A bleeding man, a rifle, and 50 years of Korean trauma hiding in one cave.
A man wanders around the mountains with a bleeding leg, holding a rifle in his hand. Seemingly a fugitive, he runs from as-yet unknown pursuers, but he also seems to be following somebody who has already walked the same path. As he hides in a secluded cave, past memories sweep through his exhausted mind, memories of lifelong cowardice and evasion. And this recollection leads to a reconstruction of early 20th century Korean history. Winner of Best Picture (Nam-a Pictures Co., Ltd.), Best Actor (Ha Myung-joong), Best Art Direction (Kim Yoo-joon), Best Lighting (Son Young-cheol) at the 14th Grand Bell Awards. (source: Jiro Hong, koreanfilm.org)
Direction
Yu Hyun-mok turns a cave into a cathedral of guilt.
Cinematography
Mountain landscapes that swallow human suffering whole.
Acting
Ha Myung-joong's exhaustion feels earned, not performed.
Director
Yu Hyun-mok
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Released during Park Chung-hee's authoritarian rule, the film's critique of collaboration cleverly disguised itself as historical drama to evade censorship.
Yu Hyun-mok shot the cave scenes in actual Korean mountain locations so remote the crew had to carry equipment on foot for hours.
No ratings yet
Sign in to join the discussion — comments are spoiler-gated to your watch progress.
Discussion starters
KR
