Bin-jip (2004)

User Rating:

8.0/10   

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:

Escape | Drifter | Dream Like | Haircut | Homeless

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
Jong-hwa Ryoo	...	Boy who Came Back from Family Trip
Sung-hoon Kang	...	Boyfriend of Girl who Got Hit by Golf Ball
Sung-hoon Jung	...	Prisoner 1
Ji-yong Jang	...	Prisoner 2
Maeng-sung Kim	...	Prisoner 3
Hoon Jang	...	Guy Who Stares
Seok-bin Jang	...	CIS Team 1
Hyung-suk Kim	...	CIS Team 2
Tae-suk Shin	...	Policeman 1
Hong-suk Lee	...	Policeman 2
Nam-min Park	...	Policeman 4

Directed by
Ki-duk Kim

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Ki-duk Kim		written by

Produced by
Yong-bae Choi	....	co-executive producer
Ki-duk Kim	....	producer
Michiko Suzuki	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Slvian

Cinematography by
Seong-back Jang

Film Editing by
Ki-duk Kim

Production Design by
Chungsol Art

Sound Department
Jin-wook Jung	....	sound

Production Companies

• Kim Ki-Duk Film
• Cineclick Asia

Distributors

• Chungeorahm Film (2004) (South Korea) (theatrical)
• Bir Film (2005) (Turkey) (all media)
• ArtCam (2005) (Czech Republic) (theatrical)
• Bright Angel Distribution (2005) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Cathay-Keris Films (2005) (Singapore) (theatrical)
• Cinema Mondo (2005) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Distribution Company (2006) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• Eurofilms (2007) (Peru) (theatrical)
• Festive Films (2005) (Singapore) (theatrical)
• Filmcoopi Zürich (2005) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
• Filmhouse (2005) (Mexico) (theatrical)
• Mikado (2004) (Italy) (theatrical)
• Mongrel Media (2005) (Canada) (theatrical)
• Optimum Releasing (2005) (UK) (theatrical)
• Pretty Pictures (2005) (France) (theatrical)
• Sony Pictures Classics (2005) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Dolmen Home Video (2005) (Italy) (DVD)
• Optimum Releasing (2005) (UK) (DVD)
• Pandora Filmproduktion (2005) (Germany) (all media)
• Total Film Home Entertainment (2005) (Netherlands) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Chungeorahm Film  presented by
• HFR  dailies

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:

88 min | Turkey:84 min (TV version)

Country:

South Korea | Japan

Language:

Korean

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Finland:K-11 | Sweden:11 | Spain:13 | Taiwan:R-12 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Zurich) | Portugal:M/12 | Argentina:13 | Hungary:14 | South Korea:15 | France:U | Mexico:B15 | 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:

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

Soundtrack:

Gafsa

Originality in abundance

Originality is a rare commodity at any time, but it is in abundance in Kim ki-Duk's 3-IRON. The title refers to a golf club that is used to drive a ball long distances. In this case, the balls are, ultimately, driven into people with painful results.

A drifter who lives in temporarily vacated houses and apartments repays the owners by repairing appliances and watering plants. He meets a sad, abused woman and a non-verbal connection grows.

The magic is in the detail and the extraordinary cinematic clarity of Kim's style. There is the explosive violence that characterized his early films, but this entry is primarily an engaging character study with an existential bent.

What's truly original is the director's adherence to the way he presents his material. The style is consistent throughout and dialogue is mostly superfluous.

This has more in common with SPRING, SUMMER, FALL, WINTER...THEN SPRING AGAIN than THE ISLE, ADDRESS UNKNOWN or BAD GUY. Though I enjoyed the material, any subtler and Kim might begin to lose the edge that distinguishes him.

Tonally, the film reminded me of aspects of OLD BOY.