The New Film Can't Possibly Be More Bizarre Than the Sci-Fi Psychodrama It's Adapted From
Greek surrealist director Yorgos Lanthimos specializes in distinctly odd movies. His original stories defy convention, such as The Lobster, where unattached individuals need to find love or risk being turned into animals. In adapting another creator's story, he often selects source material that’s pretty odd as well — stranger, perhaps, than the version he creates. This proved true for last year's Poor Things, an adaptation of the novel by Alasdair Gray delightfully aberrant novel, an empowering, sex-positive reimagining of Frankenstein. The director's adaptation is good, but partially, his specific style of weirdness and Gray’s neutralize one another.
Lanthimos’ Next Pick
Lanthimos’ next pick to bring to screen was likewise drawn from far out in left field. The original work for Bugonia, his newest project alongside star Emma Stone, comes from 2004’s Save the Green Planet!, a bewildering Korean fusion of science fiction, black comedy, terror, irony, psychological thriller, and police procedural. It’s a strange film not so much for its subject matter — although that's highly unconventional — rather because of the chaotic extremity of its tone and directorial method. It's an insane journey.
A Korean Cinema Explosion
It seems there was something in the air across Korea in the early 2000s. Save the Green Planet!, the work of Jang Joon-hwan, was included in an explosion of daringly creative, innovative movies from a new generation of filmmakers such as Bong Joon Ho and Park Chan-wook. It was released alongside the director's Memories of Murder and the filmmaker's Oldboy. Save the Green Planet! isn't as acclaimed as those two crime masterpieces, but it shares many traits with them: graphic brutality, morbid humor, pointed observations, and defying expectations.
The Plot Unfolds
Save the Green Planet! revolves around a troubled protagonist who captures a business tycoon, convinced he is an extraterrestrial hailing from Andromeda, with plans to invade Earth. At first, this concept is played as farce, and the lead, Lee Byeong-gu (the performer known for Park’s Joint Security Area and Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance), comes across as an endearing eccentric. He and his innocent entertainer girlfriend Su-ni (Hwang Jung-min) don plastic capes and bizarre masks fitted with mental shields, and use ointment in combat. Yet they accomplish in abducting inebriated businessman Kang Man-shik (the performer) and taking him to a secluded location, a ramshackle house/lab constructed on an old mine in the mountains, home to his apiary.
A Descent into Darkness
Hereafter, the film veers quickly into something more grotesque. Lee fastens Kang onto a crude contraption and subjects him to harm while spouting absurd conspiracy theories, ultimately forcing his kind girlfriend away. However, Kang isn't helpless; driven solely by the belief of his innate dominance, he can and will to undergo terrifying trials to attempt an exit and dominate the clearly unwell kidnapper. Simultaneously, a notably inept police hunt for the kidnapper begins. The officers' incompetence and clumsiness echoes Memories of Murder, though it may not be as deliberate in a movie with plotting that comes off as rushed and spontaneous.
A Frenetic Journey
Save the Green Planet! plunges forward relentlessly, propelled by its own crazed energy, trampling genre norms underfoot, long after it seems likely it to either settle down or falter. At moments it appears to be a drama regarding psychological issues and pharmaceutical abuse; at other times it becomes a symbolic tale regarding the indifference of capitalism; in turns it's a claustrophobic thriller or a bumbling detective tale. Jang Joon-hwan maintains a consistent degree of feverish dedication to every bit, and the lead actor delivers a standout performance, although the protagonist constantly changes between savant prophet, endearing eccentric, and terrifying psycho as required by the narrative's fluidity in mood, viewpoint, and story. It seems this is intentional, not a flaw, but it can be quite confusing.
Designed to Confuse
It's plausible Jang aimed to confuse viewers, mind. Similar to numerous Korean films during that period, Save the Green Planet! is driven by a gleeful, maximalist disrespect for stylistic boundaries on one side, and a profound fury about human cruelty on the other. It’s a roaring expression of a culture establishing its international presence amid new economic and artistic liberties. One can look forward to observe the director's interpretation of the same story from a current U.S. standpoint — possibly, an opposite perspective.
Save the Green Planet! is available to stream for free.
