Arirang review

A confessional portrait of the artist as a nutty middle-aged man

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In 2008 the lead actress in Kim Ki-duk’s ( The Isle ) last movie Dream almost died when a hanging scene went wrong. Since then the director’s been living in self-imposed exile in a rundown cabin.

This indulgent, self-shot doc delves into his fractured mental state as he literally talks to himself in a rambling video diary.

From doing straight-to-camera “You talkin’ to me?” monologues to bitching about past collaborators, it’s a confessional portrait of the artist as a nutty middle-aged man and a rare insight into a controversial director who’s as divisive as the 38th Parallel.