I personally really enjoyed Burning and think it did a fantastic job capturing the atmosphere of the original short story and Murakami’s writing in general. I was definitely reminded of Murakami during many parts of the movie. For example, the part where Haemi talks about “Little Hunger” and “Great Hunger” reminded me of the abnormal hunger that the narrator felt in “The Second Bakery Attack”. Also, the well story really stuck out to me because Murakami has mentioned that there was a well near his childhood home and that his dream was to sit at the bottom of a well. He has also likened “the other world” in his stories to going down to the bottom of a well.
One of the major ways in which this film feels very Murakami-esque is that in a lot of ways, it includes a subtlety and ambiguity that has the viewer feeling like “Something isn’t quite right, but I’m not sure why…” The mysterious phone calls to Jong-su, Ben carefully applying makeup on his new girlfriend, the well story that may or may not be real all came together to build a strange, ominous atmosphere. Even the shock of Jong-su violently attacking Ben is toned down by how far out the camera is zoomed from the attack. There is no frame dedicated to Ben’s burning car- only a glance at the flames through the truck’s rear window as Jong-su drives by the wreckage to who knows where.
However, I did think that the movie pushed past Murakami’s subtlety in some ways to make things a bit more obvious for the viewers. Jong-su’s additional role as a farmer emphasizes the disparity in wealth between him and Ben. The shot of Jong-su’s dirty old truck next to Ben’s luxurious car when they are leaving the restaurant establishes this difference upon their first meeting. In addition, the movie bypasses Murakami’s preference for leaving names out and gives Ben an english name rather than a Korean one, indicating to the audience that he is different, an outsider in some way. Perhaps the largest example is the way the movie makes it quite clear that Ben killed or got rid of Haemi in some way. The drawer of women’s accessories, the pink watch and cat, and the presence of the new girlfriend all serve to draw Jong-su and the viewer to the conclusion that Ben is a murderer and that “greenhouses” are not actually greenhouses. However, I think it is possible that many readers did not draw this conclusion from Murakami’s short story alone.
For me personally, having the movie take place in Korea did not change the overall story in any major way. This is likely because I didn’t feel like the events taking place in Japan played a crucial role in the original short story. One thing I did take note of was Jong-su’s use of the honorific “hyung” during the one time I can remember him addressing Ben by name. This somewhat surprised me, as I typically hear this title used between (male) friends.
The last thing I wanted to note is: though the movie was based on Murakami’s “Barn Burning”, it also incorporated elements of Faulkner’s “Barn Burning” as well. Jong-su’s father is very similar to Mr. Snopes- a farmer with an explosive temper who receives legal punishment for assault and property damage. In addition, Jong-su’s favorite author is William Faulkner, which prompts Ben to start reading him as well.
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