Memories of Murder is a policier based on the actual case of the first recorded serial killer in Korea's history. The rape murders began in 1986 in Hwaseong, a small village south of Seoul, and continued for several years during a time of political upheaval in South Korea. Detective Park Doo-man (Song Kang-ho of Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance), an overconfident local cop, is assigned to the case, taking along his partner, Detective Cho Yong-koo (Kim Rwe-ha), whose interrogation methods involve covering his boot with a cloth so it won't leave scratches on detainees' necks. After the first few murders, they quickly narrow their sights on a suspect (Park Noh-shik). Seo Tae-yoon (Kim Sang-kyung of Turning Gate), a young detective from Seoul, volunteers to work on the case. Park resents his presence, but Seo quickly realizes that the locals have the wrong man. Before he can share his ideas, the department is humiliated, and the police chief is replaced. Seo quietly begins to piece together a pattern to the murders. For one thing, they all took place in the rain, and the victims all wore red. But the murderer seems to be one step ahead of the cops. Working independently (they disdain each other's methods), Park and Seo stumble upon another suspect, and the two local cops work on beating a confession out of him. But it's soon clear that they've arrested the wrong man yet again. They become more desperate, and the case begins to take a devastating toll on the policemen's lives. Memories of Murder, directed by Bong Joon-ho from a script by Bong, Kim Kwang-rim, and Shim Sung-bo, was a huge box-office hit in South Korea. The film won several awards at the 2003 San Sebastián Film Festival and was also shown at the 2004 New York Korean Film Festival. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
Review by All Movie Guide
All Movie Guide
liked it.
Bong Joon-ho's Memories of Murder is a truly stunning work, and merits mention alongside
Silence of the Lambs and Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer as an effective serial killer film that transcends the genre to offer an incisive analysis of the culture that produced the crime. Set during a period of social unrest and subsequent crackdown under the military dictatorship that ruled South Korea during the late '80s, the film offers the thrills and chills typical of a good policier (the gunshot-like musical cues that kick off several action sequences are one demonstration of the filmmakers' expert handling of the tension-release dynamics of the genre), along with wonderful performances, particularly that of star Song Kang-ho. Song's rich turn as Park, a small-town cop in way over his head, reaches a comic peak in the bathhouse scene, wherein Park misguidedly looks for a hairless male suspect. But underlying the dark humor of the Keystone Kops-like cycle of bungling and beatings is a scathing satire of brutal police procedures and the repressive culture that fostered them. As accomplished a drama it is --simultaneously frightening, disturbing, funny, and deeply moving --Bong's film really distinguishes itself as a sardonic political allegory of governmental brutality and corruption, which engulfs even the best and brightest who labor within its structure. Bong cunningly gets at how repression allows sociopathic behavior to thrive. The lasting impact of all this violence isn't made fully clear until the film's haunting final exchange. Memories of Murder is a powerful work. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide