South Korean auteur Hong Sang-soo has always had his fair share of detractors. With In Water (Mul-an-e-seo), however, he runs the risk of alienating the whole profession of projectionists, who are asked to calibrate their machines (as well as their eyesight) to screen a film that’s shot entirely out of focus. Cue groans and complaints from disoriented viewers, who are going to find it difficult to discern the actors’ facial expressions or any details in the sunny vistas on the resort island of Jeju, where the film is set.
It’s easy to consider this as Hong’s reaction against that running joke – mainly from jaded film critics – that he’s making the same film over and over again. But let’s call this an experimental technique: as if taking his cue from Gerhard Richter, who once said the blurred images in his paintings “make everything equal, everything equally important and equally unimportant”, Hong’s blurring is just one of many decisions made to force audiences to cast aside distractions and zero in on the dialogue. Another more noticeable departure is the absence of his stellar repertory company, as he casts three relatively unknown young actors in the leading roles.
Faced with all this, audiences must resign themselves to listen to what they cannot look at. In Water has many a clever conversation and pregnant pause to savour, with Hong’s trademark acerbic humour bubbling abundantly beneath the fuzzy-focus imagery. Revolving around the attempt of three young filmmakers to prepare and shoot a no-budget film in a seaside town, In Water is a piece of top-notch comedy of male mannerisms – a lo-fi take of Hong’s similarly-structured seaside drama, Woman on the Beach.
Bristling with passive-aggressive behaviour and thinly-veiled put-downs, the film is on a par with any of Hong’s past films in depicting the embarrassing things people (mostly men) do to stroke their egos, win over some people and alienate others. A miniature film with a runtime just over an hour, In Water is a short, sharp and savvy addition to Hong’s ever-expanding oeuvre, an off-kilter piece bound for more festival bookings after its premiere in Berlin’s Encounters sidebar.
Making up the film’s bizarre love triangle are Seoung-mo (Shin Seok-ho), a handsome young actor seeking to expand his horizons – and perhaps elevate his standing – by writing and directing films. His pretentious airs and ersatz displays of empathy are in contrast to that of his classmate Sang-guk (Ha Seong-guk), a young filmmaker who’s kind, funny and very down-to-earth. Nam-hee (Kim Seung-yun), meanwhile, is the star of the group, a young actress who has already gained a foothold in the industry but is still keen to take time out to work (and play) with her film school friends.
It’s obvious that Seoung-mo’s interest in Nam-hee is more than professional, as he tries to impress her by rolling out all the cringe-worthy clichés a wannabe director could do: spewing poetic nonsense about a wallflower, asking Nam-hee to walk down an alley to try out his mise-en-scène, and saying how he’s trying his hand at directing because he wants to make films “for honour, not money”. But it’s all a façade, of course: he quickly pivots the conversation to his lack of resources – his budget is only $3,000 – and hints at how there’s no paycheck in the offing.
It’s hardly a wonder Nam-hee gets on much better with Sang-guk, whose rapport with others is much more genuine. Visibly annoyed by this, Seoung-mo sulks and dials up his pretensions a few notches more. He finds his muse in a woman (Kim Min-hee, completely unrecognisable in a face mask) cleaning trash by the sea and their hilarious exchange reveals his intellectual and emotional vacuity as a lofty filmmaker claiming to feel for the downtrodden.
But Seoung-mo presses on nevertheless, as the trio eventually joins forces to film something – an accomplishment that most of Hong’s more grown-up filmmaking characters invariably fail to do as they sit around drinking soju and bawling about failed relationships in dive bars. With this, Hong reiterates his belief in film as a showcase of creativity and communal pursuit. Despite its comparatively modest premise and unnerving visual approach, In Water is significant in seeing Hong taking a few baby steps out of his comfort zone and diversify his palette.
Director, screenplay, producer, cinemtography, editing, music: Hong Sang-soo
Cast: Shin Seok-ho, Ha Seong-guk, Kim Seung-yun
Production company: Jeonwonsa Film Co.
World sales: Finecut
Venue: Berlin Film Festival (Encounters)
In Korean
61 minutes
