Madonna review: Shot like a nightmare, every scene feels dirty and unclean.
Madonna review
South Korea has given us plenty of dark and brutal films over the course of the last decade. Such thrillers effortlessly merge violence, comedy, social commentary and tension. But is there such as a thing as making a thriller too dark? If there is, then Madonna is that film. A relentless and torturous watch that cruelly and constantly humiliates one of its main characters. There’s certainly a lot that the film wants to say, but it provides almost no connection for the audience.
The film takes place in a VIP hospital, and despite the fact it should be a place of cleanliness and good service, there is a ferocious dark side to the institution. Hye Rim (Seo Young Hee) is a nurse newly introduced to the hospital, but is soon caught up in a terrible story after an unconscious pregnant prostitute is brought in and soon eyed as a heart transplant donor for a business man’s father who is being kept alive. Hye Rim is asked to investigate the life of the prostitute to see if any next of kin are likely to come knocking, but discovers a horrific life.
Madonna review
There is no real hope in the entire running length of Madonna. The final moments offer a hopeful glimpse, but it’s been such a tiring and painful journey that it’s hard to enjoy or even think about the issues raised. Nicknamed Madonna (Kwon So Hyun), the pregnant prostitutes life is reconstructed through gritty flashbacks, with each era of her life seemingly ending in an act of sexual violence. It’s horrible to say, but with the amount of sexual assault the film almost desensitises the audience in the same way it desensitises Madonna herself. Her constant offerings of oral sex to avoid more violent fates is shown as tragic but also tastelessly humorous too.
Director Shin Su Won has attacked parts of Korean culture with her previous film Pluto, and Madonna is no different. Everyone is seemingly distasteful and corrupt; the businessman, Sang Soo (Kim Young Min), hoping to save his father is only doing so because that way he can keep control of his father’s fortune. We see the corrupt world of private medical care, black market organs, and of course the working classes vs. those with the money.
Madonna review
Shot like a nightmare, every scene feels dirty and unclean. It is the perfect visual accompaniment to the strong and harsh story being told. Whether it’s the interiors of the hospital, scenes of dark neon lit streets, or even daytime shots, everything feels grey and overcast.
Thankfully the cast are able to keep the story moving forward and their brilliant portrayals connect emotionally. It’s also a pleasure to see a film dominated by women deal with their mistreatment in an unflinching manner. That being said though, a film this dark needs to make a very expressive and succinct point. It’s doubtful Madonna is a film that anyone will want to commit to memory for long, which kind of undermines its point. It’s important that such issues are addressed, but being so brutal and domineering is the equivalent of just yelling at a stranger in the street. Such presence can sometimes be a plus, and for some it will work, whereas others will merely feel more ostracised.
Madonna review by Luke Ryan Baldock, October, 2015.
Madonna screened at the BFI London Film Festival.
