The Handmaiden
The Handmaiden by Park Chan Wook is a revenge thriller/history film that takes place in Korea (occupied by Japan back then) around the 1930s. The plot is frankly sexual yet voluptuously beautiful, sometimes horrifically violent and perverse. At times, the very core of the movie even feels quite inexplicable.
Yet, despite all that, the disparate pieces throughout the movies are set up with great care, with well-written characters that are acted out by talented actors. Their psychological acuity is so exceptional that you can naturally blend in with their stories, rarely feeling like the director/writer is trying to rub everything in your face.
Most of The Handmaiden occurs around and inside the country estate of a book collector - a beautifully realized mansion that's not simply stunning due to its splendid design - only rivaled by the estate in "Crimson Peak," another Gothic romance of the modern era - but also serves as the entire film's organizing metaphor.
Nothing in the movie is what it looks like. Soon enough, the audience will start asking themselves many questions. What does the character hope for? What goal he's trying to achieve by stealing that, doing this, sneaking here? Do they spy in secret, or does the person being spied on know that someone is watching?
Release: 2016
Genre: Thriller, Mystery
Stars: Kim Min Hee, Kim Tae Ri, Ha Jung Woo
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 96%
