Burning

What dangers does the human desire for narrative pose?  Prob my favorite question ever asked by a film. On an app about reviewing stories, I am tempted to say it is sits exactly at the intersection between what is most beautiful and what is most destructive about humanity. The intersection, “storytelling”, is responsible for everything around us. Religion, politics, wars, crushes, relationships, photographs, architecture, design, exploration, writing - all visceral manifestations of the human desire to lay pattern out neatly, to weave a sensible web, or, in other words, to manifest narrative.  Our protagonist, an aspiring fiction author, puts together a dangerous story that climaxes in a violent act, and the audience is left questioning whether or not it was true. The real question, however, is whether or not Jong-Su’s inclination towards story is harmful or helpful.  For me, the jury is out. The jury on this movie, however, is in: 5/5