Good lord I sound so ungrateful! Lets talk about the actual film...
“With a rich husband, cheating's just part of the package.”
Not exactly comforting words to hear from your own Mother when your husband's infidelity comes to life. Then again *nothing* about these characters is particularly 'comforting'.
Im Sang-soo's THE HOUSEMAID is a remake of the 1960 film of the same name and in the 50 years that have passed the rich have just gotten richer and, well, a touch evil. The titular character is Eun-yi, a poor young girl who gets the opportunity to work for a nice 'super-rich' family: A ludicrously handsome man (and skilled pianist), his heavily pregnant wife (with twins!) and they're lovely daughter Nami. They're all very polite and courteous to her but it soon becomes clear that only the daughter is genuine. The spark between the husband and Eun-yi is obvious and it doesn't take long for him to act upon it in a deliciously sexy scene where he abuses some power over her, despite her willingness. When she winds up pregnant with his kid, things get complicated and the second half lurches into a soap opera where characters are as immoral as they are wealthy. It's actually quite a lot of fun.
This film is the perfect kind of remake. For those who chastise remakes as a sign of film's decay into unoriginality, THE HOUSEMAID is proof that it can be done really well. In the original, it was the housemaid who was the 'evil' one, terrorizing the poor family that had worked so hard to become so wealthy. Here she's the victim, and that in itself is a tremendous statement about Korea's changing social attitudes. There's often a feeling that a remake is meant to 'replace' the original but these two films compliment each other perfectly.
Somehow I've written this much without mentioning Mrs Choi, the elderly housekeeper who also runs the home, guiding Eun-yi. She's seen it all, done it all and knows it all. She provides most of our comic relief with subtle eye-rolling and the occasional private outburst over how vacuous and self-centred her employers are. A terrific performance from Yoon Yeo-jeong (who is appearing in two other films at this festival: ACTRESSES and HAHAHA.)
Im Sang-soo has surpassed all of my expectations and crafted a superb social drama with plenty of teeth and a terrific ending that's equal parts brilliant and baffling. Highly recommended.
Having the director in attendance was terrific but the Q&A after the film was already set up to fail. There was *another* screening in the cinema after us, so that meant they were running at least 20 minutes late too... so we had to make it quick. The Q&A consisted of long bouts of me wishing I spoke Korean followed by short bouts of the translator doing her best. It was almost entirely on the ending of the film and one day when I get some free time (read: once the festival wraps) I'll write-up a transcript of my recording. Obviously, I don't want to give anything away but for those who have seen it: I'd love to discuss it with you!
