truemythmedia

I am a huge fan of Bong Joon Ho ("Memories of Murder", "Parasite"). I thought this movie was decent, but I didn't love it nearly as much as (any of) his other films. I think my biggest hurdle I had to overcome with this film was that it finds humor in animal abuse, and I do not. This is a dark comedy, and I have to admit that from a filmmaking perspective it is well done, but my personal preferences kept me from enjoying this movie completely. That being said, if you can get over the hurdle of finding humor in animal abuse, there are a couple interesting interactions between characters that do come off as quite funny.

"Bong has made a career around focusing on the class struggle which all of us face in our daily lives. This film shows us the poorest of the poor and follows them as they slaughter their way through the rich, trying to upset the balance, trying to make the system crumble. It's no secret that we live in a world where the 1% controls 99% of the wealth. Jeff Bezos has more money than he could spend in a dozen lifetimes; but I guarantee there's a single mother that works in one of Bezos' warehouses that is struggling to put food in her kid's belly; worse yet, how many kids in third world countries are forced into labor to produce Nike shoes, Apple products, or name brand clothes?

If a system can only continue to run when it exploits the weak and powerless, then that system is already broken. I've never advocated for violence, but this movie makes a rather compelling case that the system through which humanity is surviving upon right now is not only doomed to fail, it absolutely deserves to fail. Give me another ten years of low wages, growing desperation of wealth, corrupt government officials, and inequal treatment in the eyes of the law, and I might well be ready to take to the streets.

Remember, 1%: we are the 99%, we outnumber you a million to one, and we are hungry and increasingly angry.

While this is far from my favorite Bong Joon Ho movie, I honestly think it's one of his most accessible. This is a fun action flick with some great worldbuilding, some awesome characters, and some truly relevant themes. I wholeheartedly recommend "Snowpiercer".

Mother is one of the best murder mystery thrillers that I've personally seen in a long time, from the hypnotic opening dance scene to bookended bus dance, this film is a complete package, filled with humor and wit, but underlined with dread and dispair, showcasing a mother's love that only they could understand, bleeding with raw emotion and perseverance to clear her son's name, it's a brutally honest tale of blame and suffering, but with cracks and gaps of hope to bring together a truly wonderful story with an unforgettable ending, filled with strong narrative twists and stronger pay offs, Mother is an early home run for Bong Joon-Ho and I strongly recommend it to any crime thriller fan.