One of director Hong Sang-soo’s favourite cinematic preoccupations is upending conventional notions of temporality, particularly when dealing with romantic narratives. His films repeat, fold in on themselves, and blur time and space without indulging in the light metafiction of American cinematic forebears: Bill Murray knows it’s the same day on repeat; Hong’s protagonists approach their reverted worlds unfazed.

Take his 2015 feature Right Now, Wrong Then. A barrage of A/B testing for a pote...