KOREAN MOVIE " I'M A CYBORG,BUT THAT'S OK " ENGLISH SUBTITLE
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DVD details
Primary Contributor: Park Chan Wook / Rain (Jung Ji Hoon) / Lim Soo JungDVD: Region Code 0
Audio: Korean (Unknown); English (Subtitled)
Format: NTSC
DVD Reviews of KOREAN MOVIE " I'M A CYBORG,BUT THAT'S OK " ENGLISH SUBTITLE
DVD Review: "I'll get you your dentures, and kill them all."
Summary: 3 Stars
Korean director Chan-wook Park is the man. He stretched his fame across the Pacific ocean with his legendary "Vengeance Trilogy", three tales of brutal retribution including the modern ownage classic Oldboy. Then again, his entry into the Asian horror anthology film 3 Extremes was a depraved vengeance yarn as well. And you know what? This one could be seen as yet another quest for revenge. The man's definitely got his trademark theme down pat. But unlike the others, "I'm a Cyborg, But That's OK" is a light-hearted romantic comedy of sorts and far from a horror film. But it's still extremely bizarre and offbeat so don't fret, fellow cult film fanatics.
"Cyborg" begins with our heroine, Young-goon, working away at a very mechanical kind of factory job with instructions coming from the loudspeakers. When she hears the voice instruct her to slit her wrist, insert a wire into it, and plug it into the power, it's apparent something isn't quite right. In her mind, she has just recharged her power, which is measured by the lights on her toenails lighting up, one for each level. Yeah, the girl sees things that aren't entirely there and is diagnosed as schizophrenia and shipped off the the Cuckoo's Nest. There she meets the cast of characters including a man who believes any mishap is his fault and walks backwards to avoid offending anybody, a mythomanic girl who poses as a nurse and makes up wild stories about other resident's lives, and a masked kleptomaniac who steals things that can't exactly be stolen such as a ping-pong serve or feelings. Young-goon soon stops eating, believing that it is robbing her of the cyborg powers she needs to avenge her grandmother, who believed she was a mouse and was also taken to a sanitarium. It appears that her cyborg fantasy stems from the powerlessness she felt as she tried to catch up with the vehicle that hauled granny away. So as she wastes away, only waking up when shock treatment is administered, "recharging" her, her klepto friend enters her fantasy with her and devises a way to save her, and in the end maybe fix them both.
"Cyborg" is a very endearing film that is positioned as a comedy, but has very few actual jokes. The humor is based off of the quirkiness of the cast and feels a bit like Napoleon Dynamite in an asylum in that sense. Korean pop megastar and sworn enemy of Stephen Colbert Rain costars with a charming and sedate Lim Soo Jung. The performances are about flawless all around. Oh, and there is yodeling involved. Awesome. The film is visually amazing at times with Young-goon's machine gun rampage fantasies being the highlight. It's also worth noting that the sanitarium grounds appear as lush and beautiful environments, which one can assume is the way it is perceived by the couple when they are together; the world becomes beautiful. The result is a shockingly pretty film for one that takes place almost entirely in such a normally drab-looking place. Credit for Park is well-earned there. And if you thought the kiss from Spider-Man was creative and attention-grabbing, then you've really got to see the one in this film. It beats all. The score is also whimsically fantastic and entertaining in and of itself.
While I applaud Park changing gears and doing something really light-hearted and unique with this film, it does have it's issues and turns out a bit disappointing considering the director and strength of the premise. It's about half an hour too long and has long stretches where the plot (if you can call it that) doesn't progress in any meaningful way. I actually had to get up and take a break while watching the film to avoid falling asleep more then once. The fact that much of the film is just Young-goo lying on her back doesn't help. More interaction or subplots with the other patients would have been time better spent in my opinion. "Cyborg" also has a complete and total lack of a climax, almost as thought Park just said "well, I'm out of ideas, that's a wrap" and rolled the credits. There are clues as to the meaning of the final scene, but a very, very, very wide shot of the couple leaves much up to the viewer's imagination as to what the conclusion is.
Indie, cult, and Asian cinema fanatics should find a lot to like with "I'm a Cyborg, and That's OK", but in spite of it's many charms and the talent of it's cast and director, it simply moves too slow and often lacks direction. The surreal nature of the film is refreshing, the antics of the patients are often amusing and endearing as well as being a commentary on Asian culture, and the CG flourishes add a ton of entertainment value so if the concept intrigues you, give this a shot. But personally, this is just a placeholding diversion for me until I get my hands on Park's upcoming return to horror "Thirst". But "Cyborg" is definitely worth seeing as a whole new kind of black humor from one of Korea's finest directors.
3 1/2 stars rounded down for length.
Description of KOREAN MOVIE " I'M A CYBORG,BUT THAT'S OK " ENGLISH SUBTITLE
Perhaps the most irreverent of all Park Chan Wook films, I'm a Cyborg, But That's OK is a delight for the eyes, and much more than a simple romantic comedy. It features the usual stylish innuendo and eye-grabbing visuals of Park's past works, but with a markedly different, more light-hearted sense of humor. The film is whimsically surreal and often laugh-out-loud funny. Although the talent of Lim Soo Jung is certainly not a surprise, it's Rain who raises eyebrows with this role. One of Asia's biggest pop stars, Rain has also found success and popularity as a television actor with dramas like Sang Doo, Let's Go to School and Full House, but the verdict on his acting skills was still open. If anything, I'm a Cyborg, But That's OK proves that with the right guidance Rain can truly become a fine actor, and that Park Chan Wook still has many more surprises under his belt.Bestsellers in DVD
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