The film is careful to take its time to study Ji-Woo’s intelligence and logical responses, along with her audio/visual sensitivities. While the actual defence plot may leap over the bounds of believability, mostly because the defence case never feels like it is ever on terribly solid ground to begin with, the strength of Moon Ji-Won and Lee Han’s ( A Melody to Remember) screenplay lays in the interplay between the two leads. As the investigation continues, Soon-Ho has his assumptions tested and learns something about her condition in the process. The only witness to the crime is a Ji-Woo (Kim Hyang-Gi), a schoolgirl with autism. Struggling lawyer Soon-Ho (Jung Woo-Sung) takes on a seemingly hopeless defence case of a woman accused of murdering an old man. INNOCENT WITNESS (증인) attempts to tackle this within the construct of a courtroom drama with surprisingly strong results. While the country has one of the more prevalent rates of diagnoses, numerous sources speak to the massive social stigma attached to the developmental disorder. Top performances all around.Īutism in South Korea is not an easy topic to tackle.
13.A surprisingly sensitive treatment of autism that also posits the radical notion that lawyers are also humans. “Innocent Witness” opens in local theaters on Feb. It has some flaws along the way, but not enough to eclipse the good parts. It does not demonstrate eye-popping story-telling skills, but the warmth - which the Korean audience had come to expect from many of Lee Han’s films, like the 2011 “Punch” - is there, and that should be enough. The film was always going to be about a special relationship between a girl and a man, and it felt cozy and nice watching it. The sole exception was Park Geun-hyung playing Sun-ho’s father, who was a bit by the book, but delivered some laughs.
The supporting cast was good, but most of them were generic good guys or bad guys who did not really leave a strong impression. Overall, there was nothing that stood out about the narrative, and the twist could be seen from a mile away, too. It is a feel-good flick that needs to wrap up everything with a neat little bow, but the way everything was settled was too much like a storybook ending. The biggest problem was the ending, which felt very obvious and generic. The film gleams of care and warmth that feels authentic, and cleverly avoids being overly emotional or pitying. Ji-woo’s innocent question of “Are you a good person?” resonates throughout the film and in the hearts of the audience members. All you have to do is step into her world and see things from her perspective, which is key to not only understanding people with autism, but also to understanding people in general. The film deserves credit for convincingly depicting that beyond the sporadic outbursts and difficulty opening up to strangers, Ji-woo is a loving, caring and very bright young girl. While their interaction may seem off to others, the mutual care and understanding are clear.
It is clear that the actress and the director put extra care into depicting a world seen by someone with autism, which plays into her character.Īutism gives the young girl her own unique characteristics and leads to some genuine feel-good moments in the film, like Ji-woo’s peculiar phone calls with Sun-ho. The biggest appeal of the film is the chemistry between the two leads, both of whom are likeable and work well together.Ĭoming back to Kim, she blends her innocent, girl-next-door vibe with an autistic character who she convincingly created. This can come off as boring when misused, but can augment character development when used right, like in this one. To many Korean moviegoers, he has “good-guy” looks and appeal. For the most part, however, it works, as Jung manages to convincingly portray someone who is good-willed but who has lost his way and is on his way back. Granted, Jung’s performance in this flick is not outstanding, as he shows his limits in some of the more emotional scenes. But put these actors in a role that fits, and they works like a charm. I’ve always thought of Jung Woo-sung as a Korean version of Keanu Reeves: a gorgeous-looking monotonous actor who has a bland face with an emotional spectrum of a teacup - and not the one from “Beauty and the Beast” because that one was actually pretty solid.
#INNOCENT WITNESS KOREAN MOVIE 2019 CRACK#
In what appears to be a slam-dunk case, Sun-ho pursues the truth by attempting to crack into Ji-woo’s world.
The only piece of evidence damning the defendant is testimony by autistic 15-year-old Ji-woo, who witnessed the entire incident across the street from her window.
0 kommentar(er)
