Simpan (1999)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Chan-wook Park

Writer:

Chan-wook Park (writer)

Release Date:

1999 (South Korea)

Genre:

Short | Drama

Cast

Hak-rak Choi
Ju-bong Gi
In-bae Ko
Sun-mi Myeong

Also Known As:

Judgment (International: English title)

Runtime:

South Korea:26 min

Country:

South Korea

Language:

Korean

Colour:

Colour | Black and White

Company:

Studio Box

Interesting Little Piece of Gem

This half black/white, half coloured short film was 1 of the 3 projects made by acclaimed Korean auteur Park Chan-Wook before his rise to fame with "Joint Security Area". Like the other 2 films - "Moon is the Sun's Dream" and "The Trio", this film is very rare and almost impossible to get hold of. I luckily came across it on the internet and downloaded it.

The film clearly contains hints of Park's dark sense of humour and love for the obscure which he would further display later on in his Revenge Trilogy.

The story is very weird and interesting. A couple came to the morgue to claim their dead daughter's deformed and almost inrecognisable body after she died in a national disaster. However, after looking at the body carefully, the morgue worker begs to differ.

This little piece of gem is an early display of Park's ability to come up with twisted and interesting story lines and is a must watch for any Park fan.