Film: Mother (Madeo)

Cast includes: Hye-ja Kim (Mayonnaise), Bin Won (The Brotherhood of War)
Director: Joon-ho Bong (The Host)
Genre: Crime drama/mystery (2009), Korean with subtitles

In brief:Before a single word is spoken, we know this is no ordinary mom. When we find her in her little shop, we know her world revolves around her 20-year-old son, Do-joon. She’s keeping an eye on him through the shop’s sliding door when suddenly… a hit-and-run driver in an expensive Benz knocks Do-joon to the ground. His friend, Jin-tae, knows exactly where the Benz is going in such a hurry… the local golf course… where else? So they pursue the Benz, seeking vengeance. While Jin-tae urges Do-joon to stay focused, Do-joon has discovered golf balls in the pond and is collecting them. Do-joon is retarded (excuse the non-PC term), and keeping focused is just one of his problems. But when the hit-and-run driver calls Do-joon “retarded”… that remark gets Do-joon’s attention. And the brawl that ensues lands them all at the police station.

All Mother cares about is getting her son home, feeding him and protecting him from harm. When Do-joon goes out again that night to meet Jin-tae, Mother worries. But what can she do? Do-joon is a young adult, even though he has the mind of a child. Jin-tae never shows up, and eventually… having had a few too many drinks… Do-joon makes his way home. It’s dark and deserted out. When Do-joon sees Moon Ah-jung, a local high school girl, walking on the path, he follows her. But she has no interest in him, and lets him know… in no uncertain terms. So Do-joon stumbles home and goes to bed. The next day Ah-jung’s body is found on the roof of a building, dumped over the railing “like laundry.” A golf ball with Do-joon’s name on it is the piece of evidence that solves the crime. And even though Do-joon can’t really read, he signs a confession. Case closed!

Mother is devastated and determined to get justice for her son. Everyone knows Do-joon “couldn’t hurt a water bug.” How could anyone honestly believe Do-joon could kill a young girl? Mother is relentless, following every lead. She’s a cross between a super sleuth and a mad woman. She visits her son in prison urging him to focus… “Try to remember what happened that night.” Do-joon rubs his temples while he tries to focus… Mother calls them “the temples of doom.” Somehow, some way, Mother will get Do-joon to reconstruct the details from that night. It’s obvious early on that Mother’s sleuthing doesn’t always uncover what she… or we… expect to find. But once we’re into this case, it becomes an obsession. Mother will follow it no matter where it leads.

While the atmosphere and the plot details are distinctly Asian, the story is told with the kind of suspense and intensity we westerners have come to expect in a well-crafted crime story. Very entertaining and imaginative… this one has many unexpected, even quirky twists and turns that keep us engaged right to the end.

popcorn rating