philipfalzer
Impeccable art direction, looks worthy of great movies. It deserves a high note, but so watch out for the third part that has given a drop in performance. It may have lacked consistency with the previous two. Anyway, great movie!
classicsoncall
Had this remained a revenge movie with a twist I would have appreciated it a lot better. But then it enters lesbian soft porn territory and the movie takes on an entirely different tone. I can just imagine what theater movie goers must have gone through when the love scenes between Lady Hideko (Min-hee Kim) and Sook-hee (Tae-ri Kim) took center stage. When you're not ready or prepared for it, the sex scenes can inadvertently turn a promising night out into a virtual catastrophe. The story could have been told without the explicit sex and perhaps might have been more enthralling if the affair between the Japanese heir and her Korean handmaiden been more nuanced and suggestive. I didn't particularly care for director Chan-wook Park's "Oldboy" either. He has a visually captivating style but his choice of subject matter ought to come with a viewer discretion warning.
The Movie Diorama
I try not to use that word, it's rather overused for films that just aren't masterpieces. But when a film is so gorgeous that it imitates art, so multi-dimensional that it transcends the majority of narratives and so daring that it tests the limitations of film itself...I can't help but call it a masterpiece. A rich Japanese lady recruits a handmaiden who soon turns out to be a swindler, tasked with falsifying a wedding in order to steal her money. Twists and turns soon reveal many secrets that question the legitimacy of the new handmaiden's undercover task. Immediately I was hypnotised. Park Chan-Wook has such an eye for detail, every frame is lovingly crafted and resembles a jewel on a glistening necklace. Cinematography rarely looks this gorgeous, honestly. The visceral imagery conveys multiple themes of lust, greed, jealousy...in fact, nearly all the seven deadly sins are thematically interwoven in this complex narrative. Chan-Wook played me like a puppet. Manipulating my mind with every unexpected twist. It's a story of how powerful love is. An emotion so overwhelming that people are moulded by its presence. The lead characters all experience this, whether it be falsifying love or truly experiencing it for the first time. How motivations for money and power can be blurred by love. It's just a work of art. It truly is. Deceive me once? I applaud you. Deceive me twice? I'm jumping up and down the room like a lunatic. Tiny intricacies that are soon explained within the narrative's three parts, these revelations blew my mind. With an everlasting haunting undertone, it just made the story all the more resonating. Even the musical score was stunning, replicating orchestral symphonies with traditional Asian instruments. I will say it's an 18 for a reason, the sexual nature is extremely explicit yet it doesn't detract from the seamless story. Asian cinema has yet again proven that it's better than Hollywood. The Handmaiden, easily, acquires the perfect rating.
thesar-2
Three times a charm as that's how many times it took me to finish this film.It was my bad that I had to start/stop this film over four or so days. Initially, I thought this was supposed to be a horror movie and while it has horrific moments, it's certainly not horror. It's more suspense, mystery, lesbian drama.In fact, I haven't seen this much graphic lesbian sex in my life. I'm no prude, but girl-on-girl action isn't my forte, so it's not on my top ten porn searches. But, if you're into that, you might be pleased when it shows up several times in the film.The movie revolves around a rich heiress who's woo'd by a scheming Count and his Maid-to-Be to get her fortune. She's somehow set to marry her uncle, but the Count's got other plans for her cash. Only, his decoy, the film's title, has other plans.While I had to start/stop this several times, it's highly recommended as it's beautifully shot, wonderfully acted, scored excellently and the twists just keep on coming that makes the whole experience worth it. Yes, it's overlong and could've been severely cut, but it pays off and in the most satisfying way. Definitely check out this Handmaiden. ***Final thoughts: Helps I have a thing for Asians and this serves both my Japanese and Korean love. Granted only one real male is predominate, he is quite the catch throughout. Luckily, I can concentrate on him while they make me watch so many naked females make love.
AD
