This is the final piece in Korean director Chan-wook Park's revenge trilogy (see entries on Oldboy and Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance). I think I liked Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance best, then this, and then Oldboy, in case you are wondering.
The movie follows Lee Geum-ja after her release from prison for kidnapping and killing a 5-year-old boy. It briefly repeats Sympathy's assertion that most kidnappings are basically harmless, with the child being returned completely fine once the ransom is paid. You can imagine how that turns out in both movies...
Is that true in Korea? Do kids get kidnapped all the time and then returned, perfectly unharmed, upon payment of the ransom? Does it happen anywhere? My understanding is that kidnapping is a messy business and doesn't really work out for anyone involved. These movies indicate that I'm right, but who knows.
Anyway, Geum-ja spends the movie on a couple of missions, ultimately seeking vengeance against a man connected to her crime. All while wearing red (!) eye shadow. Which she can actually pull off, almost. I say that knowing that nobody in the world can actually pull it off, but seriously, you get almost used to it.
I'll say this for Chan-wook Park: if I ever decide to seek revenge, which I haven't ruled out, but certainly hope I never do, I'll watch his movies repeatedly. The message I take away from all of them is that it in the end, it's not as satisfying as you need it to be. And if you watch Sympathy, my God. Revenge upon revenge upon revenge until, what? Nobody's left to avenge / be revenged on.
Availability: DVD and Streaming
Released: 2005
Added to my queue: 2/11/2008
Reason added to my queue: I apparently got on a kick where I wanted to see every single Asian horror movie. And if you think is the last one I'm reviewing, you're dead wrong, there are several more in the queue.
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