Fridae

Hey girls! Get those leather boots out of the closet and keep that eye-shadow handy for for 'tis male-bashing time again. Michelle Pfeiffer whipped some balls in Batman Returns, Uma Thurman made misandric Samurai swordplay look bloody attractive in Kill Bill. And you wonder why men just never wise up. Sympathy goes to Lee Young Ae this time round as the betrayed accomplice of a sadistic child kidnapper, Mr Baek.

Incarcerated at the budding-grove age of nineteen for the abduction and murder of a child which she did not commit, Lee Geum-Ja (Young Ae) is one angry young lady you wouldn't want to mess with. Threatened with the loss of her daughter, she becomes the scapegoat of the disgustingly rotten Mr Baek (played with such unapologetic zeal by Choi Min-sik).

While in prison, Geum-Ja carefully prepares for her revenge by winning the hearts of her fellow inmates with deeds of kindness. They include getting rid of a bullying lesbian inmate by feeding her bleach, and donating her kidney to an inmate who suffers from kidney failure. And all these she does with a smile on her face. Upon her release from prison after thirteen years, she finally sets out to seek revenge on Mr Baek, with the help of her former prison mates. And also to reclaim her estranged daughter. But not before revamping her wardrobe with some chic leather pumps and a black leather coat that looks suspiciously Guccian. But of course darlings, style is all that matters'

And style Lady Vengeance has loads! Director Park Chan-wook possesses a distinct way of story telling that is muscular and taut. He is able to juggle several subplots and somehow make them feel as if they are part of the main narrative, rather than just mere digressions. The cinematography works very well with the seamless editing to create a sustained manga-inspired energy which pulses through the film like a sonorous war-cry preceding an imminent bloodshed. Especially virtuoso is the film's ability to jump between various time frames and still maintain a smoothness and coherence in advancing the story. The beginning of the film that introduces the history of Geum-Ja's incarceration is one such indicator.

The third instalment in director Park Chan-wook's Vengeance Trilogy (the two previous being Sympathy for Mr Vengeance and Cannes-award-winner Old Boy), Lady Vengeance, like its predecessors, is an amalgam of violence and dark humour: one cringes at the perversities on screen while relishing the bizarre imagination that gave birth to them. Some instances: when Mr Baek gets up from the dining table and proceeds nonchalantly to his wife seated opposite him, and begins humping her right there at the spot; or when Guem-Ja pours bleach into the meal of the bullying inmate she wants to exterminate, all the while undetected by the latter because she is so touched by Guem-Ja 'kindness' that she keeps looking into her eyes saying she only prefers plumpish girls.

Parodic and kitschy at times, there is nevertheless a strong Grecian urgency in the Lady Vengeance's story of revenge. Geum-Ja is a character who is not only driven by the rage of getting even with her betrayer, she is also one that is plagued by purity issues concerning her failed role as a dutiful mother and a sinning disciple to the grace of God's teachings. Very self-flagellating I might say.

But award-winning actress Lee Young Ae, last seen as the long suffering maiden in the hit Korean TV drama A Jewel in The Palace, does such a great job in making her suffering and rage painfully real. Hers is a face whose compulsion for expressions has been deadened by years of imprisonment; any sign of amiability is an indication of an enacted emotion whose motivation is to manipulate those around her into helping her achieve her revenge. However, signs of genuine sadness, regret and hope of forgiveness shines forth like some CGI-enhanced foundation ' the artworks of Pierre et Gilles come to mind ' when she finally reunites with her daughter.

For this role Young Ae was tipped as a strong contender for the Volpi Cup for Best Actress at the Venice Film Festival 2005 for this role (Sammi Cheng was one of her competitors for her starring role in Stanley Kwan's Everlasting Regret). And equally compelling is actor Kim Bu-Seon who, having played the role of revenge-seeking hobo in Old Boy, is now the tormentor. Despite his limited screen time, he infuriates and provokes with his darkly humorous portrayal of an evil and unrepentant man.

The interplay between these two leads gets even more exciting when the table is turned ' when the tormentor becomes the tormented. Watch out for the grisly scene in the derelict school near the end of the film. Let's just say that when you want to dice a person to bits, keep a raincoat handy. To say anything more would spoil all the fun.

Watch out also for a surprise cameo by Old Boy co-star, the dishy Yu Ji-tae.