Jungle Story

In this film about the struggle to establish and promote a rock band in rock-hostile South Korea, the music stands for a spirit of non-conformity and rebellion - concepts which mean something in the country's fast-changing but still overwhelmingly feudal-Confucian society. The story elements are very familiar: endless rehearsals, dodgy contracts, 'musical differences', a bullying manager whose faith in the band never dies. But the details ring true, and there's no hint of MTV excess in the performances or visuals. Kim's taste in music seems more '70s than '90s, but he directs with real elegance and makes very smart use of vignettes like the glimpses of the girl at the pharmacy counter who measures out her life in Neil Young songs.