The Twists Keep On Coming at a Riveting Rate in Mother

SPOILERS FOR MOTHER AND OTHER BONG JOON-HO MOVIES AHEAD


There's so much to love in the work of Bong Joon-ho but I especially love how unpredictable they are. Any old hack can populate a story with all kinds of easy twists and turns but in the works of this auteur filmmaker, you can see the ideal manner in which to pull off unexpected storytelling turns. The twists in Joon-ho's work actually have a major impact on the story itself, for one thing, they're not just around for the sake of having twists, they tend to reinforce themes in the story (like the twists in Parasite or Snowpiercer) and especially to emphasize the complex sense of morality that runs throughout his entire filmography. For example, though he may be a fighter for the little guy and played by Captain America himself, the lead character of Snowpiercer is no typical stalwart protagonist. 

Prepare For Cinematic Bliss With Parasite

Please forgive the vagueness of certain parts of this review of Parasite, as you're bound to have heard by now, this is a movie that's best to go into with little in the way of expectations on what exactly you're getting into. Some movies merely use empty twists as a substitute for actual storytelling and then there are films like Parasite that are a master course in how to do twisty-turny storytelling right. Every inch of this intricately put-together production has a greater purpose and that includes the brilliantly executed revelations that upend the plot. Far be it from me to spoil such shocking moments so let's instead spend this review combing over what a miraculous creation Parasite is in as spoiler-free of terms as possible.

Memories of Murder Is Crime Thriller Cinema At Its Finest!

Prior to 1986, there had never been a serial killer in South Korea. That all changed once the Hwaseong Serial Murders occurred and sent investigators into a spiral to try and find out who could be behind this unprecedented crime spree. This effort is chronicled in Bong Joon-ho's 2003 movie Memories of Murder, which follows detectives Park Doo-man (Song Kang-ho) and Seo Tae-yoon (Kim Sang-kyung) having to work together in order to track down a killer that proves to be as elusive any ancient diamond. The two of them are like a classic buddy cop duo, Park Doo-man is a confident local detective that always trusts his gut while Seo Tae-yoon is an out-of-town detective whose experiences in the field have left him with a more meditative sense of deduction.

Okja Is A Monster Of A Movie Capable Of Great Absurdity And Equally Great Emotions

Okja is not director Bong Joon-Ho's first time around the science-fiction track, but each time he comes into the genre, he tackles a new corner of science-fiction. For The Host, he was making a film in the style of classic monster movies while Snowpiercer is like any number of super-violent and allegorical high concept movies John Carpenter made in the 1980's. What kind of storytelling terrain does his newest science-fiction venture, Okja, occupy? Interestingly, it seems like its storytelling sensibilities hew closer to both ecologically aware science-fiction movies and heartwarming tales that filter the "a boy and their dog" stories through science-fiction means i.e. The Iron Giant and Big Hero 6.

The Host Is The Monster Movie With The Most!

All kinds of genres have gotten a revamp in the 21st century (for instance, comparing 20th century and 21st century superhero movies is akin to comparing apples and submarines, as Jeffrey Katzenberg might put it) and the o'l monster movie hasn't been immune to the kind of audacious reimaginings this centuries filmmakers have applied to other genre mainstays of world cinema. Matt Reeves 2008 feature Cloverfield used the found-footage filming method to bring the viewer up close and personal to a monster attacking a city and how it affects normal people, Guillermo Del Toro gave the Kaiju genre his own distinctive charm and creativity with Pacific Rim and one of the most beloved movie monsters of all-time debuted this year in Monster Trucks.

The Book Of Henry Has Lots Of Strange Plot Turns But What's The Point Of It All?

SPOILERS FOR THE BOOK OF HENRY WITHIN

While the film geek community was aware that director Collin Trevorrow had a movie called The Book of Henry on the docket for release in 2017, the feature didn't gain all that much in the way of attention until it's bonkers first trailer was released, revealing the movies bonkers-looking plotline and immediately rocketing itself onto many people's radars. I'll freely admit to being one such person whose interest got piqued by the absolutely tonally all-over-the-map trailer which combined super-inventive kid movie tropes with Naomi Watts as a sniper action. The biggest question remaining for me and many others after watching that trailer was whether or not the actual movie itself would be this crazy....

Trailers For New David Ayer And Bong Joon-Ho Movies Give A Peek Into Netflix's Ambitious 2017 Movies Slate

This image of Jake Gyllenhaal on the set of Okja will be my new go-to image of Jake Gyllenhaal for any occasion

Thus far, Netflix's forays into original cinematic offerings have not been greeted with the same level of audience adoration nor awards attention that their TV fare has. In 2017, it looks like they're very much trying to change that, with practically each week this week bringing some sort of new Netflix movie To boot, those new Netflix feature films are high-profile offerings starring the likes of Lily Collins (To The Bone). Jason Segel & Rooney Mara & Robert Redford (The Discovery), Melissa Leo (The Most Hated Woman In America), Henry Cavill (Sand Castle), Alexander Skarsgard (Mute) and Brad Pitt (War Machine).