Jung: Couleur de peau: Miel

The graphic novel Couleur de peau: Miel tells the story of author Jung, who was born in Korea and adopted in Belgium. At the end of the Korean War, thousands of Korean children were adopted to the West, and Jung was one of them. He was a troubled child who could not find the right contact with his surroundings, so he ran into a fantasy world and drawn a lot. Luckily, despite adolescent problems, he managed to keep his life on the right rails. He returned to Seoul a few years later with a wish to find his biological mom or simply to check how much he feels at home in Korea. Adult Jung is so skilful in expressing his own story of the eternal search for identity, full of humour and personal insight. In order to address the sensitive issues of racial diversity, cultural identity, difficult period of growing up and narration in the ambiguous genre of auto-biography, the graphic novel presents an invaluable value for the age group of young adults. 

There is also a film that is a mixture between a documentary film and animation. Jung decides to return, for the first time, in South Korea, in order to breath the air of his home country, tread the land of his ancestors, and maybe find traces of his biological mother. This trip of reconciliation with his roots and with himself, shot as a documentary, leads our character to recall in animation. 

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The best three from the season 2017/2018

Like last year I will tell you which three films had the greatest impact on me in this working season. Two of them popped in my mind immediately, third one is a bit more difficult to choose. I'd like to point out that it's not necessary the films were made in 2017 or 2018, it's just that I've seen them in this season. So here we go. 

1. CALL ME BY YOUR NAME 

Drama, Romance, 2017 

Director: Luca Guadagnino 

Cast: Armie Hammer, Timothee Chalamet, Michael Stuhlbarg 

In 1980s Italy, a romance blossoms between a seventeen-year-old student and the older man hired as his father's research assistant. It's the summer of 1983 in the north of Italy, and Elio Perlman, a precocious 17-year-old young man, spends his days in his family's 17th century villa transcribing and playing classical music, reading, and flirting with his friend Marzia. While Elio's sophistication and intellectual gifts suggest he is already a fully-fledged adult, there is much that yet remains innocent and unformed about him, particularly about matters of the heart. 

What is not to love about this film. I've seen in two times and I could easily watch it another time. In the middle of winter, the film brought me in the hot summer days. Oh, how I wished it would be summer and I could feel the vibe of summer that the film portrayed. The photography, the music, everything was perfect. And the love was so pure, I felt very deeply with the characters during the film. The film is based on the book Call Me by Your Name written by Andre Aciman and yes, I've read the book also. 

2. I, DANIEL BLAKE 

Drama, 2016 

Director: Ken Loach 

Cast: Dave Johns, Hayley Squires, Sharon Percy 

A 59-year-old carpenter recovering from a heart attack befriends a single mother and her two kids as they navigate their way through the impersonal, Kafkaesque benefits system. With equal amounts of humour, warmth and despair, the journey is heartfelt and emotional until the end. 

With this film I cheat a little, because I saw it on TV (it was on my must watch list) and not in cinema, but I think a lot of times about this film and I just must include it in this list. The film made me angry, sad, melancholic. I don't want to tell you too much, but at the end I cried and wondered what is wrong with our world. 

"I am not a client, a customer, nor a service user. I am not a shirker, a scrounger, a beggar, nor a thief. I'm not a National Insurance Number or blip on a screen. I paid my dues, never a penny short, and proud to do so. I don't tug the forelock, but look my neighbour in the eye and help him if I can. I don't accept or seek charity. My name is Daniel Blake. I am a man, not a dog. As such, I demand my rights. I demand you treat me with respect. I, Daniel Blake, am a citizen, "nothing more and nothing less. Thank you." 

3. LADYBIRD 

Comedy, Drama, 2017 

Director: Greta Gerwig 

Cast: Saoirse Ronan, Laurie Metcalf, Tracy Letts 

Christine "Lady Bird" MacPherson is a high school senior from the "wrong side of the tracks." She longs for adventure, sophistication, and opportunity, but finds none of that in her Sacramento Catholic high school. Lady Bird follows the title character's senior year in high school, including her first romance, her participation in the school play, and most importantly, her applying for college. 

Something easier for the last pick. A nice coming of age film, that had some funny scenes. The film takes place from 2002 to 2003 which was a nice trip down the memory lane, since it was the time that I also attended high school. 

What do you think about my list?

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The best three from the season 2016/2017

I have something different for you this time. We'll talk about films instead of books. In the season 2016/2017 I've seen a lot of films in cinema, because my work at the moment is connected with films. So I have for you the best three I seen. This is not a list of films that were made in 2016 or 2017, but a list of film I have seen in the season 2016/2017. So here is my pick.

1. CAPTAIN FANTASTIC

Comedy, Drama, 2016

Director: Matt Ross,

Cast: Viggo Mortensen, George MacKay, Samantha Isler...

In the forests of the Pacific Northwest, a father devoted to raising his six kids with a rigorous physical and intellectual education is forced to leave his paradise and enter the world, challenging his idea of what it means to be a parent.

I've seen this film two times and I think is just fantastic. This film opens so many themes for debate and when I left the cinema my head was full of questions and I think that it is so moving and sincerely funny and I haven't enjoyed a movie like I have this one in ages. I cried the first time, I cried the second time and if I'll see it again I think I'll cry again. I like a lot of things in this film and even if it's not perfect and sometimes a little bit unrealistic as a whole is just works so well. There is one thing that I like a lot and it's a different view on religion. It's quite a revolutionary view for an American film. I won't say any more, I just advise you to watch it. Oh yes, and Viggo Mortensen is just fantastic.

2. NOCTURNAL ANIMALS

Drama, Thriller, 2016

Director: Tom Ford

Cast: Amy Adams, Jake Gyllenhaal, Michael Shannon

A "story inside a story," in which the first part follows a woman named Susan who receives a book manuscript from her ex-husband, a man whom she left 20 years earlier, asking for her opinion. The second element follows the actual manuscript, called "Nocturnal Animals," which revolves around a man whose family vacation turns violent. It also continues to follow the story of Susan, who finds herself recalling her first marriage and confronting some dark truths about herself.

As a fan of Tom Ford's first film I had high expectation for his second one and I wasn't disappointed. As it says in the description is a story inside a story and the second one is a brutal one. When I was driving home I felt a bit uneasy and scared. The whole film works so well together, the two stories run fluidly from one to the other. 

3. MUSTANG

Drama, 2015

Director: Deniz Gamze Ergüven

Cast: Günes Sensoy, Doga Zeynep Doguslu, Tugba Sunguroglu

Early summer. In a village in northern Turkey, Lale and her four sisters are walking home from school, playing innocently with some boys. The immorality of their play sets off a scandal that has unexpected consequences. The family home is progressively transformed into a prison; instruction in homemaking replaces school and marriages start being arranged. The five sisters who share a common passion for freedom, find ways of getting around the constraints imposed on them. 

A film that has difficult themes presented in a way that they don't suffocate you. And there are some very difficult themes in it. A perfect film for high schoolers, and not just because of the themes that are in the film but also because the teenagers can see how the other teenagers live in some other parts of the world. A sad and a funny film at the same time. Perfect for a discussion. 

Have you seen any of the films I mentioned?

Have a great day!