I have a penchant for Asian cinema. I love it. My favourite at the moment has to be Korean cinema. I find the Koreans have a skill for capturing the worst traits of humanity on film. They show the ugliness of the human soul and the real reactions of people when put in situations for which there is no peaceful solution.

Pieta is no different. Kang-Do is a ruthless debt collector, who will employ any method necessary to get the money back from those who owe. His life is thrown into disarray when a mysterious lady appears claiming to be his mother who abandoned him. Initially sceptical Kang-Do warms to the woman only for her to mysteriously vanish again, which sets in motion a chain of violent events in Kang-Do’s search for the truth.

Kim Ki Duk never pulls punches in his movies, you only have to watch ‘The Isle’ to understand this, but his films are an art form in the purist sense. Not for the sensitive souls, but those who want to open their minds and look deeper into movies than what is on the screen.

4/5

JM