Jo Yeong-wook Movies

After wrapping-up his critically-acclaimed "Vengeance Trilogy" with the award-winning 2005 thriller Sympathy for Lady Vengeance, South Korean filmmaker Chan-wook Park shifts gears for this gently comic romantic drama concerning a delusional young mental patient who believes herself to be a cyborg. Convinced that she is not entirely human but in fact part android, Young-goon (Lim Su-jeong)'s health begins to deteriorate as she gives up eating food and instead decides to "charge her batteries" by administering electric shocks to herself via a small transistor radio. As her mental state continues to deteriorate, the troubled young woman takes to donning her grandmother's dentures and carrying on extended conversations with various machines around the mental health facility. Of course Young-goon isn't the only person suffering from a mental malady in this hospital, and it's not long before Il-soon (Rain), a young man with a penchant for wearing masks and a reputation for being anti-social, is admitted as well. A good-looking young man who sets about convincing his fellow patients that he has the power to absorb their personality traits, Il-soon gradually begins to develop a tender romance with the troubled Young-goon. Later, when hospital officials determine that the only way to save Young-goon is to administer electro-shock therapy, the treatment has the unusual side-effect of convincing the would-be android that she has been fully recharged and possesses the ability to fire bullets from her fingers. In reality, Young-goon's physical deterioration has become truly alarming. With little time to lose before the love of his life slides beyond the point of no return, Il-soon enlists the aid of his concerned fellow patients in getting Young-goon back on the path to good health. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

A small time thug collecting debts for the local triad is torn between his criminal aspirations and his devotion to family in writer/director Yoo Ha's epic crime drama. Byeong-du (Jo In-seong) is a twenty-nine year-old Seoul gangster who's looking to rise up through the ranks. Though his ambition is unmistakable, Byeong-du finds his family's financial problems taking a heavy emotional tool as he attempts to intimidate the locals into paying off their lingering debts. It seems that a local real-estate developer is attempting to pressure Byeong-du's mother into selling the family home, but Byeong-du's boss Sang-cheol (Yun je-mun) can't be bothered to care about the problems of his low-level cog. When a rival gang shows up looking to put the hurting on Byeong-du's gang, Sang-cheol blatantly violates the gangster code and Byeong-du becomes right hand man to powerful crime kingpin Hwang Heui-jang (Cheon Ho-jin). Later, after cementing his loyalty to Hwang by killing a local prosecutor, Byeong-du runs into former school chum Min-ho (Nam-gung Min). It seems that Min-ho is about to shoot a gangster film, but first he needs some help getting the script finished. Unfortunately for all involved, Byeong-du's fateful decision to help out his old friend will have tragic consequences. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

A woman looks for both revenge and redemption after spending 13 years in prison in this offbeat thriller from South Korea. Lee Geum-ja (Lee Yeong-ae) was in her early twenties when she was found guilty of kidnapping and killing a young boy, and though she confessed to the crime under duress, while behind bars she dreamed of one day being able to clear her name -- and even the score with the people who railroaded her, including the police officer who brought her in (Nam Il-woo) and Mr. Baek (Choi Min-Sik), a teacher who wronged her in a number of ways. Lee Geun-ja teams up with a number of friends she made during her time in lock-up, including Woo So-yeong (Kim Bu-seon), a thief with a gunsmith for a husband; Oh Su-heui (Ra Mi-ran), who was saved from assault at the hands fellow inmates by Lee; and Preacher Jeon (Kim Byeong-ok), an eccentric man of the cloth who was struck by her gentle nature in jail. As Preacher Jeon helps Lee seek salvation for all she had to do while in prison, her other friends stand by her side as she gets even with her rivals and searches for the daughter she was forced to leave behind when she was convicted. Sympathy for Lady Vengeance (aka Chinjeolhan Geum-ja-ssi) was the third film in a series, preceded by Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, and Old Boy. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

South Korean filmmaker Park Chan-wook directed this violent and offbeat story of punishment and vengeance. Oh Dae-su (Choi Min-sik) is a husband and father whose reputation for womanizing is well known. One day, for reasons he doesn't understand, Oh Dae-su finds himself locked up in a prison cell, with no idea of what his crime was or whom his jailers may be. With a small television as his only link to the outside world and a daily ration of fried dumplings as his only sustenance, Oh Dae-su struggles to keep his mind and body intact, but when he learns through a news report that his wife has been killed, he begins a long and difficult project of digging an escape tunnel with a pair of chopsticks. Before he can finish -- and after 15 years behind bars -- Oh Dae-su is released, with as little explanation as when he was locked up, and he's soon given a wad of money and a cellular phone by a bum on the street. Emotionally stunted but physically strong after 15 years in jail, Oh Dae-su struggles to unravel the secret of who is responsible for locking him up, what happened to his wife and daughter, and how to best get revenge against his captors. Oldeuboi was screened in competition at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival and won the coveted Grand Prix. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Writer/director Kwak Jae-yong followed up the phenomenal success of his influential debut feature, My Sassy Girl, with The Classic. Ji-hyae (Son Ye-jin of Chihwaseon) is a shy college student who has a crush on theater student Sang-min (Jo In-seong). Unfortunately, her friend Soo-gyung (Lee Sang-in) has already begun dating the guy. Ji-hyae helps her friend compose romantic e-mails to Sang-min and sometimes socializes with them, but feels like a third wheel. Sang-min seems to like her, but Soo-gyung insists that it's only because Ji-hyae is her friend. Ji-hyae is clearing out her family's home when she finds a box of love letters and an old journal and begins reading about her mother, Sung Joon-hee (also played by Son), the granddaughter of a wealthy politician, and her forbidden dalliance with Oh Joon-ha (Cho Seung-woo of Chunhyang), a poor boy from the same hometown. The two developed a romantic infatuation, but Joon-hee's father had already planned for her to marry Tae-soo (Lee Gi-woo), the son of a business associate. The situation grew more complicated when Tae-soo befriended Joon-ha at school, and asked his help in winning over Joon-hee. This tale is intercut with Ji-hyae's story, set in the present day. The Classic was shown at the 2004 New York Korean Film Festival. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide

The debut feature of South Korean director Byeon Yeong-ju, Milae (Ardor) follows Lee Mi-heun (Kim Yun-jin), a thirtysomething housewife whose Christmas is ruined when an unexpected guest drops in to reveal that she has been having an affair with Mi-heun's husband, Hyo-gyeong (Gye Seong-yong). After months of marital strife, Mi-heun and Hyo-gyeong move to the country in hopes of a more peaceful atmosphere. However, things are complicated further when Mi-huen is assisted by a handsome stranger after her car runs out of gas. Though the good samaritan (Lee Jong-weon) turns out to be a married doctor, Mi-huen agrees to a strictly sexual relationship between the two. At first, she treats not falling in love with him as a game, but quickly finds herself having a hard time with the rules. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide