Program Note
Ip-se has been bedridden since the point beyond memories. There are many people who look after Ipse who is confined to a bed like a plant in a verdant house, but in fact, to Ipse, they are no more than predators seeking prey. A stranger calling himself ‘Uncle’ visits Ip-se when she was being bullied by a social worker and village men, and she gradually starts to look into the darkness of her past. Being the debut feature film of Director Kim Hyoung-jin, The Uncle draws the psychological state and revenge of a woman who is exposed to violence passed down from generation to generation and the wound from childhood, as well as the dark desire of the surrounding people intertwined like a food chain. What protected the child who witnessed the tragedy and violence of the family in her childhood was the words from her ‘Uncle,’ but that has bound the child’s body and soul like a spell; the child is chained to the past, unable to grow up. And the uncle who came back deprived of his voice stirs up her memory again, and she decides to get back up again. When the once lethargic girl starts the punishment, flora devours fauna and the strong who exercised power against the weak now become the weak under the reversed food chain. This is a piece of work in which sensuous imagery and unconventional style, various symbols, and the dense and enthusiastic performance of Jung Woo-rim and Kang Shin-hyo stand out. (MO Eun-young)