his debut,TheDaya PigFellintotheWell(1996),he has
becomeincreasinglyaccustomedto attenuatedshot length.^1
The quintessentialHong scenehas a cameraplantedin
place to capturea static shot of his charactersworking
throughsome interpersonaldrama(usuallyromantic,often
involvinginfidelity)in combativedialogue– often while
seatedat a table in a cafe, bar or restaurant,and frequently
while gettingprogressivelymore drunk.The lengthof each
shot enhancesthe tension,usuallycomic,sometimestragic,
developedin the conversation(Hong’san exquisiteobserver
of the foiblesof speech).Conversation,in fact, definesthe
majorityofGrass, whichunfoldsas a seriesof encounters
betweensix ‘couples’– men and women– whom Areum
alternatelyobservesand engageswith.
Hong’sfilms are dominatedby conversation,but there’s
physicalmovement,too, as charactersgo from bar to bar, or
bar to bed, or take walks up mountains,or visit the beach,
or take a trip overseas– though,existentially,they’reusually
going nowhere.This aimlessnessand frustration,frequently
open-ended,in Hong’swork, is not often so explicitlycom-
pressedas it is in the sceneinvolvingJi-yeongon the stair-
well. As she locks into her stride,into her wordlesspassage
up and down the steps,a tensionseemsto be dissipating;
somethingis released.Movingin a loop, she is arriving at
some place inside.*
Repetitionhas long appearedas the governinglogic of
Hong’scareer.This manifestspartly in a structuralway:
many of his films are organisedas palimpsests,with sce-
nariosand scenesthat repeatthemselves,the variations
betweenthem yieldingnarrativeand emotionaldevelop-
ment. In 2015’sRightNow,WrongThen, a date between
a filmmakerand a painteris showntwice,with one version
a disaster,and the other a success.In 2016’sYourselfand
Yours, this repetitionis enactedon the level of character,as
a man’s wife walks out on him, only for her doppelgangerto
appear.Hong conductsthese recurrenceswith a concep-
tual playfulness;his charactersmight be stuck in a time
loop reminiscentof that inGroundhogDay(HaroldRamis,
1993),or in a dream,or simplyin an existentialrut.
But repetitionalso describeshis filmography,as Hong
has developed,over twenty-threeyears,an extraordinar-
ily tight set of narrativeand thematicconcepts,frequently
revolvingaroundfailed love affairsbetweenlecherous,in-
constantmen (usuallyfilm directorsor film professors,both
occupationsHong has held) and thoughtful,slyly wise
youngwomen.His stylisticpalettehas becomelimited,
too, and striking in its bald economy: his camera almostxxxxHong’sfilmsaredominatedby
conversation,butthere’sphysical
movement,too,ascharactersgo
frombartobar,orbartobed,or
takewalksupmountains,orvisit
thebeach,ortakea tripoverseas- though,existentially,they’re
usually going nowhere.
Above,fromtop:Thesecondcouple,Chang-soo(KiJoo-bong)
andSung-hwa(SeoYoung-hwa),joinedbythethirdcouple,Kyung-
soo(JungJin-young)andJi-young(KimSae-byuk);thesixthcouple,
theprofessor(KimMyoung-su)andhislatecolleague’slover(Lee
You-young);AreumOpposite,fromtop:Kyung-sooandJi-young;
Areum with Jin-ho and his fiancée, Yeon-ju (Ahn Sun-young)
66 • Metro Magazine 201 | © ATOM