Preparing for Choi Min-Sik at NYAFF 2012 part 1: SHIRI, THE QUIET FAMILY

First things First: while it may out me as an unpedigreed Asian film fan, Choi Min Sik by far my most ideal guest from the realm of Asian film actors -- or maybe Asian film period -- that the New York Asian Film Festival could bring to New York.  And bring him, they did.  Since witnessing his gripping performance in OLDBOY, I have looked forward to the few but always high quality performances he puts into his roles.  They are sometimes tortured, often sinister, and always impassioned.  At the New York Asian Film Festival, Choi Min Sik will appear at screenings of four of his movies.  I will attend all of them, starting with OLDBOY and continuing on with three movies I have not seen before: FAILAN, CRYING FIST, and his latest film from this past year NAMELESS GANGSTER.

In order to prepare for his appearance and perhaps inspire a bit of much deserved buzz, I will take a look at most of the movies Choi Min-Sik has appeared in that are not being shown at this year’s New York Asian Film Festival.  You can read about those films elsewhere (I’d start by checking in on the many reviews at Unseen Films), and rather than watching them I hope all those in the New York City area will go right out to the theater screenings.

While OLDBOY was the first film to draw my attention to Choi Min-Sik, it was not the first movie I saw him in.  Before that, there was SHIRI and THE QUIET FAMILY.  These are the very first Korean movies I’ve seen, definite classics of South Korean cinema.  

Although it came a year later, let’s begin with SHIRI since that was first in my rewatching sequence.  It is an ambitious political thriller centered around the hot topic of South Korea-North Korea relations, and tells the tale of a North Korean para-military group’s attempt to blow a hole wide open in the already strained coexistence of the two independent nations.  

Along with Choi Min-Sik is an incredible ensemble cast, one that moved on to a hugely impressive future body of work.  The lead South Korean agent is played by Suk-Kyu Han, who plays a dejected cop facing demons of the past in WHITE NIGHT; his fiance/undercover North Korean assassin is played by none other than Yunjin Kim, who starred throughout all six seasons of LOST; and Song Kang-ho, playing another hotshot secret agent, who would later portray numerous flawed and unhinged characters in some of the most widely known and adored South Korean productions, among them: THE HOST, THIRST, & THE GOOD THE BAD THE WEIRD.

But going back to the man, Choi Min-Sik.  Here, he plays an impenetrable lead agent carrying out the North Korean group’s operation.  The movie begins with an uncharacteristically sleek and uniformed Choi leading a squad through routine exercises.  It is a fast, disorienting sequence, and seems to have included murdering live targets.  The next time he and his group will appear in the film is across the border between the two nations, impersonating South Korean soldiers in order to intercept a weapon of large scale destructive capacity.

For much of the movie, Choi is simply an ominous presence:  killing with no remorse, barking out orders to his team.  His range comes out in two scenes in particular: An emotional exchange between him and Yunjin Kim’s assassin character, shot at sharp angles and overwhelming closeups.   As he questions her ability to maintain her cover and carry out their mission, he must also stop her from committing suicide with a handgun as she comes undone, having reached the breaking point in her life as a double agent.  The other scene comes towards the climax, with an enraged Min-Sik revealing the true nature of his group’s intentions and giving an embittered rationalization of their cause.  Here, as in other movies down the line, his voice goes from a growl into eerie high pitched yelps.  He goes where other actors don’t with this ability to seem truly on the verge of losing control.

As for the movie on the whole, it is a solid thriller.  Considering it was from a decade plus in the past, it has innovative ideas.  The weapon stolen from the military and the means of spying on South Korean intelligence are impressive by today’s standards.  And then there is a delirious death by suicide pill to look out for with its surprising results.  SHIRI is definitely worth watching to see Choi Min Sik in one of his earlier dramatic roles.

THE QUIET FAMILY was made in 1998 and in it appears Choi in an uncharacteristically comedic supporting role.  In fact here he is joined again by Song Kang-ho, playing the bumbling uncle and even more bumbling son of the titular family.  It is amazing to see these two playing a pair of oafs together considering their future starring roles in such violent, psychodramatic films, perhaps beginning with their turns in Park Chan-Wook’s Vengeance trilogy: SYMPATHY FOR MR. VENGEANCE (Kang-ho) and of course Choi in OLDBOY.  

This movie was the debut feature of Kim Jee-woon, who would work again years later with Choi Min Sik on I SAW THE DEVIL.  It is a fine example of black comedy about a traditional family unit running a failing inn in the middle of nowhere.  When they cover up the death of a guest to avoid the bad light it would cast on business, they find their morality sliding down a slippery slope as a series of mishaps threaten to put them out of business.  

This is rather subdued territory for Min-Sik, although we do get to see him chase a startled couple through the forest, waving a garden tool frantically.  His most dramatic turn here is portraying a love struck middle aged man with less than stellar moves, as he tries to woo the daughter of a well off land developer to no avail.  His infatuation even leads him to try to protect her from her selfish brother’s murderous scheme, putting him at odds with his brother, who is willing to look the other way for the sake of the family business.

Meanwhile the flaws of other members of the family are played up to humorous effect:  The son’s perversions, the older daughter’s flighty attempts to throw herself at any potential male companion, and of course the ruthlessness of the mother and father, whose little acts of deceit grow bigger and bigger until they literally can’t keep their misdeeds buried.  It’s a tribute to the bonds of family that breathes fresh life into the oneliner ‘the family that slays together stays together,’ yet also offers sharp-toothed commentary on the malleable values of older generations. Few films have put their elderly protagonists through such physical trials as in this one.

While THE QUIET FAMILY is not such a Min Sik-centric movie, it is a hilarious example of Korean cinema’s knack for dark humor, and gives an early look at the talent of Kang-ho and Jee-woon before they moved on to act and direct in tremendous projects.

Next up, if things go according to plan, is a viewing of PAINTED FIRE and HAPPY END, two Choi Min-Sik films from the early ‘90s, followed by a look at the two movies right here.