Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance

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Movie: Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance
Revised romanization: Boksuneun naui geot
Hangul: 복수는 나의 것
Director: Park Chan-Wook
Writer: Park Chan-Wook, Jae-sun Lee, Mu-yeong Lee, Yong-jong Lee
Producer: Lim Jin-Kyu, Son Se-Hun, Lee Jae-Sun
Cinematography: Kim Byeong-Il
Release Date: March 29, 2002
Runtime: 129 min.
Studio: Moho Films
Distributor: CJ Entertainment
Language: Korean
Country: South Korea

Plot

Ryu, a young factory worker, has recently quit art school in order to look after his sister, who is dying a slow, agonizing death for want of a kidney. When a doctor tells Ryu that he is an unsuitable donor and that the chances of finding one is slim, Ryu turns to the black market. But the old lady who runs an underground organ ring cheats him, taking both his life savings and his kidney and leaving him without the kidney she promised in exchange. Ryu’s girlfriend, a Raggedy-Ann leftist named Young-Min, urges Ryu to kidnap the four-year-old daughter of industrialist owner Dong-Jin Park, who recently laid off Ryu and many other workers from his factory. Ryu agrees, but just as the plan is on the verge of success, Ryu’s sister discovers what Ryu and Youngmin have been up to, and kills herself in despair. Compounding the tragedy, Ryu loses track of his little illicit charge during a visit to his childhood haunts, and she drowns in the river Ryu and his sister played in as kids. Dong-jin’s deep grief quickly turns to rage and he embarks on an implacable quest for vengeance. At the same time, Ryu goes after the organ traders, knowing that if they had come through, none of the tragic occurrences would ever have happened. Bound by their common sense of loss and deep-seated anger, the two are on a collision course of revenge.

Notes

Much of this film is shot with a wide angle lens with some sort of division line in the middle. The shots are very symmetric in terms of spacing and framing. The camera usually stays in one place and is kept at a distance for long takes. This technique emphasizes the division of attitude from the audience.
Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance opened in South Korea on March 29, 2002, and grossed $1,818,524 by April 7.
After the cult success that greeted Oldboy in its North American release, Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance received a low-profile North American theatrical release from Tartan beginning August 19, 2005 - over three years after it debuted in South Korea. In its opening weekend, it collected $9,827 ($3,276 per screen) from three New York city theaters. It played on only six screens at its most widespread, and its total North American box office take was $45,243.

Notes

"Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance" is the first installment in director Park Chan-wook's revenge trilogy (story lines are not related).
Related titles
1. Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance | Boksuneun naui geot (2002)
2. Old Boy | Oldeuboi (2003)
3. Sympathy for Lady Vengeance | Chinjeolhan geumjassi (2005)