Barking Dogs Never Bite (2000)

[Drunk Monk]

A Bong Joon Ho film starring my fav Korean actress Doona Bae. This film opens with a bold 'no animals were harmed' disclaimer, but it's hard to believe. Lots of dog death and dog eating - if it was made by anyone other than Koreans it would be so racist. It's a grim portrayal of the urban sprawl, a drab gargantuan apartment complex, almost a karma tale but the main dog killing protagonist's final come uppance only works if you can remember the opening scene - its more of a poetic Korean hell than what he deserves - poignant, but I wanted to see him burn in hell in a more graphic way (and the janitor gets away). Doona is at her frumpiest yet still shines, and despite the depressing storyline, Bong has a few moments of brilliance. The jazzy soundtrack reminded me of a Woody Allen film. Not recommended, especially not for the DOOM dog owners here, because the dog cruelty is really harsh and the dog cadavers must be real - if fake, they are really good fakes. I almost bailed in the first 15 mins, but my dog passed and now I'm living with a cat so my frame has shifted. Plus I really wanted to review this here. Probably only cf would watch this, if he hasn't seen it already.