I Saw The Devil - In Search Of Humanity
Thoughts On: I Saw The Devil (악마를 보았다, 2010)
Made by Kim Jee-woon, this is the South Korean film of the series.
Much like Japanese cinema of the 90s and early 2000s is known--especially in the international sphere--for its surreal, ghostly horrors, South Korean cinema of the modern period is known for its crime/revenge films. I Saw The Devil can then be perceived, as a piece of popular or cult media/art, to be an equal to films such as The Ring or Audition. It seems to be caught in the same bubble as the likes of Memories of Murder, The Wailing and Oldboy, all of which have elements of crime, exploitation and horror at the centre of their narratives. Each of the mentioned South Korean films are rather distinct, however. Kim Jee-woon's I Saw The Devil is markedly separate from a film such as Oldboy for its perspective and tone. Where Oldboy is a melancholic tragedy, subtle and ambiguous with its evocation of pathos, dealing with mistakes and the past with patience, I Saw The Devil is deeply melodramatic, expressive with its pathos and, one could say, impatient and impulsive in the realm of characterlogical drama.
I Saw The Devil focuses far more on plot as a source of spectacle than Oldboy, throwing us between spaces and dilemmas abruptly, emphasising not a fluid chain of events, but a jagged contrivance that lays in the hands of its characters. This then follows a National Intelligence agent on his quest for revenge after his pregnant fiance is murdered. The drama in this film is borne not necessarily out of a search for the killer - the killer is found promptly. It is how our main character attempts to take his revenge, catching him and maiming him repeatedly, that formulates the drama and imbues all action with meaning. Our character's intentions are not clear. Maybe he wants only to prolong the murderer's pain, to maximise his suffering, to derive enjoyment and pleasure from what becomes known as a 'hunt' as he continually catches and releases him. However, whilst this question floats rather freely, what becomes rather explicit in this narrative is that evil itself is supposed to manifest as a tangible entity.
In a vast array of films, positive attributes, such as goodness and innocence, naturally emerge as a form of semiotic currency. We therefore understand rather well that good begets good, innocence begets forgiveness and protection, love begets love, sacrifice begets return. Any great adventure or fairytale relies heavily on this concept. In The Lord Of The Rings, Hobbits generally embody innocence and naivety. Alas, it is implicit that, through Frodo and Sam's sacrifice, their love for one another, for all that is good and their initial innocence that they can bear the Ring of great, evil power and eventually destroy it. Here we have just one example of positive characteristics bending the spacetime of the narrative, forming themselves a gravitational pull that attracts evil, yet also salvation and heroism. Such is a fascinating idea we may explore in greater depth at a later time, but let us now realise that, often in a far more simple manner, negative attributes, such as spite and evil, formulate debt. Therefore, we are very aware that, if we watch a high school melodrama such as Mean Girls, the bullies who are presented to us in the beginning of the film are going to end up tasting their own medicine by the end. On a grander scale, we know that, in Star Wars, the dark side are going to fall by the end; good always overcomes evil, we all known and expect this.
South Korean revenge films often play with this concept, which we may align with ideas of karma (as the word is used colloquially) or comeuppance. As implied, Oldboy's use of revenge is subtle; we know not what Dae-Su has done to receive his punishments. I Saw The Devil makes explicit the foundations of revenge. Alas, its ultimate goal is not to just play with revenge as a film such as Lady Vengeance or Kill Bill does, nor is its goal to question revenge from the victim's perspective as Olboy does (or, slightly more abstractly, like films that deal with corporal punishment do: Green Mile, A Short Film About Killing, A Man Escaped, etc). I Saw The Devil seemingly merges the vigilante and crime narrative - a little like Prisoners, but with far more spectacle. It does not necessarily seek to know when and how the vigilante steps too far beyond law. American films often seek to want to know where the line is; we see this in Marvel films, Spiderman, Captain America: Civil War and Black Panther being prime examples. I Saw The Devil does not want to know where the line is, rather, it seemingly wants to know what you become when this ambiguous line is crossed. This is then where evil becomes a kind of currency, a physical, tangible entity that is consumed by characters. We then never feel that they act with malevolence, rather, characters are possessed by it. And such seems to be the significance of hanging the Devil over this film via the title. Evil is the devil's bidding in this narrative, the quest is one in which our main character, so to speak, sells his soul in exchange for the devil's goods - however sensible such an act may be.
To strip some ambiguity away from the boundaries that this film wishes to explore, it would be important to recognise that this is rather distant from the likes of Captain America: Civil War. The questions of responsibility raised by the drama in the Marvel film concern a social line and collective law. I Saw The Devil deals with a personal line: how far can one push themselves before they go too far and they are lost to themselves?
Such a distinction is so important to make as the collective line is far more rigid and set that the personal line. As our main character then pursues and tortures his torturer and fiance's murderer, we know not when his nihilism will exhaust itself; furthermore, when his humanity will rise, when the murderer's humanity will. And that may just be what defines this film: its search for humanity in the darkest places.
I will not speak any further on the meaning of this film. I believe it is shot and performed spectacularly. The writing centralises plot a little too much, and so this is a little tiring at points. Furthermore, the tone sometimes feels undecided and confused, the melodrama too heavy, the exploitation-esque violence not amusing, yet not necessarily horrifying (I must say I respect its commitment nonetheless). There is a lack of heart in this film, but no wonder; it is trying to find some. The key question is then if any heart is found, and I can only say that some is. Not a masterpiece, but certainly striking, I would recommend this.
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End Of The Week Shorts #73
Next post:
Genre, Structure & Cinematic Spacetime Part I
More from me:
amazon.com/author/danielslack
Much like Japanese cinema of the 90s and early 2000s is known--especially in the international sphere--for its surreal, ghostly horrors, South Korean cinema of the modern period is known for its crime/revenge films. I Saw The Devil can then be perceived, as a piece of popular or cult media/art, to be an equal to films such as The Ring or Audition. It seems to be caught in the same bubble as the likes of Memories of Murder, The Wailing and Oldboy, all of which have elements of crime, exploitation and horror at the centre of their narratives. Each of the mentioned South Korean films are rather distinct, however. Kim Jee-woon's I Saw The Devil is markedly separate from a film such as Oldboy for its perspective and tone. Where Oldboy is a melancholic tragedy, subtle and ambiguous with its evocation of pathos, dealing with mistakes and the past with patience, I Saw The Devil is deeply melodramatic, expressive with its pathos and, one could say, impatient and impulsive in the realm of characterlogical drama.
I Saw The Devil focuses far more on plot as a source of spectacle than Oldboy, throwing us between spaces and dilemmas abruptly, emphasising not a fluid chain of events, but a jagged contrivance that lays in the hands of its characters. This then follows a National Intelligence agent on his quest for revenge after his pregnant fiance is murdered. The drama in this film is borne not necessarily out of a search for the killer - the killer is found promptly. It is how our main character attempts to take his revenge, catching him and maiming him repeatedly, that formulates the drama and imbues all action with meaning. Our character's intentions are not clear. Maybe he wants only to prolong the murderer's pain, to maximise his suffering, to derive enjoyment and pleasure from what becomes known as a 'hunt' as he continually catches and releases him. However, whilst this question floats rather freely, what becomes rather explicit in this narrative is that evil itself is supposed to manifest as a tangible entity.
In a vast array of films, positive attributes, such as goodness and innocence, naturally emerge as a form of semiotic currency. We therefore understand rather well that good begets good, innocence begets forgiveness and protection, love begets love, sacrifice begets return. Any great adventure or fairytale relies heavily on this concept. In The Lord Of The Rings, Hobbits generally embody innocence and naivety. Alas, it is implicit that, through Frodo and Sam's sacrifice, their love for one another, for all that is good and their initial innocence that they can bear the Ring of great, evil power and eventually destroy it. Here we have just one example of positive characteristics bending the spacetime of the narrative, forming themselves a gravitational pull that attracts evil, yet also salvation and heroism. Such is a fascinating idea we may explore in greater depth at a later time, but let us now realise that, often in a far more simple manner, negative attributes, such as spite and evil, formulate debt. Therefore, we are very aware that, if we watch a high school melodrama such as Mean Girls, the bullies who are presented to us in the beginning of the film are going to end up tasting their own medicine by the end. On a grander scale, we know that, in Star Wars, the dark side are going to fall by the end; good always overcomes evil, we all known and expect this.
South Korean revenge films often play with this concept, which we may align with ideas of karma (as the word is used colloquially) or comeuppance. As implied, Oldboy's use of revenge is subtle; we know not what Dae-Su has done to receive his punishments. I Saw The Devil makes explicit the foundations of revenge. Alas, its ultimate goal is not to just play with revenge as a film such as Lady Vengeance or Kill Bill does, nor is its goal to question revenge from the victim's perspective as Olboy does (or, slightly more abstractly, like films that deal with corporal punishment do: Green Mile, A Short Film About Killing, A Man Escaped, etc). I Saw The Devil seemingly merges the vigilante and crime narrative - a little like Prisoners, but with far more spectacle. It does not necessarily seek to know when and how the vigilante steps too far beyond law. American films often seek to want to know where the line is; we see this in Marvel films, Spiderman, Captain America: Civil War and Black Panther being prime examples. I Saw The Devil does not want to know where the line is, rather, it seemingly wants to know what you become when this ambiguous line is crossed. This is then where evil becomes a kind of currency, a physical, tangible entity that is consumed by characters. We then never feel that they act with malevolence, rather, characters are possessed by it. And such seems to be the significance of hanging the Devil over this film via the title. Evil is the devil's bidding in this narrative, the quest is one in which our main character, so to speak, sells his soul in exchange for the devil's goods - however sensible such an act may be.
To strip some ambiguity away from the boundaries that this film wishes to explore, it would be important to recognise that this is rather distant from the likes of Captain America: Civil War. The questions of responsibility raised by the drama in the Marvel film concern a social line and collective law. I Saw The Devil deals with a personal line: how far can one push themselves before they go too far and they are lost to themselves?
Such a distinction is so important to make as the collective line is far more rigid and set that the personal line. As our main character then pursues and tortures his torturer and fiance's murderer, we know not when his nihilism will exhaust itself; furthermore, when his humanity will rise, when the murderer's humanity will. And that may just be what defines this film: its search for humanity in the darkest places.
I will not speak any further on the meaning of this film. I believe it is shot and performed spectacularly. The writing centralises plot a little too much, and so this is a little tiring at points. Furthermore, the tone sometimes feels undecided and confused, the melodrama too heavy, the exploitation-esque violence not amusing, yet not necessarily horrifying (I must say I respect its commitment nonetheless). There is a lack of heart in this film, but no wonder; it is trying to find some. The key question is then if any heart is found, and I can only say that some is. Not a masterpiece, but certainly striking, I would recommend this.
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Previous post:
End Of The Week Shorts #73
Next post:
Genre, Structure & Cinematic Spacetime Part I
More from me:
amazon.com/author/danielslack
