The Vengeance Trilogy by Park Chan-Wook

Pretty fucking awesome.

Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance gets the least play from me, simply because it's so depressing, but damn if it isn't a beautifully composed film. Every shot is amazing.
Oldboy is an outright classic.
Lady Vengeance is great as well, but I was a tiny bit disappointed the vengeance in question wasn't turned on it's head as much as in the other two films.

I have an Oldboy sweater that I got off Ebay years ago. Just an all-black thing with Oldboy font in the middle written vertically. Whenever I wear it, people will always start a conversation with me. Just random strangers in the street, in the supermarket, a pub. You'd think it would be annoying, but the fact that these people know Oldboy automatically means they have good taste and I can get along with them.

Exceptional trilogy, with Sympathy for Lady Vengeance being my least favorite of the three. Need to see more Asian cinema.

OLDBOY is an awesome, awesome movie. When I first saw it, it seemed like no one had heard of it outside of the people on the internet. Now, it seems like EVERYONE has seen that movie. Kinda like Donnie Darko. Unfortunately, very few people seem to be aware that its part of a kind of trilogy, and very rarely see Sympathy or Lady Vengeance. But maybe thats a good thing, since liking Oldboy doesn't guarantee you will like the others.

Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance is actually my favorite of the three. While it is depressing, I love the way the movie is shot and the pace of the movie, and how things slowly develop over time. In many ways its the opposite of Oldboy, in terms of pacing and the main character (who cannot speak, compared to a character in Oldboy who's flaw is he talks too much), but they are still somewhat similar in theme.

Lady Vengeance is my least favorite. I've only seen it twice (compared to an uncountable amount of times for the other films), but I really think its only O.K.

I'm actually just starting a series of blog pieces on the Vengeance Trilogy and how they would shape I'm A Cyborg, But That's OK. Just about halfway through my Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance piece. Still love this trilogy and I would be hard pressed to pick a favourite.

Mr. Vengeance is the emotional core of the film, it's brutal but so rewarding for its harshness. Oldboy is the technical masterpiece, iconic, clever, and brilliantly designed. Lady Vengeance is the experiment, it distils the base elements of the older movies and tries to make something grander. It's also the most uneven drifting from prosaic to brilliant at the drop of a hat. I think it's the most lushly visual film in the series but I think compared to the leaness of Oldboy and Mr. it probably meanders a little bit too much. Still that tracking shot through the snow, and the child getting the chair kicked out from underneath them are some of the series highpoints.

What I've always found interesting is that Mr. and Oldboy share an odd duality, in that they are both films about animal vs. intellect. In Mr. Ryo becauses almost bestial after the death of his sister, beating the ones who wrong him to death in a truly vicious fashion and then cannibalising them. Chairman Park however seems to become almost impassive, his vengeance is a lot more thought out, a lot more cerebral and almost ritualistic.

You get the same thing in Oldboy but in that film Lee Woo-jin actually creates the animalistic elements in Oh Dae-su as a factor of his grand scheme of vengeance.

Fantastic post. I always preferred Lady Vengeance to Sympathy, but upon reflection after reading this, I think I prefer it because of the lush visuals and the distinct lack of kidney surgery more than any relative merit it may have to Sympathy. Now that I think about it, Lady Vengenace really didn't have as much of an impact on me as Sympathy did, as I can remember little about it, whereas I can remember almost every scene of Sympathy, even though I've only seen it once. The fact that I had a five-day hospital stay due to a kidney hematoma and the incredible pain that causes in the months preceding that viewing probably didn't lessen the impact, as I very rarely have actual experience to connect with empathy. I may never know what it's like to have to kill my family in a car to save them from rampaging monsters, but I know a little of the pain experienced in the kidney transplant, which made the viewing experience all the more visceral.

This was not meant to be a blog entry, just to say that I'm reappraising my appreciation for the films based on their merit rather than comfort level.

That was a damn fine post, Spike. And to answer your question Mr. Vengeance: what Spike said.

Lady Vengeance is a grower. Watch it a few more times and it'll work its magic on you. Of course I'd still place it 3rd, but I dont think it deserves the tepid praise it often gets in threads like this. The relationship between the women in prison is fascinating, as is the directorial trickery in scene transitions, and the last half with its theatre-like setting is amazingly powerful stuff complimented with that Korean/Park humouristic touch.

I just think it remains a great end to a trilogy about revenge, and just a masterstroke to have the protagonist this time have an empty victory. Fading out with Geum-ja Lee left to learn how to deal with letting go of that driving force in her that compelled her to go on a revenge rampage in the first place. The only bad thing I can say about the film is the inclusion of that young guy who sleeps with her, I found him a pointless distraction.

Just bumping the most recent thread. I just ended the trilogy yesterday seeing Lady Vengeance.
Highlight for spoilers... The scene where she kills the wolf is gorgeous. It's the most straightforward one (even for Park) but still great. The 9 seconds around Geum-Ja saving Jenny and the aftermath in Bae's house are astonishingly violent

Geum-Ja is the most beautiful Angel of revenge.
Park's sense of humor is impossible to describe for me but it really worked here.
Weird stuff: his narration style reminded me of Bolaño the writer. It's like a weird conscious stream coming from a narrator not too much interested in details, connectivity (in the mainstream sense) or the anxious spectator who wants a clear plot.

More generally I wish I had seen these ones in the following order: Mr. Vegeance, Lady and Oldboy.

Any thoughts on the two versions of Lady Vengeance: full color vs. the fade to black & white?

I saw the color one so many times before seeing the other, and the photography is so gorgeous. As a result, it's hard for me to get as comfortable with the black & white version. Cool experiment though.

As I understand it, Park had planned to release the black & white fade as the official version (theatrically), but he fell in love with the color photography during post-production.

It's worth seeing for any fan of the film. But yeah, the color is too beautiful for it to be my preferred version. It takes masterful cinematography to trump the natural beauty of black and white (I.E. the best version of The Mist). Lady Vengeance does it.

Also, I'm A Cyborg is extremely underrated. Beats that vampire movie. Maybe it never had a chance, everyone was hoping for Vengeance part 4. Park will be typecast in the "fucked up shit" genre from here on out.

I'm glad someone else has positive things to say about I'm A Cyborg. I found myself really enjoying the film and then being really confused by all the negativity. It kind of amused me that Chan-wook followed up the vengeance trilogy with what was essentially a Jeunet film, albeit a harder edge, more disciplined Jeunet film.

Put me on the I'm A Cyborg liker. It's the first Blu-ray I ever imported, and it was worth every penny. The closest I come to harsh criticism is it has one too many climaxes. It'd be better if it ended before the lightning scene. The eating scene is a great way to end things.

That's my only major hangup, too. In fact, I know the exact shot it should've ended on: when the toenail lights up. Hit the credits right there, it would've been perfect. But it doesn't ruin the film or anything.

Exactly. If a number of other directors had made the film, Cyborg would've been hailed. As it is, people think a Park film without nihilism is a failed Park film. His sense of humor is really underrated. I'm beginning to think that only directors who understand comedy can deliver good horror.