Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance

Five stars isn't enough for this film. While watching I was reminded of the best Western directors and consider Park better than any other Korean director, regardless of genre, and the equal of any living Japanese director. I can't even think of a Hitchcock film that I'd put above the craft and storytelling of this film. A telling endorsement is from Film Comment which I used as the title for this review.A mistake others seem to make is to tag this film as "horror." Sure there is violence but it falls under the same type category as Reservoir Dogs and Kill Bill. Even the title tells you that it is about vengeance, and there are no demons, evil spirits, or even serial killers in the normal sense. If categorizing the film it would be much closer to MacBeth than to any recognized horror film.Others call the violence "extreme" but if you're a fan of modern horror or gangster films you can find much worse gore in mainstream releases. Much of it is like Hitchcock in that it occurs either off-camera or in the far background, so that the viewer is left to imagine much of the terror going through the victim's mind. By doing this the viewer becomes more actively engaged so that the scene has even more impact. (Note: if you want pure gross-out violence then try Ichi the Killer, which is also excellent.)Although Oldboy and Lady Vengeance are excellent in their own right, when put against this film they come across as severely flawed. If you watch only one film from this director then this is the one to see.

Visionary director Park Chan-Wook burst on to the scene with this, the first in a set of three action-packed suspense thrillers dubbed "The Vengeance Trilogy." SYMPATHY FOR MR. VENGEANCE begins with a poor deaf man who will do anything to save the life of his dying sister. When all else fails, Ryu resorts to a desperate kidnapping attempt that ends in the accidental death of a young girl. After her body is discovered, the girl's father sets off to destroy the man responsible for the crime. SYMPATHY's brilliant scripting is only exceeded by Park's stunning cinematography. Every single shot has been intricately laid out to form a beautiful moving canvas on-screen. Despite the fact that the lead character is deaf, Park instills the film with a rich auditory arrangement to compliment his incredible visual style. It is impossible to dislike Ryu, whose noble and selfless actions only get him into worse trouble along the way. This is due largely in part to Ha-kyun Shin's sympathetic performance, as well as the black humor and bitter irony that are written in to his character. As Ryu's pathetic journey draws to an end, the audience's attention shifts to Park Dong-jin's perspective as he tracks his daughter's killer. Here, Park creates a unique division in the storytelling, where the viewers find themselves split between siding with the vengeful anti-hero or the poorly misguided villain. Kang-ho Song enters a devastating and powerful portrayal as the grieving father, a man who is unquestionably justified in his murderous rage. Park Chan-Wook had already proven to be a master craftsman with this first entry, but he would soon follow it up with his cinematic tour de force in 2003's OLDBOY.-Carl ManesI Like Horror Movies

NO SPOILERS:My suggestion is to go into this movie as blind as possible. Don't read the synopsis. Don't read the product desription, or any reviews that reveal too much of the plot. Don't even read the back of the box. Knock 1 Star off my review if you already did. The reason I say this is, the movies pacing slowly reveals it's plot, and if you know too much of it already it's going to drag like a zombie transvestite. There's very little dialogue; which is good 'cause i can't speak a syllable of Korean (and would rather watch the movie instead of reading it); and its bad 'cause it adds to the already slow pace. It's a revenge story, yes, but not an action movie. It's not as visceral as you would think going in, It's more human, but it does have its small pay-offs. Ultimately it asks "How far are you willing to go for the ones you love?" and, "If you seek revenge are you willing to drown in it?"The main protagonist/antagonist is deaf & mute. (Don't worry that has nothing to do with the story),as a result any time someone communicates via sign-language, the screen goes black and displays what that person just mimed. (A nifty tool, reminiscent of the old silent films.)(Just figured I'd add that)At its best this movie shows us the tumbling snowball that is vengeance. There is no definitive villian here. Everyone has been wronged, and seeks revenge, but its a vicious cycle, and everyone has someone who loves them and will carry it out on their behalf. At its worst, it's a slow movie that takes way too long to get where its going, and when it finally does, you feel cheated. Don't go into it expecting alot of blood, and violence,(I unfortunately did),there's some but its so spread out it's ineffective & unfulfilling. The acting is probably the best I've seen in an asian flick so far. But then again if there's too much dialogue in one, I seldom see the actors perform.It's a heck of a great story, but it's not a wild ride. If you know nothing of the plot it will blow you away, but if you do, well, you ruined it for yourself.MORAL OF THE STORY: Vengeance is a dish best served for two.

The Koreans are producing some first rate movies with excellent story lines and this is one of them. This is not a martial arts action movie. There is however killing in the movie. A man kidnaps a rich man’s daughter to get money for his sister’s kidney transplant. The daughter accidentally died and every goes downhill after that. A great story. You should like this one.