The Housemaid

After gaining fame, and sometimes notoriety, as a critic at the French film magazine Cahiers du Cinéma, François Truffaut made his directorial debut with The 400 Blows. Jean-Pierre Léaud stars as Antoine Doinel in this semiautobiographical film inspired by the delinquency of Truffaut’s youth, which was filled with an early love of cinema. One of the most influential films of the French New Wave movement, it earned Truffaut a Best Director award at the Cannes Film Festival, and his script, cowritten with Marcel Moussy, was nominated for Best Original Screenplay at the 32nd Academy Awards.

After gaining fame, and sometimes notoriety, as a critic at the French film magazine Cahiers du Cinéma, François Truffaut made his directorial debut with The 400 Blows. Jean-Pierre Léaud stars as Antoine Doinel in this semiautobiographical film inspired by the delinquency of Truffaut’s youth, which was filled with an early love of cinema. One of the most influential films of the French New Wave movement, it earned Truffaut a Best Director award at the Cannes Film Festival, and his script, cowritten with Marcel Moussy, was nominated for Best Original Screenplay at the 32nd Academy Awards.

After gaining fame, and sometimes notoriety, as a critic at the French film magazine Cahiers du Cinéma, François Truffaut made his directorial debut with The 400 Blows. Jean-Pierre Léaud stars as Antoine Doinel in this semiautobiographical film inspired by the delinquency of Truffaut’s youth, which was filled with an early love of cinema. One of the most influential films of the French New Wave movement, it earned Truffaut a Best Director award at the Cannes Film Festival, and his script, cowritten with Marcel Moussy, was nominated for Best Original Screenplay at the 32nd Academy Awards.

“When I was a kid,” director Bong Joon Ho writes in the catalog for his current exhibition at the Academy Museum, “I watched so many Alfred Hitchcock movies on Korean television. Hitchcock is still one of my biggest inspirations. I’ve seen Psycho more than 50 times.” This psychological thriller opens with Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) absconding with $40,000 cash from her employer in Phoenix to deliver to her debt-ridden fiancé in California. Along the way she stops at the Bates Motel, where an encounter with curious innkeeper Norman (Anthony Perkins) begets one of the most harrowing and famous scenes in cinema history. An Italian poster from Bong’s personal collection hangs in the exhibition, on view on Level 2, and he included the title on his 2022 Sight & Sound list as one of 10 films that he considers the greatest of all time.

“When I was a kid,” director Bong Joon Ho writes in the catalog for his current exhibition at the Academy Museum, “I watched so many Alfred Hitchcock movies on Korean television. Hitchcock is still one of my biggest inspirations. I’ve seen Psycho more than 50 times.” This psychological thriller opens with Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) absconding with $40,000 cash from her employer in Phoenix to deliver to her debt-ridden fiancé in California. Along the way she stops at the Bates Motel, where an encounter with curious innkeeper Norman (Anthony Perkins) begets one of the most harrowing and famous scenes in cinema history. An Italian poster from Bong’s personal collection hangs in the exhibition, on view on Level 2, and he included the title on his 2022 Sight & Sound list as one of 10 films that he considers the greatest of all time.

“When I was a kid,” director Bong Joon Ho writes in the catalog for his current exhibition at the Academy Museum, “I watched so many Alfred Hitchcock movies on Korean television. Hitchcock is still one of my biggest inspirations. I’ve seen Psycho more than 50 times.” This psychological thriller opens with Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) absconding with $40,000 cash from her employer in Phoenix to deliver to her debt-ridden fiancé in California. Along the way she stops at the Bates Motel, where an encounter with curious innkeeper Norman (Anthony Perkins) begets one of the most harrowing and famous scenes in cinema history. An Italian poster from Bong’s personal collection hangs in the exhibition, on view on Level 2, and he included the title on his 2022 Sight & Sound list as one of 10 films that he considers the greatest of all time.  

Radical and uncompromising, Kim Ki-young’s Housemaid trilogy starts in 1960 with a first chapter that continues to influence new generations of filmmakers more than 60 years later. A deep survey on desire, obsession, and ego-driven revenge, this domestic horror film follows a bourgeois family who hires Myung-sook (Lee Eun-shim), an unsophisticated young woman, as their housemaid. When she becomes smitten with patriarch Dong-sik Kim, a series of strange episodes unfold, and Myung-sook’s catastrophic infatuation threatens the family bond. Kim’s unconventional language of cinema depicts a bleak reality that is borderline ludicrous, in an unconventional blend of genres that redefined filmmaking in Korea.

Radical and uncompromising, Kim Ki-young’s Housemaid trilogy starts in 1960 with a first chapter that continues to influence new generations of filmmakers more than 60 years later. A deep survey on desire, obsession, and ego-driven revenge, this domestic horror film follows a bourgeois family who hires Myung-sook (Lee Eun-shim), an unsophisticated young woman, as their housemaid. When she becomes smitten with patriarch Dong-sik Kim, a series of strange episodes unfold, and Myung-sook’s catastrophic infatuation threatens the family bond. Kim’s unconventional language of cinema depicts a bleak reality that is borderline ludicrous, in an unconventional blend of genres that redefined filmmaking in Korea.

Rocco and His Brothers was a later discovery for Bong Joon Ho, who put the film on his 2022 Sight and Sound list as one of the 10 films he considers the greatest of all time. An epic melodrama from director Luchino Visconti, the film helped to make an international star of French actor Alain Delon, cast as one of five sons of a poor rural Italian family whose fortunes fall even further after a move to Milan. The screenplay was a collaboration between Visconti and four other writers, including Suso Cecchi D’Amico—one of the first female screenwriters in Italian cinema and a key figure in the neorealist movement; her body of work includes such classics as Bicycle Thieves (1948).

Rocco and His Brothers was a later discovery for Bong Joon Ho, who put the film on his 2022 Sight and Sound list as one of the 10 films he considers the greatest of all time. An epic melodrama from director Luchino Visconti, the film helped to make an international star of French actor Alain Delon, cast as one of five sons of a poor rural Italian family whose fortunes fall even further after a move to Milan. The screenplay was a collaboration between Visconti and four other writers, including Suso Cecchi D’Amico—one of the first female screenwriters in Italian cinema and a key figure in the neorealist movement; her body of work includes such classics as Bicycle Thieves (1948).

Rocco and His Brothers was a later discovery for Bong Joon Ho, who put the film on his 2022 Sight and Sound list as one of the 10 films he considers the greatest of all time. An epic melodrama from director Luchino Visconti, the film helped to make an international star of French actor Alain Delon, cast as one of five sons of a poor rural Italian family whose fortunes fall even further after a move to Milan. The screenplay was a collaboration between Visconti and four other writers, including Suso Cecchi D’Amico—one of the first female screenwriters in Italian cinema and a key figure in the neorealist movement; her body of work includes such classics as Bicycle Thieves (1948).

Director Joseph Losey’s first of three collaborations with writer Harold Pinter was this adaptation of Robin Maugham’s 1948 novella. Focusing on social class and interpersonal relationships, the story follows Barrett (Dirk Bogarde) who is hired as manservant when the wealthy Tony (James Fox) moves into a new house. The two form a bond, but Tony is unaware of Barrett’s ulterior motive to gain the upper hand in their relationship. To further his goals, Barrett convinces Tony to hire a maid and brings his lover (Sara Miles) into the home under the guise that they are siblings.

Director Joseph Losey’s first of three collaborations with writer Harold Pinter was this adaptation of Robin Maugham’s 1948 novella. Focusing on social class and interpersonal relationships, the story follows Barrett (Dirk Bogarde) who is hired as manservant when the wealthy Tony (James Fox) moves into a new house. The two form a bond, but Tony is unaware of Barrett’s ulterior motive to gain the upper hand in their relationship. To further his goals, Barrett convinces Tony to hire a maid and brings his lover (Sara Miles) into the home under the guise that they are siblings.

Director Joseph Losey’s first of three collaborations with writer Harold Pinter was this adaptation of Robin Maugham’s 1948 novella. Focusing on social class and interpersonal relationships, the story follows Barrett (Dirk Bogarde) who is hired as manservant when the wealthy Tony (James Fox) moves into a new house. The two form a bond, but Tony is unaware of Barrett’s ulterior motive to gain the upper hand in their relationship. To further his goals, Barrett convinces Tony to hire a maid and brings his lover (Sara Miles) into the home under the guise that they are siblings.

Novelist and screenwriter William Goldman adapted the screenplay for this suspenseful thriller from his own nail-biting novel. Dustin Hoffman stars as “Babe” Levy, a New York graduate student unexpectedly thrust into a plot of government intrigue involving Nazi war criminals because of his brother’s (Roy Scheider) secret identity as a government agent. Laurence Olivier costars as the iconic villain Dr. Szell in an Oscar-nominated role that was referenced in popular culture for many years and included on the American Film Institute’s 100 Years… series lists for both villains and quotes.

Novelist and screenwriter William Goldman adapted the screenplay for this suspenseful thriller from his own nail-biting novel. Dustin Hoffman stars as “Babe” Levy, a New York graduate student unexpectedly thrust into a plot of government intrigue involving Nazi war criminals because of his brother’s (Roy Scheider) secret identity as a government agent. Laurence Olivier costars as the iconic villain Dr. Szell in an Oscar-nominated role that was referenced in popular culture for many years and included on the American Film Institute’s 100 Years… series lists for both villains and quotes.

Novelist and screenwriter William Goldman adapted the screenplay for this suspenseful thriller from his own nail-biting novel. Dustin Hoffman stars as “Babe” Levy, a New York graduate student unexpectedly thrust into a plot of government intrigue involving Nazi war criminals because of his brother’s (Roy Scheider) secret identity as a government agent. Laurence Olivier costars as the iconic villain Dr. Szell in an Oscar-nominated role that was referenced in popular culture for many years and included on the American Film Institute’s 100 Years… series lists for both villains and quotes.

Writer-director Henri-Georges Clouzot (Diabolique, 1955) adapted Georges Arnaud’s 1950 novel for this intense thriller, which won the Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival and the Palme d’Or at Cannes. Yves Montand plays Mario, a playboy stuck in a remote South American town. Down on his luck, he joins three other desperate men in a death-defying task: driving two trucks loaded with nitroglycerine over treacherous mountain roads to put out an oil well fire. Bong Joon Ho told an interviewer in 2020 that this was one of two films he saw when he was nine that inspired him to become a film director; the other was Psycho (1960). William Friedkin remade the story in English in 1977 as Sorcerer.

Writer-director Henri-Georges Clouzot (Diabolique, 1955) adapted Georges Arnaud’s 1950 novel for this intense thriller, which won the Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival and the Palme d’Or at Cannes. Yves Montand plays Mario, a playboy stuck in a remote South American town. Down on his luck, he joins three other desperate men in a death-defying task: driving two trucks loaded with nitroglycerine over treacherous mountain roads to put out an oil well fire. Bong Joon Ho told an interviewer in 2020 that this was one of two films he saw when he was nine that inspired him to become a film director; the other was Psycho (1960). William Friedkin remade the story in English in 1977 as Sorcerer.

Writer-director Henri-Georges Clouzot (Diabolique, 1955) adapted Georges Arnaud’s 1950 novel for this intense thriller, which won the Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival and the Palme d’Or at Cannes. Yves Montand plays Mario, a playboy stuck in a remote South American town. Down on his luck, he joins three other desperate men in a death-defying task: driving two trucks loaded with nitroglycerine over treacherous mountain roads to put out an oil well fire. Bong Joon Ho told an interviewer in 2020 that this was one of two films he saw when he was nine that inspired him to become a film director; the other was Psycho (1960). William Friedkin remade the story in English in 1977 as Sorcerer.

“I’ve always been drawn to the Coen Brothers,” Bong Joon Ho says in the catalog for the exhibition Director’s Inspiration: Bong Joon Ho. “Their movies are full of misunderstandings and misinterpretations.” Set in 1941, Barton Fink is the story of the titular East Coast transplant (played by John Turturro) who abandons his playwrighting career to try his hand in Hollywood. During a bout of writer’s block in his dilapidated hotel, Fink becomes acquainted with his noisy neighbor (John Goodman), an insurance salesman whose affable appearance belies his true nature. The fourth feature by the Coens was also the first to win all three major prizes—Best Director, Best Actor, and the Palme d’Or—at the Cannes Film Festival. The film was nominated at the 64th Academy Awards for Supporting Actor (Michael Lerner), Art Direction, and Costume Design.  

“I’ve always been drawn to the Coen Brothers,” Bong Joon Ho says in the catalog for the exhibition Director’s Inspiration: Bong Joon Ho. “Their movies are full of misunderstandings and misinterpretations.” Set in 1941, Barton Fink is the story of the titular East Coast transplant (played by John Turturro) who abandons his playwrighting career to try his hand in Hollywood. During a bout of writer’s block in his dilapidated hotel, Fink becomes acquainted with his noisy neighbor (John Goodman), an insurance salesman whose affable appearance belies his true nature. The fourth feature by the Coens was also the first to win all three major prizes—Best Director, Best Actor, and the Palme d’Or—at the Cannes Film Festival. The film was nominated at the 64th Academy Awards for Supporting Actor (Michael Lerner), Art Direction, and Costume Design.  

“I’ve always been drawn to the Coen Brothers,” Bong Joon Ho says in the catalog for the exhibition Director’s Inspiration: Bong Joon Ho. “Their movies are full of misunderstandings and misinterpretations.” Set in 1941, Barton Fink is the story of the titular East Coast transplant (played by John Turturro) who abandons his playwrighting career to try his hand in Hollywood. During a bout of writer’s block in his dilapidated hotel, Fink becomes acquainted with his noisy neighbor (John Goodman), an insurance salesman whose affable appearance belies his true nature. The fourth feature by the Coens was also the first to win all three major prizes—Best Director, Best Actor, and the Palme d’Or—at the Cannes Film Festival. The film was nominated at the 64th Academy Awards for Supporting Actor (Michael Lerner), Art Direction, and Costume Design.  

This brooding psychological crime thriller introduced writer-director Kiyoshi Kurosawa to an international audience and was an influence on the wave of Japanese horror films that were popular in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Koji Yakusho stars as Takabe, a Tokyo detective assigned to a string of violent murders carried out by people with seemingly no motive. While struggling to cope with his wife’s schizophrenia, Takabe find his investigation leading him to the enigmatic Mamiya (Masato Hagiwara), a former psychology student dealing with amnesia. Kurosawa uses thriller and horror elements to create an exploration of the existential that is fraught with tension.

This brooding psychological crime thriller introduced writer-director Kiyoshi Kurosawa to an international audience and was an influence on the wave of Japanese horror films that were popular in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Koji Yakusho stars as Takabe, a Tokyo detective assigned to a string of violent murders carried out by people with seemingly no motive. While struggling to cope with his wife’s schizophrenia, Takabe find his investigation leading him to the enigmatic Mamiya (Masato Hagiwara), a former psychology student dealing with amnesia. Kurosawa uses thriller and horror elements to create an exploration of the existential that is fraught with tension.

This brooding psychological crime thriller introduced writer-director Kiyoshi Kurosawa to an international audience and was an influence on the wave of Japanese horror films that were popular in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Koji Yakusho stars as Takabe, a Tokyo detective assigned to a string of violent murders carried out by people with seemingly no motive. While struggling to cope with his wife’s schizophrenia, Takabe find his investigation leading him to the enigmatic Mamiya (Masato Hagiwara), a former psychology student dealing with amnesia. Kurosawa uses thriller and horror elements to create an exploration of the existential that is fraught with tension.