by Heath Lynch, Contributing Writer
Park Chan-wook is one of the great modern film directors. However, you won’t see his name very often, as he sometimes takes over half a decade to make a new feature film. He’s not one to rush his projects, and gets diverted into short films and television. But when Park, creator of instant classics such as Oldboy and The Handmaiden, does come out with a picture, you better take notice. You’re usually in for an emotionally charged ride, and a level of directing acumen that will leave you floored. The new film worthy of our attention this time is Decision to Leave, a film that is at once a romantic drama, and a mystery thriller riddled with crime. Although some of the story elements don’t thematically add up in the most logical or satisfying fashion, this a mesmerizingly thoughtful and nuanced Gone Girl for a new generation, and one of the most visually stunning films you can see this year.
Decision to Leave follows Hae-joon (Park Hea-il), a young, renowned police inspector working the busy streets of Busan, South Korea. One day, a new case is put on his desk regarding a mountain climber who has seemingly fallen to his death. But there are circumstances that seem fishy, and the lead suspect is the mountain climber’s now-widowed ex-wife Seo-rae (Tang Wei). It’s up to Hae-joon to try and put the pieces together to find out if Seo-rae is innocent or not. Yet while he’s trying to solve the case, he is developing romantic feelings for Seo-rae that are potentially getting in the way of discovering the truth.
In many ways this film is the tale of two stories. No, seriously. The movie tells one complete murder mystery for its first two-thirds. Then, it jumps ahead 13 months and tells a completely separate murder mystery. Obviously, they are related, as there are overarching characters and themes that need to be resolved. But this timeline shift leaves some characters undeveloped, acting out of turn or against motivation, and taking illogical actions. This time shift will also likely impact your enjoyment of the film, as it is so clearly told in two different halves, likely leading you to enjoy one half over the other, and making for an experience that feels as if it is missing parts of a whole. I think the first half of this film is drastically better than the second, which leaves a lot to be desired. Not to say the second half is bad, but to me, it’s not nearly up to par with what the first half has to offer in terms of story, character development, and intrigue. I understand that the split story is used to denote a passage in time, but it definitely hurts the overall structure of the film, and I wish they had decided not to go down this path.
But it’s the lack of focus on specific story elements and themes, as well as a last minute character decision, that really hinders this film and leaves me scratching my head. There are interesting parallels throughout the film regarding mountain people and beach people, the idea of possession, and the literal possession one character is supposed to have over a specific mountain. But these connections are never developed beyond surface level. Then, the film has one of our characters making an incredibly drastic decision that, frankly, is unearned, as the final moment of the movie. At no point in the movie do this character’s motivations, desires, fears, or actions remotely align with the final decision they make. A life-altering decision to the detriment of themself and the person they claim to love the most. But here, they are making a definitive choice that, because it doesn’t make sense within the context of the film or the character, feels much more like a scriptwriting outside-of-the-movie decision than a believable character-driven story decision. It’s a frustrating experience to say the least, especially as it’s the ending of the film. It’s the biggest obstacle I have towards considering this a great film, which is sad because I truly want to consider this a great film. Because everything outside of these underdeveloped themes and character decisions are great.
The direction here from Park is breathtaking. He has such a perfect mastery over the camera. His ability to create gorgeous, picturesque frames is next-level art. Whether it’s stunning symmetrical imagery that will stick with you, brilliant pure shots of nature, or the haunting images of corpses, it’s captivating. There’s also great use of editing throughout the film, which allows our characters to be in the same frame as if they’re standing side by side, even when they’re not even in the same building. It plays into the imagination of our characters as they picture themselves with other characters. Overall, there’s also a beautiful quality to the cinematography. Several scenes feel otherworldly with how well they are lit. This movie simply looks better than most movies that are made today.
Moving in front of the camera, the two lead performances from Park and Tang are awesome. There’s no other way to look at it. While the film may struggle with themes of possession, and different lifestyles of individuals, it excels at its deconstruction of desire, remorse, and love. This is almost entirely due to the well-rounded and realized performances of Park and Tang. The pain, joy, anger, and fear in their characters is so powerful that it makes up for the shortcomings in the screenplay, making this film so good. Watching these two interact with each other on screen is nothing short of impressive, and easily the best part of the movie, even beyond Park Chan-wook’s direction.
I do wish that the other characters throughout the movie had more to do. I understand that Park and Tang are going to get the most to do as the two leads, but every other character ends up being almost completely superfluous. Lee Jung-hyun plays Park’s wife, and she has a fun dynamic with Park in the opening minutes of the film, but nothing is truly explored with her character. She has no agency in the story, and disappears for almost 90% of the runtime. There’s also Go Kyung-pyo, who plays Park’s detective partner. There seems to be a great mentor/apprentice dynamic with Park’s character and this character, and his frustration and rage seem to be an interesting element worth exploring, but we never get the opportunity to do that. He’s dismissed and forgotten about before we even reach the halfway point of the movie. Again, Park and Tang are phenomenal, but the script puts them at odds with every other character to the point that almost everything else going on outside of these two becomes meaningless.
Decision to Leave is a good movie. A powerful movie. I love that it’s been getting a bunch of attention and accolades. I would genuinely like to see that momentum continue all the way to receiving a nomination for Best International Film at the Academy Awards. There are very few films this year that delve into desire and remorse as well it does. The idea of passion, whether that passion is worth pursuing, and how far you would go to pursue it, makes the film understandable for everyone. While some aspects will certainly be a little distasteful, the heart and core about this film is love. Love is a transcendent thing that we all yearn for. It’s a theme we can all relate to. I just really wish the second half of this film stood up to the quality and themes of the first half. Separately, I also wish this film wasn’t quite so long. There are a few moments where it started to lose my attention, as we weren’t making any ground in terms of narrative plot, or character development. At nearly two-and-a-half hours long, this could have cut about 15 minutes and been a lot better.
Inconsistent character decisions and underdeveloped themes aside, Decision to Leave is still well worth your time. It’s one of the better dramas to come out this year, and an emotional and cerebral thriller that will keep you entertained. A good movie that I’m more than happy to recommend to everyone.
Score: 7/10
Decision to Leave is currently streaming on Mubi
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