MartinHafer Warning--this film has some amazingly graphic images and should never be seen by kids.The artist who this story is all about was indeed a fine Korean painter who rose up from the lowest depths to become their greatest painter. Unfortunately, in so many ways, this guy was also a jerk in so many ways. Some of this was the artistic temperament and what may have seemed annoying was just his demanding nature when it came to art. But, other times he was simply a drunk jerk--especially when he was on his way to becoming a great artist. Late in the film, his being annoying, abrasive and needlessly cruel seemed to have diminished. While all this didn't make him a particularly nice man, it is important to capture on film so we understand a lot about the nature of the artist.I really found the movie fascinating and loved how the artists actual works were shown throughout the movie (like in LUST FOR LIFE). I really wish I could show this to my students (I teach at a school for the arts), but can't because there is just too much adult material. Yes there is nudity, but even more problematic for any audience (particularly younger ones) is when he,....hmmm,...I don't think IMDb will even let me describe what occurred, but it was very graphic and involves bodily fluids. Not only a nasty and disgusting scene that did NOT need to be seen, but a reason to keep junior from watching this otherwise wonderful film. It's a real shame.

Atavisten A portrait on the very fine Korean painter Ohwon that shows him in struggle, but always redeemed by his reputation, with the leaders. He is bold and does not want anything to come between him and his vision and so he says nay to the king and aristocrats if they want him to copy his previous successes. Him being a moody drunkard doesn't help him much with personal matters either. But he gets along fine.There some really strong poetry in these images, not only are the pictures very focused on the process of creating the paintings and the paintings themselves, we also see the nature and the beauty that inspires him, namely the Chinese and Korean masters, his teacher, the gisengs and their love and alcohol.People around him don't get much focus, the movie is about him and his art, but what we see of them they are independently thinking not backdrops for Ohwon. Choi Min-shik is good in acting out the temperamental artist and the supporting actors are good also. Ahn Sung-ki fits his role perfectly.The love scenes here were very, very hot and one image out in the reeds will stick to my irises for a while.This is the kind of movie that should represent Korea abroad, not the likes of 'Taegukgi'. Korean culture is shown in a wide variety of facets here. I would like to see more of this kind of movie, first maybe one about haiku poet Matsumoto Basho?

tolboz This could have been a great movie if the movie focused on the story of the artist and went deeper into the characters in the story. However, it seems like bits and pieces of a longer story that sometimes seem disconnected. The characters that come and go into his life are never elaborated deep enough to make us understand their effect in shaping up the artist's character and his life. I have recently seen the movie 'Pollock' on another artist and that movie has a much better (or I should say satisfying) approach to the story than this one, in the sense that it lets the viewer kind of peek into the man inside the artist. You do not get that feeling in this movie.I also thought the scenes where the artist gets drunk were also a bit overdone. I'm saying this because the guy gets drunk a lot, and often displays aggressive behavior with an appetite for getting more drunk. These scenes could have been done better cinematographically with more close-ups and a bit more variety. Seems like these scenes were put throughout the movie to establish that the main character, besides the fact that he was a brilliant artist and a celebrity, always lived life like a commoner. Overall, I would say it is a watchable movie, but it could have been much better...

maciejczubak That's right. Ohwon (the painter and the main character) is an exceptional person. What strikes me most is the message this film might address to all of you people there. And the message is sad. It says that, it's very difficult to do anything that's amazing or maybe even genius without having to obey the governments, establishment and other VIPs of this world. And even if you try, you might not be able to bear it. It is about the battle of a single person with a system. With many systems.A great film of this wonderful Korean director. Please see it if you do have an opportunity.