michaelfloro

There are many films that bring deep criticism (or "denounces") out there, it's true. You can think of brilliant Ken Loach and Hirokazu Koreeda films, but also of many non-commercial works made around the world by all kinds of directors and all their cultural differences, denouncing all kinds of situations (and there are many of them). They are almost all very interesting, with no doubt. But dealing with so many delicate and impactful things at the same time, like Lee Chang-dong did in "Oasis", it's really something unique, at least in my experience as a fan of cinema.

There is not, in Oasis, only one constant and linearly addressed main factor, as is usualy seen in movies. There are actually many of them and at the same time. A lot of punches thrown simultaneously at the viewer (by the way, I think that all of them are well observed by the specialized critics, by the user reviews and also by the viewers' comments on the internet forums, so I suggest you go read all of them, because it will certainly enrich your experience***). And I really believed that such a variety of sensitive and complex themes could not simultaneously occupy a single film without seeming tossed and shallow. Or without being at least the main object of analysis of the plot of different films with different characteristics.

The situations, the characters, their peculiar conditions (physical, psychological, emotional, etc.), their actions (or non-actions), their conversations (or non-conversations), their families, those who are responsible, the authorities, the society around... everything in the film has the ability to make the viewer uncomfortable. And does it in a balanced and accurate way. While many directors explore exaggeration and villainy, in Oasis we see a believable version of the absurd that involves some sad realities. So definitely, in my opinion, Lee Chan-dong (who was a novelist, by the way) is a very special artist and did something unique here.

(I would like to apologize for any writing errors, as I am not an English speaker.)

*** perhaps I can add two personal views that I didn't read in any place:

1) Talking to a psychologist friend of mine, I was able to learn something from this film that I had no idea about and that I have not read in another opinion or review. Cerebral palsy (main character Gong-ju Han's condition) does not necessarily involve a change in the ability to think, but more (or only) a limitation in the control of the physical body. This has greatly changed my perspective on people with this trait. And it heightened the sensitivity of the scenes in which she imagines herself as a "normal" person on her romantic moments with Jong-du Hong.

2) This may be personal, but I noticed something I would like to share: sometimes there is a difficulty in evaluating films that deal with heavy subjects when something there does not "satisfy" some people. I think this is part of the game (you know, someone who gets frustrated after seeing things that aren't pleasant), although I don't know if it's fair to the artists who put these items in that way there on purpose, to provoke reactions, questions and thoughts. And I also think this is something that cinema fans must overcome, even if with difficulty.

This film is more than telling a story about something or someone. It's about youth, aging, learning; it's about shame, passions, time, life, death. The characters, the historical background (which is crucial to understand the Taiwan New Cinema filmmakers), the acts in the scene, although special and remarkable, are "only" a special path. It's the beauty behind the ordinary acts and facts, that are an inherent part of human existence and that connects human beings around the world and through time. For me, there is nothing more valuable than this kind of work. Fortunately, there are many movies like this in the cinema. Fortunately there are people like Hsiao-Hsien Hou.

I once read a stretch of Tarkovsky's book, "Sculpting in Time", in which he says that one of the main functions of cinema is to address the issues that were targets of various arts over the centuries - the literature, more than anything else, showed us how could inspire many movies. I think that this film somehow fits in one of these points. Although completely different from the films made by the most famous Russian filmmaker, that I quoted, this film has - and shows - its value. Pasookkoon is a beautiful cinematographic work, which depicts perfectly the possible peculiarities of relations between people. A penetrating look. Congratulations to Sung-hyun Yoon director for the excellent direction and screenplay. The cast was also excellent.