The Handmaiden

Stately and vulgar. Tender and vicious. Beautiful and grotesque. It’s not surprising that a story about fluid identities, convoluted scheming, and double crosses could encompass such contradictory tones and ideas. But in the hands of a master director at the height of his powers like Park Chan-wook (known best in America for “Oldboy”), the result is a superlative thriller and deeply erotic character study that ranks among the very best films of recent years. A young female pickpocket and a male con artist in 1930s Korea, then under Japanese colonial rule, deceive and seduce their way through a high society manor. Imbued with violence, horror, and unconventional eroticism, the film consists of three distinct parts, each taking a different character’s point of view, providing the audience with uniquely layered insight into a complex web of motives. A film this suspenseful, sexy, and surprising is singularly rare, and must be savored on the big screen when it comes around.

PRE-SHOW MUSIC BY
TC Uke Guy (Sat)
Peggy Lee (Sun)

SPONSORED BY
Carolyn Micklatcher (Sat)
David & Judy Pohlod (Sun)