Meera M
i've seen many love stories, this story also resembles in many ways to rest of them especially in dealing with the theme"Ex-marital affair". It's a story of a police officer who has complicated relation with two women in his life. But the difference in this movie is along with this, the story unfolds the tragic death of a studio owner. Two parallel stories, but connected in some ways- the presence of a third person in married life.I suggest this movie to those who are tangled in two love relations at a time. The scene in trunk of the car is unexpected and gruesome evidence human frailties. Feelings such as despair,struggle for survival, shame, repentance and all the frustrating feelings crossing through the minds of both actors is a wonderful drawing of human life. That scenes are outstanding and unique from rest of the movie.
qrs_ina
Before watching this film, I was quite circumspect regarding the Korean origin. Though, I was intrigued by the fact that the lead actress committed suicide shortly after. In the first part of the film, the plot is rather common- a murder investigation, a policeman's family life, nothing spectacular. But as the plot evolves, it gets more intense. The policeman's life is duplicitous, oscillating between the amenable, newly pregnant wife and a very appealing mistress- the singer Ga-yee. From the time Ga-yee finds out she is pregnant too, everything gets really complicated. She is confronted with Ki-hoon's incapacity to commitment regarding the unborn child and her love for him develops into obsession. In the same time, during the murder investigation, Ki-hoon experiments some sort of physical attraction to the the former wife of the dead man- principal suspect. In a very twisted chance of fate, Ki-hoon and Ga-yee end up locked in the trunk of his car, in an isolated place. The scenes are quite shocking, picturing the raw despair and the dramatic moments are so intense that you almost believe they are real. The paroxysm is reached when Ga-yee has a spontaneous abortion and then begs Ki-hoon to shoot her, which he does. It is worth mentioning that these scenes are very cruel and bloody. The title of the film comes up by Ga-yee's confession that the name she wanted for the baby is Pearl, Hester Pryne's daughter in the novel "The Scarlet Letter" by Nathaniel Hawthorne. I was very impressed of the ending, in my honest opinion, the actors played excellent some of most complex and hard to imitate human feelings. If I should compare this film to other, it would be with "Irreversible".
sain11
The Scarlet Letter is an excellent film for fans of unique cinema. Part erotic thriller, part murder mystery, part police procedure, part extreme cinema, but somehow masterfully pieced together into a single cohesive, disturbing, tragic, emotional and intellectually stimulating film experience.The cinematography, sound, music, acting, direction and script are all first rate. Although special mention must go to Lee Eun-ju, who steals every scene in a breathtaking performance, which was tragically her last as she committed suicide shortly after completing this project. Obviously she was in some serious emotional pain in her personal life at the time of filming, which she has used to add a raw and real emotional depth to her character.The storyline is deceptively simple, at first appearing to be a routine murder investigation plot, based on a fairly mundane murder, however as we get deeper into the film this plot takes a back seat to the real story which is a dissection of the investigating officer's (Han Suk-kyu)complicated personal life and his relationships with his wife and his girlfriend (Lee Eun-ju).It is in the complexities of this love triangle that the films true power and force really take place as the characters try to manage their lives as they slowly unravel. This leads to a climax that is emotionally overpowering and disturbing, and totally unique.This is very intelligent, artistic, mature, dark, thriller.
rumfoord
This is one of those films where you can't help but improvise. It has those scenes where you shout out brilliant, but then proceed to make a few alterations to the already produced script to make the thing workable, if not believable.There are many awful south Korean films out there (for whatever reason, most of them seem to be romantic comedies)-- this is not one of them. Unfortunately this is no "Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance" or "Sorum" either. There are a handful of brilliant scenes in this film, including one particularly claustrophobic segment that reminded me of a permutation of Tarantino's Kill Bill Volume 2. Unfortunately, these moments are mired in irrelevance, overacting, and implausibility.By all means, have a drink, take the film in -- but be prepared to throw a huge amount of constructive criticism at your TV. Be prepared to start writing a screen play, maybe take up non-linear editing as a hobby.
AD
