Hmm. I really wanted to like this movie, since I'm a big fan of The Handmaiden by Park Chan-wook. I went in with solid expectations, but unfortunately, for the most part this didn't work for me really.
Let's start with the positive things though. What did I like? The overall cinematography was pretty impressive, with clever camera work elevating each scene. Some camera angles where really interesting in how they framed the characters in the scene, both using close-ups and also with unconventional camera placements. The acting was good, especially from Tang Wei who portrays her character with a great sense of mystery. Also, I very much liked the soundtrack.
But, I'll be honest here, this movie confused the hell out of me. Even though I really tried to follow along with the plot. The movie introduces and reveals so much information all the time and moves between scenes with such a fast pace that it's pretty hard to process everything. On top of that, the narrative is constantly jumping back and forth in time and place, suddenly revisiting old scenes and conversations briefly, which just adds to the confusion. It's not that I dislike complex storytelling, the earlier mentioned The Handmaiden has plenty of interwoven and layered narrative that still manages to tell an understandable and engaging story. Decision to Leave feels in comparison like a needlessly complicated movie with a runtime that is too long for its own good. There are a lot of twists and turns going on, but it just gets a bit tiresome by the end.
I assume that this is a movie that probably becomes better on subsequent viewings, but currently I'm not sure if I have the energy or interest to give this another go. As it stands now, I think this movie is only decent and nothing more really, which is a bit unfortunate.
(Seen at the 2022 Stockholm International Film Festival)
