A tit-for-tat does not toe the line!

Sympathy for Lady Vengeance (2005)

Director: Park Chan-wook

Koreans seem to have a tradition of feeding on white tofu, which is symbolic of starting all over again. It is symbolic of wanting to turn over a new leaf, leaving the lousy past behind and starting anew. This is much the same as when one confesses in a Roman Catholic booth. All his sins are purged, and he begins life on a new slate.

Is it really that simple? To put your past behind you and move on as if nothing happened. I suppose that is why cultural practices and religion offer an olive branch to wrongdoers, assuring them they deserve a second chance in life. Devoid of these, if Man were to carry all the burden of guilt all his life without atonement. If Man were held responsible for all his actions without reprieve, he would probably end up dragging his past mistakes as a grinding mill around his neck to end up being a raving lunatic. Suicide would be their only outlet to relieve them from this misery.

As mentioned in the movie, the protagonist, a prison inmate after a murder charge that she regrets, feels a certain glow on her face after a prayer. She feels rejuvenated, like she has shed a layer of dirty skin off her body. It is atonement for her sins.

Conversely, instead of pursuing a passive route to make amends, one can follow the path of vengeance. One eye for an eye, as they say. At the end of the day, does avenging really give satisfaction to the soul? The ghost of their previous mistakes will still haunt them till the end of life. Do two wrongs make a right?

This film is the last of Park Wong-nook's Revenge trilogy.

A naive 19-year-old girl, Geum-ja, is a national sensation for kidnapping and killing a 6-year-old boy. In a typical Park's storytelling, the narration is non-linear. The composite of the whole story comes at the end. The primary school teacher, Mr Baek, kidnaps his students for ransom to splurge on himself.

Geum-ja, a single mother of a young child, was blackmailed by the teacher to kidnap a child. In the end, Mr Baek collects the ransom and kills the children, but Geum-ja goes to prison when she naively takes the blame for the crime she did not commit.

Notice the figurines in the background.

Judith with the Head of Holofernes. Created by Donatello

The epitome of sex and violence. Holofernes, an Assyrian general,
wrongs a beautiful young widow. She retaliates by decapitating
her aggressor when he is inebriated. Note: Display of nude
figures in public is acceptable in Europe but is frowned upon by
the same people when it comes to ancient Hindu temple carvings.

Her inner realisation opens in prison. She garners support by helping out bullied inmates to build a network of grateful inmates. After her incarceration, Geum-ja returns to find her daughter already adopted in Australia. She goes on a crusade to get back her estranged daughter and avenge Mr Baek. With the help of the investigating officer who put her behind bars, she tracks down the parents of the kids that Mr Baek killed and arranges to face-to-face meet with a gagged Mr Baek. Geum-ja puts forward all the pieces of evidence that incriminates Mr Baek as their kid's killer. As expected, the outburst of emotions of aggrieved parents was anything but civil.

The funny thing is that even after getting even with Mr Baek and getting back her daughter, Geum-Ja is not happy. The ghost of all her actions, inactions and the consequences of her doing still haunts her day and night.

An eye for an eye not only leaves the whole world blind, but it also leaves a hollow so deep in the soul that it manifests in recurrent nightmares and loss of peace of mind. Perhaps Nature has a better way of getting wrongdoers.

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