No. 31 (2022) AFTER YANG April 9th.

 

Film No. 31 (2022)  April  9th.  11.00 AM   Cinema 1.  LUNA,  Leederville. 

"Did Yang want to be human?" (Jake asks Ada, a person from Yang's past, a question she describes as "such a human thing to ask").

The short story (set in the near future) Saying Goodbye to Yang (written by Alexander Weinstein) is an easy and worthwhile 10 minute read. The premise of humanoids becoming integral family members is a fascination. The fact electronic retailers are the sources of the acquisitions adds to that fascination. The short story deals with issues of deception, warranty and racism. In this, his latest feature, innovative Korean director, Kogonada (COLUMBUS) takes this seed of an idea to new levels in AFTER YANG.

AFTER YANG is a mood piece. On the surface, nothing much happens, but when the film is done, there is plenty to ponder. And I mean plenty to ponder. That is of course if this meditative approach of Kogonada's grabs your attention.

Yang is the property of Jake (Colin Farrell), Kyra (Jodie Turner-Smith) and Mika (Malea Emma Tjandrawidjaja), a loving family. Yang is a reconditioned android, purchased in good faith and certified as near new. His purpose is to be Mika's older brother and philosophical mentor. The film's opening stanza gives us only a brief sense of the gentle environment this "devised" (Mika is adopted) family live in. So what happens when Yang fails and is found collapsed on the kitchen bench of this neat, compact, modern home?

Imagine you've bought a re-conditioned, refurbished washing machine. It dies on you within 18 months. You extract the chip from its function centre and you find it has been re-calibrated many time more than you were told. You'd likely be angry and require an explanation. Here, Yang is that washing machine, but the way Kogonada guides us on this path of discovery, via Jake's gentle methods of enquiry means you'll get new emotional insights into how love and attachment can happen on varying levels. 

Yang was a machine; an android. He had a past. Unlike a washing machine Yang was programmed to connect with Jake, Kyra and Mika. He did. His exhausted hard-drive has a multitude of information about his past. What effect will investigating the content of this piece of hardware have on these gentle people? You might want a repeat viewing of AFTER YANG soon after you first see it. There is much to ponder.  10GUMS.