I'm a Cyborg, But That's Okay
Published Tuesday, February 27, 2007 by The Movie Club | E-mail this post
Director: Park Chan-wook
Starring: Rain, Lim Su-Jeong
RunTime: 95 mins
Genre: Comedy (Korean)
Rating: NC-16
Despite boosting one of Korea’s most successful idol Rain in his first feature outing, and director Park Chan-Wook of Sympathy of Lady Vengeance fame, fans in Korea were less than impressed with I'm a Cyborg, But that's Okay.
The 'problem' with this movie is that it does not fall into the cookie cutter of Korean melodrama of soapy tales with dying protagonist of unrequited love. Neither does it feature picturesque landmarks of mountains, trees and buildings all so typical. In fact, it is nothing we have ever seen before.
Instead of a pale long haired female lead, Lim Su-Jeong (Tale of Two Sisters) is refreshing as Young-goon, a paranoid schizophrenic who thinks she is a half cyborg. She doesn’t eat as she charges herself with battery, sticks herself with wires and talks to fluorescent lamps. Il-Sun (Rain), a mental institution mate who steals personality traits from other patients, is secretly in love with her.
Using fanatical and violent characters is nothing new in director Park Chan-wook’s movies, and what the movie has to offer is really out of this world. Conservative audiences may be completed bewildered with the bizarre story and wacky characters, from an apologetic patient who walks backward, a liar who suffers from memory loss and obese bully who craves to fly with her red and green socks.
I think the director wants the audience to look beyond the strange and peculiar characters, and that a universal theme of love and dreams can be applied to just any person. Love is all about acceptance and sacrifice, isn’t it? It doesn’t have to fall into the same mould that all other movies would use.
You have to applaud Director Park for his ambitious and highly imaginative take in a movie industry like Korea. Although it is cannot be considered a romantic comedy, audience will laugh and be thrilled by the stylistic directing, spirited soundtrack (which would remind you of a merry-go-round) and fresh vibrant colours from yellow, green to blue.
However, the character development was weak, and the audience never really got a sense of why Young-goon would behave in the way she was (even though her family members are not normal as well.) Despite being a short movie, there were moments of boredom as there was no clear sense of direction on where the movie was heading. Rain’s maiden performance could not be said as exceptional, but fans can at least still get to see him shirtless.
Audience will be divided into two camps: You either appreciate this zany and hilarious movie or hate it to pieces for being nonsensical and lame.
I'm a Cyborg, But that's Okay – It’s different, and just okay
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