Having seen 'Oldboy' previously and delighting in it I was intrigued as to what 'SFMV', it's precursor in Chan-Wook Park's 'vengeance' trilogy, had to offer. To cut to the chase I found it a stunning visual and cinematic treat. With little dialogue and music 'SFMV' is a quiet and brooding picture divided into two distinct parts: the time leading up to a character's death and the events following it (the film was initially planned to be one half colour, one half monochrome). This film is unconventional and art-like in substance. Green is the primary colour throughout (even including the main protagonist's hair) and the atmosphere is bleak and subdued, in many ways an obvious metaphor for the situations the characters find themselves in as the movie tumbles toward it's climax. The onus is very much on the viewer to deduce what is happening and it is this facet which makes the film so ultimately satisfying. Much like 'Oldboy', 'SFMV' isn't an obvious genre movie, flitting between aspects of crime, mystery and thriller at any given moment. The revenge theme is deep and intricate but dovetails wonderfully into a frighteningly insightful take on a base, raw and dangerous human emotion. The message is that nothing and nobody gains from it but that it is almost and often spectacularly impossible to control. The violence, when it arrives, is crushingly symbolic of the emotions that drive it and is worryingly relevant and even justified(?) in it's extremity. This film is a work of art and has pride of place in my collection, I would urge anybody who may read this to take two hours in a quiet room and appreciate it's brilliance. I haven't mentioned anything particular about the film's events because the satisfaction here, as I mentioned earlier, is derived from the viewer's gradual and rewarding comprehension of the underlying theme.
Review of Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance
