Venice Review: Kim Kiduks Final Film ‘Call Of God
After creating anger and fury both on and off screen, Korean master Kim Ki-duk released a new film directed by his posthumous friends. A passionate love story that soon turns to jealousy and hatred - but ends on a sadly poetic note - is a very competent portrayal of evil.
In 2019, "God's Call" was filmed in Kyrgyzstan, Estonia and Latvia. Kim in 2010 He died at the end of 2020 at the age of 59 due to complications from covid. The film was composed by Estonian producer Artur Weber. Sexual exploitation, emotional abuse, spiritual longing and the soothing beauty of nature have been the hallmarks of his work since he started his career in 1996 with Crocodile - Here. It's a small film, but it's as unique as the one he makes.
Venice Film Festival Photo Gallery - Harry Styles, Olivia Wilde and Florence Pugh star in 'Don't Worry Darley'; Also Cate Blanchett, Alejandro G. Iñárritu, Hillary Clinton and many more.
A boy (Abvlai Maratov) and a girl (Zanel Sargazina) meet at a crossroads. Kim is painted black and white. The characters are framed geometrically on the path to the park, and the camera is in front of them. The man casually asked for directions to the nearby Dream Cafe. He slowly escorted the girl, the young man took his bag and chased her and returned to her after a fight. Then he invited her to dinner. In terms of look and feel, the entire scene is a wave of the French New Wave, setting the tone for future cinema. Even the Sargazine gown, which was short white, could be lifted from the Cherbourg gown.
This borrowed injustice makes what happened next all the more shocking. After her first date, a girl is answering the phone in the middle of the night when she hears a mysterious voice telling her that she has met a man in her dream who goes to a cafe. He accepted that this was true. If he wanted to know what was next, the voice said - or maybe it was a voice - he needed to sleep. He probably wants to stay awake because whatever happens in his dream happens in real life. He chose to dream.
During the day, she and the man had hot sex in her car. He then realized that he had previously been involved with other women, including the owner of the Dream Cafe, and felt jealous. He forbids her from talking to other women, saying she needs to be alone, and then insists he goes with her to make sure she abides by his rules.
Within minutes "God's Call" turned into a horror film, Adam was the victim. Then the need for control increases again. And then follows the angry offspring into madness, often insane, but shockingly, before falling into yet another slumber whose title may or may not live up to its promise. Goddess of director Kim is hidden in the details—in the blooming flowers, in the glistening snow of the surrounding mountains—but in a different way. And demons are everywhere.
Venice Film Festival: coverage for the whole session
Kim has been criticized for portraying Korean women as lazy, violent and often beaten. He was particularly fond of naturalistic sex scenes, sometimes dramatically constructed, of domestic violence, and his films did not do well at the domestic box office. But they have won numerous awards at international film festivals, and their frenetic energy and intellectual prowess have made them loyal followers.
In The general reaction against Korean bad boys increased in 2017 when he and his male co-star were accused of sexually assaulting an unnamed actress. In More lawsuits were filed in 2018, detailed in a damning television report. As a result, he only worked for a few years at the international level. "God's Call" was shot in Russian with Kyrgyz actors, and he plans to shoot his next film in Latvia. Korean trade unions and women's organizations have strongly protested his latest film getting a place in Venice. Artistic director Albert Barbara answered media questions: "The separation between person and artist is inevitable." This debate will continue forever, not at the call of God.
Kim Ki Duk always makes films with raw, sometimes transcendental effects. God's call certainly has more moments: the light reflecting off the trees on the man's windshield is an inspired image that defies the casual argument of whether they have sex or not. The awkward snap of a couple cuddling in their ex's new grave is as offensive as fans want it to be. However, it's not enough: something for voters Kim Ki-duk. It's not just noise by any means, the biggest culprit is the very quiet noise.
