BOW, THE - DVD review

"The Bow" is the type of foreign film that will create polarizing views. It will both impress you and make you think or completely infuriate and confound you. The film takes place completely out at sea on a small fishing boat. The boat is owned by an Old Man (Jeon Seong-hwang) and he shares it with a Young Girl (Han Yeo-reum) he found nearly ten years ago. The boat never docks at shore and the girl has lived most of her life at sea. The Old Man earns a living by ferrying amateur fishers onto his ship. The Girl is close to becoming a woman and the men get busy hands when they see her. The Old Man is armed with a bow and an arrow whizzing past their heads puts the stops to any amorous feelings they might have.

The Old Man's bow and arrow has more uses than frightening horny fisherman. The Old Man uses the bow string for this violin. He also performs a bizarre ritual to tell the fortunes of those who come aboard his ship. The Girl sits in a swing over the side of the ship, back and forth besides a painting of Buddha. In his ferry, the Old Man fires his arrows, narrowly missing each time. The Girl pulls the arrows from the ship and discerns the customer's future from the placement of the arrows. Whatever the fortune may be, she quietly whispers it into the ear of the Old Man and he does likewise to whoever requested it. This is the only time we ever see the pair communicate with each other. They never speak a word to each other or any one else.

The old man and the girl's relationship stretches deeper than anybody could fathom. On the girl's seventeenth birthday, the old man plans to be wed her. He marks off the days on his calendar until the big day. He purchases the materials for the Girl's wedding gown and locks them away in a cupboard. Wedded bliss may not come after all for the Old Man when a young Student (Seo Si-jeok) comes aboard. There is an instant look of fascination between the two. Before departing, the Student gives the Girl his portable music player. For the first time ever, she listens to music that isn't played by the Old Man. She drifts off, staring out at the sea. When the Old Man returns, he furiously tosses it away. The Student returns and he angrily encroaches the Old Man to think of her. That he is selfishly keeping her away from the rest of the world. He vows to find out everything he can about the Girl and where she came from.

Obviously, this is no conventional relationship between the Old Man and the Girl. However, it isn't as simple as saying the Old Man is some sort of deviant or no better than the perverts who paw at the Girl. The pair sleep in bunk beds with the Old Man on top. In the night, he will periodically reach down and squeezes her hand. The most intimate moments the two share are when the Old Man bathes the Girl in a small tub of hot water. There is nothing overtly sexual about it, at least not in my interpretation. The Girl should not be considered an innocent creature. Once she might have been completely unaware of her own sexuality, but she is no longer. In one scene, the Girl knowingly cuddles with an oblivious fisherman. All the while, she eyes the Old Man with a mischievous smirk on her face.

Upon the Student's arrival, their relationship is completely thrown out of whack. The Old Man cheats the dates on his calendar by marking off days ahead of time, then later ripping out whole months. He even tears down the bunk bed and sets up a single mattress for the two to sleep in side by side. At one point, the Girl tends to the Old Man's wound after an accident. He briskly brushes her away, and then repeatedly slaps her as the tears fall. The Student pulls her away and chastises the Old Man. What right does he have? However, it could be debated that the Old Man is trying to drive her away, making their inevitable split easier.

"The Bow" is an appropriate for the film as it seems to be a simple object, yet represents a multitude of aspects. The bow is used as for the Old Man's archery as well as for his music. Of course, there's also the symbolism of the arrow representing the penis, a point Kim makes almost too literally. The bow also represents the bow of the ship which is essentially the Girl's entire world. Looking deeper into the relationship can yield various meanings. Is the Old Man keeping the Girl for his own carnal needs? Is he simply trying to protect the Girl from a cold and uncaring world? It's not hard to debate that theory considering the forceful brutes that come aboard their ship.

"The Bow" has similar themes and trademarks that have popped up again and again in Kim Ki-duk's past films. Like most of his films, there is very little dialogue. The main characters never speak, except during their divination ritual, and even then we never hear the words. The characters have no names either which ties into the Buddhist principal of removing the idea of self. Compared to Kim's other films, "The Bow" has most in common with "3-Iron" in its depiction of a silent, unconventional romance and "Spring, Summer, Fall…and Spring" with its small, isolated setting cut off from the rest of the world.

VIDEO:
The video is presented in anamorphic widescreen with an aspect ratio of 1.85:1. The transfer is clean and accentuates the beautiful setting of the clean blue sea and clear skies. The colors of the fabrics and sashes stand out well.

AUDIO:
The audio is presented in the film's original Korean language on two tracks; Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1. The dialogue is clear without a single, muddied word and the score is strong. This is a quiet, little film so don't expect the audio to blow your speakers away.

EXTRAS:
The Making of The Bow is the standard behind-the-scenes featurette and it runs over half an hour. It features extensive behind-the-scenes footage, plus interviews with the cast and crew discussing the film and the meaning of it all.

There isn't much else on the DVD other than a photo gallery and the film's original theatrical trailer.

FILM VALUE:
Some might be turned off by unorthodox subject matter and the methods (no names, no dialogue) used to unfold the film. However, I found it to be a piece of refreshing filmmaking. Han Yeo-reum, who also starred in Kim's "Samaritan Girl", pulls off a remarkable, minimalist as the Girl using only her face and body language. Hers is a surprisingly complex character within that quiet shell. I felt the film threw me a curveball during the end as Kim went a little too over-the-top and metaphysical. Still, "The Bow" is a unique film that can be found for those willing to travel off the beaten path.