I’ve been recently on a movie marathon, and particularly I’ve been watching and catching up on old “classics”, that I’ve always heard about, but never took the time to watch. So far this week I’ve watched TaeGukGi, 추격자 (The Chaser), and most recently (yesterday night in fact), 비열한 거리 (literally “Mean Streets” but also known as “A Dirty Carnival”).
I now understand why these movies are classics, and all three (and especially this one) have taken a place in the top movies I’ve EVER seen. The plot of this movie is quite simple. However, what is amazing about this movie is the extreme realism of all the characters. This movie is definitely about displaying character, which is why you see so much of the movie dedicated to displaying the ordinary life of Byeong-Du (the protagonist of the film). Before you read any further, note that there will be spoilers. I think you should just stop reading and go watch the film (then come back and read the rest of the post).
There are just too many things that I can discuss about this movie - so I won’t do that. But if you watch it, then come talk to me, and we can have a long chat about all the different elements. The one thing I will discuss however, which I found very prominent and superbly portrayed in the film, is the idea of relationships. These relationships are shown and built throughout the entire film. It is one of the reasons there are so many karaoke, dinner, and coffee sessions. It is through these, as well as the many prominent fight scenes, that reveals an overarching idea of how people belong to social circles that are greater than oneself. These circles range from your own family, to your highschool friends, to even your “adoptive family” (as shown by the gang members in the movie). This aspect of the movie really taps into the reality of relationships in our own lives, and what an enormous effect it has on our actions.
There is a parallel side-story within the movie, whereby one of the friend’s of the Byung-Du, is trying to write and direct his own film. This film that is made, ends up being an accurate and detailed portrayal of everything that happens to Byeong-Du within in the entire movie. While this idea of a movie within a movie may seem cliche at first, it isn’t till you reach the end of the movie where you see the true mastery of the script come into full circle. This film that is made, becomes an allegory to the life of Byeong-Du. Byung-Du is stuck in the movie of his life. He’s trapped within the confines of the frame, and forced to walk a certain path because of the situations he is in (or more specifically the relationships around him). All this, to show how important relationships can be in our own lives, and how sometimes we automatically (for better or for worse) walk on a certain path based on the people placed before us.
All in all, this movie was absolutely mind-blowing. I skimmed just a small part of movie in this review, but there is so much more to it. It is one of those movies that will leave you thinking long after the movie is done. I will say however, that I have never seen such a high frequency of both 시*** and 개***** being used in the same sentence (where sometimes it’s literally every other word haha). But beyond that, an absolutely amazing film, not only entertaining and fast paced, but also so rich with meaning.
