The Quiet Family (1998)

A family opens a mountain inn where their first guest commits suicide. Suddenly all their guests befall horrible fates.

Director:

Jee-woon Kim (as Kim Jee-woon)

Writer:

Jee-woon Kim (as Kim Jee-woon)

Stars:

In-hwan Park, Moon-hee Na, Kang-ho Song

3 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
In-hwan Park	...	Tae-gu Kang (Father)
Moon-hee Na	...	Mrs. Kang
Kang-ho Song	...	Yeong-min Kang (Son)
Choi Min-sik	...	Chang-ku Kang (Uncle)
Ho-kyung Go	...	Mi-na Kang (Daughter)
Yun-seong Lee	...	Mi-su Kang (Daughter)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Cheol-ho Choi	...	Male lodger (committing suicide by taking pills)
Ju-bong Gi	...	Lonely man
Lee Gi-yeong	...	Killer
Deok-bu Ha	...	Doctor
Ka-hyeon Jang	...	Hyun-suk's lover
Jae-yeong Jeong	...	Hyun-suk (as Ji-hyeon Jeong)
Su-Won Ji	...	Eun-su
Deok-jae Jo
Jong-goo Kim	...	(as Jong-gu Kim)

Storyline

A family decides to buy a lodge in a remote hiking area. Their first customer commits suicide and the distraught family buries his body to avoid the bad publicity. But their luck gets worse, the bodies start piling up, and the family becomes frantic to rectify the situation.

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Plot Keywords:

south korea | guest | suicide | lodge | family relationships | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Horror

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Did You Know?

Trivia

Director Jee-woon Kim's feature film debut.

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Connections

Remade as The Happiness of the Katakuris (2001)

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Soundtracks

Jump Into the Fire
Performed by Harry Nilsson
Courtesy of RCA Records

User Reviews

Black Comic Treat!

I can't account for the lackluster ratings for this on IMDB (though its primary domestic distribution right now is bootleg video, which might account for something.) I saw it at the movies, and it rates as one of the great South Korean black comedies. A bit like Hitchcock, this tells the story of a family that takes over an inn deep, deep in the country - only realizing when they get there it was a big mistake. For one thing, they're miles from any human being. Things take a turn for the macabre when their visitors and guests end up dying under ambiguous circumstances, and the family has to find some way of disposing of the bodies before the cops roll in. Of course, they eventually do come to investigate, making the tale even more twisted than it was before.

Don't let any prejudices against South Korean cinema keep you away; at its best, their film output is second to none, and attracts international favor from film festivals and critics. This film is one of the unequivocal winners.

Details

Country:

South Korea

Language:

Korean

Release Date:

25 April 1998 (South Korea)

Also Known As:

The Quiet Family

Company Credits

Production Co:

Myung Film Company Ltd.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min 99 min (DVD)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1