Woman on the Beach (2006)

Synopsis: A creatively blocked film director journeys to an off-season beach resort to finish his script in this slyly observant comedy from Korean auteur Hong Sang-soo. Whether needing the help, or merely... A creatively blocked film director journeys to an off-season beach resort to finish his script in this slyly observant comedy from Korean auteur Hong Sang-soo. Whether needing the help, or merely inviting distraction, Kim Joong-rae (Kim Seung-woo) petitions his production designer Won Chang-wook (Kim Tae-woo) to come along for the ride. But when Won brings along Kim Moon-sook, his "girlfriend" (a title that becomes more suspect as the film goes along), complications follow. Among the resort's empty beaches and vacant hotels, a love triangle unfolds that, like the slow roll of the surf, is as languorous as it is hypnotic. Needless to say, not much work gets done. Later, returning alone and still supposedly at work on his script, the director encounters a vacationing woman and the powerful emotional undercurrents of the story are brought to the surface. Striking a delicate balance of sympathies, A WOMAN ON THE BEACH offers both a fascinating study of human relationships and an intensely entertaining romantic comedy. With its largely static framings, the film emphasizes the lead characters' casually shifting allegiances and cargo of contradictions: Kim's film director is both a self-serving egotist and a needy romantic; his love interest, Moon-Sook, can be as vulnerable as she is calculating. It is a testament to Sang-soo's skill, and the wonderful performances by the actors, that the film remains gripping without resorting to overblown emotional displays. While the outcome of its romantic entanglements is just right, at the film's core are the murky motivations of its characters who, if queried, would likely be as baffled and amused as the viewer. [More]

Starring: Kim Seung-Woo, Kim Tae-woo, Ko Hyun-joung, Song Sun-mi

Starring: Kim Seung-Woo, Kim Tae-woo, Ko Hyun-joung, Song Sun-mi

Director: Hong Sang-Soo

Director: Hong Sang-Soo
Producer: Oh Jung-Wan
Composer: Jeong Yong-jin
Studio: New Yorker Films

[See More Credits]