Memories of Murder
Short description
Set in Gyeonggi Province in 1986, Memories of Murder follows a pair of local detectives investigating the rape and murder of a young woman. When similar crimes follow and no suspect pans out, a more methodical detective is sent from Seoul to assist. The three men clash over how to work the case as the killings continue and their efforts repeatedly stall, turning the investigation into an increasingly desperate search for a culprit who always seems one step ahead.
The film is Bong Joon-ho's second feature, arriving three years after Barking Dogs Never Bite and preceding The Host, Mother, Snowpiercer, Okja and Parasite. Bong wrote the screenplay with Shim Sung-bo. Song Kang-ho plays Detective Park Doo-man, with Kim Sang-kyung as Detective Seo Tae-yoon and Kim Roi-ha as Detective Cho Yong-koo, heading a credited cast of fifty-five.
Made for roughly 3 million USD, the film drew a substantial audience and maintains a strong reputation: 8.1 out of 10 on IMDb from about 263,000 votes and the same average on TMDB from a much smaller base of 4,823. A critics' rating of 8.4 out of 10 across 80 reviews places it slightly above the audience scores, indicating broad approval from both professional reviewers and viewers.
What's left behind the scenes
- To show how the complex case was affecting his character, actor Kim Sang-gyeon began to eat and sleep less. This, of course, could not help but affect his appearance.
- When Bong Joon-ho was writing the screenplay, he immediately pictured Song Kang-ho in the role of the rural detective.
- To film the karaoke scene, director Bong Joon-ho had to show Song Kang-ho how to move to the music.
- The film is based on a true story about the first known serial murders in South Korea, which took place between 1986 and 1991 in the city of Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province. In September 2019, the identity of the serial killer was established; he was Lee Choon-jae (born 1963), a native of Hwaseong.
- Director Bong Joon-ho and actor Song Kang-ho met while preparing for another film that was ultimately not made, and both had very pleasant impressions of each other. When Song was offered a role in this film, he agreed without hesitation.
- In one of the cut scenes, the detective goes to a red-light district and asks questions related to the investigation from a girl giving him a massage. The scene was filmed in a real red-light district with the pimp's permission.
- To show how the complex case affected his character, actor Kim Sang-kyun began to eat and sleep less, which was reflected in his appearance.
- To film the karaoke scene, director Bong Joon-ho had to show Song Kang-ho how to move to the music and sing simultaneously. Since, by his own admission, Song cannot sing at all and has no sense of rhythm, this scene was the most difficult for him.
- During the interrogation of Kwan-ho (Park No-shik), the police are watching television. On it is another episode of the famous South Korean detective series "Chief of Investigation".
- Director Bong Joon-ho admitted that he was greatly influenced by the play of the same name by Kim Gwang-nim and the graphic novel "From Hell" by Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
