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16 of 16 found the following review helpful:
 Pansori & beautyMay 31, 2005
By Chick
This is one of the most beautiful and delectably edited movies I've ever seen. The actors know their roles wholeheartedly. My guess they are classically-trained theatre actors. Chunhyang is one of Korea's 5 stories told in the oral tradition, and was originally for adults. Pansori, if you've ever taken a class or tried it, is very difficult. Requires power from the diaphragm and vocal range. Once, there were 7 of us in a class, and all together, the power of our voices could not top the sole instructor. Im Kwon-taek was smart to incorporate the pansori. For those of you who dont know, there is no Chunhyang the tale without pansori, so it's absolutely necessary to this movie. "Chunhyang-ga" is by balladeer Jo Sang-Hyeon, also known as National Intangible Asset #5.
My dvd said it's Japanese. Someone should be fired for not fact-checking. Also, it's nothing like Raise the Red Lantern or Zhang Yimou. But westerners need to write that to make it relative to their prior movie experience. Chunhyang is a beautiful story of poetry and honor and meditation. It's about love's fidelity.
12 of 12 found the following review helpful:
A woman against the magistrate's authoritySep 18, 2005
By Kwang Woo Noh
"like an empty boat on the sea"
It seems that many people think that a woman is totally suject
under male-dominant society. Under Confucious order, Korea
was male dominant society and woman did not appropriate rights
and opportunity as man. So what? in 17th or 18th century,
European men did not allow or share their rights with European
women, either.
The reason why some feminists enjoy this film is that not only
this story is love story, which may make them feel guilty, but
also it's a story of a woman who was not submissive to local
authority. You can compare this movie with Dagerous Beauty in
which a Venezian courtesan could not challenge the authority.
For me, the great scene is the magistrate's interrogation and
torture to Chunhyang. In this scene, Chunhyang did give up and
said what she thought againt brutal magistrate's demand.
"You are a daughter of a courtesan, so you are a courtesan, too.
You should serve to me. It's a law. If you will not follow the
law, I will punish you. "
"What kind of punishment is given to a man who tries to rape
and urge adultery to a married woman?"
8 of 8 found the following review helpful:
Legend RetoldJul 09, 2003
By Spy Groove
"Ravenna"
All I can say this movie is SUPERB!! No wonder it got the Cannes Palm D'Or in 2000. The story is based on Korean famous legend, Chunhyang who stood for her rights to devote all her love only to 1 man despite of the traditional custom that a decendant courtesan (she was the daughter of a retired courtesan) was a coutesan and must be available in serving other men.I have been told there was a story like this but have never known the real plot. I feel very lucky to be able to watch this artpiece. As a woman, I really admire ChunHyang and her guts in keeping to her promise and to her heart. The traditional and moral value of this legend is magnified by the cinematography and the way it is told which presents the story as it was sung by a traditional singer (pansori). Highly recommended.
8 of 8 found the following review helpful:
MasterpieceOct 18, 2001
By Jeffrey S. Harrison
One of the best-loved legends of Korea is retold in the singing tradition of Korea known as "pansori." Directed by one of Asia's most demanding and feared perfectionist directors, the cinematography is breathtakingly beautiful and, despite the lead characters being played by teenage, first time actors, the acting is flawless. The pansori singing is performed by a man officially designated by the Korean government as a living national treasure. The breathtaking beauty of Korean nature, a powerful story of innocent, true, and undying love, and the haunting vocal tradition of pansori combine to present an experience that I can unreservedly say is far and away the best Asian movie I have seen (rivaled only by "Ran") and is high on my list of the best films ever. I have yet to meet someone who was disappointed with this movie.
6 of 6 found the following review helpful:
Confucian fealty never looked so goodMay 02, 2004
I saw this at the Hong Kong film festival in 2001, and the film went over well with the Asians and the Westerners in the large hall where it was shown. Probably the best film I've seen in the last three years... I tried to describe it for friends as a 13th-Century(?) Korean version of Star Wars with less swordplay. Substitute Confucian fealty (how relationships of elder-younger, husband-wife, mother-daughter, leader-follower should work, perhaps ideally) for the Force and corruption for the Dark Side of the Force and, strangely, it fits. The cinematography is great, and the story is introduced via the Korean operatic form for the first ten minutes, but then largely fades out to allow the story to unfold. What the Western is to American culture, this is to Korea's. Better than you'd expect, unless you've seen a lot of Asian cinema. Deserving of a wider audience...
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