike, but a mother’s love is universal. The most successful movies are ones that can make you relate to your life. This movie does exactly that, I see my mother through the screen
This is an amazing analysis. So many little details you caught on here which really give an insight into some of Bong Joon Ho's intricate writing and directorial choices. Great video!
Dude your Channel is super underrated. The research you put in, and the details you point out are so well thought out!
Thanks for noticing! ;)
The ending scene was insane. just wow. It is what the art is
To explain how to dance on the bus, it is like Korea's tourist bus play enjoyed by older adults. When you see the dancers, they are all women. Dancing away from the time and space of home and on the bus shows their bacaition. its shows that they ar the same mother as the main character.
Director Bong Joon-ho thought this was ugly when he was young. But when he got older, he said he was both funny and sad.
There is a great deal of maternal love for my son in Korean sentiment. This is especially true of the characters in the work. It seems like a fanatic who falls in love with his son, but is the main character unique? No. Any mother could be like that. For my son.
The film is intended to question the twisted motherhood, or whether it can be called that.
I have a question, what about daughters? Or are fathers the same with their daughters?
@@ohmygodlawl When you even look at parents of terrorists/murderers it's usually the mother who is in denial and keeps pushing the narrative that their child is innocent. Even I remember my friend telling that in a Netflix documentary a serial killer's mother kept defending her son's actions even though he murdered people, tortured cats and is now convicted.
@@nimazsheik5152 not just mothers, the criminals themselves often justify their actions.
“to whom it may concern, under my coat is a weary heart, but a kind one - one that would do nobody any harm.” -Francis Crowley, a serial murderer
Or
"I have spent the best years of my life giving people the lighter pleasures, helping them have a good time, and all I get is abuse, the existence of a hunted man"-al capone
Just shows how bias can blind us
I rewatched Mother again today. It felt so weird like I haven't seen it before, but in the back of my mind I knew I watched it years ago.
To me, both Mother and especially Memories of Murder are far more rewatchable than Parasite. Parasite is probably the best 1st watch of the three for the sheer spectacle, but it is that very same spectacle that gives it diminishing returns on subsequent viewings.
I took you advice and the watched the movie before continuing the video.
Omfg dude! Thank you!! and Thank you for this piece!
What an amazing review. Learned a lot about aspect ratio, position of frames etc. Thank you
I'll never forget this movie. Mother is his masterpiece.
I had to watch that movie twice before I realized what a work of genius it is.
Just watched the movie this morning, i liked memories of murder better but mother is stuck in my head especially after that one line " be more careful "
theres some enigmatic power and beauty in bong's movies .. i cant describe that but it surely intrigues me from the start of the movie.. i became his instant fan after watching Memories of Murder.. and though i watched Zodiac first .. i didnt feel that much of satisfaction from Zodiac but memories of murder created a 'happy despair' ending for me.. Great Work as Always man ♥ .. Love from India ♥ ♥ ♥
Thanks so much, I'm glad I found this channel because this is one of the best video essays I've seen in years of watching so many repetitive and often uninformative essays. Your care for detail is thought provoking and reminded me why I love this medium. Damn, you're so overlooked.
What a compliment. Thanks and glad you enjoyed it!
@@SpikimaMovies I'm literally watching all of your videos now. I know you said you don't like to call them essays, but let me at least say that you've put more effort and detail than most of channels who proudly call themselves "essayists", all with a really good style in editing
@@bruschetta6302 wonderful! Genuinely happy you enjoyed my works! :)
Thanks for the great explanation of the picture ratio. I often hear people talk about it but didn't understand.
The variety of tones and moods in his films make them feel somehow epic.
The way you described this film blew my mind man!
This movie is simple but goes to the core. Very unpredictable! Bravo!
Wow i've watched this in 2012. People who likes Parasite should watch this too
This is an awesome review. You have restored my faith in watching movie again.
the worse when the mother cry for jong pal, she know he is innocent and she know that he has no mother to fight for his innocent
Thanks for the breakdown, this is an amazing movie! I remember sitting in silence for about 20 minutes after I watched it the first time. It’s deep.
I watched The Man From Nowhere before seeing Mother. I couldn’t believe the handsome lead from the first film was the actor portraying the son in the latter.
The hand over the eye scene is the most pivotal scene for the audience. It reveals the attempt of the murder-suicide of his past. It reveals the mother's overprotection of her son's memory, for her own intentions. It reveals how she mentally, physically, and emotionally disabled him to keep him in boyhood. It reveals the lengths she'll go to cover up her on wrongdoings. It reveals how she'll misuse "love" to not hold herself accountable fir nefarious actions. It reveals how she taught her son that it's okay to be volatile for pride... But it then it shows the audience her response to truths being revealed; She loses her mind. It is at the moment the film foreshadows what she will ultimately do once the truth is revealed.
We the audience were told to trust no one in the town, by the son's friend. In that moment the audience gives their trust to Mother. I scream at the brilliance of it all.
Mother is my favorite one from Bong's catalogue. Just brilliant.
Thank you for this video! I just watched Mother recently and was just stunned at its construction.
If you liked Parasite, Mother should be on your list.
Last scene of this movie is just.......wow...
Mother is an amazing film. Though the main theme seems to be about the lenght to which a mother would go to protect her son, the subtle, underlying secret of the film is that the mother's obssesion with her son is what made him the way he is. She is unable to let go of her son to become his own entity outside of her and she knows it, this is emphasized three times: first when he remebers she tried to kill him, second time when she cried out knowing JP doesn't have parents ( deep down she wishes to be caught) and the third time in the ending scene when he gives her her acupuncture kit. She's unable to step out of her cycle and she's forever doomed to live the guilt, shame and pain of her own narcissism and psychopathy.
the masterpiece in all time. half profile shot, a half-truth. “Life is a tragedy when seen in close-up, but a comedy in long-shot.” by Charlie Chaplin but in this Tragedy to the end. MUST SEE.
Just wondering, did anyone feel like "The three billboards" is a US version of "Mother" + "Memories of Murder"?
The mixed tones of dark, comedy and thriller, and that strange mood of uncomfort out of comfort small town..
and incompetent cops too!
Love to see this film as a double with Poetry by Lee Chang Dong. This film and Poetry are two sides of the same coin.
Like decalcomani. That’s right.
I agree.
My favorite Korean film. Hye-Ja Kim is brilliant in the title role.
Please discuse a korean masterpice “the wailing 2016” because ppl should shine more light on it had to watch it 4 times to trully understand it its amazing highly recomend it
That movie is truly a masterpiece
Snd also Burning is another masterpiece
Loved "The Wailing". I do feel that the movie would have benefited from an absence of comedy (more referring to the doofy lead) because it upset the atmosphere a bit, however, that can easily be ignored because it's a solid film, all in all. Plus, Jun Kunimura is awesome in it, as he is in everything else.
I watched this movie years ago and kind of forgot the title but it never left the back of my mind. I just couldn’t ever remember the title. But recently, I found it and watched it again, and I gotta say, there was a reason as to why I couldn’t ever forget it.
Wonderful review. Mother is one of my favorite movies. A punch in the gut.
I disagree with your interpretation of the eye covering scene. However you do make an interesting observation. The reason I think it's an honest retelling of the mother trying to kill the son story is because of how the mother reacts. She tries to force him to forget that moment, she never denies it from happening. What I think the hand gesture means is that the mother was the one who caused her son to become mentally challenged. Just look at the way he tells the story. When he begins the story his hand covers his eye, and his face appears normal, once he reveals what his mother did, he then removes his hand revealing his sluggish eye. I think what Bong is communicating through this simple gesture is that the mother is actually a root cause of her son's memory problems, and his mental capacity.... This is just what I think, could be wrong... I do enjoy your interpretation though.
I don’t think he was saying that the sons retelling is necessarily dishonest but that’s it’s not the whole truth which is the reoccurring theme of the film. Yes everything he said was true but it leaves out the context of WHY the mother took that route, which leads into the point that he was making on the scene. I saw her pleading to just be her desperate attempt at getting him to forget a memory that could potentially be the reason she loses her sons love, not to outright suppress the truth but more so to keep their bond
the mother's undying love towards her mentally challenged son is because she feels guilty of the fact that she is responsible for the condition his in right now
@@Cambria358 I agree that the recurring theme in this film is discovering the truth behind what is presented. However I think in that particular scene, the truth actually lies with what the son is saying rather than the mother. In that scene the mother is scrambling to get the son to forget a moment, while the son revealing something very dark about her. I don't think he's presenting a lie in this case. The way he reveals his sluggish eye is Bong's method of visually trying to reveal a back story to the audience. He's trying to get us to see that the mother isn't as innocent as she presents herself.
Mother is a true Masterpiece. Phenomenal and brilliant. I love art that is captivating. Truly taking the audience on a journey. I love storytelling when done well.
Haha i remember watching his movies when i was alot younger, he was a big part of my adolescence
Another terrific video! You keep knocking it out of the park!
why korean movies are awesome !
Just some of the directors are.
Mostly born in the 60's or 70's.
Korean directors in relatively younger generations create films that are not up to the scratch these days.
Bong Joon Ho is a genius
Thank you so much for a thoroughly well crafted critique! 🙂
This is the movie that opened my eyes to Korean cinema.
Beautiful I will have to watch this. I miss my kids.
Been working through his films and quickly realizing I watched the best one first
Bong Joon-Ho is my favourite ❣️I watched Parasite and Memories of Murder but didn’t know that it was him who is the head behind it 🤯I just saw the Mother trailer and I can’t wait to watch it😦I think he is absolutely brilliant 💎✨can’t wait to see all his other movies ❤️🔥
That was so good.
Made me cry
Thank you
personally consider Mother to be the best film to embrace the sentiment of Han恨
You forgot to mention how society (korea and the world) still misunderstand and mistreat people with mental illness/disability. Btw very nice review for this great movie.
thats not the point of the movie wanker
Thank you for your detailed review. I'm waiting for Korean subtitles.
The one thing that catch my attention is that how the son look at her mother at the bus station through the glass window....it terrifying me somehow😂....anyway it's a great movie and you fid a good job at explanation too...now I'll be more focused on their eyes especially at bong joon ho's work.....my fav in his work is memories of murder
Film is how the individua interprets it. The scene of the son uncovering his face to tell his mom the story he remembered without full context mean't kind of the opposite to what you and the film critic took it as (spoilers although if you're watching the video, then it's just me going in depth).
You said the scene was the sun covering half his face implying he's not trust worthy. When he says he remembers his mom trying to kill him and uncovers his face to reveal a bruised eye, you said the asymmetry is implying how his story is flawed because it failed to consider the mom trying to commit double suicide. To me though, that was the whole story. He's not wrong, full context or not. His mom tried to kill him. He didn't no the wiser and suicide wasn't something he was constenting to as a five year old. I saw him exposing his full face as a sybmol of exposing her. Showing the ugly truth to his mother and the his eyes are open. The bruise on his face was kind of symbolic to how she hurt him as well.
Mother is one of the best movies out there. Amazing.
Won Bin playing an intellectually-disabled person alone is enough to be a reason to watch this film.
like your commentary. thank you for sharing this marvelous film.
This was such a beautiful movie review.
This film is horrifyingly beautiful
Old boy is also a great korean movie. A must see movie.
Do-Joon wasn't the killer, and that's a mistake I see many reviewers commit. The killer was the old man who Mother killed at the end, he instantly recognized her and told a lie to make her reveal herself, however Mother killed him believing his lies, and that's what makes this movie beautiful, is not about what really happened, is about Mother's reality, she will live the rest of her life thinking she killed an innocent man, that her son was the killer, and that she is to blame for her son's killing, because she is the one who told her son to fight anyone who called him retarded, so she will forever believe she ruined 4 people's lives: her son, the murdered girl, the old man and the special needs guy who ended up in jail for the crime.
Mother did traumatize me! I absolutely love this movie!
People need to watch more foreign cinema! And mother and his other work is great and people need to give them a watch!
I just watched Mother, and your review is great!
I just finished watching Mother, It was amazing.
와우!! 굉장히 예리하고 정확한 시선으로 마더를 풀어버여주셔서 감사합니다. 저도 봉준호감독의 영화들을 사랑하고 애정하지만 마더같은 경우 약간 어려운 느낌이어서 자주 보게되는 작품은 아니었는데요. 스키피아님깨서 이 영화의 포인트를 잘 집어주신것 같네요. 덕분에 조금 더 이해가 되네요.
I recently saw the movie and it reminded me of an old Indian movie Mother India 1956 . I cannot stop wondering how these two movies are similar and so different at the same time.
I wish people talk more about Park Chan Wook too.
Just watched the movie,and couldn't miss how similar the mother is to Lady Macbeth, in the guilt, how she keeps staring at her hands, even the dramatic scraming, the cover up and trying to save her son. In a sense it's foreshadowing that she might actually go crazy and kills herself too.
Moral of the story: call your mother
I love this movie so much
the noise that rock made xD i feel bad but its kinda funny
Another detail to add is that the mother’s legs at the end are unequal when she does acupuncture on herself. Medically this is cellulitis from performing acupuncture on herself so many times with an unclean needle in order to try and forget the bad memory. The meridian point she was talking about the entire movie.