In "Mother," the ugliness underneath takes on a different form, and leaves a different kind of residue - the body of a murdered teen girl, partially disrobed, hung over a railing, like some ghastly flag, signifying nothing good.
Cynical cops survey the scene, drinking coffee and joking, and a halfhearted investigation leads them to arrest a simpleminded young man - he's the last person seen with the girl and he's not able to defend himself, so becomes a convenient way to close the case. (This has eerie parallels to "Red Riding," wherein a series of monstrous crimes are pinned on a mentally challenged young man.)
The locals are happy to accept this, but the boy's mother (Kim Hye-ja) is not. She's always been extremely (almost disturbingly) protective of her disadvantaged boy. She hires her own investigator and lawyer, and when they yield few results, goes off on her own.
"Mother" moves between depictions of official indifference to her crusade, and unnerving scenes of the mother's own actions, often intrusive and highly public - as when she shows up at the funeral of the deceased.
There are times when "Mother" simply meanders, and Joon-ho fixates on random interludes of violence or sex, which add to the singular mood of the piece, but also to its running time. At 129 minutes, "Mother" feels longer than it is substantial, especially as it builds to a ginned-up conclusion, when characters are moved to extremes.
"Mother" is more effective in earlier, reserved moments, built around the quiet horror of a town's indifference to a brutal crime.
