[HanCinema's Film Review] "Hot in Day, Cold at Night"

As I have mentioned many times before, the Korean indie industry, at least in regards to family/social dramas, is dominated by the style of Hong Sang-soo to a large degree. As such, finding titles that move into completely different directions is definitely a treat. "Hot in Day, Cold at Night", the second feature of Park Song-yeol, is definitely one of those films.

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Yeong-tae and Jeong-hee are a young married couple who find themselves in financial strains, as she is unable to get work as an elementary teacher and he, following an accident, is unable to work as a delivery man. That is why he accepts a small sum of money from a friend to loan him their camera, despite the fact that Jeong-hee is not happy with his decision at all. It also turns out she is right, since the "borrower" does not seem particularly keen to return it. As time passes and no financial solution comes to the fore, while the house loan payments are overdue, Jeong-hee decides to take money from a loan shark duo, after a suggestion from a friend. Expectedly, things do not go as planned.

Park Song-yeol directs a film that thrives on its realism, both in the events depicted and in the ways the main characters react to them, in a style that is quite unusual for cinema, even for the indie industry. Through the aforementioned, Park also manages to make a number of comments regarding various aspects of life in Korea nowadays, particularly for people whose financial situation ranges from normal to bad. As such, the difficulty of finding a job, even with people with degrees as the two protagonists, is exhibited quite eloquently here. Being recommended by someone seems to be the only way to get a job interview these days, but even then, the whole thing looks impossible, as we watch Yeong-tae being asked if he has any ill relatives, because people who do tend to take many absent days, or having an old colleague trying to force him into a pyramid scheme. Even when he does get menial jobs, however, as a proxy driver for example, again frequently he finds himself in impossible situations, with his ange being quite easy to empathize with.

The concept of illegal loans, which Jeong-hee eventually feels the need to resort to is quite realistically portrayed, with the people who run the businesses portrayed not as thugs, but as normal individuals who are forced to take extreme measures on occasion, in order to get their money back.

Also of note is the way Park does not present the couple fighting intently due to their circumstances, but instead being quite cool to each other, with the way the Yeong-tae asks for advice (even permission one would say) from Jeong-hee, and shaking her hand afterwards in agreement, being one of the most pleasant aspects of the movie. At the same time, the slight inclusion of humor here and there makes the movie much easier to watch, in an element that definitely benefits a story where nothing much happens.

Park Song-yeol, who also doubles as Yeong-tae, and Won Hyang-ra as Jeong-hee seem to be in perfect resonance with the film's aesthetics, and to have "adopted" the overall style to the highest degree. As such, their acting is measured, in a way that makes the few moments they overreact even more impactful, while their chemistry is also on a very high level.

Park Song-yeol is also in charge of cinematography, which, expectedly, follows realistic paths, occasionally focusing on some of the scenery in the suburbs of Seoul most of the movie takes place, in another welcome "relief" here. His own and Won Hyang-ra's editing results in a relatively slow pace, whichsuits the aesthetics of the movie nicely, while at 90 minutes, the movie definitely does not overextend its welcome.

"Hot in Day, Cold at Night" evidently addresses only the hard-core arthouse audience, but along these lines, manages to be a rather rewarding film that is quite easy to watch.

Review by Panos Kotzathanasis

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"Hot in Day, Cold at Night" is directed by Park Song-yeol, and features Park Song-yeol, Won Hyang-ra, Her Jung-hoi, Son Min-hee, Seo Chul, Shin Won-woo. Release date in Korea: 2022/10/27.