The Bow (Kim Ki-duk)

The Korean director known for his chauvinistic films premiered his fourteenth film, The Bow, in Cannes this year.

The Bow tells a story of a 60-year-old man who stole a young girl when she was six and has since detained her in order to marry her when she reaches 17. Living on a boat in the middle of the sea, these two characters are cut off from the rest of the world and only interact with fishermen who happen to pass by. The old man uses his only bow to defend her from other men and to create spellbinding music that showcases his love for the girl. Things begin to change when the girl meets and falls in love with a good-looking boy. Despite all the old man’s effort, the girl refuses to have a change of heart. In the end, he decides to hang himself.

Kim Ki-Duk has proven that there can be tenderness underneath the savagery and chauvinism. The old man in the film can sleep with the girl whenever he wants but instead he chooses to wait until the marriage.

Nonetheless, this film is not highly artistic. The last scene with the girl losing her virginity still embodies the rawness typical of Kim Ki-Duk’s films but also fills with unparalleled beauty. Kim Ki-Duk manages to enrich this scene with many archetypes, including the bow, which may represent power or intrusion, and blood, which can refer to virginity or just actual blood.

The only flaw of The Bow that prevents it from making to the main competition is the ambiguity of the last scene and the symbolism of the bow. As such, I give it three and a half stars for Kim Ki-Duk’s latest work. If this movie ever makes it to Thailand, I can guarantee that the censorship board will cut out the last scene.