Hong Sang-soo - Daijiga umule pajinnal ('The Day a Pig Fell Into the Well') (1996)

Critically respected filmmaker Hong Sang Soo, who would go on to helm such films as The Power Of Kangwon Province and Virgin Stripped Bare By Her Bachelors made his feature length directorial debut with The Day A Pig Fell Into The Well, a film that received much acclaim at film festivals around the world, winning the director numerous awards in the process, including Best Director at South Korea's Blue Dragon Awards. Divided into separate stories, the film follows the everyday lives of four characters whose lives all interconnect at some point in their respective narratives. Yesasia




First up, there's Hyo Sub (Kim Eui Sung), a struggling writer who is romantically involved with both Min Jae (Jo Eun Suk) and Po Kyong (Lee Eung Kyung) who get their own individual narratives later in the film. Min Jae is a twenty-four year old woman who works several odd jobs just to make ends meet and is head over heels in love with Hyo Sub, even though he treats her poorly. Po Kyung is Hyo Sub's true object of affection, but despite her mutual regard for him, she's married to someone else. That "someone else" is Dong Woo (Park Jin Song), who is the focus of the second narrative. He heads out of town on business for his water purifier company, but ends up spending the night in a seedy motel with a prostitute. As the film develops, pieces of the puzzle begin to lock into place, as viewers begin to see the bigger picture. But what will they see?. Yesasia




The Day a Pig Fell into a Well garnered him critical acclaim around the world. A film about emotional disconnection and intimacy, Pig presents four characters in separate but intertwined narratives. First, writer Hyo-Sub (Kim Eui-Sung) is struggling to finish his novel and juggle two relationships - one with young Jae-Min (Jo Eun-Suk), and the other with married woman Po-Kyung (Lee Eung-Kyung). However, his aggression eventually explodes due to his frustrations, ultimately alienating his friends. Yesasia




Next, we follow Dong-Woo (Park Jin-Song), a businessman who goes out of town for a meeting that never comes to fruition. Instead, he tries to fill his loneliness through physical intimacy. Finally, we then learn more about Jae-Min, who works several odd jobs, including making personalized wake-up calls and working at the ticket window of a movie theater. She is head over heels for Hyo-Sob, even though he treats her like dirt. On the other hand, Hyo-Sob claims to be in love with Po-Kyung, and she is even prepared to elope with him. However, after being stood up by Hyo-Sub, Po-Kyung begins to wander around the city, examining the lack of direction in her life. Yesasia




The four narratives play out in separate sections of the film, and patience is required as their connections slowly unfold. Those who have no prior knowledge of Hong's structure may grow frustrated with Pig's slow pace and low-key storytelling, but those who can sit through it will find a dark tale that is as powerful as it is emotionally muted. Hong is never a particularly crowd-pleasing director, as Pig is sexually explicit (though not in a titillating fashion), grim, at times violent, and almost never clear about its characters. They are introduced and abandoned, only to be brought back into the story later, which can confuse audiences when the characters haven't even been properly introduced. This is a film that either requires multiple viewings or constant note taking just to keep track of how everything comes together. Yesasia