Castaway on the Moon

A

Directed by Hae Jun Lee

Hae Jun Lee's little gem of a movie, his first as a director, mind you, announces the arrival of an exciting and very talented new voice in Korean cinema.

After a failed suicide attempt, Mr. Kim, a heavily indebted salary man washes up on an island in the middle of the Han River. Even though he is within swimming distance of Seoul, he can't get oiff the island because he can't swim. He also can't contact anyone in the outside world because they either don't see him or can't understand his please for help. Confined to this unforgiving world, Mr. Kim goes about surviving the elements and reinventing himself in the "wild". At the same time, a reclusive girl suffering from a social anxiety disorder begins to watch Mr. Kim from afar and seeks deperately to contact him.

Ahh….what a wonderful movie. "Castaway on the Moon" strikes a pitch perfect balance between raucous comedy, survival mini-epic, and romance that is really astounding for a first time director. Lee starts off with a pretty ambitious premise and then has to keep several balls in the air throughout the duration of the film but he succeeds admirably. Watching Kim's transition from despondent castaway to savvy survivalist is always hilarious but it's also deeply moving at times and not always in expected ways. Lee's film also serves as a cautionary tale on the weight of worldly posessions and the emptiness of material things, but it never goes overboard or becomes preachy. The parralel storyline involving the reclusive girl fits in wonderfully with the story arc and the two characters build palpable chemistry throughout the film even if they never see each other. The extremely flat faced Jeo-yeoung Jeong proves yet again that he has a particular gift for comedy, giving an emotional, over the top performance that is totally hilarious without being too much.