Daijiga umule pajinna (The Day a Pig Fell into the Well), a title undoubtedly derived from a pithy Korean proverb, is the first film by director Hong Sang-Soo. A bitter soap, larded with a pinch of melodrama, social satire, humour, sex and violence.

In the busy streets and among the modern buildings of Seoul there is not much room for tranquil introversion. The everyday misery of the four protagonists is so great that no one stops to examine the reasons; the camera hurried on to the next quarrel or adulterous scene. Not that the characters are all unhappy in the same way.

The sweet cinema attendant Minjae supports with naive enthusiasm the novelist Hyosup, who is disdained by his colleagues. Of course Hyosup drinks too much and of course he gets out of hand. The insecure businessman Tongwoo, whose wife Pokyong is bedded by Hyosup in a hotel room, suffers from slight hosophobia.

Pokyong of course doesn't know of Minjae's existence and is oblivious to the selfish nature of Hyosup.

Seoul, seen through the eyes of Hong Sang-Soo looks very Western: the fast-food chains, the Simpsons, James Dean and the little Yakult flasks.

This may be the influence of Hong's travels. He did not just study in Seoul but also attended courses in Los Angeles, Chicago and Paris.

The only consistently Oriental event is the removal of the shoes before entering a room - not a bad idea, by the way. What else is in store for the shoeless protagonists is familiar to all of us. KD