Kim ki-Duk's latest is a Korean spin on the Japanese classic "The Face of Another" (recently reviewed). A nutty, jealous woman (is there any other?) undergoes plastic surgery in order to revive what she perceives to be a lackluster relationship. Her old boyfriend falls for her once again and causes her her green-eyed monster to resurface, proving once and all that you can't surgically remove the dysfunctional stuff beneath the skin. This is an intermittently fascinating but flawed movie. When it's focusing on the man-woman dynamics, it is authentic and raw and funny in a sick, familiar way. When it's trying to be more clever than its inspiration, it becomes long-winded and aimless. Like ki-Duk's "The Bow", the film has an unsatisfactory resolution that fails to address the issues it has raised. Technical credits are fine and performances are all of a high caliber. This definitely falls into ki-Duk Lite territory, joining "3-Iron", "The Bow" and "Spring, Summer..." I liked it more than "3-Iron" and "The Bow", but I was still disappointed that the director dropped the ball in the final act.
Review of Time
