Lady Vengeance (2005)

Directed by Park Chan-wook. Starring Lee Young-ae, Choi Min-sik, Kim Si-hoo, Oh Dal-su, Go Soo-hee, Lee Seung-shin, Nam Il-woo, Kim Byeong-ok, Kwon Yea-young, Seo Young-ju. [R]

After serving a thirteen-year prison term for the kidnapping and murder of a young child (a crime to which she confessed), Lee Young-ae is released and sets out on a complicated plot to re-enter the life of the daughter she had to give up after being put away, and to exact revenge on the man who was actually responsible (Choi Min-sik). Unsettling but darkly stylish thriller deals in ugly (and no uncertain) terms, but is sharply crafted and mordantly funny enough so that it never becomes a fully repellent experience. It’s a challenge, however, to submerge into the beautiful brutality because of the initially indistinct chronology and murky dramatic stakes that take considerable time to clarify (though the prudish may never get far enough, especially when violence is aimed at children). The director’s imposing aesthetic and a dynamite lead performance from Lee Young-ae (plus a disturbing one from Choi Min-Sik) counteract the storytelling flaws and artificial contrivances. Final installment in Park’s “Vengeance Trilogy” (alongside Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance and Oldboy).

69/100