Na Hong-jin's highly anticipated new film 'Hope' has sparked polarized reactions since its release. A recent discussion with film critic Lee Dong-jin has resurfaced, shedding light on the director's intentions.
Na explained that the film's structure, direction, ending, and alien concept were all meticulously designed. However, many viewers responded critically, stating that the film's intentions did not align with its execution.
Initially, Na revealed that the screenplay was meant to cover an entire day, from morning until the end of a dawn service. To enhance the film's density, he opted to focus only on the daytime. He emphasized that he chose to showcase all action and performances in broad daylight to avoid the common cinematic trick of obscuring visuals in darkness. The first 60 minutes were crafted to feel like a standalone piece, beginning with a small incident (the death of a cow) and expanding to a cosmic scale.
Na also mentioned that he intentionally designed the audience's emotional journey. In a scene where an alien dies early on, he aimed for viewers to initially laugh and later feel guilt. The alien language was presented without subtitles at first, gradually increasing translation and perspective as the film progressed, encouraging viewers to empathize with the alien.
Human characters were deliberately given less personality and minimal dialogue to focus on the relationship and conflict between humans and aliens. Regarding the film's conclusion, Na contrasted the aliens' willingness to change their fate in the face of a cosmic disaster with humans' abandonment of dialogue. He noted that the line 'Stop talking' was added just three days before filming, inspired by the natural scenery at the filming location in Hapcheon.
He expressed a desire for the audience's emotions to lean towards the aliens as the film progressed, stating, 'I think I would side with the aliens in the end.'
Na also pointed out that the contrast between humans and aliens was a deliberate device. While humans mock the aliens' appearance and smell, it is actually the humans who repeatedly use vulgar language and humor, while the aliens are portrayed as dignified beings with orderly language, guiding audience emotions towards the aliens.
Reflecting on his evolving directorial style, Na noted that his previous films—'The Chaser,' 'The Yellow Sea,' and 'The Wailing'—shared a common structure where uninformed protagonists face collapse. After a critic remarked that he had become predictable, Na felt compelled to break away from his established style, which he believes is reflected in 'Hope.'
However, he admitted uncertainty about the 'three molly time' mentioned by the aliens, stating that he intentionally did not create a detailed explanation for it.
Regarding potential sequels, Na stated that there are currently no plans, as he wishes to take a break from the film industry after this project. He added that any sequel would ultimately depend on audience reception and box office success.
Na also discussed the meaning behind the film's title 'Hope,' the real town of Hope, the 1980s setting, the casting of Hwang Jung-min, and the design of the aliens.
Despite the discussion's insights, online reactions have been critical, with many users stating, 'I understand the director's intentions, but the film failed to convey them.' Comments included, 'Reading this, it seems the film completely missed the mark. Everything the director intended and designed has failed,' and 'While I can see the intentions, the coherence and dialogue were severely lacking, and it felt like a chunk of the story was missing.'
One user pointed out, 'If the goal was to make the audience empathize with the aliens, showing them slaughtering townspeople at a high level of violence and then asking us to sympathize with a single dead alien is unconvincing.' Another noted, 'While I understand the intention to express human vulgarity, it made the film feel low-quality overall. If you want to showcase CG in broad daylight, you need the technical capability to support it; otherwise, it just feels awkward.'
Another commenter remarked, 'If the goal was to gradually help the audience understand the aliens' narrative, there should have been a build-up for empathy. Showing an alien that was about to kill the protagonist and then suddenly providing subtitles to explain their backstory does not create empathy.'
They added, 'The core settings and backstory of the aliens seem to be left for a potential sequel, but it's uncertain if a sequel will even be made. Relying on discussions or articles to explain what the film failed to convey is a sign of failure in persuading the audience.'
Meanwhile, 'Hope' has surpassed 2 million viewers in the shortest time since its release on July 15, indicating a successful box office performance. However, opinions on its artistic merit remain sharply divided among audiences.
* This article has been translated by AI.
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.