Decision To Leave (2022) Dir: Park Chan-Wook

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The ever-growing, and ever-more-popular world of South Korean cinema is one that I have barely scraped the surface of, but one name that has stuck with me as one to explore the filmography of, is Park Chan-wook. Known for making some of the best Korean films ever made, and, simply put, some of the highest rated films ever regardless of country or origin, his works were must-watches for me, and I felt like this very highly spoken of 2022 detective thriller was a good place to start.

This was a phenomenally directed film. I immediately noticed some very unique and truly excellent shot choices, many of which made very effective use of the foreground and background, as well as the framing of the characters within each shot. The accompanying editing was phenomenal, with one particular match-cut providing a superb example of this. Even the use of pop-up text dialogue was clever - everything about this film's cinematography pleased me greatly. And all this without mentioning the extremely varied and punchy soundtrack, which I absolutely loved.

Full of mystery and intrigue from start to finish - I was entirely hooked. It felt like a modern Hitchcock film, in the best ways possible. It had intimacy, it had distrust, it had plot twists - I could not have asked for more, and all amidst a palpable atmosphere, which guided the film's mood throughout. The emotions that blossomed as the story developed were tantalising, and so well drawn-out. Such a simple thing like knowing what was in somebody else's pockets felt extremely intimate. The film's two distinct halves were very well executed, and provided two very interesting mini-narratives, that combined to build the story of one intense, secretive, and forbidden, character relationship.

Tang Wei absolutely dominated the screen, with her mysterious, charismatic, and alluring performance. I was blown away by the depth she exhibited throughout her time on-screen, she was phenomenal. She managed to balance the femme fatale and the earnest romantic aspects of her character brilliantly, and provided one of 2022's best acting performances. Even with a less compelling story, she would have elevated this film substantially.

Park Hae-il more than played his part opposite his female co-star, providing a very watchable detective character, whose growing doubts and complicated emotions were excellently shown by the actor. I was especially impressed by Park Hae-il's acting during the highly emotional climactic scenes of the film, where the actor delivered an extremely convincing portrayal of creeping dread and grief.

As far as the rest of the admittedly fairly limited cast, it was Lee Jung-hyun and Go Kyung-pyo whom I felt deserved to get their names mentioned, for their efforts in their supporting roles.

Overall, I thought this was an absolutely breathtaking film, which engaged my focus and toyed with my emotions with an ease few films are capable of. I was utterly compelled by the mystery unravelling before my eyes, and the way the film executed its intense finale was extremely good. To put it simply, this was magnificent; a modern Hitchcockian neo-noir masterpiece.