Mimang
Old friends wander through a changing Seoul in this wistful urban portrait that follows in the footsteps of the Before trilogy and Hong Sang-soo.
The history of cinema is full of forgotten gems awaiting rediscovery, but sometimes even the more recent treasures take a little longer to find us. Such is the case with Mimang, arriving at Love & Anarchy two years after its premiere. In this case the delay only adds to the story, as the Korean film is centred on the themes of time: moments, change, permanence, past, present, and future.
Separated into three titled chapters, the story follows a man and a woman sharing a history. In the first chapter, they meet by chance in the city when they are already living apart. The second chapter depicts the woman meeting another man, a target of potential interest. In the final chapter, the ex-lovers meet again in the street, this time after a life has ended. Each episode moves through urban space in the transforming streets of Seoul. The city is the film’s third main character.
Director Kim Tae-yang filmed his debut over a number of years. Mimang brings up some, perhaps obvious, associations from Richard Linklater’s Before trilogy to Hong Sang-soo’s works. Likewise Past Lives (R&A 2023) by Celine Song and Columbus (2017) by Kogonada, both directors with a Korean background, work as an excellent frame of reference for the themes and aesthetic of Kim’s film.
Suvi Heino (translated by Adrian Murtomäki)
Trailer
