Film Illiterate, wherein the proprietor records movies seen, and sporadic progress through assorted lists of the "best". Originally started after regretfully renting something forgettable for the third time. I've forgotten what, but never again! A tedious endeavour since 2005. Hello. 🙂
Not so neatly constructed as Oldboy and Mr. Vengeance, nor so spectacular, the final film in Chan-wook Park's vengeance trilogy is nevertheless deeper and more nuanced than either. It's unfortunate that the English title gives away so much: the original translates simply to "Kind-Hearted Ms. Geum-Ja", naming the heroine (Yeong-ae Lee, JSA), a young woman convicted of murdering a young boy.
It's less about revenge than it is about peace -- atonement, extirpation, catharsis. Of course, vengeance is always a means to an end, but Lady Vengeance is better at showing it than most. Geum-ja tries other paths to redemption; others are redeemed along the way. It's her journey that makes the vengeance here so satisfying: it isn't an ineluctable Greek consequence; it's a horrible choice, but one fully understood and accepted at cost.
Gorgeous, provocative work -- a must see.