Memories of Murder Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.0

Memories of Murder Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov March 20, 2021

Bong Joon Ho's "Memories of Murder" (2003) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the disc include vintage promotional materials for the film; archival audio commentaries with the director, cast and crew members; new audio commentary by critic Tony Rayns; deleted scenes with optional commentary; short film; and a lot more. In Korean, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

The text below was previously used for our review of CJ Entertainment's release of Memories of Murder in 2010. You can read this review here.

Korean director Bong Joon-ho’s Memories of Murder tells two very different stories. However, most critics who have written about it address only one of them. I believe that this is due to the fact that one would have a very difficult time recognizing all of the subtle references in Memories of Murder without being well-versed in Korean history and politics. I know I did.

The first story in Memories of Murder is about a serial killer roaming freely in the provincial town of Hwaseong between 1986 and 1991. He is a man who goes after young women, which he rapes and kills in a shockingly brutal fashion. The killings occur only when it rains.

Two cops are ordered to solve the killings. One is Detective Park (Song Kang-Ho, The Good, The Bad, The Weird) from the local Police Department. The other is Detective Suh (Kim Sang-Kyung, Tale of Cinema), who has been sent from Seoul to assist the local authorities. Detective Suh has substantially more experience than Detective Park, but his local colleague is clearly a lot more enthusiastic about his job.

The two detectives go to work but quickly get frustrated with the lack of credible information. They question a number of suspects, some of which they torture. The local media is immediately tipped and the two detectives become targets. Meanwhile, the killer keeps doing what he has been doing, a suspect gets killed by a train, and mandatory electrical blackouts are introduced by the Korean government. The killer remains on the loose, and Detective Park and Detective Suh get demoted.

The second story in Memories of Murder, which I found to be a lot more intriguing, indirectly addresses Korea’s uneasy political climate. The film opens with the last days of General Chun Doo-hwan’s government - tension is in the air and the pro-democratic demonstrations that would eventually oust Doo-hwan are already underway. In the village where Detective Park and Detective Suh are trying to nab the killer things are relatively quiet, but everyone senses that something serious is happening elsewhere.

I wonder if the title of the film has a special meaning. The more I think about it, the more I am convinced that it does. In 1987, a Korean student, Park Jong-chul, was tortured and then killed by Doo-hwan’s men. The news about Jong-chul’s death spurred massive protests that dramatically changed the political climate in Korea. Furthermore, a lot of the very dark humor in the film comes during some of its most violent scenes. At first I thought that this was very strange, but then I realized what Joon-ho was after -- these scenes actually satirize the easiness with which Koreans tolerated violence and repression at the time.

The acting in Memories of Murder is very good. Song Kang-ho is a terrific improviser who can be delightfully unpredictable in front of the camera. Time after time I could not figure out when he was bluffing during the interrogations. Kim Sang-kyung is also convincing as Kang-ho’s reserved and experienced partner. The supporting cast is also very good.

Cinematographer Kim Hyung-ku, who collaborated with Chen Kaige on Together (2002) and Hong Sang-soo on Woman on the Beach (2006), has given Memories of Murder a notably stylish look. Japanese composer Taro Iwashiro’s music score is also very effective.

*In 2003, Memories of Murder won the Silver Seashell, FIPRESCI Prize, and Best New Director award at the San Sebastian International Film Festival.

Memories of Murder Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Memories of Murder arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion.

The following text appears inside the leaflet that is provided with this Blu-ray release:

"This new 4K digital restoration was undertaken by CJ Entertainment, and was supervised by cinematographer Kim Hyung Ku and approved by director Bong Joon Ho. A new digital transfer was created on a Cintel Blackmagic Design film scanner. The restoration was carried out using MTI Film's DRS, PFClean, and DIAMANT-Film.

Transfer supervisor: Kim Hyung Ku, Ok Im Sik.
Colorist: Kim Seung Won/CJ PowerCast, Seongnam, South Korea."

I discovered this film a little over a decade ago, when Korean label CJ Entertainment released it on Blu-ray. You can see our review of this release here. This upcoming release is apparently sourced from a new 4K restoration that was supervised by cinematographer Kim Hyung Ku and approved by director Bong Joon Ho. After the makeover, the film has a drastically different appearance. In fact, it is almost unrecognizable. I have not seen it theatrically and cannot confirm if this is how it looked when it was completed, but if I had to guess, I would say that the 4K restoration is yet another digital interpretation that was recently finalized in a lab.

The entire film has a completely different color scheme now. It looks greenish/brownish and emphasizes heavy ranges of blacks. The diverse primaries and supporting nuances from the previous release are eliminated. The film tends to look flatter as well, especially in darker indoor and nighttime footage where finer details used to be easy to recognize. There are some traces of digital work that are responsible for the flattening, but the blacks are often too overwhelming as well, causing plenty of crushing and even minor smearing (see screencapture #4). It is possible that in native 4K there are better ranges of nuances, but in 1080p darker areas do not look especially convincing. (Of course, it is very possible that this is a stylistic preference, but even if this is the case organic film does not look as flat as it does in the screencapture that I referenced above). Image stability is very good. The entire film is spotless. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Memories of Murder Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: Korean DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. Optional English subtitles are provided for the main feature.

First, the English translation is vastly superior here and as a result there are quite a few segments that look a lot more coherent. The lossless track is very solid. The film uses music and effects in some quite original ways, so if you can, turn up the volume on your system more than you usually do. Clarity, depth, and balance are excellent.

Memories of Murder Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

BLU-RAY DISC ONE

• Trailer - vintage trailer for Memories of Murder. In Korean, with optional English subtitles. (3 min, 1080i).

• Teaser - vintage teaser trailer for Memories of Murder. In Korean, with optional English subtitles. (2 min, 1080i).

• TV Spot - vintage TV spot for Memories of Murder. In Korean, with optional English subtitles. (1 min, 1080i).

• Deleted Scenes - a gallery of deleted scenes with optional commentary by Bong Joon Ho. In Korean, with optional English subtitles.
  
  1. Inspector Jo (2 min, 1080i).
  2. A Pervert (5 min, 1080i).
  3. On the Hill (1 min, 1080i).
  4. Hairless (1 min, 1080i).
  5. Female Officer (2 min, 1080i).
  6. Release (1 min, 1080i).
  7. Departure/Scarecrow (4 min, 1080i).

• Perfect Cinema - in this new program, Guillermo del Toro discusses the visual composition and characterizations in Memories of Murder. The program was produced exclusively for Criterion in 2020. In English, not subtitled. (15 min, 1080p).

• Commentary One - this archival audio commentary was recorded by Bong Jong Ho, cinematographer Kim Hyung Ku, and production designer Ruy Sung Hee in 2003. This is a casual but quite informative commentary with plenty of observations about the shooting of different sequences, specific locations, and lensing preferences. In Korean, with optional English subtitles.

• Commentary Two - this archival audio commentary was recorded by Bong Jong Ho and actors Song Kang Ho, Kim Sang Kyung, and Park No Shik in 2003. There are plenty of interesting observations about the composition and lensing of different sequences, the style and tone of the film, the personalities of the main characters, the film's dark sense of humor, etc. In Korean, with optional English subtitles.

• Commentary Three - in this new audio commentary, critic Tony Rayns shares plenty of interesting information about the title of the film, the social themes that emerge in the film, the blending of comedy and drama, the personalities of the main characters, Bong Jong Ho's maturation as a director and the evolution of his work, etc. The commentary was recorded in 2020.

BLU-RAY DISC TWO

• Imagination vs. Reality - in this new program, Bong Joon Ho and critic and translator Darcy Paquet discuss Lee Chun-jae, the real-life serial killer that inspired Memories of Murder as well as the research and preparation work that was done before production of the film began. The program was produced in 2020. In Korean, with optional English subtitles. (11 min, 1080p).

• Making Memories of Murder - this archival documentary chronicles the production history of Memories of Murder. It features clips from interviews with Bong Joon Ho and cast and crew members as well as raw footage from the pre-production and shooting processes. It was made in 2004. In Korean, with optional English subtitles. (159 min, 1080i).
  
  1. The Chase
  2. Casting and photography
  3. The cast
  4. Lighting and locations
  5. Design and effects
  6. The score
  7. Release
  8. Credits

• Sonic Precision - in this new program, film scholar Jeff Smith discusses the relationship between sound and image in Bong Joon Ho's films. The program was produced in 2020. In English, not subtitled. (21 min, 1080p).

• Incoherence - Bong Joon Ho directed this short film in 1994. Presented here is a new 4K restoration of the film that was completed by the Korean Film Archive in 2019. The film can be seen with a video introduction by the director. In Korean, with optional English subtitles.
  
  1. Introduction (7 min, 1080p).
  2. Incoherence (31 min, 1080p).

• Leaflet - an illustrated leaflet featuring an essay by critic Ed Park as well as technical credits.

Memories of Murder Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The new 4K restoration of Memories of Murder produces a makeover that has practically nothing in common with the film that I discovered in 2010. I don't know if this is how the film looked when it was released theatrically because I have never attended a theatrical presentation of it. The restoration was apparently supervised by cinematographer Kim Hyung Ku and approved by director Bong Joon Ho, but if I had to choose, I would have liked to see the older 'version' of the film fully restored. Regardless, this two-disc set is very easy to recommend because it features an impressive selection of archival and exclusive new bonus features that fans of Memories of Murder will be delighted with. RECOMMENDED.