the scale and the jail cell? (spoiler)

Korean prison sucks. Given what I've seen of Korean films, life in Korea sucks in that it's harsh and unforgiving. Your family members often hit you. It's no surprise their prison structure is based on, "If you think it sucks out there . . ." Why should prisoners be given a soft place to sleep? Isn't the floor good enough?

Wanna hear a secret?

Movies don't exist in a vacuum. The film Kim Ki-Duk made is exactly how he wanted it, but it's not the film you watched. The film you watched -- and the conclusions you've drawn -- are a product of his germination and your experiences. Thus, if you think he's a ghost and you can reasonably support that -- then he's a ghost. If you think he went into prison a delivery boy and came out a ninja -- then so be it. The answer isn't definitive for all people, and never is. That's the beauty of art.

Yeah. every interpretation is possible; it belongs to watchers' freedom.

Just one information; Kim Ki-Duk said, in an interview, that the whole story can be read as either/both Sun-Hwa or/and Tae-Suk's fantasies,, i.e. their desparate hopes (not merely dreams).
On the one hand, Sun-Hwa, like any other ordinary hosewives in Korea (probably in every country), desparately wants to escape from her prison-like house totally dominated by her husband; she felt like an accessory attacheed to her husband and she invents a fantasy where some one is comming to save her. On the other hand, Tae-Suk also wants to someone accompanying with him, particulary someone who is fragile and wants helps (because he is a MAN-a feminist reading is possible here, because he is taken care of by her, on the contrary). These two fantasies are interwoven into each otehr in the very last scale scene. One critic said, "without fantasy, there is no exit from harsh reality!"

"also strange the cell has no bed and nothing inside"

Not all Korean homes have beds. I have seen many movies where regular citizens sleep on a mat or blanket on the floor. Also, I would imagine Korean jails are kept simplistic and uncomfortable so ex-cons don't want to go back.

um, i think the weirdest thing that i didn't notice anyone note:

when he attacked the jail guard with 'golf balls,'
1. you don't see the golf balls
2. why the hell would he have a golf club
3. he also didn't have a golf club when he was with the other people in jail

and all of it is meant to be ambiguous as the line at the end says it's not sure what is or isn't real.

so yeah he could be a ghost or he could be sneaky but yeah that line the husband says does throw it all off so i think he is alive and does all the sneaking but the director likes to play with the possibility but knows it isn't.

but i still feel that the magic golf balls and golf club is still really weird and i'm still unsure about that considering he wasn't there when the door closed but actually on the side... and he wasn't hitting them at an angle because the guard wasn't running in an angle or facing that way. and he did say the line about him being a ghost.. so i don't know if he even saw him... just weird.

You're all wrong. The movie is from the eyes of the husband who accidentally killed his wife, he made up the story to rid himself of the guilt and to focus all his anger on a nameless ghost. The zero on the scale is to show that neither of them exists, i.e. the woman is dead and the ghostman is a ghostman- thats why they never talk! He gets angry when he doesn't know where she is, with this story he knows where she's been the whole time and she was unfaithful gasp! He also keeps trying to make out with her while she lies still, sort of like necrophilia? In his dream-vision he threw in a lot of golf because he likes golf. With the story from his perception every ends up happy, good times!

This sort of film is usually left open for interpretation. The point is to discuss different possibilties of the characters and how it would fit into the film. Most directors/writers/musicians don't want to have to expalin everything they were doing or how their film/story should be interpreted.

Having said that now, I don't think that tae-suk was a ghost or poltergeist at the end. That would throw off the whole feel of the movie to me. Plus there was no indication that he actually died and Sun-hwa's husband even recieved a call from the police saying that tae-suk was out of jail. I was under the impression that they were going to release him after they found out his record was clean. And when he was in the cell with the other prisoners, I thought that they stuck him in some sort of instution. So I can't see why he would suddenly be on death row.

His newfound ivisibilty skills seemed to almost be a connection to the spiritual with the eye he had drawn on his hand as if to see all of his surroundings so he could be either here nor there (though I'm not very fond of that saying). It was like a step up from what he was originally doing-existing but not quite since it seemed like he was never in the places that he inhabited except for the odd item he repaired. I think that ties into the 0 on the scale. Sun-hwa did mess with it before they both stood on it and the zero sort of represented the in between place they existed in together.

As a side note-Sun-hwa staying in her marriage even though she had an abusive husband was unhappy is more of a cultural thing. It might not make sense to a lot of Westerns since women are seen as indepentant beings in Western society, but it's not the same in Eastern culture where interdependence is more likely. I also remember seeing a bit about the film on Cinema AZN a while ago, saying that it was making a bit of a statement on Korean women/housewives.

Overall, I really enjoyed the movie. It was fun to watch and tae-suk was a trip, the best character I've seen in a long while that's realy enjoyable to watch. I thought Ki-duk Kim did a great job at making a film without much dialouge be so lively. The films I've seen in the past without much or muted dialouge usually come off as a bland or try to overextend themselves as 'art' pieces. It came off really well.

Hi, I really liked all of the oppinions here, and it really do show that the whole movie is for each one to interpet, I don't really think of it as a "this-is-how-it-is" movie.

By The Way: I can't remember your name, but for you who only critizised and in my eyes only had really bad arguments, you should really stop doing that just because you like to. It really only sends out bad vibes when you obviously didn't understand the movie, neither spiritually nor intellectually, and then turns to the forum here to just try and start an argument.

Anyway, i hate to turn on other people like that (I made this one an exception), I would like to give you guys my oppinion on the movie, and these are free for discussion as you like.

First of all: The whole ghost vs. sneaky-matter. My oppinion is that he didn't die, no spirit was involved during this movie what so ever. All thow i do understand many of the arguments, the whole ghost part has to many doubtfull points.

1. For those who meant that he was on death row: He couldn't have since the death of the man was declared as lung cancer, and not murder. The point that he had done a respectfull burial ceremony also showed the fact that even if he brakes in to houses, he is a good guy. (This is also shown regulary when he fixes things and whases after himself) The reason he got arrested was becaused he attacked the policeman, and the reason he got placed in a single row was only because of the fight he had with his jail-mates. A more stricked and uncomfortable cell, and why practising sneaking so intensly when he is dying anyway?
2. The whole pillow deal: There is a LOT of room for a hand to fix the pillow in the left side, where the camera doesn't film.
3. The whole golf club deal: I did laugh at those who made the spirit-golf arguments, they are clearly right.
4. When he sneaks around in houses: A couple of you guys says that the persons are staring right at him. They are actually not, they are staring at you guys - the camera, and even if the camera sometimes is meant to represent Bin's head (or eyes, it does brake out of that pattern leading us to be a little confused. That is a good trick to use in order for us to be impressed by his sneaking skills.
5. The guard who constantly says that he is going to kill him didn't do it the last time he said it, why? Because Bin beat him up before he even got to him.

Secong of all: Yes he does get great at sneaking as you say it, but not only that, he can move around almost freely without anyone noticing it, only with a feeling of him being there. For those of you who call it ninja, stop it. He simply (if I can use that word) taught himself to be unnoticed, and as many before me has said, that's why he visited the other apartments, he was practising in other places then in his cell. That's not ninjathing, he just perfected his whole "thing", and he can now go unnotisable in and out of houses.

Third of all: The ending with the scale: I am actually going to not say my meaning with this scale. The only thing I'll say, is that she did fix it in the movie. What she fixed it to - we don't know, but she did fix it.


These are my oppinions of the movie feel free to critizise them.

PS: The whole golf theme: My oppinion here is that Bin used golf for violence, the reason his girfriend stands in the way is because she doesn't want him to, because it represent the violence. When he finally brakes the golfball free and hurts the woman in the car, Bin understands that. He doesn't play golf anymore after that, except for when he hurts the policeman again.

(PPS: Sorry for my English if it has flaws, i must admit that i'm not English)

to me, the 0 on the scale made me think of being weightless, floating, detached, light.. which i would also compare to being in love