Mother is a fantastically acted and riveting thriller that explores the extent to which a mother will fight to protect her son.
Kim Hye-ja is phenomenal as the unnamed mother whose life is turned upside down when her mentally challenged son Do-joon, played by Won Bin, is arrested on suspicion of murder. She sets out to prove her son’s innocence with director and co-writer Bong Joon-ho brilliantly cranking up the tension alongside the beautifully menacing imagery, provided by Hong Kyung-pyo, as she works her way ever closer to exposing the truth.
Against a backdrop of often quite graphic violence there are also touches of dark comedy which make this ever more fascinatingly gripping from start till finish.
Mother (2009), directed by Bong Joon-ho, is released on Blu-ray and DVD in the UK by Optimum Home Entertainment, Certificate 15.
