Many of the Korean films defy categorization or combine cinematic genres. I think one of the viewers who contributed to IMDB has found a very accurate description of this type of amalgam calling it ‘genre twister’. ‘A Girl at My Door’, the only feature film made so far by director July Jung, is an excellent example. Here we find elements of social drama and thriller, themes that are related to the situation of illegal immigrants and abuses to adolescents in broken families, the film could also find its place in LGBT festivals. As with many other Korean films, a society that seems socially sanitized and formalities dominated even when it comes to needy social categories, hides inconvenient stories of repressed violence with elements of horror.
The quality of this film lies in its imperfection. July Jung makes some debutante mistakes, and not all of the film’s components perfectly fit together. The story of the young policewoman sent to command a post with three policemen, at a remote location in the country, leaving behind a personal story that will be clarified along the way, oscillates between melodrama and crime story, between retelling the relationship between a mature woman and a teenager and a thriller, or even horror film. The action takes a less credible turn and some characters evolve towards a direction that can surprise or disturb many viewers. Neither is the outcome completely clear, five minutes before the end we still do not guess what will eventually happen, the solution found is not perfect either. But these imperfections are part of life, and they add rather than diminish the film’s merits.
The selection of actors is aligned with the same style. The lead roles are distributed to Doona Bae, a well-known actress who plays professionally but with simplicity the role of the policewoman, and to young Sae-ron Kim who gives her a sentimental replica in the emotional role of the abused teenager. Much of the rest of the cast seems to be composed of amateur actors, and the diverse but well-directed combination of actors works quite well. ‘A Girl at My Door’ is an imperfect film, a different film that refuses to fall into the familiar categories, but which viewers can not easily forget.