Sleepless Night review [LKFF 2015]: “This is promising and moving cinema.”

Sleepless Night review: A film that has experiences to share with its audience, rather than merely lead you through your average story.

Sleepless Night is a wonderful reminder of just how simple and barebones a film can be. A semi-autobiographical effort from Jang Kun Jae, the how production feels stark and limited, but never amateurish or apologetic. It’s a film that avoids grand demonstrations of drama or shocking conflict in favour of much more realistic solutions to any problems that arise. It is also both of the moment, while feeling very classical too.

The film follows a couple in their mid-thirties who are very much in love, but wonder whether having a child is the right thing for them. They come up against mild interference from friends and family who remind them they are not getting any younger, while the pair are very much happy with the life they share together and having the freedom to follow their pursuits. Hyun Soo (Kim Su Hyeon), works at a boxing factory where he has started to be called in to work Sundays at no extra pay. Ironically, the first time we see him at work he is merely dismantling cardboard boxes. Joo Hee (Kim Joo Ryung) on the other hand, is a yoga instructor who may or may not be worried that a child may end her practice.

The two are very much in love, and Jang shows us this in a beautifully visual style. They meet each other at the bus stop after work, cycle home together, shower together, and cook meals for one another. They are usually in some form of contact, mostly handholding or arm interlocking, but it never seems forced or too lovey dovey. There’s an honesty to the relationship, probably brought forward by the intimate shooting style of the director and the script being written with the actors present.

Jang keeps things simple, and is masterful at cutting the fat. Sleepless Night clocks in at a slim 65 minutes, and really doesn’t need to be any longer. He is fully aware that his shooting style, while engaging, is also slow. Jang is so good at knowing what to cut, that the film is shot in 4:3 aspect ratio, as the couple are usually shot together in the centre of the screen, thus there is no need for room at the side. Shots are also almost always static and takes are long. This provides us with a sense of realism, as does the natural lighting, as well as recreating a leisurely pace some may associate with a loving and content relationship.

The performances are also very natural, as is the dialogue that they deliver. We hear a lot of the characters’ opinions, while also seeing them looking at scenarios from all angles. They don’t always agree but even the heated argument seems based around truth. We get to know these characters through their opinions and views on what the future might bring, rather than based on their actions. This is very apparent when Joo Hee laments her stolen bike, but then questions whether she would have gotten into an accident had it not been stolen. Less confident filmmakers may have tried to make this point visually, but having it come straight from the character herself makes it more powerful.

The gentle nature of the film may not be suited to all, but at 65 minutes it is unlikely to bore. It comes across as a film that has experiences to share with its audience, rather than merely lead you through your average story. It may look stagnant and claustrophobic, but you can feel the love between the leads, which makes their slow and centred lives very rewarding. Smarter than it lets on, while also being an exercise in simplicity, this is promising and moving cinema.

Sleepless Night review by Luke Ryan Baldock, November, 2015.

Sleepless Night screened at the London Korean Film Festival as part of the Emerging Directors strand.