Computer graphics, is it always helpful?

           As professor Cho mentioned, Jeon Woo-chi: The Taoist Wizard is based on a Korean folk tale, it did not give me any advantages since I do not recall reading this story during my childhood years. However, I have seen this movie once before, but to be honest, it is not one of my favorites (despite the fact that I really like Kang Dong-won).

           In the reading, Kim states that “mixed-genre trend typified Hollywood cinema of the 1970s …” (201, Kim), and it surprised me since this type of genre seemed quite recent in the Korean films or dramas that I have watched (the time lag in Hollywood and Korean film/drama it did not occur to me – or perhaps, I was not exposed to them). When I first saw this movie, it seemed very chaotic and somewhat disorganized. I do not usually enjoy time travelling, so this can pretty much explain my first impression on this movie. However, after watching it again, where I actually pay attention to the camera movements, angles, etc., this movie seemed much more interesting than I first perceived it as. As Kim mentions, “modern films in Korea largely depend on glossy images generated by 3-D technology, computer graphics that place human characters somewhere between live-action and animation, and visuals and narratives reminiscent of video games” (202, Kim), there is no question in the use of computer graphics in this movie. Although I felt like some scenes were “over-exaggerated” with such technology, it played an important role in transforming the folktale into a movie; in the past, the readers had no chance but to imagine it in their heads, not knowing if they are picturing the right movements or not, but with the help of technology, audiences can visualize it. For instance, how Jeon Woo-chi would be able to handle the wind, the rain, use amulet, etc. 

Still, I cannot agree that graphics always helps the audience to focus on what is shown in the film since the goblins (rabbit-looking, and rat-looking) were too animation-like and seemed awkward to me (this is quite interesting, since I do not have any problems seeing ogres in Lord of the Rings with the actors, but somehow these goblins make me uncomfortable). Even if new technologies helped the directors to express something more than what can be filmed through their lens, I believe it is important to find a balance, so it will allow the viewers to engage closer to the film, rather than distracting them.