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 ased
on an 18th century folk song, the Korean period
drama "Chunhyang" tells a familiar story
even for non-Koreans: a forbidden love between two
people separated by class, family and duty; a
secret wedding; the meddling of unwanted
interlopers; and finally, a heroic reunion. So
universal are these themes that, had it been put
together as a standard film, without the trappings
of ancient Korean dress and setting,
"Chunhyang" would be just another
forgettable addition to the genre of Asian period
films.
Prolific director Im
Kwon-taek ("The
General's Son") takes a fairly unusual
route by presenting the story within the framework
of the Korean performance art form of Pansori.
Pansori is a type of verbal storytelling, Korean
Opera if you will, where a singer, known as a
Soriggun, tells a story accompanied by a
percussionist, known as a Gosu. Such performances,
which can last up to eight hours, incorporate
expressive singing, stylized speech and a
repertory of narratives upon which the singer
improvises.
"Chunhyang" the
movie begins with the Soriggun alone against a
black background as he begins reciting the tale of
Chunhyang, before the film fades into the colorful
countryside of 18th century
Korea
. Here, we are introduced to the title character,
Chunhyang (Hyo-jeong Lee), the young daughter of a
retired courtesan who lives a fairly carefree life
on the outskirts of a quiet village. One day she
comes under the gaze of Mongryong (Seung-woo Cho),
the studious son of the local governor, and it is
love at first sight. After a clumsy but brief
courtship the two marry, deciding to keep their
inter-class nuptials a secret from the rest of the
town.
But fate intervenes, as it
always does in these stories, when Mongryong's
father is transferred to
Seoul
and a new, ruthless governor takes over the
province. Learning that Chunhyang is the daughter
of a courtesan, and thus by law a courtesan
herself, the smitten new governor goes out of his
way to secure Chunhyang's services for himself.
It's from here on that the film begins to wander,
as the overstuffed plot starts to undo at the
seams. Ruminations on loneliness and longing are
unevenly interspersed with angry rhetoric about
class-consciousness and female empowerment, while
government intrigue and corruption give way to
impromptu cloak and dagger antics.
In "Chunhyang", the
local government is vividly painted as a brutal
and corrupt regime bent on enslaving its
constituents and subverting the King's rule. The
new governor in particular is more caricature than
character, a villain so demented he uses an
execution as the entertainment for a government
summit. The ending is also contrived and over the
top, as Mongryong triumphantly returns in a
"Robin Hood"-style finale.
Narrative shortcomings
notwithstanding, "Chunhyang" is an
eyeful. The colorful country setting is
complimented by equally colorful costumes and
beautiful cinematography. Im has the film jump
back and forth liberally between the story's
bucolic setting and the staid contemporary
auditorium where the Pansori performance is being
given. The singer even shouts out to and receives
feedback from the captivated audience as they clap
in unison and dance in the aisles, the give and
take between audience and musician very
reminiscent of American Gospel performances.
Im's incorporation of the
Pansori into the film imbues "Chunhyang"
with an unusual texture which keeps the viewer
engaged. The Soriggun's guttural vocal stylings,
which often border on caterwauling, can be
difficult to get used to, especially if the viewer
is unfamiliar with Eastern styles of music. But
the technique greatly emphasizes the emotions
being presented by the actors, adding depth to
what is an otherwise lightweight and overly
familiar story.
While nothing we haven't seen
a dozen times before, the themes explored in
"Chunhyang" are nonetheless compelling.
Coupled with the attractive cast, extravagant
costumes and polarizing storytelling technique,
"Chunhyang" manages to transcend its
ho-hum foundation to become a rather unique and
worthwhile bit of filmmaking, one of many from the
already legendary career of Im Kwon-taek. |
