Desolated Moon by Kim hye jin, Kim hye ryung
After watching this film the first thing that came to my mind was the “contemplative cinema” or “slow cinema” genre of films that includes legends such as “Tarkovsky, Bergman and Antonioni”, a true work of art that holds so many messages that leaves the viewers asking so many questions and pondering about a lot of major life issues, this style of work is not cut out for any film maker since it needs a certain level of maturity and true understanding of the world of film, I say that after experiencing so many films that tried to venture into such genre and fell into the “cliché” trap.
The storyline develops in a very particular manner that keeps the audiences in utter need to discover what lies ahead; the way this production develops holds semantic connotations on the different paths that we choose, and the roads that we pass by (fig. 1 & 2)
Figure 1 & 2: Semantic connotations
This is also seen in the “walk of life” like scenes that seems to be dark and full of desperation but there is always a light at the end of the tunnel keeping the hope and giving a reason to move forward (fig. 3 & 4).
Figures 3 & 4: Walking towards the light
Acting wise, both “Yun” and “Hyeryung” showed immense talent in the way that they delivered the desired message without a single word being said; this is never to be taken lightly, the ability to rely only on body language and facial expressions reflects a high level of professionalism and dedication (Fig. 5 & 6)
Figures 5 & 6: Body Language Communication
Technically, again and as mentioned in the introduction of the review this film reminded me of the work of several industry legends, it is not every day that we see such a final product, the effort put by both directors “Jin” and “Ryung” is to be highly commended as they are definitely thinking outside of the box and have excellent understanding of the language of cinematography. Semantically, they delivered all sort of messages be it with their framing (relying on the combination of long takes and close ups) (Fig. 7, 8 & 9 )
Fig 7: Man vs. Steel Fig 8: Absurd existence Fig 9: White on Black
or their editing style (slow pace and dissolves) as if the viewer is present and watching the events unfold or the actor who represents each one of us is imprisoned inside his own existence (Fig. 10)
Fig.10: Entrapment
Another major factor in the success of the work is the choice of black and white, this in itself is another achievement to be added due to the fact that it is not an easy task to be able to do such work and not fall into the cliché. One final element that propelled the overall product was the choice of music that was more than enchanting and did its job to the max.
Finally, this film is not cut out to all kinds of audiences as it talks to a specific niche of the population who are willing to suspend their reality and delve into the absurd and symbolic world unleashed by the filmmakers. A real standing ovation is due to all the people responsible for this piece of art as they gave us true hope that such genre still exists and will thrive again, both directors/writers should be very proud and we will be definitely on the look out for their future works in hopes that it would be as good as this if not better.
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N.Khouri Ph.D
Monthly Indie Shorts
About Kim hye jin and Kim hye ryung
Hye-jin Kim
26.01.1981 Born in Seoul, Korea
02.2006 Graduated in Fine Art (Korean traditional painting) B.A from Kwandong Univ. of Korea
01.2011 Graduated in Islamic history &Civilization M.A from Asian University of Dhaka, Bangladesh
09.2012~ 08.2014 Completed Art History( Buddhist Sculpture) M.A from Dongguk Univ. of Seoul, Korea
09.2014~12.2015 Worked as a researcher at the Steering Committee for the nomination of the Traditional Buddhist Mountain Temples of Korea as the UNESCO World Heritage
04.2017~09.2017 Worked as a curator at Gallery Marie, Seoul, Korea
04.2018~05. 2020 Worked as a manager at Euro Photos. Ltd./Magnum Photos Korea Agent
08.2018~Present a member of film critic department of The association of Korean independent film & video
02.2020~12.2020 Worked as an assistant curator for Special & Invited exhibitions at Daegu Photo Biennale in 2020
07.2020-08. 2021 Worked as a chief curator at DEmptyspace(Dift. Corp.)
Hye-ryung Kim
12.02.1988 born in Seoul, Korea
02.2010 Graduated in Advertising&Pubric Relations B.A from PyeongTaek Univ. of Korea
<Professional experiences>
02.2010~06.2016 Worked as a Merchandiser at MFM KOREA, Seoul, Korea
07.2017~Present Work as a Merchandiser at Agabang & Company ,Seoul, Korea
