Synopsis
JinA is going to the Birdcage Inn holding a small suitcase and a painting. The Inn has a blue door and is situated by the sea. At the Inn, she sleeps with the customers when she is wanted. The Inn is owned by the family of four. The daughter, HaeMi is a university student and has a boy friend. She is antagonistic towards JinA, who is the same age as her, and to the fact that her family makes a living out of prostitution. HaeMi refuses to get to know JinA as a person as she differentiates herself from JinA by the simple fact that she is a virgin. JinA, who loves painting, attends the art lesson during the day and often makes the sketches of HaeMi's family and the ocean. She finds it difficult to refuse people and often accepts things she does not want. She tries to be friends with HaeMi but gets rejected every time. The fact that JinA is a prostitute is the starting point of her relationships with outside world. Although the plot seems be complicated, the central theme of the film focuses on how JinA and HaeMi establish the close tie between them by discovering the shared features besides the age. The image dictates every scene in this film. Carefully placed graphic components, such as the painting of Egon Schiele hung unevenly on the wall, are woven into the episodes presented in the film. While the name of the Inn, Birdcage, could represent the hypocritical structure of the narrative, the meaning behind JinA's actions, such as releasing the turtle into the water, remains obscure. The scenario of Birdcage Inn was selected at the Scenario Competition organised by the Korean Film Commission. (KIM Youn-Jin)