re:mote voices

Title: Memories of Murder [Salinui Chueok]
Cast: Kang-ho Song, Sang-kyung Kim, Roe-ha Kim, Jae-ho Song, Hie-bong Byeon, Seo-hie Ko, No-shik Park, Hae-il Park, Jong-ryol Choi
Director: Joon-ho Bong

Many of the films to come out of Korea over the last few years have tended to be contemporary. In that we tend to see a country of bustling metropolises, with occasionally harsh under currents. Memories of Murder is different in that it is set in 1986, showing a different political cultural climate. Between 1986 and 1996, 10 women were raped and murdered in a small Korean town. Memories is based on those events, and just as it shows us something different from Korea, it has a different approach to the genre of serial killer films.

Rather than concentrating on the killer or giving us Hollywood twists, where the big name actor turns out to be the killer, Memories has a more realistic and interesting approach. The investigation starts in a farcical manner, corrupted crime scenes and bumbling police officers. Keen to solve the case, anyone considered to be a suspect has a confession beaten out of them. Against a background of air raid drills, student riots and political unrest a young officer arrives from Seoul. Determined to make the investigation more official and effective, actually looking for clues and trying to find patterns in the murders.

While unfamiliar with the details of the actual case, Memories of Murder is based on real events. As such the characters are frustrated, banging heads against each other – leads going down blind alleys, no witnesses, tenuous clues and more bodies.

Memories of Murder is an atmospheric film, capturing an idea of a certain climate and the frustrating unfulfilling nature of real police work. The performances of the three lead police officers is memorable – the thuggish brutal officer, his brighter partner and the young officer from Seoul. The result is a unique piece.