Chunhyang is the
protagonist and
title of a
Korean legend, most recently filmed by
Kwon-taek Im and shown at
Cannes. It's a fairly straightforward medieval romance, the basic elements of which are the roots of many
fairy tales,
fantasy novels, etc. A governor's son, Mongryong, falls in
love with Chunhyang, who is the low-born daughter of a
courtesan. (Luckily for my enjoyment of the story, she is not only
beautiful, but
strong-willed,
educated,
intelligent, and a skilled
poet.) Naturally, when his parents find out that he's not only fallen for but secretly married this girl, he has to leave her--for one thing, he has to take the
Confucian Chinese-style
imperial examinations to see if he can earn a high post. While he's gone, the new governor--a harsh man--hears of Chunhyang, and decides that since she's effectively a courtesan herself, she must submit to him. Does she? does Mongryong come back for her? is there any way out of it?
Now, this story has been filmed more than a dozen times, novelized more than a hundred, and features in the
storytelling tradition of
Korea, "
pansori." What makes this film special is the way in which it integrates pansori and film. Sometimes the reciter's lyrics overlap the dialogue, sometimes it's descriptive narrative, and sometimes we're watching the reciter on stage with a contemporary audience of modern Koreans (the movie itself is set in the 13th century). This is more than a film gimmick; it lifts a fairly simple and slow-moving story into something
sublime. I found the pansori and the music something close to trance-inducing; other filmgoers were rather jarred by it. I recommend finding this film at the local
art house theater or on video next year, and experiencing it for yourself.
Korean culture is very old and many-layered, with inheritances from
China and legacies passed on to
Japan, and ancient
indigenous traditions. This is reflected in the story; you'll see Chinese
calligraphy,
Japanese motifs, references to Chinese
folk tales, incredible Korean scenery, and so on. Korea isn't something that most non-Koreans think about very much, so that's one more reason to watch this beautiful film--it was even the first Korean film ever screened at Cannes.