프로그램

The Master: LEE BYUNG HUN

A Bittersweet Life

KIM Jee-woon|Korea|2004|118min |19+ |No Eng-Subtitle

Schedule

Code: 526

Time: 7/7 20:00 - 21:58

Theater: CGV Sopung 8

Rate: 19

Unless otherwise indicated by the Subtitle code below, English subtitles are provided for all non-English language films.
별아이콘 Notice of No English-Subtitle

Schedule

Code: 526

Time: 7/7 20:00 - 21:58

Theater: CGV Sopung 8

Rate: 19

Unless otherwise indicated by the Subtitle code below, English subtitles are provided for all non-English language films.
별아이콘 Notice of No English-Subtitle

Program Note

Sun-woo (Lee Byung Hun), the trusted right hand man of a crime boss, is abruptly cast out and nearly killed only to return seeking retribution. However, A Bittersweet Life is no ordinary revenge thriller. While the film adopts the conventions of the genre, it resists its clichés at every turn, focusing instead on the ambiguity of the protagonist. Sun-woo is not easily defined by good or evil, and the reasons for his fall from grace are never fully revealed. Just as there is no clear explanation, there is no resolution. Though it didn’t match the domestic box office success of Kim Jee-woon’s previous film, A Tale of Two Sisters (2003), A Bittersweet Life earned widespread acclaim overseas. Its bold subversion of genre conventions drew international attention to Kim, leading to offers from Hollywood and France, while Lee Byung Hun—hailed as “the Alain Delon of Korea”—emerged as the defining face of Korean noir. (HUH Namwoong)