Quote:
Originally Posted by jackhammer
Comedies? Michael Winterbottom? You sure? He has made a couple of TV films that have elements of comedy but that is not his thing and never has been. 24 hour party people, code 46, a cock and bull story, the killer inside me - comedies? Err no.
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I may have been off base with generalizing him as a comedic director. Those films I highlighted plus The Trip...are comedies. At least I took them as comedies. There are dramatic elements but the laughs outweighed the drama in my opinion. I've only seen Code 46 and Sarajevo though so I'm not familiar with his drama resume.
Poetry
I'm a huge fan of Korean cinema. I think that films coming out of that country rewrite a lot of ways you can tell a story and portray one on film. Most have been action thrillers but I've seen a couple dramadies and serious films.
Poetry however was a completely unique experience for me. I had put it off for a while due to the cover on Netflix which portrayed it as a warm hearted ode to poetry and old age. That is not this film. Sure it has those aspects sprinkled in but this is a much deeper movie and one that proves to be heartbreaking and powerful. The lead actress, Jeong-hie Yun, was phenomenal. She expressed so much emotion and pain without action. It was in her face and stature. These are the performances that really get me. It kind of reminded me a bit of Paul Giamatti in Sideways. I know this is sort of a stretch due to the complete opposite appearance but both were snubbed t the Oscars that year after delivering truly gut wrenching visceral performances. If you like Korean film at all I urge you to check this out. Give it time because it's slow but like the title suggests it is a poetic film with just an incredible lead performance that will haunt you after it's over.
8/10