AFTER YANG
Chuck says:
Maybe I was in the wrong mood to appreciate Kogonada’s “After Yang.” The films I had seen previously in the fest left me less than impressed and, frankly dreading anything that was to come next, so perhaps I was watching this in the wrong frame of mind.
The film’s titular character (Justin Min) has a great deal in common with the main character in the other Sundance “You Won’t Be Alone,” as he is in search of what it means to be human. As an android adopted by Jake and Kyra (Colin Farrell and Jodie Turner-Smith) to serve as a cultural connection to their daughter Mika (Malea Tjandrawidjaja), he has observed them as they live their lives and as is curious as to the emotions they display and how he may experience them. This yearning remains unknown to Jake and Kyra until Yang goes on the fritz and has to be taken in for repair, when his memories are then accessed. At this point, Jake finds out a great deal about their companion that they never knew.
I understand the theme of the movie and Kogonada’s intent, but the story is told with such little emotion and such hushed tones, that it was hard to get engaged in it. The dialogue is spoken as if the cast were warned not to raise their voices for fear of waking a sleeping child that was on the set and the feelings displayed by the actors didn’t seem in keeping with the emotional stakes. Again, maybe I need to watch it through different eyes.
Pam says:
The parents, Jake and Kyra, are quite detached from their daughter Mika (Malea Emma Tjandrawidjaja) and from one another. While their daughter sees Yang as more human, mom and dad seem quite reserved about his apparent demise. Jake, however, is consumed, secretly so, by the memories within Yang. The real story lies in what technology has become and the detachment that occurs from all things, authentic and artificial. With the “core” of Yang extracted and memories revealed, it also becomes a mystery of what Yang was privy to and what he actually experienced, perhaps making him more human than both Jake and Kyra.
I really enjoyed the blurred lines of what it means to be alive and to “live,” to be human. There’s a standout scene in the beginning that resonates with me personally which endeared me to the film…Do you recall when Mika and Yang had an in-depth conversation about adoption? Yang used the grafted tree as an analogy of belonging which was brilliantly beautiful and thoughtful. Another pivotal scene portrays Yang as he longs to have human qualities, lacking the ability to use adjectives about self and experience, unable to feel or do more than recite facts as they discuss tea and its origins. Is it slow? Yes, but I think deliberately and beautifully so.
Chuck says:
I understand what you are saying concerning the film and there’s no question that it is made with a great deal of skill. You need to be in a very meditative mood to appreciate this. I have a feeling I’ll get more out of it when I watch it again.
Pam says:
I hope you get another chance see it!
