Today we’re shining the spotlight on the psychological thriller ‘Lady Vengeance’. The last installment in Park Chan Wook’s ‘Vengeance’ trilogy, ‘Sympathy for Lady Vengeance’, or ‘Kind-hearted Geum-ja’ as is the Korean title, was released in 2005. It’s been 15 years! So I realised that there’s a whole generation of film connoisseurs in the making that need to watch this movie, and here we are.
Some context
‘Mr. Vengeance’ (2002), ‘Oldboy’ (2003), and ‘Lady Vengeance’ (2005), are the three chapters in Park Chan Wook’s thematic trilogy. The movies revolve around separate stories, and you don’t need to have seen the other two to watch any one of them. Obsession and revenge function as the thematic links that connect them.
Most of you may be already familiar, at least in name, with ‘Oldboy’. The Monte-Cristoeqsue tale of Dae-Su, locked away for 15 years without explanation, carefully planning his eventual revenge hardly needs an introduction. It won the 2004 Grand Prix in Cannes, and we’re all fairly in agreement about it being a true masterpiece. It’s that one Korean movie your cinephile friend was raving about before ‘Parasite’ happened.
Partially because of how huge ‘Oldboy’ became, and honestly, a little bit because this one features a female protagonist instead, ‘Lady Vengeance’ was eclipsed. That’s not to say it wasn’t successful, because it was; but especially among international audiences, it didn’t get nearly as much exposure. That’s why I decided to feature it instead.
Sympathy for Lady Vengeance
Lee Geum-ja (played by Lee Young-ae) is about to be released from prison after 13 years, for the crime of kidnapping and murdering a 6-year old child. During her conviction, she had become a national sensation, because of her angelic face, youth, and admission of the crime.
Over those 13 years, she was the perfect reformed criminal; She even had a ‘spiritual awakening’ and converted to Christianity, and her exemplary behaviour got her an early release. She also spent a lot of time fantasizing about how she would eventually exact revenge upon those who wronged her.
As we start to realise that this behaviour was merely a cover, we find out that the real murderer was Mr.Baek. He’s interestingly portrayed by Choi Min-Sik, the same actor who played Oh Dae-Su in ‘Oldboy’.
Once she’s free, she sets out on a mission to find her now teenage daughter, and set her plans in motion.
The conclusion
Any more and I’d be giving away crucial plot points, so all I’ll say is, much like Park Chan Wook’s other works, this is not for the squeamish. However, the storytelling here slowly builds up to an unforeseen dark and gruesome conclusion. The violence is very much present from the beginning, but it is different from the action-packed violence we got in ‘Oldboy’.
As far as catharses go, this one feels both conclusive and satisfying yet impure, as if everyone’s soul is darker than it was before. ‘Catharsis’ means ‘the cleansing of the soul in the tragedy’s conclusion’. In that sense, this one sits firmly on the fence. Revenge is a double-edged sword. It’s sordid business that consumes and chips away at you, and it rarely feels as cleanly satisfying as you’d hoped. Park Chan Wook once again managed to magnificently capture just that.
Lee Young-ae was incredible as Geum-ja. One moment she’s selling the repented angel and the next she looks ready to mess.shit.up. The entire movie revolves around her character and her performance more than rose to the occasion. Her portrayal deserves so much praise.
I hope I have at least piqued your interest. It’s a movie that you won’t soon forget. Unfortunately the official English trailer manages to look entirely charmless and generic, so here is a subtitled version of the original:
