Bong Joon Ho: Dissident Cinema

by Karen Han, David Lowery (Foreword), Little White Lies (Illustrator)

Brilliantly illustrated and designed by the London-based film magazine Little White Lies, Bong Joon-ho examines the career of the South Korean writer/director, who has been making critically acclaimed feature films for more than two decades. First breaking out into the international scene with festival-favorite Barking Dogs Never Bite (2000), Bong then set his sights on the story of a real-life serial killer in 2003’s Memories of Murder and once again won strong international critical attention, taking home the prize for Best Director at the San Sebastian Film Festival. But it was 2006’s The Host that proved to be a huge breakout moment both for Bong and the Korean film industry. The monster movie, set in Seoul, premiered at Cannes and became an instant hit—South Korea’s widest release ever, setting new box office records and selling remake rights in the US to Universal. Bong’s next feature, Mother (2009) also premiered at Cannes, once again earning critical acclaim and appearing on many “best-of” lists for 2009/2010. Bong’s first English-language film, Snowpiercer (2013)—set on a postapocalyptic train where class divisions erupt into class warfare—followed on its heels, bringing his work outside of the South Korean and film festival markets and onto the stage of global commercial cinema. With 2017’s Okja (which became a center of controversy due to its being produced and released by Netflix), Bong became even more of an internationally known name, with the New York Times' A. O. Scott calling the film “a miracle of imagination and technique.” Bong’s next film, the 2019 black comedy/thriller Parasite, simultaneously scaled back—the film is mostly set in just two locations, with two Korean families taking center stage—and took his career to new heights, winning the Palme d’Or with a unanimous vote, as well as history-making Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best International Feature Film.  
Parasite’s jarring shifts in tone—encompassing darkness, drama, slapstick, and black humor—and its unsubtle critiques of late capitalism and American imperialism are in conversation with Bong’s entire body of work, and this mid-career monograph will survey the entirety of that work, including his short films, to flesh out the stories behind the films with supporting analytical text and interviews with Bong’s key collaborators. The book also explores Bong’s rise in the cultural eye of the West, catching up readers with his career before his next masterpiece arrives.

Genres: Film, Nonfiction, Media Tie In, Pop Culture, History

272 pages, Hardcover

First published November 22, 2022

Reviews

[Dan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A handsome volume that serves as a helpful introduction to Bong's oeuvre. But for those who have already enjoyed or even studies his films, Han's writing rarely strays beyond the surface, content to merely describe what a literate viewer would mostly take away from them herself. In this sense, it's disappointing that this first major book-length study fails to offer much in the way of original insight. (Also, while I appreciate the visual design, I did have some reservations about the decision to crop most screen shots, thereby too often losing the carefully-orchestrated widescreen compositions that typify his work as a visual stylist.)

[Raven · Rating 2 out of 5]

Found myself disappointed with this one. The writing and surveying of Joon Ho's work never strays away from much more than surface detail. You could read this, or you could just watch another Bong movie. I know what I'd pick.

[Dilli Fussolini · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great way to spend a weekend watching cool movies while also reading about the man behind the magic

[Julien L · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a pretty decent survey of Bong's work. It has strong design elements and presents strong anti-capitalist, anti-corporate readings of his work, which are substantiated by quotes from interviews he's done as well as interviews with collaborators. However, I think the problem is that these readings don't really present anything new about his work, and rather seem to be a critical overview of the common strands of thinking about his work. It's not as substantive or original as it could be in this regard, and I found myself yearning for criticism of his work that I hadn't already thought of before reading this.

I really loved the short sections on the films that influenced Bong Joon-Ho (someone really needs to write a book about the horror works of Kiyoshi Kurosawa. Cure is one of the best films ever made.) and the interviews were a treasure trove on how the film-making process is done. This is clearly a man who thinks through every little bit of his films and is concerned with process as much as execution.

I understand that the chronological presentation of the works is meant to showcase the evolution of his directorial style, thinking, and thematic strains in his films, but I wish the book had been organized in a different way, like how Nayman did the Fincher book thematically. It would have made for an interesting spin. It is well-written, but it brings nothing new to the table. It successfully positions Bong as a dissident, but we already knew that.

[Nicholas Stonehouse · Rating 5 out of 5]

What sets this auteur analysis apart from others is that nearly every section supports a specific point of view. This isn't just a blanket description of directorial decisions. It's a history of how and why Director Bong rails against the governing socioeconomic sickness of our times.

From protesting the fascist politics of his 1980s youth in Korea to the global inequality induced by capitalism, most of his movies tackle subjects with an anti-authoritarian approach. But also allow the audience room for artistic interpretation by leaving certain things ambiguous. Preferring to let the sounds and images speak for themselves.

Finishing this book doesn't just give me an idea of who Bong Joon Ho is as a director, artist, auteur. I feel like I know him more as a person.

[elif sinem · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unfortunately most of it is so surface level that the only person you can recommend this to is a 19 year old who has never done a filmography before. I liked the interviews though, and the Memories of Murder & Mother essays somewhat

[Kory · Rating 5 out of 5]

read accompanying watching through all of Bong's movies as part of the Taiiku Movies podcast series, and it was an invaluable resource of analysis, fun facts, and finally interviews with some of Bong's collaborators.

[cobra bubbles · Rating 4 out of 5]

Respectfully, imma need you to put the coloured tints for the pictures DOON.

Excavating meaning behind directorial oeuvre, ‘Bong Joon Ho: Dissident Cinema’ unearths the political motivations within each feature and tethers links to his other works, defining a consistent through-line about spatial awareness in societies built on the architecture of social class.

As a personal preference with non-fiction books regarding film, I would prefer to hear straight from the horse’s mouth instead of someone’s divorced perception of the work. However, there is still value in another person’s observations and insight which works to translate the building blocks of the film. I would just prefer to understand the Bong, not the observer of how it feels to take a hit of the Bong. Rise up Bong hive!

⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

[David Ivany · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed the retrospective of Bong Joon Ho's career and it got me excited to dive into his older movies (As much as BJH may not appreciate it, reading about Barking Dogs Never Bite really has me intrigued). Especially appreciated the interviews with folks who have collaborated with him, to get insight into his process.

[Dylan Southern · Rating 1 out of 5]

Incredibly dull writing about an incredibly talented director. All of the Little White Lies books suffer from being nothing more than surface level coffee table books.

[Amy Page · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fantastic look that, even as someone who has not seen most if any of Director Bong's filmography yet but is fascinated by his work, dives into each piece both by itself and intertwined. An interesting read and a fascinating look at Bong Joon Ho + some of those in the inner circle of his productions.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super interesting and I loved that it went a bit deeper than just a basic synopsis of his films. The influences were a great addition.
My only complaint is there was a lot of empty space on some pages that could have been filled with photos or… anything? Other than that, really informative and cool.

[Jack Gubbins · Rating 3 out of 5]

One for the coffee table

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful illustrations, especially the 2-pagers. Loved the section on "Memories of Murder"

[Tony · Rating 4 out of 5]

Took a long time to read because I kept stopping to watch the movies.

[Victor Phun · Rating 4 out of 5]

reading to prepare for Mickey17, really interesting!! it articulates a lot of why Bong's style is so unique by focusing on each of his works individually

[Sean Fulmer · Rating 4 out of 5]

We should be making more glossy beautiful books that span a director’s career with interesting and thought provoking essays on each film by them

[Cameron K]

Hardcover from BookOutlet.com
Read in anticipation of Bong Joon-ho's "Mickey 17"