Just wanted to share this awesome DVD set that came in the mail the other day: The Bong Joon-ho Collection
. Hell yes! Serious film fans, get a triple dose of the Bong -- one unique cinematic sensibility, three very different films.The three-movie box set that includes the acclaimed South Korean director's hit monster movie The Host, the dramatic thriller Mother, and his debut feature Barking Dogs Never Bite. Here are descriptions, from the press release:
The highest grossing South Korean film of all time, The Host is "a knockout monster movie" (People) that is a "terrific hybrid-genre fantasy and a seriously scary freakout" (New York Times). Boasting state-of-the-art special effects from the digital wizards at Weta Workshop (King Kong, Lord of The Rings) and The Orphanage (Harry Potter & The Goblet of Fire, Sin City), The Host thrusts a normal, multi-generational family into the middle of an extraordinary event, fusing poignant character drama with the larger-than-life conventions of a classic creature feature for a thrilling and startlingly emotional result.The Host is absolutely awesome -- definitely not your average monster movie (the set includes the 2-disc special edition). And Mother, with a brilliant performance by Hye-ja Kim, has to be one of the best films I've seen this year. I've never seen Barking Dogs Never Bite, but now I can.
An official selection of numerous film festivals including Cannes and winner of three Asian Film Awards, including Best Film, Best Actress and Best Screenwriter, Mother is a "must-see marvel" (Entertainment Weekly), a masterpiece of suspense and a unique murder mystery about a mother's primal love for her child. When Mother's son is convicted of murder thanks to an inefficient lawyer and an apathetic police force, she immediately undertakes her own investigation to clear her son's name and steps into a world of unimaginable chaos and shocking revelations.
Part comedy and part biting social satire, Barking Dogs Never Bite is Bong Joon-Ho's feature length directorial debut. When an unemployed grad student can no longer stand the constantly yapping dog in his apartment complex, he resorts to drastic measures. In a fit of exasperation, he takes extreme action to deal with his tormentor, an action that will come to haunt him. Meanwhile, a young woman working at the apartment complex decides to investigate the matter after she starts receiving notices from the tenants about missing dogs.
My only complaint about this set is the absence of Bong's second film, the fantastic Memories of Murder
. Anything calling itself "The Bong Joon-ho Collection" should really include this movie, but another distributor has those rights, if I'm not mistaken. If you've never seen any of these movies, do yourself a favor and pick up this set.