SXSW Film

Inner Circle Line

D: Eunhee Cho; with Eunyong Yang, Yongkun Bae, Yumi Jung, Moonsu Bang, Soyun Jang

Not everyone will like Inner Circle Line. The film begins in a deceptively straightforward manner, following four young characters whose lives we know are connected somehow. Though one senses immediately that the characters' lives either once converged or are about to, it's genuinely surprising when the film takes a turn from cute indie drama to genuine Lynchian mind-bender. It's not for those who like to be led through a film's plot twists by the hand Shyamalan-style. Once it becomes apparent that the two principle characters (a man and a woman) share the name Youngju, the assumptions made in the movie's first half are discarded one by one. A scene on a subway involving a homeless woman with strange powers recalls Mulholland Drive a bit too much, but most of it – including one of the most uncomfortable breakup scenes in recent memory – is haunting and intriguing. Shot in gorgeous saturated colors and featuring a fantastic score, it's a film for those who like a good puzzle, even if the odds of solving it are against them.

Inner Circle Line received a Special Jury Prize for Outstanding Visual Achievement.

9:15pm, Dobie