My review for Im Sang-soo's new film The Housemaid is up on In Review Online. It played in the Twin Cities a couple weeks back, but it will no doubt be available on DVD soon (and probably available on demand for all I know.)The Housemaid is a film that pales in comparison to the stunning original from which it is based upon, but ignore the original and you have a dark and unrelenting thriller. Unfortunately, that was something I could not do. I was a big fan of Im's The President's Last Bang which is a wry comedy about the assassination of former South Korean President Park Chung-hee in 1979. The Housemaid has the same commitment to a tone of discord, but it is, in my opinion, a throw away compared to Kim Ki-young's 1960 masterpiece.
(Do yourself a favor: buy the Region Free DVD of the original Housemaid here.)
(Edit 3/19/11 - Just realized you can watch Kim Ki-young's The Housemaid free on Mubi.)
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