Bin-jip (2004)

Director:

Ki-duk Kim

Writer:

Ki-duk Kim (written by)

Release Date:

15 October 2004 (South Korea)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Romance

Plot:

A transient young man breaks into empty homes to partake of the vacationing residents' lives for a few days.

Plot Keywords:

Footsie Under The Table | Older Woman Younger Man | Phone Call | Prison | Voyeurism

Awards:

6 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Seung-yeon Lee	...	Sun-hwa
Hyun-kyoon Lee	...	Tae-suk (as Hee Jae)
Hyuk-ho Kwon	...	Min-gyu (husband)
Jeong-ho Choi	...	Jailor
Ju-seok Lee	...	Son of Old Man
Mi-suk Lee	...	Daughter-in-law of Old Man
Sung-hyuk Moon	...	Sung-hyuk
Jee-ah Park	...	Jee-ah
Jae-yong Jang	...	Hyun-soo
Dah-hae Lee	...	Ji-eun
Han Kim	...	Man in Studio
Se-jin Park	...	Woman in Studio
Dong-jin Park	...	Detective Lee
Jong-su Lee	...	Man who Came Back from Family Trip
Ui-soo Lee	...	Woman who Came Back from Family Trip

Also Known As:

3-Iron (Canada: English title) (International: English title) (UK) (USA)
Bin jib (South Korea) (alternative transliteration)
Empty Houses (literal English title)

MPAA:

Rated R for some sexual content.

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

South Korea | Japan

Language:

Korean

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

South Korea:15 | Spain:13 | Argentina:13 | Taiwan:R-12 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Zurich) | Portugal:M/12 | Sweden:11 | Finland:K-11 | Hungary:14 | Canada:G (Quebec) | Hong Kong:IIB | Netherlands:12 | Singapore:NC-16 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 | USA:R | Brazil:16

Company:

Kim Ki-Duk Film

Trivia:

Director Kim ki-Duk wrote the screenplay of the movie in one month, the movie was filmed in 16 days and the film editing was done in 10 days.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Smagsdommerne: (#2.15)" (2005)

Soundtrack:

Gafsa

A beautiful movie

To me it's been obvious for quite some time now that South Korea is by far the most interesting country in Asia when it comes to film. And Asia on the other hand feels like the most interesting continent, so where does that leave us?

"Bin-Jip" (or "3-iron") is a wonderful movie. I went to see it without really knowing what to expect. I must admit that even though South Korean films appeal to me my expectations were quite low, not least because the movie was described in a way that was vague to say the least. But after watching it... it all made sense. Because how do you describe a movie like this one? It moves somewhere in the shadow-land between reality and fantasy. One of those movies that has very little plot to it but still comes across as beautifully written. And above all things it made me feel good!

The closest reference i can find to how this movie made me feel is "Lost in Translation". Don't get me wrong, the movies are not very alike. But the feeling they gave me is the same. When i watched these movies for the first time i felt like i didn't really know what i was i just saw. I only knew that i liked it and it made me feel good. A warm sensation in my gut telling me that maybe there is hope after all. Hope for what? I don't know, life maybe?

In the end the 3-iron, the golf-balls and the surface are not important. What's important is life, love and warmth. This is a beautiful movie, both on the surface and beneath it. It is also a truly unique movie experience and i don't get to say that very often. Highly recommended and definitely one of the best i've seen so far this year.

9/10