This is being written when I am very tired. Will probably be revised later.
Now this is one chilling movie. Forget your Blair Witches, your Saws or whatever, here is a movie that chills you damn good. And you know why? Because the whole first act is fairly nice. Well, as nice as a revenge story can be.
The movie begins with Lee Geum-ja being released from prison. Geum-ja was arrested for kidnapping and killing a 6 year old boy. However, all is not what it seems as its revealed that she didn't kill anyone. She was an assistant kidnapper to actual murderor and main antagonist Baek, who said he would kill Geum-jas daughter if she didn't turn herself in for his crime. So obviously, the moment her 13 year sentance is over she decides to do the only natural thing and kill Baek. Hence the "Vengeance" bit of the title.
The character of Lee Geum-Ja is simply fantastic. I mean, really. Here is a character who spends 13 years planning and setting up the killing of one man. Whilst at prison she feigns kindness, and pretends to be a little bit nicer than she actually is. It's all very Amelie, as she goes around pulling pranks with a smile, as nice music plays in the background. Oh, and she also murders the prison bully. Due to this, she becomes the most popular gal in jail. But this is all set up. The moment she gets out, she calls in a helluva lot of favours to get at what she wants.
What does she want? To kill Baek, the most twisted guy I've seen in a movie for a while. Heres a teacher who hates children. "Well" you might be thinking, "I'm pretty sure my English teacher hated children, ho ho ho". Well, maybe, but did he hate them enough to make snuff videos of? Didn't think so. Baek does though. In fact, he's killed quite a few children over the years, and filmed their deaths. Yes, the inclusion of snuff videos are a disturbing choice for a film, but they also make up the scene that makes this movie so chilling:
The bit where Lee Geum-Ja shows the snuff videos to all the kids parents. I don't think a scene has ever made my eyes open so wide. One moment, a blurry video of a blindfolded kid being hung, and the next her screaming mother. Powerful stuff, and it just makes you hate Baek all the more. And I mean hate. It's not often you actually hate a character in a film. You dislike them, sure, but hating a fictional character is a rare thing, and Park-Chan Wook is to be commended for making me hate this guy so much. He should also be commended for killing him in a particulary gruesome way.
Anyway, I'm a bit tired, and probably not in the best mood for writing. Either way, let it be known that Lady Vengeance is a brilliant film. Fantastic directing, fantastic characters, and a brilliant yet simple storyline. If you're a fan of Asian cinema, and in particular Oldboy, you should probably check this out.
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