Coming Home AgainComing Home Again

This film is not only a suffocating mother’s vicarious experience about space, but also a pale still-life painting wishing for time to stop. Korean-American Chang-rae moves back to San Francisco, after wrapping up his career on Wall Street, to take care of his mother, who has been diagnosed with stomach cancer. While cooking Gal-bi on New Year’s Eve, a dish that his mother used to cook often, he recollects uncomfortable memories relating his mother. One particular memory Chang-rae ponders on is a roughly peeled apple, cut by his mother while she sat next to his authoritative father having a fierce conversation. The household items are as if they are representing the body and soul of the mother awaiting death. The worn and old white paint is peeling off the wall. Even so, the toenails of Jesus are bashfully pedicured in red. Thus, even at the persuasion of his sister to go through with mother’s cancer treatments, all he can repeatedly say is that he wants to follow whatever mother wants to do. Coming Home Again is based on LEE Chang-rae’s autobiographical essay, and has been directed by Wayne Wang, an Hongkonger-American director who has been continuously covering the life stories of Asian-Americans. Korean pop-star LEE Moon-sae’s “Old Love” that was inserted at the climax of the film variates from a lonely humming at the end of one’s life journey into a love song for one’s late mother. (PARK Chi-young)