Film Festival 09 - Old Partner
Old Partner
Wyonang sori, South Korea 2008, 77m
Director: Lee Chung-ryoul
Festivals: Pusan 2008; Sundance, Sydney 2009
"In a remote, verdant valley, old Mr and Mrs Lee live on a farm
with their rickety ox. For forty years, the animal has served them
faithfully - hauling untold firewood loads and dragging the plow
through fertile fields. Old Partner playfully and poetically tells
the story of the ineffable bond between Mr Lee and his ox as their
lives wind down in tandem. Rain or shine, hunched and gnarled, Mr
Lee tills, weeds, and harvests, often crouching on all fours like
the ox that never leaves his side. The camera lingering intimately
on the ox's kind eyes and creaky bones allows us to sense the depth
of this sentient being's loyalty&. In return, Mr Lee collects
special fodder by hand and refuses to spray insecticides for fear
of poisoning his beloved beast. Meanwhile, the cheeky Greek chorus,
Mrs Lee, complains incessantly from the peanut gallery. This
traditional life and this ox will be her undoing! A charming,
heartbreaking, existential buddy tale, Old Partner conveys the
almost mystical inextricability of humans and nature." - Sundance
Film Festival
