The Novelist's Film Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		5.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.0

The Novelist's Film Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Stephen Larson August 11, 2023

The Novelist's Film (2022) is one of the latest efforts from prolific South Korean auteur Hong Sang-soo. Like the late great Kim Ki-duk (a very different filmmaker stylistically in his own right), Song self-finances his films and assumes most responsibilities as writer, director, cinematographer, and editor (among others). His more recent films, including The Novelist's Film, are small, character-driven dramas shot in black and white with many long takes. The picture opens at a bookstore in Hanam (near Seoul) where author Jun-hee (Lee Hye-young) is visiting her old literary friend, Se-won (Seo Young-hwa), the store's proprietor, who she has not seen in a long while. Jun-hee also converses with Hyun-woo (Park Mi-so), a sign-language student who works in the bookshop. Jun-hee ventures to a local tower where she runs into film director Park Hyo-jin (Kwon Hae-hyo) and his wife (Lee Eun-mi). Park and Jun-hee have known each other and the latter is a little bitter that the filmmaker didn't adapt one of her novels into a movie. Outside the tower, the three encounter actress Kil-soo (played by Hong's muse and off-screen partner Kim Min-hee). Jun-hee and Kil-soo can directly relate because each has reached a crossroads in her artistic careers. Jun-hee is unsure what she wants to write next and Kil-soo apparently hasn't received any offers to act in any productions. Jun-hee pitches an idea for a film in which she will write and at least partially direct with Kil-soo as the star. Kil-soo says that her husband’s nephew, college student Gyeong-woo (Ha Seong-guk), is an aspiring filmmaker and can shoot it.

Gathering at the bookshop.

The Novelist's Film (2022) is about the search for artistic and creative renewal. Jun-hee is an older literary figure on writer's block (or something tantamount to it) and struggling to find fresh ideas for her next novel. She's seeking that one project that can reinvigorate her career. The same is also true of Kil-soo, but to a lesser degree. The Novelist's Film comprises lots of long takes in which artists talk about themselves, their relationships, and their work. They sometimes do while eating ramen or drinking the milky liquor makgeolli. (In other Hong films, the characters drink soju.) The dialogue and long takes, with characters framed in group medium shots, are somewhat reminiscent of the work of Éric Rohmer, who Hong is often compared to. (Hong made Claire's Camera [2017], which seems like a direct nod to Rohmer's Claire's Knee [1970].) Hong occasionally pans or zooms in, a sure indication that he wants to underscore a key moment in the conversation. Hong's script is very good but visually, the long takes can be an endurance test on the viewer because there isn't a whole lot going on in the frame.

The Novelist's Film Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Cinema Guild's summer release of The Novelist's Film comes on an MPEG-4 AVC-encoded BD-50 (disc size: 39.13 GB; feature size: 27.21 GB). The picture appears in its originally composed ratio of 1.78:1. The transfer does a stellar job of showcasing Hong's high-contrast black-and-white photography. In particular, reflective surfaces shine (see the floor tile inside the tower in Screenshot #s 11-13). Shot digitally, no artifacts appear anywhere. Cinema Guild has given the feature a maxed-out video bitrate averaging 35710 kbps.

Ten chapters accompany the 92-minute movie.

The Novelist's Film Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Cinema Guild has supplied a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Stereo (1557 kbps, 24-bit). All spoken words are in Korean. Dialogue is registered clearly and audibly along the front channels. Occasional wind, street sounds, and ambient f/x are sometimes present along the rears. Though Hong is credited as the composer, there really isn't much musical underscore.

Optional English subtitles appear in a white font that is clear and readable.

The Novelist's Film Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Small Flower: a greeting from Hong Sang-soo (1:11, 1080p) - a text-based intro (in English) from Hong followed by the moving image of a flower on a side street and what Hong thinks it is expressing.

• Press conference from the 72nd Berlin International Film Festival (37:51, 1080p) - a photo op with Hong and his leading lady, Kim Min-hee. A press conference with Hong and Kim follows. Hong answers questions from journalists in English. Kim listens to the press conference using an ear piece. Her responses to questions are spoken in Korean, which are then translated into English over a loud speaker.

• [Easter Egg] Secret Screening Introduction from "The Hong Sangsoo Multiverse" at Film at Lincoln Center (6:42, 1080i) - recorded on 5/10/22, this intro was part of a retrospective on Hong's body of work shown at Lincoln Center, which contained a surprise screening of The Novelist's Film. In English, not subtitled.

• Theatrical Trailer (2:07, 1080p) - Cinema Guild's official post-festival trailer for The Novelist's Film presented in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen with Dolby Digital 2.0 (192 kbps). In Korean, with English subtitles.

• Bonus Previews - trailers for nine other C.G. titles.

• Leaflet - a four-page leaflet featuring essay by Annabel Brady-Brown, who gives a detailed analysis of The Novelist's Film.

The Novelist's Film Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Novelist's Film is a solid, minimalist drama. It covers a small group of characters and their observations about themselves and their occupations. Hong Sang-soo delivers a very good screenplay that's handled ably by his troupe of actors. The picture moves very leisurely. While it's only an hour and a half, it may be best not to watch it all in one sitting since there's a good deal to digest from the dialogue. I believe it would be apropos that Hong rethink his long-take aesthetic as he could vary his camera angles and shot types more to make the compositions more interesting. Cinema Guild delivers a splendid transfer with a very healthy bitrate. There's a decent set of extras culled from pre- and post-screening remarks about the film. RECOMMENDED to fans of Hong and contemporary Korean cinema.